THE ARTICLES OF INCORPORATION AND
THE CONSTITUTION OF
THE MU SIGMA RHO SOCIETY, INCORPORATED

The text below includes constitutional changes approved in 1993 and 1995.

We, the undersigned, acting as incorporators of a corporation under the Iowa Non-Profit Corporation Act, 1965, 1961 G.A. Chapter 388, Section 1, adopt the following Articles of Incorporation for said corporation.

ARTICLE I
Name

The name of the corporation is the Mu Sigma Rho Society which is to be founded at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. It is the outgrowth of an active undergraduate statistics club. Each chapter is designated by the state in which it is located and by the greek letters alpha, beta, etc. according to the chronological order of the dates on the charters of the chapters within states.

ARTICLE II
Purpose

This corporation is not organized for pecuniary profit nor shall it have any power to issue certificates of stock or declare dividends and no part of its net earnings shall inure to the benefit of any member, director, or individual.

Mu Sigma Rho is a nonsecret organization whose purpose is the promotion and encouragement of scholarly activity in statistics and the recognition of worth-while achievement among the staff and students in eligible academic and nonacademic institutions. It aims to do this by:

  1. electing members according to their academic achievement, especially in the field of statistics;
  2. engaging in activities designed to promote the statistical and general scholarly development of its members;
  3. encouraging participation in the various professional statistical societies and associations.
ARTICLE III
Organization of the Association

Section 1. Chapters. General Statement. Mu Sigma Rho is a statistical society consisting of chapters at various approved institutions of learning, and affiliate chapters at approved non-academic institutions. Each such chapter derives its existence either directly from the Act of Incorporation of the society, as in the case of the parent chapter, or else from a charter granted in accordance with the Constitution of the Society by virtue of the powers conveyed in the said Act of Incorporation.

Section 2. Qualifications for Chapters

Section 2.1 Qualification for a Chapter. A chapter of Mu Sigma Rho may be chartered only in an academic institution whose standards are excellent in all departments and particularly so in statistics. In order to qualify for a chapter, the petitioning institution must be of university grade as indicated by the high quality of its faculty, academic standards and equipment, and must be capable of maintaining the standards of the society and spreading its scholarly spirit and ideals. Several institutions in the same geographic area may jointly apply as a petitioning institution. Specifically:

Section 2.2 Qualifications for an Affiliate Chapter. Affiliate chapters exist as a vehicle to enable isolated qualified students to be inducted into Mu Sigma Rho. Any Chapter of the American Statistical Association is automatically granted Mu Sigma Rho Affiliate Chapter status and need not petition for this. Besides these, any group of statisticians at a non-academic institution or comprising a chapter or section of a statistical society may apply for an affiliate chapter of Mu Sigma Rho provided that the following requirements are fulfilled:

Section 2.3 Qualifications for Chapters of Other Statistical Honoraries. Chapters in other statistical honoraries in existence at the time of this charter may have the above qualifications, or any portion of them, waived by the Council if such action is sustained by the chapters through the election of the new chapter. Explanation of which sections of the above qualifications are waived, along with a majority and minority report from Council on this action shall accompany the petition to the chapters.

Section 3. Election of New Chapters. The candidate organization shall petition the society through the Secretary-Treasurer, submitting the names of its proposed charter members together with a statement of information as to its qualifications for chapter. This petition shall be submitted to the Council, which shall consider whether the institution fulfills the requirements set forth in Section 2 of this article. If a majority of the Council decide in favor of the institution, the petition shall then, upon payment of the petition filing fee, be submitted to the chapters together with majority and minority reports from the Council.

The chapters shall be allowed a period of one month in which to report their vote to the Secretary-Treasurer. If during that time a majority of the responding chapters have voted in the affirmative the petition shall be granted; otherwise the petition shall be rejected, and another petition shall not be considered from the same institution for a period of three years.

Section 4. Procedure of Installation. When an organization has been elected to chapter membership, in accordance with Section 3 of this article, and when the charter fee and the initiation fees of charter members have been received by the Secretary-Treasurer, a charter shall be issued and signed as hereinafter provided. Then the President of the society, or some other member of the society designated by him as installing officer, shall select a date for the installation ceremony which is convenient for the organization and for himself. At the ceremony he shall give a brief account of the history of the society and of its ideals and symbols, he shall initiate those charter members who are not already members of the society, and shall then present the charter and an official copy of the constitution to the charter members. The organization shall then become a chapter of Mu Sigma Rho and its charter members shall be those persons so designated on the charter. The chapter shall be responsible for the expense of transportation, meals, and lodging of the installing officer. If the expense of having an installing officer at the charter ceremonies creates a financial burden for the new chapter, the official chartering ceremony can be delayed and the new chapter will become official by letter of endorsement for the national president.

Section 5. Forfeiture of Charter. If any chapter shall be deemed by the Council to have ceased functioning according to the provisions of this Constitution, that chapter maybe required by unanimous action of the Council to return its charter and cease to use the name of the society, except that any such chapter may appeal the action of the Council to the chapters and in this case the action of the Council shall be of no effect unless the Council shall be sustained in its action by the same vote as in admitting new chapters.

Section 6. Original Directors. The names and addresses of the original Directors are:

Section 7. Incorporators. The name and address of each incorporator is:

Section 8. Registration Office. The address of the initial Registration Office is the Department of Statistics, Snedecor Hall, Iowa State University, Ames, County of Story, Iowa 50011, and the name of the initial registered agent at such address is Dr. Theodore A. Bancroft. Succeeding registered agents shall be appointed by the President as required and their names and addresses communicated to the proper authorities of the State of Iowa.

Section 9. Headquarters. The headquarters of the association shall be located at the office of the Secretary-Treasurer.

ARTICLE IV
Members

Section 1. Minimum Qualifications for Regular Membership. Minimum qualifications for regular membership from any country shall be proposed by the Council. Such a proposal shall then go before the chapters, who shall have three months, vacations and recesses not included, in which to consider it. In order that the proposal be adopted it shall be necessary and sufficient that at least three fourths of the active chapters shall vote, and that, of those voting, at least two-thirds shall vote in the affirmative. Minimum qualifications in any country shall be valid for all students enrolled in schools in that country.

Section 2. Other Regular Members. Membership may be extended as an honor to other persons whose contribution to the art and science of statistics is deemed worthy of recognition. Such members shall not exceed one-third of the total chapter membership.

Section 3. Minimum Qualifications for Affiliate Membership. Persons with the following qualifications may be elected to affiliate membership by an affiliate chapter:

Aside from voting, affiliate members have the usual rights and duties of regular membership including the right to purchase and wear official jewelry and receive a subscription to the official Journal.

Section 4. Procedure in Admission. Those eligible persons to whom a charter for a chapter has been granted, and whose names appear on the charter for the chapter, shall become members when they have paid the initiation fee. Those eligible persons who are duly elected by a chapter or affiliate chapter shall become members, regular or affiliate, when they have paid the initiation fee, signed the official chapter roll, and satisfied any other requirements for initiation decided on by the chapter or affiliate chapter; provided that no person shall be elected by a chapter or affiliate chapter until the scholarship committee of the chapter or affiliate chapter has investigated his qualifications and made a report of the same; provided further that no person shall become a member until his name has been registered with the Secretary-Treasurer of the society. Existing chapters may identify eligible persons at neighboring institutions and elect them to membership with the consent of the neighboring institution(s). The national society shall present each new member with a copy of the Constitution.

Section 5. Honorary Character. Membership in the society shall be honorary; it shall be conferred as a reward for scholarly achievement in statistics. All members of society shall consider themselves pledged to use their influence to see that the standards of the society are maintained, and in voting on new members to give an impartial judgment based on merit, in order that membership in the society may be an honor which is all the more highly prized because it is justly bestowed.

ARTICLE V
National Organization

Section 1. Ultimate Authority. The ultimate authority on affairs of the society at large shall rest with the chapters, each chapter having one vote; but the chapters may delegate to the national officers, committees and conventions of the society authority to deal with questions not specifically relegated to the chapters by this Constitution. Unless otherwise provided for by this Constitution, the following procedure shall be followed in submitting questions to the chapters: Questions to be so submitted may originate either in the Council or in a national Convention, which shall submit the question to the society in the form of a recommendation; or the question may be proposed by any chapter of the society, in which case it shall be referred to the Council, which shall submit it to the chapters with their recommendation. The recommendation of the Council or of a national Convention shall be deemed approved unless a majority of the chapters vote against it and inform the Secretary-Treasurer of their disapproval within two months of the date of submission, provided that where a summer vacation intervenes this vacation shall not be counted as a part of the two months.

Section 2. Officers. The national officers of the society shall be President, Vice-President, Secretary-Treasurer and 3 Directors-at-Large. These 6 together with the most recent past President shall constitute the Council of Directors of the society, and shall serve without compensation. No national officer shall hold a position in a chapter of the society.

Section 3. Election of Officers. The national officers shall be elected by the chapters to serve for a term of three years beginning July 1 every third year. They shall, however, hold office until their successors are elected and qualified. Nominations shall be made by a nominating committee appointed by the President. This committee shall nominate at least three candidates for the office of President, at least one for the office of Secretary-Treasurer and at least 5 for the 3 offices of Directors-at-Large. Additional nominations may be made by the Council, a national Convention or by any chapter of the society prior to the month in which the ballots are mailed to the chapters. The names of all nominees together with available biographical information shall be submitted on a ballot to the chapters by the Secretary-Treasurer before the January 31 preceding the beginning of a new term. Ballot shall indicate two choices for President, one choice for Secretary-Treasurer and 3 choices for Directors-at-Large. Decisions shall be based on a plurality of chapter votes cast for each office, the Vice-President being the candidate for President who receives the second largest plurality. In the case of a tie for an office, the outgoing Council shall choose from among such candidates.

Vacancies in the Council shall be filled for the balance of the term by a majority vote of the remaining Council upon nomination of the President.

Section 4. Duties of National Officers.

Section 5. Council. The 6 national officers constituting the Council of the society shall be the legal Board of Directors of the society. They shall exercise the functions usually pertaining to an executive committee and shall have power to decide all questions concerning the society as a whole which are not otherwise provided for by this Constitution or by vote of the chapters. In particular, they shall have charge of the expenditure of funds belonging to the general organization; and shall vote on applications for membership as provided in Article III, Section 3. They may also originate legislation to be submitted to the chapters for final decisions, as provided in Section 1.

Section 6. Annual Meetings. The Council of Mu Sigma Rho will meet at least once a year at the Annual Meeting(s) held by the American Statistical Association to conduct the business of the society. This meeting will be open to members of all local chapters of Mu Sigma Rho. Legislation may be proposed at the meeting to be submitted to the chapters for final vote, in which case the procedure shall be that specified in Section 1. The annual meeting time will be published in the AmStat News prior to the meeting.

Section 7. Fees and Assessments. All fees and assessments not otherwise provided for in this Constitution, or Bylaws, shall be determined by a vote of the chapters as provided in Section 1. When such legislation is approved it shall stand until superseded by offsetting legislation.

Section 8. Certificates of Membership. Certificates of Membership shall be issued by the Secretary-Treasurer on certification from the chapter officers. An initiation fee to be determined by the Council shall be charged by the Secretary-Treasurer for each certificate signed.

Section 9. Reports. The officers shall render a report to the society at least once a year. This shall inform the society of the activities of the officers, condition of the treasury, present and future policy, etc. The form of this report shall be left to the discretion of the Council.

ARTICLE VI
Chapter Organization

Section I. Constitution. Every chapter shall have one and only one constitution, viz., the Constitution of the Mu Sigma Rho Society, Inc. Each chapter may make such bylaws for itself as it deems suitable provided such bylaws are not in conflict with any of the provision of the Constitution or national Bylaws.

Section 2. Officers. Officers of the chapter shall be a President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer, a Faculty Advisor, and a Permanent Faculty Correspondent. Two or more of these offices may be combined or the chapter Bylaws may provide for additional officers who, with those listed above, shall constitute the Executive Committee. These officers shall be elected by ballot at such times as the chapter may fix by its Bylaws, except that the Permanent Faculty Correspondent shall continue in office for a period of several years, and serve as a link with the national office.

Section 3. Duties of the Officers. The duties of these officers shall be the usual ones pertaining to the various offices with specific duties as follows:

Section 4. Scholarship Committee. In addition to the officers there shall be a scholarship committee chosen, as the chapter may designate, for their high scholarly standing or ability to judge scholarship in others. This committee shall contain at least two faculty members. The duties of this committee shall be to investigate, by examining the official scholastic records of the University, the standing in scholarship of all possible candidates for membership and to present a graded list of such candidates for membership, in order to provide the chapter with the scholarship data necessary to determine eligibility as provided in Article IV, Section 1.

ARTICLE VII
Amendments

Amendments to this Constitution may be proposed by any chapter, by the Council or by a national Convention. A proposed amendment shall then go before the chapters, who shall have three months, vacations and recesses not included, in which to consider it. In order that an amendment to the Constitution be adopted it shall be necessary and sufficient that at least three-fourths of the active chapters shall vote, and that, of those voting, at least two-thirds shall vote in the affirmative.

The adoption of an amendment to the Bylaws shall require the approval of one-half of the active chapters who reply within two months time.

ARTICLE VIII
Period of Duration

The Mu Sigma Rho Society shall remain in existence in perpetuity unless terminated by a 3/4 vote of all chapters, including affiliate chapters.

ARTICLE IX
Distribution of Assets Upon Dissolution

In no event shall any of the assets or property of this corporation, or the proceeds of said assets or property, in the event of dissolution thereof, go or be distributed to members, it being the intent that in the event of the dissolution of this corporation, or upon its ceasing to carry out the objects and purposes herein set forth, the property and assets then owned by the corporation shall be devoted exclusively to charitable, literary, and educational purposes chosen at the discretion of the Board of Directors.

Incorporators

Theodore A. Bancroft, Ames, Iowa
David V. Huntsberger, Ames, Iowa
Oscar Kemthorne, Ames, Iowa


The Bylaws of MU SIGMA RHO Society


July 1, 1969

BYLAW I
Fees

Section 1 The petition-filing and charter application fee will be ten dollars.
Section 2 The local chapter will be charged five dollars for each new member initiated.

BYLAW II
Local Chapters

Section 1 Each chapter shall have at least one program meeting per year not including social or business meetings.

BYLAW III
Insignia

Section 1 The official emblems will be the Crest (figure 1) and the Key (figure 2).
Section 2 Jewelry may be purchased only with the approval of the secretary-treasurer of msr, the National Statistics Society.


Last updated October 21, 1997 ÿ