Article II - OBJECTIVES
The Chapter objectives shall be to advance the art and science of public relations in the public interest; to encourage research, discussion and study of the problems and techniques of the public relations profession; to strengthen and maintain the highest standards of service and ethical conduct by all members of the profession; to exchange ideas and experiences and collect and disseminate information that may enhance or improve the professional knowledge, standards, ethics and standing of the membership; and to promote fraternalism within the profession.

Article III - MEMBERSHIP IN CHAPTER
Section 1. ELIGIBILITY. To be eligible for voting membership in the Chapter, a person must be a member in good standing of the Society. Any such member of the Society is eligible for membership in the Chapter.
Section 2. ADMISSION TO MEMBERSHIP. Admission to membership in the Society shall be governed by the pertinent provisions of the bylaws of the Society. Any person admitted to membership in the Society shall become a member of the Chapter, if eligible, upon payment of Chapter dues.
Section 3. RETIREMENT STATUS. Any member of the Chapter who is eligible for retirement status may be recommended for such status to the Chapter's board of directors in accordance with provisions of the bylaws of the Society. See PRSA bylaws, Article II, Section 6. Retirement Status. Members of the Society in good standing for at least five years may be granted retirement status. A member shall be eligible for retirement status only if and so long as the member is gainfully employed less than 50 percent of the time. Members on retirement status shall enjoy all the rights and privileges of membership. The dues rate for members on retirement status shall be established annually by the Assembly at the same time and in the same manner as dues for the regular membership as provided in Section 2 hereof.
Section 4. TERMINATION OF CHAPTER MEMBERSHIP. Any member who for any reason ceases to be a member of the Society or is dropped from the Society's roll for nonpayment of dues shall cease to be a member of the Chapter and shall be dropped from the Chapter roll.
Section 5. RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES OF MEMBERSHIP. Subject to the bylaws of the Society, the right to serve as an assembly delegate or alternate delegate or as a professional advisor to a PRSA Chapter shall be limited to members who are accredited.
Section 6. AFFILIATES. For a fee, an Affiliate may attend Chapter meetings without voting privileges. Such person is not eligible for board of directors' or Officers' positions.

Article IV - DUES
Section 1. AMOUNT. The amount of Chapter dues shall be fixed annually by the Chapter's board of directors and shall be payable in accordance with Chapter fiscal policies.
Section 2. NONPAYMENT OF DUES. Any member whose Chapter dues are unpaid three months shall be considered not in good standing and shall not be entitled to vote, hold office or enjoy other privileges of Chapter membership, provided such member shall have been duly notified.
Section 3. FISCAL YEAR. The fiscal year of the Chapter shall be the calendar year.

Article V - BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS
Section 1. COMPOSITION OF BOARD OF DIRECTORS. The governing body of the Chapter shall be a board of directors consisting of two parts, the board of directors and Chapter officers. The board of directors shall be 11 persons, the president, president-elect, secretary, treasurer, immediate past president, membership chair, accreditation chair, ethics officer, at-large member, publicity chair and the assembly delegate who is a non-voting member.
Section 2. COMPOSITION OF OFFICERS. The Chapter officers shall be six persons, the president, president-elect, secretary, treasurer, membership chair and accreditation chair.
Section 3. TERMS OF OFFICE AND ELECTIONS TO THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS. Each member of the board shall be elected, with the exception of the immediate past president and the first ethics officer, and shall serve a one-year term. Members can be reelected to one additional term in the same office. The ethics officer shall serve a two-year term as recommended by PRSA National. The Mid-Missouri Chapter PRSA board of directors shall appoint the first ethics officer. Thereafter, the position shall be elected by the Chapter membership at the Annual Meeting. The assembly delegate(s) shall be elected for a term of three years beginning January 1 and until a successor is elected. No chapter delegate having served a full three-year term may serve a succeeding term. However, a person filling an unexpired term may be elected for a succeeding full term.
Section 4. TERMS OF OFFICE AND ELECTION OF OFFICERS. The officers shall be elected by the Chapter membership at its annual meeting for a term of one year and until their successors are elected and installed. No officer having held an office for two successive terms shall be eligible to succeed himself/herself in the same office.
Section 5. BOARD OF DIRECTORS RESPONSIBILITIES
The responsibilities of the board of directors shall be: to establish Chapter objectives and formulate Chapter policy for the achievement of those objectives; advise and recommend to the president policies, procedures, plans, and programs; ensure that the business and affairs of the Chapter are conducted in accordance with Chapter bylaws and Society bylaws in the best interest of Chapter members; and individual directors are responsible for attending meetings of the board of directors and performing such duties as the president and board may assign.

The responsibilities of the board members shall be:

(a)PRESIDENT. The president shall preside at all meetings of the Chapter and of the board of directors. He/she shall appoint all committees with the approval of the board of directors and shall be an ex-officio member of all committees except the nominating committee. He/she shall perform all duties incident to the office.
(b)PRESIDENT-ELECT. The president-elect shall, in the absence or disability of the president, exercise the powers and perform the duties of the president. He/she shall monitor and report to the board of directors all committee activities.
(c) SECRETARY. The secretary shall keep records of all the meetings of the Chapter and the board of directors, maintain the roll of the membership, maintain updated copies of the Chapter bylaws, and perform all other duties incident to the office. The secretary shall submit approved board meeting minutes to PRSA National and provide copies to the Chapter membership.
(d) TREASURER. The treasurer shall receive and deposit all Chapter funds in the name of the Chapter, in a bank or trust company selected and approved by the board of directors. He/she shall issue receipts and make authorized disbursement by check upon proper approval by the president or board of directors. He/she shall prepare the Chapter's budget and make regular financial reports to Chapter membership and perform all other duties incident to the office.
(e) MEMBERSHIP CHAIR. The Membership Chair is responsible for the chapter's annual membership drive and other membership promotions for the chapter, including entertaining prospective/new members at monthly meetings. The Membership Chair will also submit a member profile to the on-line newsletter and produce a membership directory. The Membership Chair will provide mentors for new members, as requested.
(f) ACCREDITATION CHAIR. The accreditation officer is responsible for promoting accreditation, preparing candidates for the examination and administering the written and oral portions of the examination
(g) ASSEMBLY DELEGATE. The assembly delegate(s) shall serve as a Chapter representative(s) at meetings of the PRSA Assembly and shall be elected by the Chapter membership as stated in the national bylaws. There shall be one assembly delegate for every 100 members or fraction thereof.
(h) ETHICS OFFICER. The ethics officer shall encourage and inspire PRSA members to practice the highest levels of ethical behavior and professional performance. He/she reports to the chapter president and national ethics officer. The ethics officer shall promote professional development programs, assist the chapter accreditation chair by providing the ethics curriculum for the accreditation exam, and provide ethics education and consultation to local board and chapter members.
(i) PUBLICITY CHAIR. The publicity chair shall issue notice of all meetings, coordinate information posted on the Chapter web site, publicize all Chapter events, and perform all other duties incident to the office. (j)AT-LARGE MEMBER. The at-large member serves the needs of the board and general membership.
(k)IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT. The immediate past president serves the needs of the board and the general membership and shall chair the nominating committee.

Section 6. VACANCIES. In the event of death, resignation, removal or expulsion of any officer, director or assembly delegate, the board of directors shall elect a successor who shall take office immediately and serve for the balance of the unexpired term or until the next annual election.
Section 7. REMOVAL. Any director who misses more than three consecutive board meetings without an excuse acceptable to the board may be given written notice of dismissal by the Chapter president and replaced in accordance with Section 3 above.
Section 8. BOARD MEETINGS. There shall be at least four meetings per year of the board of directors at such times and places as it may determine. It shall meet at the call of the president or upon call of a majority of the board. Notice of each meeting of the board shall be communicated to each director at least seven days in advance.
Section 9. QUORUM. A majority of the board of directors shall constitute a quorum for all meetings of the board.
Section 10. COMPENSATION AND REIMBURSEMENT. No elected officer of the Chapter shall be entitled to any salary or other compensation. The board of directors may reimburse elected officers or assembly delegates or their alternates for their expenses incurred in connection with the performance of their duties.

Article VI- NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS
Section 1. NOMINATION COMMITTEE. There shall be a nominating committee of no fewer than three members, one of whom is accredited, appointed by the president with approval of the board of directors at least forty-five days prior to the annual meeting of the Chapter. The immediate past president shall chair this committee.
Section 2. NOMINATIONS. The nominating committee shall name a qualified nominee, who is a Society and Chapter member in good standing, or is accredited if required by the office, for each officer, director, and assembly delegate whose term is expiring. It shall ensure that each nominee has been contacted and agrees to serve if elected. Additional nominations if any shall be accepted from members at the annual meeting provided the nominees have been contacted and agree to serve if elected.
Section 3. NOTICE TO MEMBERSHIP. At least thirty days before the annual meeting of the Chapter, the secretary shall communicate to all Chapter members the list of nominees prepared by the nominating committee.
Section 4. ELECTIONS. Officers, directors and assembly delegates shall be elected at the annual meeting of the PRSA Chapter. Election shall be by majority vote of the members in good standing present and voting. Balloting in contested elections shall be by secret ballot.

Article VII - COMMITTEES
Section I. STANDING COMMITTEES. In addition to the nominating committee there shall be standing committees on programs; awards and presentations; and Chapter web site.
Section 2. SPECIAL COMMITTEES. Special committees may be established and appointed by the president with approval of the board of directors.
Section 3. COMMITTEE REPORTS. The chair of each committee shall report its activities regularly to the board of directors. All committee activities shall be subject to approval by the board of directors.

Article VIII - CHAPTER MEETINGS
Section 1. ANNUAL MEETING. There shall be an annual meeting in October, November or December each year at such time and place as may be designated by the board of directors.
Section 2. REGULAR MEETINGS. In addition to the annual meeting, there shall be other meetings at such times and places as may be designated by the board of directors.
Section 3. NOTICE OF ALL MEETINGS. Notice of the annual meeting shall be communicated at least thirty days in advance. Notice of a regular meeting shall be communicated at least seven days in advance. Notice of a special meeting shall be communicated at least 30 days in advance.

Article IX - AMENDMENTS
These bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the Chapter members present at any meeting, provided such proposed amendment has been approved by the board of directors and at least seven days notice has been given to all members of any proposed amendment(s).

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