Stoneham Youth Hockey

STONEHAM YOUTH HOCKEY ASSOCIATION, INC.

Stoneham, Massachusetts

BY-LAWS

ARTICLE I - NAME

This organization shall be known as the Stoneham Youth Hockey Association, Inc.

Note: Further reference will be as the Association.

ARTICLE II- OBJECTIVES

A. The objective of the Association shall be to impart to the boys and girls in the community the ideals of good sportsmanship while having fun within the framework of competition.

B. The objectives will be achieved by providing supervised instruction, adequate ice facilities, and competitive athletic hockey games. All members of the Association shall bear in mind that the attainment of exceptional individual skill or the winning of games is secondary, and that team play and the molding of future members of the community as of prime importance.

C. Stoneham Youth Hockey is organized for charitable purposes consistent with Section 501 (C) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code.

ARTICLE III - NON-PROFIT

The Association shall have no capital stock or private ownership and shall not be conducted for profit.

ARTICLE IV - MEMBERSHIP

A. Eligibility

1. Membership in the association is open to all persons residing within the Town of Stoneham, Massachusetts

2. Any person over 18 years of age may be approved for membership by a majority vote of the Board of Directors regardless pf residency.

3. A player may be waived into or out of this organization in accordance with Massachusetts Hockey Rules and Regulations Article IV - Waiver, Procedure.

B. Classes of Membership

There shall be three classes of memberships: Youth, Active and Associate

1. Youth: The Youth member may not hold office, may not attend or have a voice in meetings, and may not have voting privileges

2. Active: The Active members shall be any person eighteen (18) years of age or older, who subscribe to the charitable purpose and policies of the Association and are either a parent or guardian of a youth in the program or serve in some official capacity in the organization, such as a coach or a director. In addition, an active member must be current in any a d all financial obligations to the Association. Active members may hold office and shall have voting privileges.

3. Associate: The Associate members are those people who with the approval of the Board may participate and contribute to the program. The associate members may hold office and shall have voting privileges.

C. Term of Membership

The term of membership shall be for one (1) year, beginning September 1, or on the date the new member joins the program and ending on August 31^st. Attendance requirements also begin on each September 1^st.

D. Obligations of Membership

Members are encouraged to attend all monthly business meetings of the association and to carry out faithfully any obligations which they may undertake in connection with any particular Association activity.

E. Voting Rights

Active and Associate members who fail to attend 50% of the monthly business meetings of the Association will be deemed ineligible to vote. The right of voting at Association monthly business meetings is restricted to active and associate members who meet the attendance requirements as of that meeting. All members with less than fifty (50) percent attendance requirements are allowed a voice at the monthly and annual business meetings. Voting rights of the membership shall be restricted to voting for by-law changes and new Board members and any other matters brought to the body by the Board of Directors. Voting status is automatically restored whenever the member’s attendance becomes fifty (50) percent or better.

F. Earmarked Donations

Coaches and parents are encouraged to support Stoneham Youth Hockey’s fundraising endeavors as well as team sponsorships and/or tournament subsidies. All team sponsorship monies will be deposited in the Stoneham Youth Hockey’s general fund. All fundraising activities including those performed for a specific team, tournament subsidies or any other use, must be approved by the Board of Directors. No fundraising activities will directly conflict with any fundraising activities performed by the Activities Director. Funds designated for a specific team will benefit both the Stoneham Youth Hockey program and the designated team 80% to the team and 20% to Stoneham Youth Hockey Program. All funds must be deposited with the Treasurer and such contributions will be held aside for the team in a special account and such contributions will be made available to the team at the discretion of the head coach.

ARTICLE V - GOVERNMENT

A. The association will be governed by a board of directors consisting of the following voting members:

1. President

2. Vice President

3. Treasurer

4. Activities Director

5. Secretary

6. Past President

7. Communication Director

8. Learn to Skate Director

9. Mite In-House Director

10. Mite Director

11. Squirt Director

12. Pee Wee Director

13. Bantam Director

14. Midget Director

15. District 10 Director

To assist the board in executing the duties, additional non-voting directors may be appointed.

B. Terms of the board of directors are as follows:

1. President - One year

2. Vice President - One year

3. Treasurer – Two years (except only one year for 2002-2003)

4. Activities Director - Two years

5. Secretary - Two years

6. Past President - One year

7. Communication Director – Two years

8. Level Directors (Learn to Skate, Mite In-House, Mite, Squirt, Pee Wee, Bantam, Midget) - One year

9. District 10 Director – Two years

C. Election to the Board is by a majority vote of the eligible active and associate members of the Association as defined in Article IV, Section E of these by-laws except for the offices of President and Past President, which are the natural progression from the office of Vice-President. If automatic succession to these offices is declined, then said offices shall be filled by an election from the membership. The board has the responsibility to fill any position vacated in mid-term by a simple majority vote except for the office of Vice-President which can only be voted on by the membership.

D. Appointed offices shall be established by each board. Said offices shall include but not be limited to the following: Assistant Treasurer, Coaching Director, Tournament Committee members, Ice Committee members, etc. The membership will be canvassed by the secretary and these offices will be advertised in the media.

E. No less than twenty per cent (20%) of the voting members of the board of Directors shall be made up of individuals who have children actively skating in the program.

F. Ad Hoc committees can be formed at any time at the pleasure of the board.

G. A quorum will be eight members for any board meeting.

H. The Government of the Association shall have a general set of responsibilities which include;

Policy matters;

Rules and Regulations;

Budgetary matters including the submission of a budget to the membership no later than October 15 of the new season.

The Board of Directors shall meet at least four times each year to properly discharge its responsibilities.

The Board of Directors, by a two-thirds vote at any duly constituted Board meeting, shall have the authority to suspend any member (board or general member) whose conduct is considered detrimental to the best interest of the Association. The suspended member must be notified by the secretary of the decisions of the suspension in writing. The suspended member may within 10 days of receipt of this decision appeal this decision to a grievance committee consisting of three non-board members of the association appointed by the President. Reinstatement may be made by the grievance committee.

I. Duties of Officers and Directors

President

The President shall preside at all Association meetings. He/she shall see that all Rules, Policies and Principles of the Association are understood and observed. He/she shall serve as head of the local organization and as Chairman of the Board of Directors. He/she shall appoint all committees supervise their activities, and confer with local Association officers and others to whom responsibilities have been delegated.

Vice President

The Vice President shall preside in the absence of the President. He/she shall work with other officers and committee members and also serve as a member of the Board of Directors. He/she shall carry out such other duties and assignments as may be delegated by the President. The Vice President shall be responsible for all matters pertaining to the operational aspects of the hockey program including coaching. He/she shall have the authority to arbitrate in all local league matters. Equipment, ice time, league play USA Hockey representation as well as the administrative aspects of the Learn to Skate program are included in the scope of duties of the Vice President. The Vice President shall have the right to delegate his duties in regard to the Learn to Skate program.

Activities Director

The Activities Director shall preside in the absence of the President and the Vice President and Treasurer. He/she shall work with other officers and committee members and also serve as a member of the Board of Directors. He/she shall carry out such other duties and assignments as may be delegated by the President. The Activities Director shall be responsible for Public Relations, Special Events, Fund Raising, and is the interface with governmental bodies.

Treasurer

The Treasurer shall preside in the absence of the President and Vice President. The Treasurer shall be responsible for all local Association finances. He/she shall sign checks, collect all funds due, dispense Association funds as approved by the Board of Directors. He/she is authorized to engage a CPA to prepare tax statements and keep proper books of account. With concurrence of the President, he/she is authorized to expend up to $250 without prior board approval. Any check in excess of $5,000 requires two signatures. One signature shall be of the President or Vice President and the second signature shall be of the Treasurer or Assistant Treasurer.

Assistant Treasurer

The Assistant Treasurer will be responsible for assisting the Treasurer in all the duties of the Treasurer, and will act for the Treasurer in his/her absence. The Assistant Treasurer will have a vote at any board meeting where the Treasurer is not present.

Secretary

The Secretary shall record the Minutes of Meetings and shall keep all records and correspondence of the league. He/she shall administer the general election as well as insurance matters required by regulatory bodies. The Secretary shall carry out such other duties and assignments as may be delegated by the President.

Past President

The Past President shall have as his/her major duty the interpretation of these by-laws as well as any duties delegated by the president.

Level Directors

Level Directors shall serve as a liaison between the Board of Directors, District Ten representative, League Representatives and the coaches, parents (guardians) and players of each level. The misconduct of any coach, parent (guardian) or player will be dealt with by the Level Director in a timely manner. It will be the responsibility of the Level Director to hear complaints, which may occur at each level. Any and all complaints with regard to the misconduct of any coach, parent or player must be put in writing and signed by the party filing the complaint. The level Director will make every attempt to resolve the situation at his/her level. In the event that it is the decision of a Level Director to suspend a player/coach/parent, said complaint shall be forwarded to the Board of Directors who will make the final decision to suspend the party(s) involved.

A monthly report relative to activities at each level shall be presented to the membership at scheduled monthly meetings.

District 10 Representative

The District 10 Representative shall represent Stoneham Youth Hockey at the monthly District 10 meetings; register all Stoneham Youth Hockey members with USA Hockey and Massachusetts Hockey. This includes all players on travel, in-house teams and learn to skate programs, coaches and team managers. The District 10 Representative shall be responsible for the collection of all members CORI forms for Coaches and Team Managers and submission of those forms to Massachusetts Hockey. The District 10 Representative shall be responsible for the registration of all teams with USA Hockey and Massachusetts Hockey both travel and in-house, the filing of all team applications and playdown applications, informing the Board of Stoneham Youth Hockey of all rule changes, playdown and state tournament schedules and other matters effecting Stoneham Youth Hockey from both a USA Hockey and Massachusetts Hockey perspective. The District 10 Representative shall provide copies of stamped rosters to all coaches prior to playdowns and as requested for teams participating in tournaments, and he/she shall attend the annual meeting of Massachusetts Hockey in June of each year.

ARTICLE VI - GENERAL MEETINGS

A. Regular meetings of the Association shall be held once a month during the duration of the regular playing season, September through March, excluding December.

B. Additional meetings may be called by the President or a majority of the Board.

C. At all membership meetings of the Association, fifteen (15) active members, Eight (8) of which are members of the Board of Directors, shall constitute a quorum.

D. All members must be notified of any general meeting which is to be held.

E. The Annual Meeting of the Association shall be held in March of each year. At said meeting:

1. All business for the year shall be completed.

2. Officers for the upcoming year shall be elected by written ballot.

F. One month prior to the Annual Meeting, the President shall appoint a Nominating Committee of not less that three members. The Committee shall present a slate of nominees for each office to the membership. All active members shall be eligible for nomination.

G. All meetings of the Association including the Board of Directors shall be governed by Roberts Rules of Order, except where they conflict with the by-laws of the Association.

ARTICLE VII - LEAGUES

A. Age Levels

All age levels shall be determined by the current USA/Massachusetts Hockey classifications.

B. Coaches

Coaches shall be appointed by the Board of Directors. All coaches and bench personnel at the Squirt level and above shall be certified at the intermediate level. They shall be certified at the minimum level mandated by Massachusetts Hockey.

Coaches will uphold the rules of the game. The Board of Directors may suspend any coach for violations having to do with abuse of players or embarrassment to the program.

C. Rules

1. Local playing rules shall be established by the Vice President prior to the start of the season.

2. Copies of the rules adopted shall be distributed to the membership and players.

3. Representative Teams will play according to the rules of the leagues in which they play.

4. Players registered with the Association are permitted to practice with or be a member of other organized hockey programs for the purposes of regular practice or playing of games during the regular Association season, as published, providing the player agrees to a commitment to Stoneham Youth Hockey as his/her priority program for both practice and regularly scheduled games with the exception of the local high school hockey program.

Failure to adhere to this rule will subject the offending player to immediate Stoneham Youth Hockey program suspension. Adherence and agreement to these rules is the responsibility of the team coach. Players may be suspended for up to two games by the coach for gross playing violations, disrespect to coaches or officials or repeated violations of team rules. Additional disciplinary action shall be the purview of the board. Coaches will notify the Board of Directors immediately of such a suspension.

ARTICLE VIII - AMENDMENTS

These By-Laws, or any section thereof, may be amended or repealed by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the membership present at a regular meeting, provided that a notice of such proposed changes shall appear in the local press or in the notice of meeting sent to all members at least one (1) week prior to the date the change is to be submitted to vote.