BYLAWS

ALUMNI ASSOCIATION THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS MEDICAL BRANCH AT GALVESTON SCHOOL OF MEDICINE

ARTICLE I.  NAME

The name of the Association shall be Alumni Association of The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston School of Medicine.

ARTICLE II.  PURPOSES

The objectives of this Association shall be to advance the cause of medical education, to promote the interests of The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and to encourage participation of all alumni in activities of the University.

ARTICLE III.  MEMBERSHIP

Section 1: Those eligible to be members of the Association include: (a) All those who have graduated from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston School of Medicine; (b) all those who have been members of the medical house staff of the UTMB Hospitals; and (c) all members of the faculty who are not graduates of The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.

Section 2: Honorary Members may be elected by the Board of Trustees.

Section 3: The membership of the Association shall be classified as follows:

 (a)  Active Members – those who are current in their Association dues payments;

 (b)  Life Members – those who have paid life membership dues; and

 (c)  Honorary Members – those who have been elected to this category.

ARTICLE IV.  DUES

Section 1: Life membership, payable only once, shall be available at an amount to be determined by the Board of Trustees and shall be deposited in the Life Members Endowment Fund at the University of Texas System.

Section 2: Annual dues for all Active Members shall be determined by the Board of Trustees

Section 3: Annual dues will be in effect from January 1 through December 31 of each year.

Section 4: Honorary Members shall pay no dues.

ARTICLE V.  BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Section 1: The affairs of the Association shall be conducted by the Board of Trustees with the exception of (1) the amendment or repeal of these Bylaws or any part thereof; and (2) the election of officers and trustees of the Association.

Section 2: The Board of Trustees may consist of twenty-six (26) elected members: one (1) member from each of the sixteen (16) alumni districts and ten (10) members at large. The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston will be represented by the president and dean of medicine of The University of Texas Medical Branch as ex officio members without voting privileges. The elected members shall serve staggered terms limited to three consecutive terms of two years each with the terms beginning at the annual meeting at which elected. The immediate past-president shall serve two years as a voting member and then become an ex officio member without voting privileges. All past presidents may serve indefinitely as ex officio members of the Board of Trustees without voting privileges. The president of the Board of Trustees of the Alumni Association shall vote only in the case of a tie.

Section 3: The Board of Trustees shall serve as the Nominating Committee for the Association. Nominees shall be presented to the assembled alumni at the annual meeting; there may be nominations from the floor. All officer nominees must be from the elected Board of Trustees. Elected officers shall relinquish their positions as district representatives at the time of election as an officer.

Section 4: The Board of Trustees may act and ballot by mail, telephone or otherwise as necessity demands.

Section 5: Any member of the Board of Trustees who has three consecutive, un- excused absences from board meetings will be ineligible for re-election for their next term of service.

Section 6: Vacancies on the Board of Trustees for unexpired terms may be filled by the remaining members of the Board at any time.

Section 7: The Board of Trustees shall recommend to the president of The University of Texas Medical Branch candidates for the Ashbel Smith Distinguished Alumni Award.

Section 8: A member of the Board of Trustees, who has completed his/her term of service, may be re-elected to the Board of Trustees after a two-year interval.

ARTICLE VI.  OFFICERS

Section 1: The officers of the Association shall be a president, president-elect and immediate past-president. Officers shall be elected by a majority of the members present at the annual meeting of the Association. Terms of office shall be two years, beginning at the annual meeting.

Section 2: The president of the Association shall preside at all meetings of the Association and the Board of Trustees.

Section 3: The president-elect of the Association shall preside in the absence of the president and shall automatically become president for the remainder of the term for which he/she was elected should the office of president become vacant. He/She shall be the nominee of the Board to succeed the president.

Section 4: The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston shall provide support and management of the Association’s daily affairs. The Alumni Office shall handle correspondence, maintain an accurate account of proceedings, keep an accurate record of members and provide general support services for Association activities. The principal alumni officer for the School of Medicine and his/her office shall provide support and assistance as necessitated by the activities of the Board.

ARTICLE VII.  FUNDS

Section 1: Accounting of all monies received shall be kept by The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston in compliance with University and State rules. An annual accounting shall be rendered for the calendar year beginning on January 1 and ending December 31. Interim financial statements shall be given at each meeting of the Board of Trustees and upon the request of the president or a majority of the Board of Trustees.

Section 2: All monies paid into the Association by way of annual dues shall be placed in a general fund to the credit of the Association and shall be for the sole use of the Association. Any monies received as gifts, contributions or donations shall be placed in special funds and must be used for the purpose designated.

Section 3: Interest and other earnings from the Life Members Endowment Fund will be deposited into the general fund of the Association. The principal of the Life Members Endowment Fund will be utilized only for special purposes upon recommendation by the Alumni Association Board of Trustees and approval by the president of the Association.

ARTICLE VIII.  COMMITTEES

Section 1: There shall be five (5) standing committees of the Board, including the Nominating Committee, the Ashbel Smith Distinguished Alumnus Award Committee, the Alumni Programs Committee, the Student Affairs Committee, and the Diversity in Medical Education Committee. Ad hoc committees may be formed as needed. The president of the Association shall have the authority to appoint the members of the standing or ad hoc committees. He/She will appoint the chairman of the committees, except as noted otherwise in these Bylaws.

The Nominating Committee shall consist of at least five (5) members of the Board of Trustees and shall develop a slate of candidates for president-elect and district or at-large representatives for recommendation to the Board. Upon approval by the Board, a slate of candidates for president-elect and representatives shall be presented at the annual meeting of the Association for their approval.

The Ashbel Smith Distinguished Alumni Award Committee shall consist of at least five (5) members of the Board of Trustees who shall review nominations and recommend recipients for the award to the Board.

The Alumni Programs Committee shall consist of at least eight (8) members of the Board of Trustees. The Alumni Programs Committee shall assist the Alumni Office in evaluating and developing programs for alumni. Recommendations from this committee will be made to the Board of Trustees for adoption.

The Student Affairs Committee shall consist of at least eight (8) members of the Board of Trustees. The Student Affairs Committee shall advise and assist the Alumni Office in the development of regional and on-campus student-centered programs and activities that contribute to strengthening the relationship between alumni, students and UTMB. The Student Affairs Committee shall monitor admissions, curriculum, national test performance, residency match success and campus life for compatibility with the institution’s core values. The committee will work with the dean of the School of Medicine and the admissions office to assist in the recruitment of the highest quality medical students to UTMB. Recommendations from the Student Affairs Committee shall be made to the Board of Trustees for adoption.

The Diversity in Medical Education Committee shall consist of at least six (6) members of the Board of Trustees. Three (3) members shall be appointed annually to two-year terms. Members are eligible for reappointment. The committee shall elect its chairperson. The committee chairperson may appoint any number of additional members of the Alumni Association to serve as ex officio members of the committee. There will be an ex officio representative(s) from the Office of Student Affairs.

The committee’s purpose shall be to assist UTMB in attaining its core value of diversity in the admission, matriculation, retention and graduation of medical students. Like UTMB, the Alumni Association believes that a diverse body of students should be educated to provide culturally competent health care to the diverse population of the State of Texas.

The committee shall work with under-represented and disadvantaged students to assist them in overcoming any obstacles to their assimilation into the main stream of the student body and in achieving their goal of becoming trained, outstanding physicians.

Recommendations from the Diversity in Medical Education Committee shall be presented to the Board of Trustees for adoption.

The committee shall meet semiannually. The Board of Trustees may remove any member of the committee who has three consecutive unexcused absences from the committee meetings and/or Board of Trustees meetings.

Section 2: A Bylaws Review Committee shall be appointed by the president of the Association at least triennially. The function of this committee shall be to identify needed adjustments within the Bylaws, if any, and recommend appropriate amendments to the Board of Trustees.

Section 3: Ad hoc committees may be appointed by the president of the Association as needed for specific purposes.

Section 4: The president may appoint non-Association members to any ad hoc or standing committee of the Association, if he/she believes their involvement to be of benefit to the Association.

ARTICLE IX.  MEETINGS

Section 1: The annual meeting of the Association shall be held during the annual meeting of the Texas Medical Association (TMA). The date of the meeting shall be commensurate with that of the TMA official calendar for alumni events. The duly elected officers and representatives shall be installed at this meeting.

Section 2: In addition to the annual meeting of the Association, the Board of Trustees of the Association shall meet twice annually. At each annual meeting of the Association, notice of Board of Trustees meeting dates shall be given. Additionally, notices will be mailed to each trustee prior to each Board of Trustees meeting.

Section 3: Special meetings may be called at any time by the president of the Association or upon a written request of twenty (20) or more active members of the Association. Notice of such meetings shall be mailed or e-mailed to all active members of the Association and shall state the reason for which the meeting is being called.

Section 4: A quorum of the Board of Trustees of the Alumni Association shall be one-third (1/3) of the voting membership.

ARTICLE X.  AMENDMENTS

These Bylaws or any part thereof may be amended or repealed by a majority of those present at the annual meeting of the Association, providing that such amendment or proposed repeal shall have been submitted to the Board of Trustees not less than thirty (30) days prior to the meeting.

ARTICLE XI.  DISSOLUTION

In the event of dissolution of this organization, or should its operation ever be discontinued, all available funds and/or assets of this organization shall become the property of The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston.

Basic document approved 5/8/86, revised 5/94, revised 2/99, revised 4/02, revised 5/05