Article I – Name and Crest

The organization shall be known as the “Messalonskee Rowing Club” or “MRC”

The organization shall be represented by a seal consisting of a circle divided into quadrants, the upper left containing a silhouette of the state of Maine, the upper right a silhouette of the Colby College Miller Library clock tower, the lower right a silhouette of a moose head and antlers, and the lower left the silhouette of a racing shell. Bordering the seal shall be the text “Messalonskee Rowing Club Established 2007”.

The organization shall also be represented by a website at the address www.colbycrewalumni.com and by the associated email address colbycrewalumni@gmail.com

The organization shall be incorporated in the state of Maine per its affiliation with the Alumni of the Colby College Crew of Waterville Maine, and its relationship with the Colby College Office of Alumni Affairs.

Article II - Objective

The objective of the organization shall be to connect the Alumni of the Colby College Crew, encourage financial support of the Colby College Crew and facilitate amateur competition in the sport of rowing. These objectives will be accomplished through solicitations of donations to be made directly to Colby College and the Colby Crew, the regular dissemination of a newsletter to be known as the “Colby Catch”, as well as maintaining the colbycrewalumni.com website, and through the maintenance of the Head of the Charles registration under the name “Messalonskee Rowing Club”. All actions of the organization shall be in the spirit and service of the Colby College Crew Team and its alumni.

Article III - Membership

Membership to MRC is open to all supporters and former members of the Colby College Crew, who are willing to pay the annual membership dues. However, participation in any races entered by MRC will be limited to former members of the Colby Crew. Seniors belonging to the Colby College Crew shall be invited to join the membership at the onset of second semester of his/her graduating year.

Article IV - Dues

Dues will be determined by the board at the December meeting. The membership will be notified within 2 weeks after the December meeting if there is a dues change. Invoices for the following year’s dues will be mailed/emailed to the membership in the month of January.

Dues will not be tax exempt and will primarily be used for Head of the Charles entry fees. Other acceptable uses for dues collected will be for social gatherings of the members of the MRC, donations to the Colby College Crew, or for purposes pertaining to the objective and mission of MRC as determined by the Board of Diretors.

Article V - Meetings

The members of the MRC shall meet via teleconference at least four times per annum. These meetings will be scheduled for 5pm on the first Sunday of December, March, June, and September, although the secretary can reschedule meetings to accommodate participant schedules. When possible the agenda of the meetings will be posted on the colbycrewalumni.com website prior to the meeting date. The Board may schedule additional meetings as it sees fit, but a general notice must be provided via email a minimum of one week prior to the proposed additional meeting. This notice must state the reasons for the additional meeting and the business to be transacted. No other business but that specified in the notice may be transacted at the additional meeting. A majority of the board must be present at all meetings and each Board member is required to attend at least 3 meetings per annum.

Article VI - Officers

The organization shall be managed by 5 officers who will constitute the Board of Directors. The officer positions shall consist of a President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and one Recent Grad. All officers must be current members of the MRC. Any member of the MRC is eligible to be elected unless s/he declares his or her unwillingness to serve. No officer may be re-elected to the same office two terms in a row.

The President shall be responsible for managing meetings, and maintaining the relationship between the members of the MRC and the current Coach of the Colby Crew, the Colby College Athletic Department and the Office of Alumni Relations.

The Vice President shall perform all the duties of the president during the absence of the president, and shall be responsible for overseeing the organization of the various committees.

The Treasurer shall be responsible for managing the financial aspects of MRC including dues collection, MRC checking account and any race entry fees.

The Secretary shall be responsible for keeping meeting notes, managing the communications between the Board and the general membership and coordinating the activities of the various activities.

The Recent Alumni positions must be former Colby Crew members who will have graduated within the past 2 years. A new candidate will be elected each year for a 2-year term, so that at any one time the Recent Alumni positions will include an alumnus one year out and two years out. In the inaugural year of MRC, 2 candidates will be elected for a 1 and 2-year term, respectively, with all subsequent elects serving 2-year terms. S/He will be responsible for maintaining the relationship between the MRC and the current members of the Colby Crew.

Article VII- Trustees

The organization will have no more than four trustees whose duties shall include serving as advocate for MRC and the Colby College Crew, voting on issues pertaining to MRC and advising the board of directors. Former officers are permitted to serve as trustees.

Article VIII - Committees

The Board will also be responsible for appointing committees to serve the various purposes of the organization including but not limited to:

Maintenance of the website
Dissemination of the newsletter
Fundraising events
Alumni social gatherings and reunions
Alumni boats and races
Career networking for Colby Crew Alumni

Each committee must contain at least one Board member or one trustee, and committees must otherwise be made up of current MRC members who volunteer their time. No Board member or Committee Member will ever be paid by the MRC for their time.

Article IX - Voting

Voting for officers will be conducted via email beginning at 12:00am the day before the December meeting and ending at 12:00am the day of the December meeting. Votes will be submitted to and tallied by the presiding President. The candidate with the majority of the vote for each position will be named to office. In the case of a tie runoffs will be conducted in the same manner in a 24 hour period to be designated by the presiding President during the December meeting. Terms of office for officer positions should be limited to 3 years

Any member can be nominated for office prior to the December vote. The nominee must accept or decline the nomination within 1 week of nomination. Candidate bios will be emailed to the membership 1 week prior to the December vote.

An officer may be removed from office only by a unanimous vote of the remainder of the Board, followed by a two-thirds vote of the members participating in an election specifically called for such a purpose. The person charged shall have no vote on such an issue.

Voting on all other matters will be conducted by voice during the meeting in which the issue is presented, unless a majority of members present at the meeting wish to conduct the vote via email, or otherwise postpone the vote for another meeting.

Records of all votes shall be kept and recorded on the colbycrewalumni.com website.

Article X - Dissolution

The MRC shall not be dissolved as long as five members remain in good standing and are willing to serve as the Board of Directors. In the event of the dissolution of the organization all remaining funds or other assets will be donated directly to the Colby College Crew.

Article XI - Amendments

These Articles of Incorporation may be altered, amended or appealed by an affirmative vote of a majority of the Board of Directors.