Indiana Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages


INTESOL Bylaws

(Revised and Ratified, November 16, 2003; Revised and ratified November 11, 2017; Revised and ratified November 2, 2019

I. Membership and Dues 

The membership year shall be for 12 months from the day dues are recorded. 

II. Duties of the Executive Board Officers (EBO): 

The Executive Board Officers (EB) consists of the President, the Vice President, the immediate Past  President, Treasurer and the Executive Secretary. The primary role of the Executive Board is to  represent the best interests of its constituency and to focus its issues related to the education of  English Learners for their social well-being. Their primary purpose is to keep the organization on  track to meet its short, mid and long-term goals and craft responsive policies and related procedures  for the INTESOL organization. 

A.The President shall preside at all meetings, appoint such committees as the Executive Board  authorizes, and have general responsibility for conducting the business of the Organization. The  President shall submit the annual report to International TESOL, and ensure that the annual affiliate  dues are paid. The President shall either serve as or appoint the official delegate to the Affiliate  Council Meeting at the annual International TESOL Convention. The President shall mentor the  incoming Vice President and serve as an integral resource in annual conference preparation. The term  of this office shall be for one year and in the following year after their presidency, serve as  Immediate Past President. 

B. The Vice President, who is the President-elect for the next year, shall preside in the absence of  the President and generally assist the President in the execution of business. The Vice President  shall be responsible for all communications between INTESOL and International TESOL and  other organizations and affiliates and shall promptly distribute communications to the President  and other appropriate members of the INTESOL Executive Board. The Vice President shall serve  as chair of the Conference Committee. The Vice President shall delegate to INTESOL Board  members as Conference committee members to act as liaisons whenever needed and identify  contractual needs for any conference activities. 

The term of this office shall be for one year with movement into the role of President the next year and  Immediate Past President in the third year. 

C. The Immediate Past President shall serve in an advisory capacity to the Executive Board for  the calendar year following the Past President’s initial presidency. The immediate Past President  shall have full voting privileges and shall serve as chair of the Scholarship, Gifts and Grants  Committee and the Nominating Committee. The Immediate Past President will collaborate with the INTESOL Board to conduct the annual election of new officers including the solicitation of  nominations and preparation and distribution of the ballot at the annual board meeting.

D.The Treasurer shall collect membership dues; hold funds deposited in the Treasurer’s care in the  Organization account; pay all funds at the request of the President with the approval of the Executive  Board; make all disbursements by check; maintain proper financial records; and have the books  audited if specified by the Executive Board. The Treasurer is responsible for receiving monies  collected at the annual conference. The Treasurer will also receive advertising revenues. The  Treasurer shall present a written financial report at all regular meetings and a final written annual  report to be published in the affiliate newsletter. The Treasurer shall maintain a register of all paid  members in collaboration with the Executive Secretary. The term of this office shall be for three  years. 

E. The Executive Secretary shall be responsible for maintaining accurate up-to-date lists of the  general membership to the Organization; collaborate with the Treasurer in maintaining a list of paid  members; and maintain copies of the Organization Constitution and Bylaws and amendments thereof.  The term of this office shall be for three years, beginning in January 2019. 

Board Members 

Board Members consist of the K-12 Representative, Adult Basic Education/Community-Based  Programs Representative, Higher Education/Intensive Institutions (or University) Representative, Newsletter Editor, and INTESOL Journal Editors. Members of the Board serve in a programmatic capacity to represent the  interests of their individual interest sections. 

F. The Recording Secretary shall record the minutes of each meeting, call the roll when required,  and issue notice of Executive Board and general meetings. The Recording Secretary shall also  make and distribute copies of the minutes to Executive Board Officers and Board membersfollowing each meeting. Maintain a complete file of approved minutes from each of the  meetings of the Board of Directors until archived on the INTESOL website. The term of this  office shall be for two years, effective in January 2018. In January 2020, the term of Recording  Secretary will move to three years.

G. The Newsletter Editor shall be responsible for the dissemination of news and information  concerning the Organization and the fields of TESOL through the INTESOL Newsletter; maintain  copies of the INTESOL Newsletters; be responsible for the publication and dissemination of the  INTESOL Newsletter; and act as liaison to the International TESOL Newsletter and other affiliate  Newsletters. The term of this office shall be three years beginning in January 2018. 

H. The K-12 Representative shall represent the interest of the K-12 constituency to the Board. The  Representative shall identify key trends and findings in K-12 research and policy and update the board on a semi-annual basis. The term of this office shall be for three years, beginning in  January 2019. 

I. The Adult Basic Education/Community-Based Programs Representative shall represent the  interests of the adult education/community programs constituency to the Board. The Representative  shall identify key trends and findings in Adult Basic Education/Community Based research and  policy and update the board on a semi-annual basis. The term of this office shall be for three  years, beginning in January 2019. 

J. The Higher Education/Intensive Institutions Representative shall represent the interests of the  higher education/intensive institutions constituency to the Board. The Representative shall identify  key trends and findings in IEP and University research and policy and update the board on a semi annual basis. The term of this office shall be for three years, beginning in January 2018. 

K. The Member at large shall represent the interests of the overall constituency to the Board.  The Member at large will also serve as co-coordinator of the Grants, Scholarship and Gifts  committee. The term of this office shall be two years beginning in January 2018. Beginning in  January 2020, the member at large board member will serve a three-year term. 

L. The Student Representative shall represent the interests of the graduate and undergraduate student  constituency to the Board. The term of this office shall be one year. 

M.The Newsletter shall be responsible for the dissemination of news and information concerning the  Organization and the fields of TESOL through the INTESOL social media outlets including Twitter,  Facebook and related listservs. Distributes INTESOL related news to International TESOL  Newsletter or other communication methods and other affiliate Newsletters communication methods.  The term of this office shall be three years, beginning in January 2018. 

N. The Early Childhood Representative shall represent the interests of the early childhood constituency to the Board. The Representative shall identify key trends and findings in early childhood education research and policy and update the board on a semi-annual basis. The term of this office shall be for three years, beginning in January 2021.

O. INTESOL Journal shall be administered by the Journal Editor(s) including the Editor and Associate Editor. These roles shall be filled by  appointment by the board for a term of 3-5 years, beginning January 2018.

III. Vacancies 

A vacancy in any office (except the presidency) shall be filled by appointment by the President with  approval of two-thirds of the entire board. A vacancy in the office of the President shall be filled by  the Vice President, who will continue in the office of President for the following year. 

IV. Terms of Office and Eligibility 

A. The term of office shall be from January 1 through December 31. 

B. Any officer or representative may be re-nominated for the same or any other position on the  executive board. If someone has served on the Executive Board seven (7) consecutive years, he or  she must wait at least two (2) years before serving again. 

C. Three members of the Executive Board Officers, including the president, shall be members of  TESOL. All members of the Executive Board shall either reside or work in Indiana.

V. Standing Committees 

A. Conference Committee. The Conference Committee shall be appointed by Executive BoardOfficers (EBO). It shall be responsible for planning and developing the program of the Annual  Business Meeting. 

B. Nominating Committee. The Past President shall chair the Nominating Committee, which shall  consist of two additional members appointed by the Executive Board Officers who are not members  of the Board. This Committee shall be appointed by the Executive Board. This committee shall  present a slate of candidates for office to the entire INTESOL Board at least thirty (30)  days before the next Annual Business Meeting. The slate shall include the option of a write-in  candidate. 

C. Grants, Gifts and Scholarship Committee. The Past President shall chair the Grant, Gifts and  Scholarships Committee, which shall consist of two members appointed by the Executive Board  Officers who are not members of the Board at the time of appointment and two other board members.  The term of service on the committee shall be two years. This committee shall oversee disbursement  of the Grants, Gifts and Scholarships funds. 

VI. Select Committees 

With the approval of the Executive Board Officers, the President may appoint select committees in  the general interest of the Organization. 

VII. Elections 

A. Executive Board Officers and Board Members of the Organization shall be nominated by the  Nominating Committee and elected by ballot at the Annual Business Meeting. 

B. At least seven (7) days before the Annual Business Meeting, the Nominating  Committee shall send the ballot to the general membership. Voting will occur at the Annual Business  meeting and will be tabulated during the Annual Business Meeting. 

C. Election shall be by acclamation in cases where only one candidate has been nominated. When  there are two or more candidates for an office, a plurality of the votes is sufficient for election. 

D. All candidates will be notified of election results at the Annual Business Meeting. 

VIII. Removal from Office 

If a member of the Executive Board Officers (EBO) is absent for any three (3) consecutive scheduled  meetings without excuse, or from any five (5) scheduled meetings during the year, the position may  be declared vacant, at the discretion of the Executive Board Officers. 

IX. Quorum 

A quorum shall consist of all members in good standing who are present at the Annual Business  Meeting.

X. By-Laws Changes 

Proposed amendments to the By-Laws must be submitted to the membership thirty (30) days prior to  the Annual Business Meeting. To become effective, the proposed amendment must be ratified by a  simple majority of the members in good standing present at the annual meeting along with proxy  votes received prior to the Annual Business Meeting.


INTESOL is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.

9517 Nora Lane, Indianapolis, IN 46240

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