BY-LAWS OF THE SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION SUPERVISORS OF NEW JERSEY, INC.
MISSION STATEMENT
(a) To promulgate and establish the highest standards of ethics in transportation methods and practices for schools.
(b) To increase and diffuse knowledge and aspects of the school transportation field and to make these freely available to its members and the interested public. To engage in a program of professional development and improvement of persons carrying on activities in the field of school transportation for the benefit of all pupils, schools and school systems.
(c) To cooperate with educational associations and with governmental organizations, including federal or state, in developing and improving school transportation management and administration.
(d) To promote the physical, economic and social welfare of the members.
The name of this association shall be School Transportation Supervisors of New Jersey, Inc. (STS)
ARTICLE I – Organization and Officers
The Affairs of the Association shall be managed by the Board of Director consisting of the Executive Board, Nine (9) Area Directors (3 from each area) and the immediate Past President
Section 1. Executive Board
The President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer shall be elected for a term of two (2) years, and the office holders may serve up to two consecutive terms. The executive board will be chosen from the current Executive Board or current Area Directors.
Section 2 Area Directors
The Area Directors shall hold office for a term of three (3) years. The Directors’ terms of office shall be staggered so that each year there is an election for a Director’s term in each area.
ARTICLE II – Meetings
Section 1. General Membership meetings
General Membership Meetings shall be held during the months of December and June. During the June meeting, election and installation of Officers will take place. Officers elected shall serve terms as elsewhere defined beginning on the first day of July following such elections. Twenty full members shall constitute a quorum for regular or special meetings of the general membership.
Section 2. Area meetings
(a) Area Directors shall hold meetings during the Fall and Spring. Additional meetings may be held at the call of the Area Directors if they do not conflict with the general membership meetings.
(b) Any decisions by the Area Directors shall not bind or supersede that of the Board of Directors and shall be brought to a Board of Directors meeting.
(c) The President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer may and are encouraged to attend any area meetings
Section 3. Board of Directors’ meetings
(a) Board of Directors’ Meetings shall be held four (4) times a year. Special meetings shall be called by the Secretary on a 24 hour e-mail, or written notice from the President. If necessary, special meetings can be held at a call of five members of the Board of Directors.
(b) A quorum for a duly constituted Board of Directors meeting shall be 51% of the Board members currently serving in office, rounded up to the nearest whole number.
ARTICLE III – Duties of Officers
PRESIDENT: The President shall preside at all meetings of the Association and of the Board of Directors; shall have general supervision of the affairs of the Association; shall see that all orders and resolutions or the Board are carried into effect. The President shall prepare the program for general meetings of the Association and shall chair the meeting. The President may modify the program if they deem it necessary. The President shall appoint all committees not otherwise provided for and shall be ex-officio member of all committees, except the Nominating Committee. The President shall provide the deciding vote in cases where it will matter. The President shall approve all expenses incurred by the Association before invoices for such obligations are paid. The President will produce a formal document, at the June General Meeting showing all bills/statements, that they approved for the fiscal year.
VICE PRESIDENT: The Vice President shall act in all cases for and as the President in the latter’s absence or incapacity, and shall perform such other duties as he may be required to do from time to time. The Vice President shall oversee the Financial Committee and the budget and shall present the annual budget to the Board of Directors. The Vice President will also be the responsible for taking of Meeting minutes in the absence of the Secretary.
SECRETARY: The Secretary shall keep a full and accurate record of the proceedings of all General Meetings of the Association and of the Board of Directors and shall sign the same. The Secretary will produce a dated Sign In Sheet for all Board Meetings and General Meetings. The Secretary shall have the secretarial records present at all General Meetings of the Association and meetings of the Board of Directors; shall keep a list of members; and shall be custodian of all property of the Association not in the charge of the Treasurer. In case of the Secretary’s inability to attend any meetings as mentioned above, the Secretary shall see that the records of the Association are properly sent to such meetings. The Secretary shall keep a record of all official correspondence of the Association. The Secretary shall at the expiration of their term of office transfer to their successor all books, papers, records and other property in their possession belonging to the Association. The Secretary will keep all Sign In Sheets and Meeting Minutes in a Ledger that will be present at each attended meeting.
TREASURER: The Treasurer shall have custody of the corporate funds and securities and shall keep full and accurate accounts and receipts and disbursements in books belonging to the organization, and shall keep the moneys of the organization in a separate account to the credit of the organization. The treasurer shall work in conjunction with the appointed bonded accounting firm
He/she shall disburse the funds of the organization as may be ordered by the Board, taking proper vouchers for such disbursements, and shall render to the President and Trustees, at the regular meetings of the Board, or whenever they may require it, and account of all transactions as Treasurer and of the financial condition of the organization. The Treasurer will file, or cause to be filed, all financial reports required of the Association. This includes, but is not limited to, all State and Federal forms and reports, especially IRS form 990 and necessary 1099 forms.
ARTICLE IV – Parliamentary Authority
The rules contained in Robert’s Rules of Order Revised shall govern the Association in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not consistent with the by-laws or the special rules of order of the Association.
ARTICLE V – Amendments
These by-laws may be altered or amended upon a two-thirds vote of all full members present at General meetings, if the proposed amendment shall have been offered in writing not later than thirty days prior to its introduction.
Amendments become effective on the day they are passed by said two-thirds vote.
ARTICLE VI – Dissolution
Dissolution of the Association may take place at any meeting called for that purpose. Notice of a vote on dissolution must be sent to all active members at least 30 days prior to the meeting. The quorum for a vote on dissolution shall be 51% of the full membership. Upon dissolution of the Association, or the winding up of its affairs, the remaining assets of the Association, after the payment of all debts, shall be distributed to like non-profit organizations such as the National Association for Pupil Transportation.
Revised 6/21/21
POLICY MANUAL FOR
SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION SUPERVISORS OF NEW JERSEY, INC.
MISSION STATEMENT
(a) To promulgate and establish the highest standards of ethics in transportation methods and practices for schools.
(b) To increase and diffuse knowledge and aspects of the school transportation field and to make these freely available to its members and the interested public. To engage in a program of professional development and improvement of persons carrying on activities in the field of school transportation for the benefit of all pupils, schools and school systems.
(c) To cooperate with educational associations and with governmental organizations, including federal or state, in developing and improving school transportation management and administration.
(d) To promote the physical, economic and social welfare of the members.
The name of this association shall be School Transportation Supervisors of New Jersey, Inc. (STS)
ARTICLE I – Membership and Vote
Section 1. Membership
- (A) Full Membership: This membership shall be restricted to persons employed by a public school district or ESC on a full time basis who perform in transportation in an administrative or supervisory capacity as part of their regular duty. This membership shall have the privilege of voting or holding office. All districts must have one full membership and any additional members shall be an associate member as defined in paragraph (B).
- (B) Associate membership: This membership shall be restricted to the transportation support staff employees of Boards of Education or ESC transportation services. Associate members shall not have the privilege of voting or holding office.
- (C) Mechanics Membership: This membership shall be restricted to the school bus transportation mechanical personnel. Mechanic members shall not have the privilege of voting or holding office other than Mechanics Conference. Mechanic membership fees will be at the current associate rate.
- (D) Contractor membership: This membership shall be restricted to an owner or designated employee of a company which provides school transportation services under contract to a public school. Contractor members shall not have the privilege of voting or holding office. Contractor members will be at the current associate rate.
- (E) Vendor membership: This membership shall be restricted to recognized vendors. A vendor is anyone selling products to the school bus industry. Vendor members shall not have the privilege of voting or holding office. Vendor members will be at the current associate rate.
- (F) Honorary membership: This membership shall be restricted to a full member upon retirement. Membership forms are to be completed yearly as with all memberships. Honorary members shall not have the privilege of voting or holding office, but may serve on a Committee. These members are able to attend two General Meetings and area meetings at no cost. All other participation will be at expense and decision of the honorary members including conference and any other training, educational or social event STS of NJ offers to membership.
- (G) Affiliated membership: This membership shall be restricted to Township, Recreation, Summer Camps, Day Care Centers, or other facilities that operate vehicles under the standards governing school buses. Affiliated members shall not have the privilege of voting or holding office. Affiliated members will be at the current associate rate.
Section 2. Election to Membership
A person wishing to become a member of the Organization shall submit a formal STS application and the first year’s dues, if not already paid by a School District and or Entity (as defined as Contractor, Vendor or Individual), to the STS Office. Applications can be obtained from the website. Initial vote for Membership approval will take place at STS Board meeting. Whoever pays the dues for the membership owns the membership.
Section 3. Voting for Officers
(a) Voting from the floor of the meeting for the purpose of deciding any question requiring a roll call vote shall be on the basis of one (1) vote to each full member in good standing and in attendance.
ARTICLE II – Organization and Officers
Section 1.
The Association shall be divided into three areas consisting of North (Bergen, Essex, Hudson, Morris, Passaic, Sussex, Warren counties); Central (Hunterdon, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, Somerset, Union counties); and South (Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Salem counties).
Section 2. Vacancies
(a) Any Officer elected or appointed by the Board may be removed by the Board with cause. The removal of an Officer without cause shall be without prejudice. Any Board member may resign by written notice to the Organization. The resignation shall be effective upon receipt thereof by the Organization or at a subsequent time as shall be specified in the notice of resignation.
(b) If a vacancy occurs in the office of President, the Vice President shall succeed to office. If a vacancy occurs in the office of Vice President, Secretary or Treasurer and if such vacancy occurs more than sixty days prior to the General June Meeting, the Board may appoint an Acting Vice President, Secretary, or Treasurer. If they do so, it shall be from the current Board of Directors, including the Immediate Past President.
(c) Any Board Member, Officer, Director, or Committee Chair that doesn’t attend three of five consecutive Board meetings without good cause, it shall be deemed that such a person has resigned their position. Meeting defined as “Scheduled Meeting,” not a specialty Meeting.
(d) In the case of a vacancy in the office of Director, and if such vacancy occurs more than sixty days to the General June Meeting, the Board of Directors may appoint an Acting Director.
(e) Each of the above appointments shall remain effective only until the close of the fiscal year June 30th. The election held at the end of the fiscal year will be for the remainder of the unexpired term.
(f) The member should have served at least 6 months on an STS committee within the prior year.
ARTICLE III – Duties of Officers
BOARD OF DIRECTORS: The Board of Directors shall consist of the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, nine Directors, and the immediate Past President. They shall be vested with the power to act in the name of the Association between meetings on all matters pertaining to the welfare of the organization that may be brought to its attention by the President. They shall make arrangements for all Meetings of the Association. They shall meet at the call of the President and shall aid the President in handling the work of the Association: shall have the power to fill vacancies in the body of officers; and shall make report of their several acts to the next meeting of the Association. They shall be charged with setting a goal each year which will meet the objectives and aims of this Association. Each area and general meeting shall address itself towards this goal.
AREA DIRECTORS: They shall define their meeting dates as well as their topics they intend to cover. Area Directors shall meet to converse speakers/topics and if necessary moving locations to get the best attendance possible. Area Directors shall attend meetings held within their area. Area Directors may and are urged to attend meetings in other areas as well.
STANDING COMMITTEES: The rules and guidelines developed by past committees will be upheld. Any new alterations to the rules, guidelines, policy or procedure must be approved by the Board of Directors after it is presented by the standing committee chair. No changes are to be made until a vote is done by the Board of Directors, if emergency vote is needed, it can be done via email for a paper trail of the changes. The paper trail of said vote shall be place in the secretaries’ minutes at the next official board meeting. Any STS Member in good standing that voices interest in being on Committee, must attend a board meeting to be placed on a committee.
1. FINANCE COMMITTEE – Vice President. consist of Budget
2. AUDITING COMMITTEE – Vice President, Treasurer, and Accounting Firm. Auditing to be done Yearly set up by March of following year,
3. BY-LAWS COMMITTEE
4. LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE
5. RUTGERS COMMITTEE
6. EDUCATION COMMITTEE
A. SCHOOL BOARDS CONVENTION-
B. SUMMER PROGRAM
C. DRIVING TRAINING
D. SUPERVISORS TRAINING
E. MECHANICS TRAINING
F. AIDE TRAINING
7. CONFERENCE COMMITTEE – The board will pay for one (1) night room for purpose of setup etc. For the executive board, area directors, and committee members who attend the pre-conference board meeting, the cost of conference and any other night stay is the responsibility of the member. Unless acts of nature or emergency exist then an emergency vote can be taken.
A. PROGRAM-SPEAKERS/BREAKOUTS
B. REGISTRATION/ROOMS/CONTRACT CONTACT/FOOD
C. VENDOR SHOW
D. AUDIO/VIDEO
8. SAFETY POSTER COMMITTEE
9. SOCIAL MEDIA/NEWSLETTER
9. MEMBERSHIP COMMITTEE
The Membership Chairperson shall at least:
a. Develop and execute a plan to recruit new members and retain current members.
b. Keep current a “Welcome packet” for distribution to new members by the STS Office.
c. Keep current a “membership benefit” pamphlet as part of a plan to recruit new members.
d. Provide New Membership list at General Meetings
e. Coordinate with the Area Chairpersons and the STS Office to assist in the retention of members by identifying and following up with members who have not renewed their annual membership. The STS Office will provide the Membership Chairperson with a list of members and their status upon request and from time to time.
10. NOMINATING COMMITTEE
The Nomination Committee shall develop and review annually the rules and guidelines to permit such absentee balloting. The rules and guidelines developed or changed by the Nominating Committee shall be approved by the Board of Directors before they take effect. No changes shall be made within 30 days of an election. The Chairperson of the Nominating Committee shall be the Immediate Past President. Should Immediate Past President be unavailable then said person shall be someone nominated and elected by the standing Board.
11. MECHANICS COMMITTEE – Will have a Mechanics Chair to voice concerns/options to the Board and have a vote on the Board. This committee would be beneficial to have a active mechanic who holds a mechanics membership from each area.
ARTICLE VI – Dues
All dues shall be determined by the Board of Directors. Dues shall be reviewed annually and changes shall be made and approved at the General June meeting. Dues in all membership categories shall be paid in full by October 1st of each year. The membership year shall be the same as the fiscal year of the Association, i.e., July first to June thirtieth. First time members joining after October 1st must have dues paid 15 days prior to the next General Membership Meeting. A member failing to pay his/her dues as herein provided shall forfeit the privilege of membership and be disqualified from attending any and all STS functions.
Revised 6/21/21
Board Approved 11/8/21