Draft #3

Greater Akron Soccer Officials Association

Constitution

ARTICLE I: NAME

The name of the organization shall be the Greater Akron Soccer Officials Association (GASOA).

ARTICLE II: Purpose and organization

Section A: The purpose of the GASOA shall be:

  1. To recruit, educate and assess scholastic soccer officials for all levels of high school competition.
  2. To maintain the highest level of ethical conduct and performance in scholastic soccer officiating.
  3. To adhere to the policies and procedures of the Ohio High School Athletic Association (OHSAA) and the National Federation of High Schools (NFHS).

Section B: Precedence

The order of precedence shall be the OHSAA and the NFHS. The association will abide by the articles of incorporation, by-laws, policies and requirements of each of these organizations.

Section C: Non-Profit Status

The GASOA shall be a not-for-profit educational organization, organized in the State of Ohio under Chapter 1702 of the Ohio Revised Code, and will operate in the spirit, intention, and meaning of Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (as amended).

ARTICLE III: Membership

Section A: Discrimination

Any person regardless of color, race, sex, sexual orientation, or national origin may become a member of GASOA after having met the requirements of OHSAA and GASOA.

Section B: Membership Requirements

AllEach members of this association must be a currently registered soccer official with OHSAA or have previously been granted Life Member status by the GASOA Board.

Section C: Rights of Members:

1. To vote for Officers and Advisory Members of the Board, in any vote to amend this constitution, and on any other matter that the Board, in its discretion, chooses to bring before the members for a vote, in all general and election meetings.

2. To be nominated for office after two consecutive years of active membership, provided that they have attended at least four (4) meetings of GASOA in that calendar year.

3. To receive any awards, citations or recognition pertaining to GASOA membership.

4.To approach GASOA for assistance or to register complaints pertaining to scholastic soccer officiating.

5. To attend Board meetings, or portions of Board meetings, when given prior approval by the President or a majority of the Board.

Section D: Independent Contractor Status

All members of GASOA are independent contractors who are hired by individual schools. They are not employees of NFHS, OHSAA or GASOA. As such, GASOA is not responsible for payment for services or for tracking withholding taxes, unemployment compensation or disability insurance. The only insurance provided to a member of GASOA is through the NFHS and it’s group insurance carrier.

Section E: Voluntary Association

Membership in the GASOA is voluntary. No OHSAA member is required to join GASOA to receive game assignments. By joining the GASOA, the member agrees to abide by its constitution, any bylaws and any decisions made by the Board and not to attempt to resolve grievances with the Association in a court of law.

Section F: Dues and Fees

  1. Annual fees will be set by the Board and are payable no later than January 31 of each year.
  2. Late fees. Members who do not meet the January 31 deadline must pay their membership fees in addition to a late fee of $15.

3.Life Members shall not be required to pay any dues or other fees.

Section G: Suspension of Membership

Any member accused of a felony crime and/or a crime deemed dangerous to minor children shall be immediately suspended from the GASOA pending civil resolution of the matter, and the OHSAA shall immediately be informed of such suspension.

ARTICLE IV: Officers and Advisory Members of the Board

Section A: Requirements

No member shall hold more than one elective office. Any member desiring to run for an elective office must have been a member in good standing for a minimum of two consecutive years and have attended at least four (4) meetings of GASOA in the year of the electioneach of those two (2) calendar years. No member of the Board shall concurrently hold an elective position in any other high school soccer referee association.

Section B: Officers

The elected Officers shall be the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer and Assigner.

Section C: Advisory Members

There shall be four (4) elected Advisory Members.

Section D: Terms of Office

All members of the Board shall be elected for two-year terms, with the President, Treasurer, and two (2) Advisory Members elected in odd numbered years; and the Vice President, Secretary, Assigner and two (2) Advisory Members elected in even numbered years.

Section E: Duties of the Board

The Board will conduct all routine business of GASOA including, but not limited to:

  1. Approval of instructors, rules interpreters, and assessors, and other committee chairpersons.
  2. Recommendations to schools regarding game fees and other matters.
  3. Representation of GASOA to OHSAA, schools, athletic departments and local coaches and associations.
  4. Association financial matters.
  5. Act on all grievance matters to include school and referee situations.
  6. Act on all recommendations of committee chairpersons.
  7. Designate current or former members as Life Members.

Actions taken by the Board shall require a majority vote of the members present and a total of five members shall constitute a quorum.

Section F: Duties of the Officers

  1. President: The President is responsible for the administration of GASOA. He shall preside at all meetings, appoint all committees, and appoint any eligible member to any vacated positions, with approval of the Board, twho serve until the next general election.
  2. Vice President: In the absence of the President, the Vice President will assume all of the duties of the President. If the President resigns, or becomes incapacitated, the Vice President will assume his position until the next election. He shall appoint a Vice President as provided above. He will also perform other duties as instructed by the President.
  3. Secretary: The Secretary shall record the minutes of all general and board meetings. He will be the liaison between the GASOA and OHSAA. The Ssecretary will maintain membership rosters, provide the membership with general information, and prepare correspondence with other organizations. In addition, the Secretary will run the annual general election in odd numbered years. The Secretary may form a committee to assist him in any of his duties.
  4. Treasurer: The Treasurer will collect all fees, dues and other monies due GASOA and will provide disbursements as needed. He will maintain records of these transactions and will report them at general meetings and in a year-end report. The Treasurer will advise the Secretary as to the status of all paid members. The Treasurer will run the annual general election in even numbered years. The Treasurer may form a committee to assist him in any of his duties.
  5. Assigner: The Assigner shall be a certified OHSAA assigner who shall advise the Board and the membership on assignment matters. Determining all individual game assignments is the sole responsibility of the Assigner, independent of input from the Association. Members may accept game assignments from any other OHSAA certified assigner, and any referee certified by OHSAA may be assigned games by the elected Aassigneor, whether they are members of GASOA or not. The Assigner will be responsible for preparing an annual report on assigning activities at the end of the season.
  6. Advisory Members – Advisory Members shall attend all Board meetings, assist the officers in the performance of their duties by chairing additional appointed committees, and performing any other duties requested by the President or Vice President.

Section G: Recall, Removal, or Resignation of Officers

Any officer may resign at any time before the end of their term, with or without reason.

Any officer may be recalled by a three-fourths vote of the membership in a general meeting convened solely for that purpose, provided at least a four-week notice of the purpose and cause of the meeting shall be provided in writing to the membership. To initiate a recall process, a petition bearing the signatures of 25% of the general membership shall be presented to the Board, and the Board shall issue the written notice, and set the date, time, and place for the recall meeting.

Any officer shall be removed from office if charged with any felony crime, or any crime deemed dangerous to children, and may only be returned to office if found innocent of charges, or the charges are otherwise dropped.

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ARTICLE V- Appointed Positions

Section A: Requirements

Any person who has been an active member of GASOA for a minimum of two consecutive years may be selected by the president and approved by the Board for an appointed position.

Section B: Appointments

Appointments will be made at the discretion of the president with the approval of the Board. The appointees may come from the Board or from the general membership and serve at the will of the Board. A person serving in an appointed position may hold more than one appointed position as well as an elective position concurrently.

Section C: Term limits

Appointed positions will run until they have been resigned by the member or until a new president is elected or the Board terminates the appointment.

Section D: Appointed Positions

  1. Assessor- to schedule maintenance and upgrade assessments and written testing with GASOA members so that members are afforded the opportunity to improve their refereeing skills and to advance from Class II to Class I OHSAA officials.
  2. Rules Interpreter- to keep the membership of the GASOA up to date with existing rules, new rules and revisions, and to interpret rules as stated by the OHSAA. To administer the annual written test and forward the results to the Referee ranking chairman. To select instructors, presenters and rules topics to keep the membership abreast of current rules, policies and procedures.
  3. Fitness- schedule and administer annual fitness tests. Analyze and forward the results to the Referee-ranking chairman.
  4. Awards – Prepare a list of all eligible service and lifetime member recipients and order these awards for presentation at the annual social.
  5. Grievance- Entertain, in writing, complaints from coaches, athletic directors, schools, leagues and referees when matters of ethics, sportsmanship and discipline negatively impact the game of soccer. Present such claims to the Board.
  6. New referee coordinator/recruiting- Actively recruit potential new members for the GASOA. Work closely with these recruits and the OHSAA to insure that all test requirements are met in a timely manner.
  7. Referee Ranking- Collect required information with the intent of numerically ranking each referee in the association.

ARTICLE VI- Meetings

Section A: Requirements

  1. General meetings- A minimum of six rules interpretation meetings will be held by GASOA annually. Members are required to attend a minimum of four meetings per year per OHSAA requirements.
  2. A State Rules Interpretation meeting will be held each year at the discretion of OHSAA, and members of the GASOA will be required to attend accordingly.
  3. Election meeting - one election meeting will be held each year after the end of the regular season.
  4. Special Meetings- As required and directed by the President or Board

Section B: Voting

  1. Any member who has failed to pay their annual dues by the published OHSAA start of the regular season will not be in good standing, and will be ineligible to vote during the general election regardless of their status at the time of that meeting.
  2. All members in good standing and present at the general meetings are eligible to vote at these meetings.
  3. Members who are in good standing at the time of the annual election meeting, but are unable to attend the meeting may vote by absentee ballot submitted to the Secretary or Treasurer at least 48 hours prior to the election meeting. A written ballot of selection must be presented to the Secretary (in odd numbered years) or to the Treasurer (in even numbered years).

ARTICLE VII- Amendments

This Constitution may be amended by two-thirds majority vote of the members present at any general meeting, provided that a written notice of the proposed amendment has been supplied to the membership at least two weeks prior to the meeting.

DraftPage 111/7/2018