MIDWEST SECTION
of the
UNITED STATES FENCING ASSOCIATION
By-Laws for the Midwest Section – USFA
Adopted - May 3, 1985
Revised - May 3, 1986
April 30, 1988
May 6, 1989
May 5, 1990
Article I - NAME and AFFILIATION
The name of the Section shall be the MIDWEST SECTION OF THE UNITED STATES FENCING ASSOCIATION.
The Midwest Section shall hereafter be referred to as the "SECTION" and the UNITED STATES FENCING ASSOCIATION shall be referred to as "USFA"
The SECTION is a duly chartered, subordinate, constituent body of the USFA, exercising powers given by, performing duties directed under, and subject to, the Charter and By-Laws of the USFA, with jurisdiction over the geographic area as designated by the USFA.
The logo’ for the Section is a horizontal epee, within the Aurora Borealis. The epee commemorates the 1987 U.S Nationa1s in which members of the Midwest Section won the Men’s Division I Epee (Tim Glass) and the Under-19 Men’s Epee (Tony Johnson).
The colors of the Midwest Section are silver and sky blue.
ARTICLE II - OBJECTIVES
The objectives; of the MIDWEST SECTION shall be;
1. The encouragement and development of the sport of fencing
2. The holding of the Section Tournament
3. The development of competent directors (referees)
4. Such other purposes and objectives as have been promulgated in the By-Laws of the USFA
ARTICLE III - MEMBERSHIP
1. All Divisions lying within Area covered by the Section shall be members of the Section and shall support the annual Sectional Championships as provided in the By-Laws of the USFA.
2. Membership in a Section is limited to members of the component divisions.
ARTICLE IV - OFFICERS
The officers of the Section shall consist of a Chairperson and Secretary-Treasurer. The Chairperson will be elected at the Annual Meeting of the Section, by the Executive Committee, from the members of the Section. The Chairperson shall promptly appoint a Secretary/Treasurer who shall also be a Section member. This appointment shall be subject to the approval of the Executive Committee. The Chairperson may dismiss the Secretary-Treasurer and appoint another subject to the Approval of the Executive Committee. The terms of office shall commence on the first day following the election, and they shall hold office until the following July 31, or until their successors are elected or appointed. The duties of the officers are as follows:
Chairperson:
The Chairperson, or his/her designate, shall preside at the Annual Meetings of the Section and at any Special Meetings, and perform such other duties as usually pertain to that office, and are not inconsistent with these By-Laws, and those duties assigned by the Executive Committee. The Chairperson shall become a member of the National Board of Directors, but will not be entitled to more than one vote. He/she shall, within the time specified by the Secretary of the Corporation, file with the Secretary of the Corporation, a report of the finances and activities of the Section for the year.
Secretary-Treasurer
The Secretary-Treasurer shall conduct all official correspondence; keep the official record of all meetings of the Section; keep the accounts of the Section; pay all bills as approved by the Executive Committee; submit at the annual meeting of the Section, a report of the financial transactions of the preceding year. This report shall include a copy of the latest bank statement of the Section account, which shall be a separate account(s) in the name of the Section. The Secretary-Treasurer shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the CHAIRPERSON or the EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE of the SECTION.
ARTICLE V - MANAGEMENT by the EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Composition:
The management of the Section shall be vested in an Executive Committee composed of the Chairperson of each member Division (or an individual appointed by the Chairperson of a Division as his/her representative), the Section Chairperson, and the Section Secretary-Treasurer.
Quorum:
A Quorum shall consist of the representatives of three of the Divisions active in the Section plus the Section Chairperson and/or the Section Secretary-Treasurer.
Special Meetings:
Meetings of the Executive Committee shall be held within the Section boundaries at such time and place as designated by the Chairperson. They can be called at the request of five (5) or more Divisions and must be convene within 28 days. All notices of special. meetings shall state the purpose of the meeting and business not mentioned cannot be acted upon at any Special Meeting.
ARTICLE VI - COMMITTEE
The Chairperson of the Section may appoint such committees as the Chairperson deems necessary. and must promptly appoint those established by the Executive Committee.
ARTICLE VII - ANNUAL MEETING
The Annual Meeting of the Section will be convened during the Section Championship at a time and place whore members of the Executive Committee will have the opportunity to attend.
A quorum will consist of representatives of the majority or the Divisions active In the Section.
The Order of Business for the Annual Meeting. the Section shall be as follows:
1. Reading of Minutes
2. Reports of Officers and Committees
3. Proposed Amendments to By-Laws<
4. Election of Officers
5. Unfinished Business
6. New Business
There shall be no provisions for proxies.
All Meetings will be conducted according to Robert's Rules of Order.
ARTICLE VIII - COMPOSITION OF THE SECTION
As of May 3, 1985, the following Divisions are members of the Midwest Section:
Illinois, Minnesota, St. Louis, Wisconsin, and Iowa.
ARTICLE IX - MIDWEST CHAMPIONSHIPS
All Divisions in the Section will have the opportunity to host the Championship on a rotating basis. Bids for the Championships will be made at the Annual Meeting for acceptance or rejection by the Executive Committee. This rotation is listed below with Minnesota listed first as it is hosting the 1985 Championship!
Minnesota
St. Louis
Illinois
Iowa
Wisconsin
Entries to the Midwest Championship: Entry will be open to all senior and under-19 fencers who are members in good standing of the Midwest Section and the U.S.F.A.
Registration for the Midwest Championship will be completed in advance of the competition. No walk-in entries will be accepted at the Midwest Championship.
ARTICLE X - MIDWEST SECTION CHAMPIONSHIP IMPLEMENTATION SEQUENCE
The following procedure is designed to insure proper and timely communication between division personnel critical to the planning and execution of the Midwest Section Fencing Championship and section officers. It is further designed to see that information on this tournament is disseminated in a proper and timely fashion to the entire section membership.
All communications are to be done in written form using the dates indicated as postmark deadlines.
1. Deadline: First Weekend in May
In accordance with the By-Laws of the Midwest
Section of the U.S.F.A., the host and alternate
Division for the following year's Section Championships will be identified at the Annual Section Meeting the year before
2. Deadline: August 1
The Chairperson of the Host Division shall notify the Chairperson of the Midwest Section as to the proposed date for the Section Championship for approval.
3. Deadline: November 1
The Chairperson of the proposed host division shall inform the Chairperson of the Section that his or her Division accepts or declines responsibility for hosting the Section Championship.
4. Deadline: November 15
Should the proposed host Division decline, the Chairperson of the Section shall immediately notify the Chairperson of the alternate Division, as listed in the fly-Law Sequence, that his or her Division shall host the Section Championship.
5. Deadline: December 1
The Chairperson of the host Division shall provide the Chairperson of the Section with the name, address, and phone numher(s) 'of the individual who will serve as the Tournament Coordinator for the Section Championship -
6. Deadline: January 1
The Tournament Coordinator shall provide the Chairperson of the Section with:
a. Proposed tournament site
b. A tentative schedule of events
c. The names of the individuals who shall serve as the Bout Committee Chair and Head Armourer
d. Tentative budget including proposed registration and entry fees.
7- Deadline: January 15
The Chairperson of the Section shall approve and/or recommend changes to the Tournament Coordinatorts proposed site, schedule key personnel, and budget
8. Deadline: February 1
The Tournament coordinator shall 'provide the chairperson of the Section with the following details:
a. Confirmed tournament site.
b. A detailed schedule including:
1. Schedule for a minimum of ten events.
2. Schedule for all armorer checks.
3. Schedule for a class 5 examination
4. A schedule for the Annual Section Meeting.
c. A detailed budget including:
1. Statement of expenses.
2. Estimated income.
d. Information on hotel accommodations including:
1. Distance from the hotel to tournament site.
2. Registration procedures.
3. Room rates.
e. The names of all Bout Committee members including:
1. All members of the committee shall have, whenever possible, a Class 5 directorts rating or higher.
2. The committee shall have, whenever possible, one Class 5 or higher director from each Member Division.
3. The Committee shall have, whenever possible, at least one class 5 or higher director in each weapon (foil, sabre, and epee).
9. Deadline: February 15
The Chairperson of the Section shall provide final approval and/or recommendations for changes to the Tournament Coordinator's detailed proposal.
10. Deadline: March 1
The Tournament Coordinator shall provide the Secretary of each Member Division with multiple Copies of all information related to the Section Championship and registration forms.
11. Deadline: March 15
The Tournament Coordinator shall, at the expense of the host Division, direct-~nail tournament information and registration forms to every individual member of the Midwest Section. The mailing list for such shall be the current mailing list provided by the U.S. Fencing Association.
12. Deadline: March 20
Should the host Division, in the opinion of the Chairperson of the Section, fail to meet both the March 1 and March 15 deadlines for the dissemination of information, it shall be the prerogative of the President of the Section to take whatever steps are necessary to insure the viability of the Section Championship. This may include the revocation of the host Division's sanction to hold that event and the appointment of a new host Division and Tournament Coordinator.
13. At the conclusion of the Section Championship the Section Chairperson and the Secretary-Treasurer will submit a list of all individuals who have qualified, by fencing in the Section Championship, for the U.S. National Fencing Championship that fencing season. This list shall be delivered to the U.S. Fencing Association national office prior to established deadlines.
14. The host Division shall submit to the Section Chairperson a financial report for the Section Championship, which they have hosted, no later than 60 days following the Section Championship. This financial report shall include a statement of income and expenses. The statement should also reflect the division of profits (net) from that competition with 75% of the net being retained by the host Division and 25% of the net to be forwarded to the Section.
A check for 25% of the net shall be sent to the Section within 60 days following the Section Championship.
Any and all losses incurred in hosting the Section Championship shall be born by the host Division.
ARTICLE XI - MIDWEST SECTION CHAMPIONSHIP AWARDS
Individual Awards:
The Midwest Section shall provide standardized first, second, and third place medals for each event which has eleven registered competitors present at the start of that event at the Midwest Section Championship. These awards will be engraved and ready for presentation at the Championship.
The Midwest Section shall provide standardized fourth, fifth and sixth place medals for each event with twelve or more registered competitors who are present at the start of the event at the Championship. These awards will be ready for presentation at the Midwest Section championship but not engraved.
Senior Trophy:
The Midwest Section shall provide and maintain a trophy to be won by the Member Division whose individual members earn the greatest number of points in the open men's and women's events. Points will be earned by the three top finishers from each Division.
Junior Trophy:
The Midwest Section shall provide and maintain a trophy to be won by the Member Division whose individual members earn the greatest number of points in men's and women's under-19 events. Points shall be earned by the three top finishers from each Division.
Points for the Senior and Junior Trophies will be earned for first through twenty-fourth place based on the U.S. Fencing Association's published point scale for events at the under-20 U.S. Nationals.
ARTICLE XII- BY-LAWS
A. These By-Laws may be amended at any Annual Meeting of the Section, at a Special Meeting called for that purpose, or ballot by mail. A simple majority of all members present will be required for voting purposes; voting by mail requires a majority of votes cast.
B. All other matters not covered by these By-laws shall follow the current USFA By-Laws.
C. The Section Chairperson shall provide current By-Laws to all member Division Chairpersons and Secretaries by March 15 of each year.