It shall be the duty of the Director to preside at all meetings and Table functions.
She shall appoint all officers, with the exception of the First Associate Director
and the Second Associate Director. She shall appoint the Standing and Special
Committees and shall serve as ex-officio member of all committees, except the
Nominating Committee. The Director shall comply with all duties and
responsibilities at the Local, State, and Alliance levels as stated in the PART of
Laredo Handbook. She shall also oversee that all officers are complying with their
duties and responsibilities at the Local, State, and Alliance levels as stated in the
PART of Laredo Handbook.
It shall be the duty of the First Associate Director to preside in the absence of the
Director. She shall oversee the Standing Committees. She will also comply with
the duties and responsibilities at the Local, State, and Alliance levels as stated in
the PART of Laredo Handbook.
It shall be the duty of the Second Associate Director to preside in the absence of
the Director and First Associate Director. She shall oversee the Special
Committees. She will also comply with the duties and responsibilities as stated in
the PART of Laredo Handbook. She shall also assume the duties of the First
Associate Director in her absence or vacancy of that office.
It shall be the duty of the Recording Secretary to keep the minutes of each
meeting. She shall file all minutes in the form of a journal and turn them over to
the Historian(s) at the end of her term. She shall conduct roll call at all meetings
and keep a record of attendance for the year. The Recording Secretary must turn
over to the appointed successor copies of the minutes and the attendance record
by May 31 of the appointed year. She shall comply with all duties and
responsibilities as stated in the PART of Laredo Handbook.
It shall be the duty of the Corresponding Secretary to handle all correspondence
pertaining to the affairs of the Pan American Round Table of Laredo and to read
the correspondence at the meetings. She shall comply with all duties and
responsibilities as stated in the PART of Laredo Handbook.
It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to collect all dues and fees, to accept all
donations to the Table, and to record under specific caption all money received.
She shall disburse money as the Table may direct, and or at the discretion of the
Director, and shall present a full account at the September and May meetings and
whenever called upon by the Director. She shall send a statement of dues to
members who have not paid their dues by the October meeting. The Treasurer
shall serve as a Chairperson of the Finance Committee and prepare and file
necessary reports to the State and to the Alliance. To file form 990-N (e-Post
card) with IRS, annually by June 15. Checks issued must be signed by two
officers, the Treasurer and the Director. In case of absence of either one, the First
Associate Director will assume this duty. The Treasurer shall comply with all
duties and responsibilities at the Local, State, and Alliance levels as stated in the
PART of Laredo Handbook.
It shall be the duty of the Custodian( s) of the Flags and Native Costumes of Pan
American Nations to be responsible for the flags and all other properties of the
PART of Laredo. In the event of her absence, she shall delegate responsibility for
setting up the flags to another member. The Custodian of the Flags and Native
Costumes of Pan American Nations shall comply with all duties and
responsibilities at the Local, State, and Alliance levels as stated in the PART of
Laredo Handbook.
It shall be the duty of the Parliamentarian to ensure that meetings are conducted
according to the Robert's Rules of Order (latest edition), and that all proceedings
will be in compliance with the PART of Laredo Constitution and Bylaws. The
Parliamentarian shall also comply with all duties and responsibilities at the Local,
State, and Alliance levels as stated in the PAR I of Laredo Handbook.
It shall be the duty of the Historian(s) to collect and preserve materials pertaining
to the historical interest of the Pan American Round Table. The Historian(s) shall
comply with all duties and responsibilities at the Local, State, and Alliance levels
as stated in the PART of Laredo Handbook.
It shall be the duty of the Chairperson(s) of the Scholarship Committee to comply
with all duties and responsibilities of this committee as stated in the PART of
Laredo Handbook.
It shall be the duty of the Immediate Past Director to serve as a member of the
Executive Board. To serve as guide and counsel to the current Table Director and
to comply with all duties and responsibilities as stated in the PART of Laredo
Handbook.
The object of this organization shall be to provide mutual knowledge,
understanding, and friendship among the women of the countries of the American
Continent.
Pan American Round Table of Laredo is organized exclusively for charitable and
educational purposes; including, for such purposes, the making of distributions to
organizations that qualify as exempt organizations under section 501 ( c) (3) of the
Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal code.
Dues are payable no later than the November meeting. Each member shall pay
the meal costs and for her guest(s) on the day of the meeting. The Table will pay
the meal costs for any guests of the Table.
Non-payment of dues by the November meeting shall be cause for a member's
name to be dropped from the membership roster, provided Dues Notices have
been sent to her by the Treasurer. Final action will be taken by the Executive
Board.
The dues of all Active Members shall be $100.00. This covers the following:
$30.00 for Alliance, State and Local fees and expenses, $60.00 for half of the cost
of the total meals, and $10. 00 to be assessed for the local Scholarship Fund. All
the fees are subject to change.
Active Honorary and Honorary Members are not assessed dues, but will pay full
cost of the meal when attending a meeting.
The dues to be assessed to Associate Members shall be $40.00 ($30.00 for
Alliance, State and Local fees and expenses and $10.00 for the Local Scholarship
Fund). The Associate Member will pay full cost of the meal when attending a
meeting.
Any active member in good standing who wishes to resign from the Table shall
send in her written resignation to the Table Director, prior to the new PART year,
accompanied by any balance due.
Nomination of New Members
A. The Nomination Form must be submitted to the Membership Committee
at any time prior to the March meeting. The voting will be in May of the
nominating year.
B. The individual must be sponsored by two active members in good
standing. No Active Member may sponsor more than two candidates for
membership in any one PART year.
C. The candidate must have attended at least two meetings, prior to the
March meeting at which time the candidate's nomination will be presented
to the membership for consideration prior to her election in the same
nominating year.
D. Biographical information on the prospective members will be given to all
active members at the March meeting. Election is to be held in May of the
nominating PART year.
Election
A. Election of new members shall take place at the May meeting.
B. The Membership Committee will distribute to the Active and Active
Honorary Membership an official printed ballot listing the proposed
candidates, together with their qualifications and the names of their
sponsors.
C. The Active and Active Honorary Members present will cast a ballot vote.
Those candidates receiving 2/3 majority vote by the attending Active and
Active Honorary Members will be invited to join.
Membership Roster
If the number of eligible candidates elected brings the membership over the State
Constitutional Limit of 150, the appropriate number of candidates receiving the
highest number of positive votes will automatically be designated for invitation,
and the remaining elected candidates will constitute a waiting list to be issued
invitations as vacancies occur.
Record Keeping
All applications, biographical information, and other pertinent information will be
kept by the Membership Chairperson and shall be her sole responsibility until
they are turned over to the Recording Secretary at the end of the year for recordkeeping.
The Duties and Responsibilities of all committee members are stated in the PART of Laredo
Handbook. All committee members will be appointed by the Table Director with the assistance
of the Executive Board.
Standing Committees
A. The Executive Board shall be composed of the Officers, the Immediate
Past Director, and any member who is a State Officer. The present Table
Director shall serve as Chairperson.
B. The Membership Committee shall consist of three (3) at-large members
and two (2) former Table Directors for a total of five (5) members of
which one (1) of the fom1er Table Directors will serve as Chairperson.
C. The Finance Committee shall be composed of the Treasurer who will
serve as Chairperson, two (2) assistants, and five (5) members who will
serve as Finance Advisory Members.
D. The Scholarship Committee shall be composed of four (4) members, of
which one (1) will serve as Chairperson.
E. The Program and the Decoration Committee shall be composed of all
Directors of the Day assigned for the PART of Laredo year and will do the
decorations for all meetings and social events for the PART of Laredo
year. The First Associate Director will serve as Chairperson.
F. The Telephone Committee shall be composed of members appointed by
the Director, one of which will serve as the Chairperson.
G. The Nominating Committee shall be composed of five (5) members
appointed by the Director one of which will serve as Chairperson.
H. The Custodian of the Flags and Native Costumes of the Pan American
Nations Committee shall be composed of four (4) members of which one
of the members of the Custodian(s) of the Flags and Native Costumes of
the Pan American Nations shall serve as Chairperson(s).
I. Educating For Peace Committee shall be composed of four ( 4) members
of which one will serve as chair.
Special Committees
A. The Revisions Committee shall be composed of the Parliamentarian who
will serve as Chairperson, three (3) at-large members, two (2) former
officers, and the Executive Committee members.
B. The Protocol Committee shall be composed of three (3) members, of
which one ( l) will serve as Chairperson.
C. The Courtesy Committee shall be composed of a minimum of four (4)
members of which one (l) will serve as Chairperson.
D. The Publicity/Electronic Communications Committee shall be composed
of a minimum of three (3) members, of which one (1) will serve as
Chairperson.
E. The Credentials Committee shall be composed of a minimum of three (3)
members, of which one (1) will serve as Chairperson.
Meetings shall be held monthly from September to May inclusive, with the
following exceptions:
A. No meeting shall be held in the month of February.
B. The duration of the regular business meeting will be limited to 2 hours,
one hour to conduct business and the second hour will be devoted to the
program or to the presenter. Social time will follow the business and the
program.
Members' guests are welcome at all meetings and social events except at Special
Called meetings. All individuals attending meetings will pay for full cost of meal.
Special meetings may be called at the discretion of the Director.
A. Any meeting called by the Director for the purpose of transacting business
shall be considered the equivalent of a regular meeting.
B. Every member must feel it her duty to be present at all called meetings.
A quorum shall consist of one-third (1/3) of the Active Membership present. Any
motion introduced during a meeting will require a 2/3 majority vote of the
attending voting members in order to pass.
Debate during a meeting comes after a motion has been made and the members
wish to debate the issues related to the motion. The Director/chair calls for the
debate which will be limited to 20 minutes unless waived by the Director. Each
side (the pros and cons) will have 10 minutes to debate. Up to 10 speakers (5 for
each side) will be recognized and allowed 2 minutes each to speak. Once having
spoken, no member will be allowed to have a second opportunity to speak. The
parliamentarian will keep time, the director will recognize the speakers. Members
will not be permitted to take the floor unless recognized by the director (chair). At
any time the Director may invoke Executive Privilege and amend the rules as
necessary.
Electronic Meetings and Communications
A. The Electronic Meetings of the Table may be held at the discretion of the
director via e-mail, telephone, or other electronic devices that do not
require members to be present at the same location or at the same time.
The duration of such meetings will be two hours. Written or verbal notes
will be taken from those without e-mail. A quorum will consist of (1/3) of
the majority of the active members in attendance and shall be determined
before a motion can be made or a vote can be taken. The Recording
Secretary is responsible for preparing minutes for all Special Electronic
Meetings.
B. Pan American Round Table, as an organization, is a non-political, non-sectarian,
non-commercial, non-federated and non-profit and is a
charitable and educational organization. Periodically, PART of Laredo
will send newsletters, emails, it's handbook and electronic messages via
social networks with the intent to communicate, share information and
provide directives to its members concerning the table. Members should
make every effort to share information and send messages which are non-political
and non-sectarian in nature so as to respect the purpose of the
organization as stated in the PARTT Constitution, Article V Section 2.
Efforts should be made to consider the time the message is sent so as not
to disturb the sleeping /resting habits of the members.
To promote their work in Pan Americanism, at least one (1) student enrolled in a
local college or university, who meets the table's established criteria shall be
awarded a scholarship. The amount is to be determined by the Scholarship
The PART of Laredo does not lend any of its property to any party regardless of
Circumstances.
SECTION I
PART of Laredo Constitution and Bylaws, latest edition
A. The Constitution and Bylaws may be amended in whole or part by the
affirmative vote of two-thirds (2/3) majority of voting members present at
a regular meeting, providing due notice of amendments has been given at
the previous regular meeting.
B. The Revisions Committee Members will provide copies of the PART of
Laredo Constitution and Bylaws to be printed in whole in the annual
PART of Laredo Handbook.
SECTION 2
PART of Laredo Handbook, latest edition
A. The Executive Committee will review yearly and make the recommended
amendments.
B. Copies will be printed for the membership yearly.
SECTION 3
PARTT Protocol, latest edition
SECTION 4
Robert's Rules of Order, latest edition, shall govern the Table in all cases not
covered by the Constitution and Bylaws, PART of Laredo Handbook. latest
edition.
PART of Laredo Constitution and Bylaws: Sept, 2017
PARTT Constitution & Bylaws, 2019
Revised: November, 1980
September, 1985
September, I 988
October, 1988
November, 1989
September, 1992
May, 1995
April, 1998
September, 2001
October, 2002
November 8, 2003
February l3, 2008
May,2012
March 28, 20 l 3
May,2015
May, 2017
September, 2017
May, 2022
2021- 2023 REVISIONS COMMITTEE
Chairperson: Rosa Maria Vida, Ph.D.
Member-at-Large:
Inna Villarreal, Parliamentarian
Ana P. Flores
Lola 0. Norris, Ph.D.
Angie Ruiz
Perla Ines Gonzalez
Julia Bird Muller
Executive Committee
Thelma Porras Nance, Table Director
Kimberly J. Alexander, 1st Associate Director
Lola O. Norris, Ph.D., 2nd Associate Director
Angela "Mannie" V. Hachar & Claudia Cabello,
Recording Secretaries
Diana L. Czar, Treasurer
Elvira Jackson, Corresponding Secretary
Irma Villarreal, Parliamentarian
Diana S. Pena & Sandra B. Vinals, Historians
Amelia Ramirez, Custodian of the Flags and Native
Costumes of the Pan American Nations
Elia Norma Barrera & Lupita L. Ramirez, Scholarship Chairs
Mary Ann B. Garcia, lmmediate Past Director
Rosa Maria Vida, Ph.D. & Ana Pena Flores,
State Officers
