TEVAL Constitution

The JALT Testing & Evaluation SIG Constitution
– NAME –
The name of the organization shall be the Japan Association for Language Teaching Testing and Evaluation SIG
(TEVAL-SIG) and the official name in Japanese shall be: 全国語学教育会の試験と評価分野別研究会
– AFFILIATION –
The JALT Testing and Evaluation SIG is an affiliate of JALT (The Japan Association for Language Teaching).
– PURPOSE –
The JALT Testing SIG is a non-profit organization whose main purpose is to serve the needs of JALT members who are interested in issues related to the testing & evaluation in second/foreign language teaching. The organization shall foster research, issue publications, hold periodic meetings and carry out other activities to further its aims.
– MEMBERSHIP –
Individual membership shall be open to any JALT member in good standing upon payment of the 1,500 yen annual membership fee.
– ANNUAL MEETING –
The Testing and Evaluation SIG shall hold an Annual Meeting during the JALT National Conference at a time and place announced to all SIG members at least one month in advance of the meeting. Members present at this meeting shall constitute a quorum.
All JALT members are welcome to attend the Annual Meeting, but only members of the Testing and Evaluation SIG as ascertained by Membership-related officers shall be entitled to vote.
– OFFICERS AND ADMINISTRATION –
The Testing and Evaluation SIG Coordinating Committee is the policy-making body of the Testing and Evaluation SIG and is composed of the officers listed in Section 1 of the Bylaws below. Terms of Officers elected at the Annual Meeting or thereafter shall start immediately and be effective as a rule until the election of the following year’s Annual Meeting.
– NOMINATIONS, ELECTIONS AND REMOVALS –

Elections shall be held at the Annual Testing and Evaluation SIG Meeting. Voting shall be done by secret written ballots when there are contested positions.
Nominations for Officers may be submitted in writing prior to the election or proposed from the floor at the Annual Meeting. Any member of the Testing and Evaluation SIG may nominate members in good standing for any position.
Before announcing the results of an election, ballot results, if any, shall be examined by at least two Testing and Evaluation SIG members who are not candidates for office.
In the event of a tie vote, the members of the Testing and Evaluation SIG Coordinating Committee who are present at the meeting shall cast the deciding votes. In the event that there is a tie within the Coordinating Committee itself, the deciding vote shall be cast by the incumbent Chair.
If an officer resigns or vacates their position all Testing and Evaluation SIG Coordinating Committee members shall know of this vacancy for over one week while nominees are sought. Then they shall elect a successor to serve in that position until the next Annual Meeting. Ballots in the case of a contested position may be sent by FAX or mail to the designated officer who is a Coordinating Committee member not contesting the position.
An officer who fails to perform their duties under the Constitution or Bylaws may be removed from office by a two-thirds vote by secret ballot of the Testing and Evaluation SIG Coordinating Committee (excluding the officer(s) in question) if a petition signed by at least 5% of the membership is submitted to the

Committee. The officer in question shall be notified of the petition and offered the option to officially resign.

A notice announcing the officers of the Testing and Evaluation SIG shall be mailed to all SIG members in the first newsletter after the election.

– AMENDMENTS –

Amendments to this Constitution must be proposed by at least three members of the Testing and Evaluation SIG Coordinating Committee or by at least 5% of the Testing and Evaluation SIG membership.
The proposed amendment(s) must be ratified by two-thirds of the members voting by mail or at the Annual Meeting to become effective immediately, by a clear procedure detailed to all Testing and Evaluation SIG members in writing beforehand.

BYLAWS OF THE TEVAL SIG
– DUTIES OF OFFICERS –

PRESIDENT/JOINT PRESIDENTS: The president/joint presidents shall have general

responsibility for overseeing the activities of the Testing and Evaluation SIG Coordinating Committee and for directing the affairs of the JALT Testing and Evaluation SIG. They shall preside at the Testing and Evaluation SIG Annual Meeting and at other SIG sponsored events. In the absence of the Chair (or President) another officer appointed by the Chair (or President) shall chair the meeting. They shall submit an Annual Report to the JALT President through the SIG Representative.

TREASURER: The Treasurer shall keep all financial records, and collect and disburse all funds of the JALT Testing and Evaluation SIG. They shall present an account of the financial status of the organization at the SIG Annual Meeting, and submit regular financial reports to the National SIG Treasurer Liaison. The Treasurer shall prepare the financial documents for an internal audit, to take place after the books have been closed at the end of each calendar year.
MEMBERSHIP CHAIR: The membership chair shall carry the responsibility for registering and renewing membership, keeping and regularly updating all membership information, databasing for internal analysis, and forwarding membership information to the appropriate JALT officers.
PUBLICATIONS: The publications editor/co-editors shall work with the Testing and Evaluation SIG publications related members in editing and publishing the journal Shiken or other publications of this SIG.
WEBSITE MANAGER: The website manager/co-managers shall coordinate all matters of publicity for the Testing and Evaluation SIG, including maintaining and adding content to the SIG website. They shall keep the SIG membership informed of JALT publication possibilities and other public relations concerns.
PROGRAMS: The Program chair/co-chairs shall supervise the planning and organization of all regular and special programs and provide the necessary information to publicity-related officers of the SIG or other JALT agencies as needed. They shall solicit presentation proposals from Testing and Evaluation SIG members and arrange for vetting them where necessary. They shall contact and arrange for speakers to present at the JALT International Conference and PanSIG, actively offering programs to JALT chapters, special events of JALT or other L2 educational organizations.

– EXPENSES –
Any expenses over 10,000 yen not directly related to the production of the journal or payment of SIG-approved speakers must be approved in advance by a two-thirds majority of the Coordinating Committee.
– HONORARIA –

Honoraria for serving as a (non-commercial) panelist at a non-vetted, SIG sponsored colloquia, roundtable, or discussion at either the JALT National Convention or a Pan-SIG Conference shall be 10,000 yen per person.
Honoraria for a SIG sponsored plenary speaker at either the Pan-SIG Conference or JALT National Conference shall be 30,000 and limited to one person per event. The selection shall be made with the approval of the majority of the officers.
A special Lifetime Achievement Award may be presented to officers who have worked diligently for the SIG for more than 10 years and made contributions to the field of language testing. The amount of that award shall be determined by the Coordinating Committee of the JALT TEVAL SIG. The approval of at least two-thirds of the Coordinating Committee is needed to bestow the award on anyone.
These policies should be clearly mentioned as soon as possible when recruiting panelists or plenary speakers.

– AMENDMENTS TO THE BYLAWS –
Amendments to the Bylaws may be proposed and carried out in the same manner as constitutional amendments. In addition, these Bylaws may be amended by a three-quarters vote of the Language Testing and Evaluation SIG Coordinating Committee.