CONSTITUTION
RESEARCH SOCIETY FOR AMERICAN PERIODICALS
Approved 24 May 1991; revised 24 May 2003; 27 May 2004
<Changes proposed May 2008 are highlighted:
Additions or substutions in red,
deletions in blue. >
I. NAME: The name of the organization is the
Research
Society for American
Periodicals.
II. PURPOSE: The Research Society for American
Periodicals
is organized to
offer scholars in American literature and
culture, and all
interested persons, an
opportunity to share in the study and
appreciation of
American periodicals. A
nonprofit organization, the Research Society for
American
Periodicals—
through such outlets as its annual meetings,
scholarly
panels, special
symposia, miscellaneous publications, and a website—provides
a medium
of communication among interested scholars and
expands the
possibilities of
scholarly and critical study of an important
part of
American literary and
cultural history. The sole purposes of the
Research Society
for American
Periodicals are educational and literary within
the meaning
of those terms in
section 501 (c ) (3) of the Internal Revenue
Code of the
1954 or corresponding
section of any future Federal tax code, and the
Research
Society for American
Periodicals shall not carry on any activities
not permitted
to be carried on by
an organization exempt from Federal income tax
under that
section.
(Especially: no substantial part of the
activities of the
Research Society for
American Periodicals shall be carrying on
propaganda, or
otherwise
attempting to influence legislation—except as
otherwise
provided by Internal
Revenue Code section 501 (h)—and it will not
participate in,
or intervene in
(including the publication or distribution of
statements),
any political
campaign on behalf of any candidate for public
office; no
part of the earning
of the Society shall inure to the benefit of any
member or
other individual—
except that reasonable compensation may be paid
for
services rendered to or
for the Society; and in any taxable year in
which the
Society may become a
private foundation as described in IRC section
509 (a), it
shall distribute its
income for that period at such time and manner
as not to
subject it to tax under
IRC section 4942, and shall not (1) engage in
any act of
self-dealing as
defined in IRC section 4941 (d), or (2) retain
any excess
business holdings as
defined in IRC section 4943 (c), (3) make any
investments
in such manner as
to subject it to tax under IRC section 4944, or
(4) make
any taxable
expenditures as defined in IRC section 4945 (d)
or
corresponding provisions
of any subsequent Federal tax laws.)
III. DISSOLUTION OF THE ORGANIZATION: Upon
dissolution of
the
Research Society for American Periodicals, all
assets
belonging to the Society
after the discharge of any and all outstanding
obligations
shall become the
property of an academic institution approved by
the
Officers and Advisory
Board. Such institution must qualify as a
tax-exempt
institution under the
terms of section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal
Revenue Code
of 1954 or
corresponding section of any future Federal tax
code.
(Especially shall no
member or other individual be entitled to share
in the
distribution of any of the
Society’s assets on dissolution of the Society.)
IV. AMENDMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION: Proposed
amendments
shall be
submitted by email
or through the RSAP website
or other approved mail
ballot to the entire membership of the Society
and shall
require approval by
two-thirds of the members returning ballots. All
proposed
amendments must
be circulated among the entire membership at
least one
month prior to the
ballot deadline.
BYLAWS
RESEARCH SOCIETY FOR AMERICAN PERIODICALS
I. CONSTITUTION: All activities of the Research
Society for
American
Periodicals must be in keeping with the
Constitution of the
Research Society
for American Periodicals.
II. MEMBERSHIP: One becomes a member of the
Research
Society for
American Periodicals by paying the annual dues
established
by the Society.
III. OFFICERS: Officers are a President,
President-Elect,
Secretary, and
Treasurer. Upon recommendation by the Advisory
Board and
with consent of
the membership, the Secretary and Treasurer can
be the same
person. An
Advisory Board (which serves also as an
editorial board)
consists of the
Secretary, <changed from Newsletter
Editor> the immediate Past-President, and six
elected members.
The President-Elect, Secretary, and Treasurer
are nominated
by the Officers
and Advisory Board (with nominations also being
accepted
from the floor)
and are elected to a two-year term by majority
vote of the
members present at
the annual meeting.
The President presides at meetings, conducts
necessary
business throughout
the year, convenes a meeting of the Officers and
Advisory
Board preceding
the annual meeting of the Society, and oversees
the
functions of the Society.
The President may authorize expenditures
totaling $100.00
or less that must
be made between annual meetings. With the
consent of the
Officers and
Advisory Board, the President can authorize
expenditures
totaling more than
$100.00 when exigencies arise.
The President-Elect assists the President,
shares in the
program planning for
annual and special meetings, presides in the
President’s
absence, and becomes
President at the conclusion of his or her
predecessor’s
term.
The Secretary keeps a list of members and their
addresses,
handles
correspondence, and records minutes of all
meetings.
The Treasurer manages the treasury and gives an
annual
financial report.
(Upon recommendation by the Advisory Board and
with consent
of the
membership, the Secretary and Treasurer can be
the same
person).
Advisory Board Members are nominated by the
Officers and
existing
Advisory Board (with nominations also accepted
from the
floor). Advisory
Board Members are elected to a three-year term
by majority
votes of the
members present at the annual meeting, two
members being
elected every
year to replace two members whose term is
ending. The
number of
consecutive three-year terms a member of the
Advisory Board
can serve is
limited to two terms.
The Advisory Board helps plan annual meetings,
aids the
Officers in carrying
on the business of the Soceity, serves as a
nominating
committee for Officers
and Advisory Board members, and serves as an
editorial
board for the
website.
IV. MEETINGS: The Research Society for American
Periodicals
holds an
annual meeting at a site selected during the
previous
year’s annual meeting.
The Society sponsors panels and special session
at
appropriate conferences
and conventions. At the discretion of the
Officers and
Advisory Board, the
Society may also sponsor and/or participate in
special
symposia held at
locations appropriate to the study of American
periodicals.
**V.
NEWSLETTER: The RSAP Newsletter is the official
publication of the
Research
Society for American Periodicals. Published
semiannualy, the
newsletter
is financially supported by the Society.
Features may include brief
articles,
notes and queries, an annual bibliography,
announcements concerning
business
meetings of the Society, and mother material of a
brief nature related
to
the subject of American periodicals. The Editor is
selected by the Officers
and
Advisory Board for a three-year term (renewable). The
Editor may select
an
assistant or associate editor. Each member of the
Society will receive on
copy of
each issue of the RSAP Newsletter.
DELETE ENTIRE SECTION V AND SUBSTITUTE:
V.
WEBSITE: The RSAP Website is
the official home of the
organization. Features include brief
articles, announcements, research and pedagogy links, information about
business meetings, membership, and any other related material of
interest to
the membership.
VI. AMENDMENT OF THE BYLAWS: Changes of a minor
nature in
these
bylaws may be effected at the annual meeting of
the Society
by a two-thirds
majority of the members present (quorum of
fifteen
members). Amendments
of a more fundamental nature (e.g., concerning
the
organization, structure, or
membership of the Society) shall be submitted by
mail or email
to the entire membership of the Society and shall require
approval by two-thirds of the members returning
ballots.
All proposed
amendments must be circulated among the entire
membership
at least one
month prior to the annual meeting or the mail
ballot
deadline.
**DELETE ENTIRE SECTION VII AND VIII AND PLACE
IN ARCHIVE
SECTION OF WEBSITE
VII.
MOTIONS PASSED BY RSAP 24 MAY 1991
A.
The annual dues of the Research Society for American
Periodicals shall be
$15.00.
This amount includes membership in the Society, a
subscription
to
American Periodicals, a subscription to the RSAP
Newsletter
(published
twice or three times annually), and opportunity
to participate in
the
activities of the Society.
B.
The President of the Research Society for American
Periodicals is hereby
instructed
to arrange—with the advice and assistance of the
Advisory
Board—the
1992 and subsequent meetings of the Research
Society fo
American
Periodicals to be held within the auspices of the
annual
conference
of the American Literature Association.
C.
The membership of the Research Society for American
Periodicals is
hereby
requested to send the Secretary any items of
interest to the
membership,
such as forthcoming conferences, recent
publications, calls
for
papers, brief queries, et cetera, these items to be
disseminated by the
Secretary
in the RSAP Newsletter. Address such
correspondence to James
T.F.
Tanner, Secretary, Research Society for American
Periodicals,
University
of North Texas, PO Box 305098, UNT Station,
Denton, TX
76203-5098.
Telephone calls can be directed to Tanner at
(940) 565-
2117.
Email communications should be address to jamest@unt.edu.
D.
All persons who join the Research Society for American
Periodicals by
paying
the $15.00 annual dues before 31 December 1991 will
be
designated
“Founding Members” of the RSAP, and their names
will be
printed
in each issue of the RSAP Newsletter.
E.
All person who have subscribed to American
Periodicals prior to 1 May
1991
[approximately 87 people] will be automatically
enrolled as
members
of the Research Society for American Periodicals
upon payment
of
a $5.00 fee to the RSAP. If payment is made prior to 31
December
1991,
these individuals will be enrolled as “Founding
Members” of the
RSAP.
The Secretary is hereby instructed to inform such
persons, by
mail,
of this opportunity.
F.
If is understood by the membership of the Research
Society for American
Periodicals
that the journal American Periodicals is
to be published and
copyrighted
by the University of North Texas Press; that
the University of
North
Texas Press reserves the right to designate the
editorial staff and to
render
editorial decisions. The University of North Texas
Press agrees to
work
cooperatively with the Research Society of American
Periodicals, its
officers,
and Advisory Board; further the University of
North Texas Press
will
cooperate with the RSAP in establishing rigorous
review procedures
for
items submitted for publication in American
Periodicals.
VIII. MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT WITH THE OHIO STATE
UNIVERSITY PRESS, PASSED BY RSAP, 24 MAY 2003:
MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT
Between The Ohio State
University acting
through its Press (hereinafter the Press)
and its Department of English
(hereinafter
the Department)
and The Research Society for
American
Periodicals (hereinafter the Society)
1. The Press, the Department,
and the
Society agree to participate jointly in the
publication of American
Periodicals (hereinafter
the Journal) as provided below.
2.This agreement, when signed by
all
parties, becomes effective on July 1, 2003.
The appointment of the Editor
rests with
the Department and the Society.
3. The Editor will be
responsible for all
editorial functions, specifically, editorial
policy, the reviewing and
processing of
manuscripts, the content of Journal issues, the
preparation of manuscript
material and
illustrative matter for printing according to standards of
style and format .agreed upon
by the
Editor and the Press and on a mutually agreed upon
schedule.The Editor will
consult as needed
with the Press concerning the details of
all advertising, promotion, and
subscription campaigns undertaken in behalf of the Journal,
and will cooperate
in all ways possible in implementing such campaigns.
4. The Press will be
responsible for all
business matters pertaining to the Journal.
These will include, among other
matters,
maintaining the Society's membership list, subscription
fulfillment and promotion,
production and
distribution of the Journal, determining the schedule
and frequency of publication,
soliciting
and selling advertising space, preparing and selling
offprints and reprints,
warehousing and
selling back issues, licensing the use of Journal material
by other publishers, rental of
the
Journal's subscription list, financial accounting, receiving and
disbursing funds resulting from
publication of the Journal, and registration of copyright.
The Press will secure,
schedule, and
oversee the services of copy editors (except for the Winter
2003 issue; the copyediting of
which will
be the responsibility of the Department), designers,
production editors, indexers,
typesetters,
proofreaders, printers, and others, as required to
produce the Journal at a high
standard of
quality and at the lowest feasible cost.
5. The ownership of the Journal
shall be
transferred from the Society to The Ohio
State University Press. The
Journal will
be copyrighted in the name of The Ohio State
University. The imprint shall
be
"Copyright by The Ohio State University." Before publication
of any contribution, authors
will be
required by the Press to transfer and assign their copyright
exclusively to The Ohio State
University
in writing.
The use or republication by
authors or
third parties of copyrighted Journal material will be
agreed upon by the parties in
conformity
with the Press's official policies on permissions. The
Editor will forward to the
Press all
requests concerning rights and permissions related to the
contents of the Journal.
6. The Journal shall be
published as an
annual volume in Winter 2003. The Press
anticipates that the Journal
will be
published as two issues per year (Spring and Autumn) for
2004 and following years. All
parties will
strive to hold strictly to the scheduled appearance of
issues and to avoid significant
delays.
The number of pages per year shall be 224. Any
additional pages requested by
the Editor
will be paid for, at cost, by the Department.
7. The Press, in consultation
with the
Department, will set subscription rates for the
various purchasers of the
Journal. The
Press, in consultation with the Society, will set
membership rates for
subscription to the
Journal by Society members.
8. The Press may dispense free
copies for
the purpose of advertising and promotion,
its own files, and general
office use. The
Press and the Editor will confer on and jointly consent
to the distribution of exchange
and
complimentary subscriptions that serve the interests of the
Journal.
9. The Press will credit to the
Journal's
account in Press records all receipts from
publication of the Journal.
These include
receipts from subscriptions from sale of individual
copies, from sale of offprints
and
reprints, from licensing reprint rights, from sale of advertising
space, from rental of the
mailing list,
and from other sources.
10. The Press will debit to the
Journal's
account in Press records all expenses that the
Press incurs on behalf of the
Journal.
Expenses of two kinds are expected: a) "direct"
expenses, i.e., those incurred
by the
Press specifically for the Journal individually; and b)
"indirect" expenses (including
management expenses), i.e., non-specific expenses that are to be
shared by the journals served
by the
Press. Direct expenses are to be taken from external
invoices, internal time sheets,
and
internal accounting records; indirect expenses are to be
computed on a pro-rata basis.
After the last label run for
the last
issue of the volume year (Winter in 2003, then Autumn in
2004 and following years) if
funds are
available in the Journal's account after expenses are
debited, the Press will
transfer the
amount of $4.00 per RSAP member/subscriber to the Society.
If the funds available in the
Journal's
account is less than this total amount, no payment will be
made for this period.
After funds have been
transferred to the
Society, 50% of the remaining funds in the Journal's
account will be transferred to
the
Department for support of the editorial office.
If no payment is made to the
Society in
any period, no payment will be made to the Department
for that same period.
11. The Press will make a
detailed
financial report to the Department and the Society
within ninety days or sooner
following the
close of each fiscal year.
12. The Department or the
Society may
audit the accounts of the Journals Division of
the Press at any time
reasonably
convenient to both parties.
13. The term of this Agreement
is through
June 30, 2006. After that, the Agreement
will renew automatically for
one-year
terms. Press ownership of the journal will survive this
Agreement's termination.
Nevertheless, the
Press agrees to make a good faith effort to negotiate
the sale of the journal to any
interested
third party, including both the Society and the
Department.