Latin American and Caribbean
Consortium of Engineering Institutions

CONSTITUTION OF THE
Latin American and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions

LACCEI Tax Exempt IRS Documentation

ARTICLE 1 – NAME

This consortium shall be named the “Latin American and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions,” herein referred to as “LACCEI.” LACCEI is a non-profit organization of Latin American and Caribbean institutions that offer academic programs in Engineering and Technology. The word “institution” includes universities, colleges and schools.

ARTICLE II – PURPOSES

The mission of LACCEI is to be the leading organization of Latin American and Caribbean engineering institutions that will bring innovations in engineering education and research, and emerge as a major force in this hemisphere to foster partnerships among academia, industry, government and private organizations for the benefit of the society and the nations.

The goals and objectives of LACCEI include the following.

Cooperation and partnerships among member institutions in the areas of engineering education, research, and technology advancement with emphasis on:

· Faculty and student exchange
· New and/or higher level academic programs
· Dual/joint degree and certificate programs
· Distance, continuing and e-education
· Laboratory development and sharing of resources
· Curriculum development, course equivalency and accreditation support
· Faculty development including higher degrees
· Industry internship, cooperative programs and career development
· Joint training and research programs, and solicitation of funds
· Development, commercialization and transfer of technology
· Dissemination of scholarly achievements and other accomplishments by member institutions.

ARTICLE III – MEMBERSHIP

Section 1. Any institution that offers academic programs in engineering and technology, that meets the membership qualifications specified in the bylaws, and that subscribes to the mission, goals and objectives of LACCEI shall be eligible for membership in LACCEI. Each member institution shall designate a liaison person, hereinafter referred to as “liaison” who will represent the institution in LACCEI.

Section 2. Classes of membership. LACCEI shall have two classes of membership – Institutional Membership and Individual Membership. Subcategories within these two classes; and qualifications, privileges, and voting rights for each category are specified in the Bylaws of LACCEI.

ARTICLE IV – THE BOARD

Section 1. Composition. LACCEI shall be governed by a board of directors, hereinafter, referred to as the “Board,” “Board of LACCEI,” or “LACCEI’s Board.” The Board shall be composed of its officers, the three immediate Past Presidents, and four other members without any portfolios.

Section 2. Authority and Duties. The Board shall be the chief policy making legislative and judicial body of LACCEI. The Board shall establish policies and programs and shall authorize their implementation by means of appropriate budgets, resolutions, authority for contracts and expenditures; by creating and staffing positions and committees; through amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws; and by such other actions as it may deem necessary. The Board shall have preemptive authority over all officers, members, and other bodies created by LACCEI.

Section 3. Eligibility. An individual may be elected to become a member of the Board provided his/her institution is a member of LACCEI in good standing at the time of his/her nomination to the office. Also, the individual must be nominated by his/her institution’s liaison.

ARTICLE V – OFFICERS

Section 1. Title and Authority. The officers of LACCEI shall be a President; President Elect; three or more functional Vice Presidents as specified in the Bylaws; and a secretary. The responsibility of individual officers, except as prescribed by this constitution and the Bylaws of LACCEI shall be established by actions of the Board.

Section 2. Duties

a. The President. The President shall be the chief executive officer of LACCEI, performing all duties required by the Constitution and Bylaws as well as any additional duties specified by the Board. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Board or of LACCEI.

b. The President-Elect. The President-Elect shall serve as a general assistant to the President.

c. Vice Presidents. Vice President designations shall be as provided in the Bylaws. Each Vice President shall plan and administer the affairs of LACCEI within his/her particular functional area.

d. The Secretary. The Secretary shall perform the duties usual to the office of an organization secretary and those required by this constitution and Bylaws or by actions of the Board.

Section 3. Tenure. The tenure of officers shall be as specified in the Bylaws. Officers shall serve until notified by the Secretary that their successors have taken office.

Section 4. Precedence. The order of precedence shall be President; President-Elect; The Vice Presidents, in the order established in the Bylaws; and the Secretary.

ARTICLE VI – ELECTIONS

There shall be an annual election by mail ballot. Every member institution in good standing shall be allowed to vote for officers and members to represent them on the Board, in accordance with the election process specified in the Bylaws of LACCEI.

ARTICLE VII – SUBDIVISIONS

With the approval of the Board, members may establish subdivisions for the furtherance of the purposes of LACCEI as stated in Article II. Such subdivisions shall conduct their affairs in accordance with the Constitution and Bylaws of LACCEI as interpreted by the Board. The Board may dissolve a subdivision for a due cause.

ARTICLE VIII – COMMITTEES

Advisory Committee: The advisory committee will consist of the Chief Executive Officers (Presidents, Chancellors, Rectors etc.) of all member institutions.

Standing Committees: The Standing Committees are created by the Board and report to the Board. Chairmen of Standing Committees and members to fill vacancies on Standing Committees shall be appointed by the President with the approval of the Board. The composition and terms of membership shall be in accordance with the Bylaws of LACCEI.

Ad Hoc Committees: Any officer of LACCEI may appoint Ad Hoc Committee to assist her/him in carrying out her/his duties, provided that the term of said committee falls within her/his own term of office, and provided said committee does not infringe unduly upon the authority of a Standing Committee or an officer of LACCEI.

All committees shall conduct their business in accordance with such standing rules as the Board may adopt for their guidance.

ARTICLE IX – MEETINGS

Section 1: Board Meetings. The Board shall meet at least once each year. Board meetings may be called at other times in response to a request by the President or by five other members of the Board, but only upon notice to all members of the Board.

Section 2: Professional Conference. The Board shall schedule at least one professional conference of LACCEI per year.

Section 3: The Advisory Committee will meet at least once per year.

Section 4: General Business Meeting: There shall be at least one general business meeting of LACCEI each year that will be open to all institutional and individual members. This meeting will generally be held in conjunction with the professional Conference. At these general business meetings, the President shall render a report on the status of LACCEI, entertain suggestions from the members, and transcend such other items of business as may be relevant. Other general business meetings may be called at such times and in such manner as may be determined by the Board.

ARTICLE X – AMENDEMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION

1. No article shall be added to this Constitution and no part shall be amended or annulled, except by formal proposal, followed by opportunity for discussion at a general business meeting of LACCEI and then followed by a mail ballot.

2. Proposal of a change may be made by the Board, or by a petition to the Secretary signed by at least 25% of institutional members.

3. The Secretary shall distribute copies of the proposed change to all members of the Consortium not less than three weeks before a general business meeting, and opportunity shall be given to members for discussion at this general business meeting.

4. Not more than eight weeks after this general business meeting, the Secretary shall distribute to all members copies of the proposed change, an explanation of the purpose of the change, ballot forms, and the effective date of the change, if approved.

5. A change proposed by the Board may, at the discretion of the Board, be submitted with modifications made in the light of the discussion at the general business meeting. A change proposed by the petition shall be submitted in the original form, but the Board shall have the right to submit an amendment to the change in the light of the discussion at the general business meeting.

6. No ballot shall be counted unless marked by a qualified voter to indicate he/his choice, returned to the Secretary in a sealed envelope bearing the voter’s name, and received by the Secretary not later than a date specified upon the ballot form, provided that this date is not less than sixty days after the mailing of the ballot.

7. The adoption of the proposed changes shall require the affirmative votes of not fewer than three-fourths (75%) of the members voting, provided that ballots are received from at least one- half (50%) of the members of LACCEI.

8. The result of the balloting shall be announced to the membership by the Secretary and, if approved, the change shall become effective at the date previously stipulated by the Secretary.

ARTICLE XI – BYLAWS

The Bylaws of LACCEI may be adopted, annulled, or amended by an affirmative vote of at least three-fifths of all members of the Board. The Board shall have the authority to interpret the Bylaws.

Bylaws may also be adopted, annulled or amended by an affirmative vote of at least three-fifths of the members present at a general business meeting of LACCEI. Members shall be given adequate notice of proposed changes prior to such a meeting.

BYLAWS OF THE Latin American and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions

BYLAW 1. EXECUTIVE OFFICE

The Executive Office of LACCEI will be located at one of the member institutions. The staff of the Executive Office shall be supervised by an Executive Director, appointed by, and serving at, the pleasure of the Board. The Executive Director shall be responsible to the President of the LACCEI’s Board. All business matters shall be referred to the Executive Director. The interim Executive Office, for a period of two years, shall be located at College of Engineering, Florida International University, EAS 2460, 10555 West Flagler Street, Miami, Florida – 33174, U.S.A.

BYLAW 2. DEFINITIONS

Section 1: Liaison: Liaison is the person appointed by a member institution to represent it in LACCEI.

Section 2: Member. Throughout these Bylaws, the term “member” appearing without a qualifier shall refer to both the institutional as well as individual members.

Section 3. Notices. A requirement for publication of a notice shall be deemed to be satisfied if said notice appears in a publication of LACCEI mailed to all members or by direct mailing (including e-mail) to all members.

Section 4. Fiscal Year. The fiscal year of LACCEI runs from January 1 through December 31.

Section 5. Membership Categories

LACCEI shall have the following two categories of membership:

· Institutional Membership
· Individual Membership

Institutional Membership: All organizations, including but not limited to educational institutions, business/industrial enterprises, government agencies and departments, professional societies and associations, are eligible to become member of LACCEI provided they meet the membership qualifications specified in these bylaws, and subscribe to the mission, goals and objectives of LACCEI. There will be three categories of memberships within Institutional Members: Primary Members, Affiliate Members, and Associate Members.

Primary Members: Educational Institutions (Universities, Colleges, Schools, and Institutes etc.) from Latin America and Caribbean will be designated as Primary Members.

Affiliate Members: Educational Institutions (Universities, Colleges, Schools, and Institutes etc.) from countries other than Latin America and Caribbean will be designated as Affiliate Members.

Associate Members: All other organizations that do not fall in the above two categories will be designated as Associate Members.

BYLAW 3 – DUES AND PRIVILEGES

The dues for all three categories of institutional membership are $1,000 per year. However, the Board at its discretion, may waive the annual fees for an Associate Member.

A person whose institution is not a member of LACCEI may become an individual member of LACCEI by paying an annual membership dues of $ 20.00.

An institutional member may designate any number of its faculty and staff to become individual members of LACCEI without any additional fees.

All members will have the privilege of receiving LACCEI’s publications, e-mail messages, and will be able to surf LACCEI’s web site.

All members will be able to attend LACCEI’s annual conferences by paying reduced registration fees.

BYLAW 4 – SEVERANCE AND REINSTATEMENT OF MEMBERSHIP

Section 1: A member may terminate her/his membership at any time by submitting her/his resignation to the Secretary or by failing to pay dues within three months of the date they fall due.

Section 2: Expulsion. A member may be expelled for conduct deemed prejudicial to LACCEI by a two-thirds majority of the members in attendance at a general business meeting, provided that such member shall have first been served with written notice of the reasons for the proposed expulsion, and shall have been given an opportunity to be heard by the Board. Due notice of any formal recommendation for expulsion shall be given by the Board to the members.

BYLAW 5 – BOARD

Section 1: Authority. The Board shall set policies and issue directives and shall monitor the work of officers and activities underway or planned in the various functional areas. It also shall meet early in the fourth quarter of the year to review and approve the programs and budget submitted by the President-Elect for the next fiscal year.

Section 2: A quorum shall require the presence of at least seven members of the Board including at least three of the officers.

BYLAW 6 – OFFICERS AND MEMBERS ELECTED TO SERVE ON THE BOARD

Section 1. LACCEI’s Board shall consist of the following Officers and Board Members. Details of their duties and privileges will be developed by the first LACCEI’s Board elected in January 2003.

President
President Elect
Vice President-Finance
Vice President – Graduate Education
Vice President – PreK-20 Education (including Curriculum Development, Course Equivalencies, Accreditation Support)
Vice President – Faculty Development and Student Exchange
Vice President – Distance, Continuing and e-Education
Vice President – Research
Vice President – Public Relations/Fund Raising/Promotion and Publicity
Vice President – Meetings
Vice President – Publications
Vice President – Membership
Regional Vice President I <<list of countries>>
Regional Vice President II <<list of countries>>
Regional Vice President – III <<list of countries>>
Regional Vice President – IV <<list of countries>>
Regional Vice President V <<list of countries>>
Secretary
Board Members (4)

In addition to the above officers and board members, the Board also includes three immediate past presidents. The Executive Director and the Editor-in-Chief of LACCEI’s journal also serve on the Board as Ex-officio members.

Section 2. Precedence. In the absence of the President and the President-Elect, the order of precedence among the remaining officers shall be Vice President - Finance, Membership, Meetings, Publications, Public Relations, Graduate Education, PreK-20 Education, Research, Distance Education, Faculty Development, Regional Vice Presidents (in order of institutional members in that region), Secretary.

Section 3. Tenure. The President and President-Elect shall serve for one year. At the end of his/her term, each president will serve a term of three years as a member of the LACCEI Board. Vice Presidents shall serve for two years but their terms shall be staggered so as to assure continuity with respect to Board affairs. The secretary and members elected to serve on the Board shall also serve for two years. The term of office for all Board Members shall begin on January 1.

BYLAW 7 – NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS

Section 1. Frequency. There shall be an annual election to fill the office of President-Elect. In addition, vacancies in the offices of Secretary, Vice President, or members elected to serve on the Board will be filled at the same time.

Section 2. Voting Authority. Each member institution shall appoint a liaison person who shall be entitled to vote in LACCEI’s elections.

Section 3. Composition of Nominating Committee. The nominating committee shall consist of (1) the most recent past president, who will serve as chair; (2) the president-elect; and five (5) other members appointed by the chair. The committee appointments require the approval of the Board. At least one member of the committee must not have served on the Board.

Section 4. Nominating Procedures. The Board shall notify the Nominating Committee of the officers and the positions on the Board to be filled in the coming election. The Committee shall nominate one or more candidates for each position to be filled. The Committee may invite nominations from the members before finalizing the slate of nominees.

The secretary shall publish all nominations made by the Nominating Committee in a publication of LACCEI on or before June 15th.

Members may submit other nominations for these positions provided that (1) each such nomination is accompanied by a petition signed by10% of the members in good standing; (2) the nominee is in a good standing, (3) written evidence is submitted to the effect that each nominee has agreed to stand for election, and (4) such nominations reach the secretary within five weeks after publications of nominations received from the Nominating Committee.

Section 5. Balloting. On or before August 21st, the Executive Office will mail to all members a ballot plus a brief biographical sketch of each nominee and information about her/his institution. To be counted the ballots must reach the Executive Office on or before October 20th. The secretary will arrange to count the ballots after the close of the elections, but prior to October 25th. A plurality is sufficient to elect.

Section 6. Publication of Election Results. The Secretary shall immediately announce the results of each election to the Board and to the nominees and shall subsequently publish the names of the new officers and members elected to serve on the Board in a publication sent to all LACCEI members including individual members.

Section 7. Resignation or Termination of membership: A person elected to the Board will cease to be a member of Board if her/his institution ceases to be a member of LACCEI on account of resignation or termination of membership for some reason.

Section 8. Vacancies on the Board: A vacant position on the Board may be filled by an appointment by the Board until the position is filled by the next regularly held election.

Section 7. Founding Board of Directors: At the start of LACCEI’s operations all members of the Board of director shall be elected by a majority vote of all founding members in the first general conference of LACCEI to be held in Dominican Republic in January 2003.

BYLAW 8 – SUBDIVISIONS

This Bylaw, giving a description of types of subdivisions that can be created, will be developed by the LACCEI’s Board elected in January 2003.

BYLAW 9 – COMMITTEES

A description of various subcommittees that will be established - for example, Education, Research, Distance Education, Faculty Development etc.,will be developed by the LACCEI’s Board elected in January 2003.

BYLAW 10 – PUBLICATIONS

LACCEI’s will include a journal, newsletter and electronic bulletins on the web.

Section 1: Policy Determination. The Board shall establish publication policies for LACCEI and its subdivisions. The Vice President – Publications shall insure that these policies are reflected in publications of LACCEI and those of its subdivisions.

Section 2: Official Journal. The name of the official publication of LACCE will be :LACCEI Journal of Engineering. Each member in good standing including individual members shall receive this publication.

Sections 3. Editor-in-Chief. The Vice President – Publications shall nominate and the Board shall appoint an Editor-in-Chief for the Journal and other publications of LACCEI. The term of the Editor-in-Chief of the Journal will be for five years and may be renewed only once for an additional five years.

BYLAW 11 – AFFILIATIONS

LACCEI may affiliate with other organizations whose purposes are consistent with Article II of its constitution.

BYLAW 12 – EMPLOYEES

The Board may hire one or more employees to conduct the business affairs of LACCEI or to carry out other activities. The Board may also enter into contracts with organizations competent to service LACCEI.

BYLAW 13 – FINANCES

Section 1. Audit. On or before December 1st the President shall appoint a reputable public accountant or audit committee to audit the books and accounts of LACCEI.

Section 2. Bond. Employees of LACCEI dealing with financial resources shall give bond, with sufficient surety or sureties, conditioned for the faithful performance of their duties, in such amount as the board may determine. The cost of such bonds shall be borne by LACCEI.

Section 3. Withdrawals of Funds on Deposits. The business office shall pay all just demands made upon LACCEI as approved generally or specifically by the Board or by the President.