IBM Ring 101 Constitution
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Mohawk Valley Magic Guild, Inc.
International Brotherhood of Magicians
Don Connelly Ring 101
UTICA – ROME, N.Y.
CONSTITUTION
As adopted at the regular meeting January 19, 1989
And revised at the regular meeting March 2, 2011
Approved by unanimous vote at the regular meeting on April 6, 2011
ARTICLE I
The Mohawk Valley Magic Guild, Utica-Rome Ring #101 of the International Brotherhood of Magicians (The Don Connelly Ring) will be governed by this constitution and its by-laws as they now read and as they may be altered in the future. This constitution may be amended in part or in whole by a sixty percent (60%) vote of the present and active membership at any regular meeting. A legal quorum shall be the same as defined in Article VII.
ARTICLE II
OFFICERS — There will be five (5) elected officers: president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, and sergeant-at-arms. Any additional offices and committee chairmen, which may be needed from time-to-time, will be appointed by the president or his/her representative.
TERM OF OFFICE – The Officers shall be elected for a one year term from the date of installation. The president and vice-president shall not serve more than two consecutive terms in the same office.
DUTIES OF THE OFFICERS –
The president will preside at all meetings and will automatically be a standing member of all committees. He/She will have no vote in committees and meetings except in the case of a tie vote, in which he/she will cast the deciding vote.
The vice-president will perform the duties of the president in the absence of the president.
The secretary will keep all records and minutes of meetings and will handle all of the Ring’s formal correspondence, as well as notifying members of special meetings and additional ring activities. He/She will also keep an attendance record.
The treasurer will handle all of the Ring’s financial matters; make all deposits, collect all dues, write all checks, and keep a permanent record of all money. He/She will also make a complete record at each regular meeting concerning all money collected, deposited, spent, and the balance on hand.
The sergeant-at-arms will maintain order during all regular meetings, serve as scribe, and assume such other duties as the president may designate.
ARTICLE III
The EXECUTIVE COUNCIL shall be composed of the president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, and three members at-large appointed by the president.
The Executive Council will meet prior to each general meeting.
Duties of the Executive Council – the duties will be to guide the business activities of the Ring, and thereby, ensure that the regular meetings can focus as much as possible on the art of magic.
ARTICLE IV
NOMINATION AND ELECTION OF OFFICERS – The president shall appoint a nominating committee in February of each year. The nominating committee shall select a slate of officers and present this slate at the next regular meeting. Elections of all officers will take place in April at which time additional nominations from the floor may be made by any member present at this meeting. A simple majority of the membership present and voting in the case of elections will be decisive. Installation of such officers will take place in June.
ARTICLE V
MEETINGS – Regular business meetings shall be held at least once a month with the exception of July and August. The president shall have the power to call special meetings at his/her discretion.
ARTICLE VI
Membership: Any person who is a member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians may apply for membership in Ring 101 after attending three meetings and performing three presentations of magic. These presentations could be regular magic tricks or serious and informative discussions on the history and/or literature of magic.
A potential member who is not a member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians is encouraged to apply as soon as possible. There is usually a three to four month time span before IBM membership is granted. If the prospective member has filed his application with the Ring Secretary, the applicant will be welcome to attend Ring magic shows after the three meeting deadline. Upon official acceptance into the International Brotherhood of Magicians, the new member may attend regular meetings of Ring 101.
Note: No one may be a member of the IBM Ring 101 unless they are also a member in good standing of the International Brotherhood of Magicians.
ACTIVE MEMBERSHIP – Membership in this Ring is open to all persons with an interest in magic who maintain an active membership in the International Brotherhood of Magicians and are at least eighteen (18) years of age.
JUNIOR MEMBERSHIP – The Ring will, from time to time, sponsor young outstanding magicians between the ages of seven (7) and seventeen (17) to a Junior Membership. Junior members shall not have the right to vote nor hold office.
ASSOCIATE MEMBERSHIP – An Active or Associate member of the International Brotherhood of Magicians may request the status of Associate Membership in Ring 101 if they live more than fifty (50) miles from the Utica/Rome area or their job, schooling, or health prevents their regular attendance at meetings. They then need only contact the president to receive a one year excuse. Associate members cannot hold office, vote, or serve on committees, but are always welcome to attend when they can. Status can be changed from Associate Member to Active Member at any time, simply by request.
LIFETIME MEMBERSHIP – From time to time, the Executive Committee of Ring 101 may decide to nominate a Ring member for status of “Lifetime Member.” Members nominated for this distinction shall be approved by a sixty percent (60%) vote of the present and active membership at the next regular meeting. A legal quorum shall be the same as defined in Article VII. Lifetime members will be presented with a formal certificate celebrating this distinction and they will be exempt from annual dues.
ARTICLE VII
VOTING – Each active member in good standing with dues current is entitled to one vote on any and all of the Ring‘s business. Voting on general issues at business meetings may be made by a show of hands. On membership and election of officers, votes shall be made by secret ballot. A quorum is needed to conduct a vote at meetings. Such a quorum will consist of one-third of the enrolled active members, and/or not less than eight members. In a vote for membership, two negative votes tables the application for future investigation. Three negative votes will reject the applicant for ring membership.
ARTICLE VIII
DUES AND ASSESSMENTS – The membership may, by a majority vote of those present at a regular meeting, establish the amount of and date of payment of annual dues. The membership may, by a majority vote at a regular meeting, levy an assessment against each member for any activity in which the Ring may wish to engage.
ARTICLE IX
RESIGNATION, SUSPPENSION AND EXPULSION:
Section 1 – Resignation from membership shall be considered when a member submits their request in writing.
Section 2 – Ring dues are payable on the 1st of September of each year. A member three months in arrears in dues or assessments shall automatically be suspended.
Section 3 – A member may be suspended, expelled or subject to other disciplinary action for the following offenses:
(a) Unbecoming conduct.
(b) Violation of the constitution, by-laws or its amendments.
(c) Violation of the code of ethics.
(d) Be guilty of three successive unexcused absences or a total of four unexcused absences a year. Also see Article VI, Associate Membership (Only officers can recognize excuses).
Section 4 – An individual may apply for reinstatement at any time.
ARTICLE X
CODE OF ETHICS -
(a) Members shall refrain from all exposure of tricks, illusions, and magical principles to the public and conform to the signed pledges and Code of Ethics as prescribed by the International Brotherhood of Magicians (Attached as Appendix A).
(b) A member shall not be guilty of deliberately underbidding or criticizing another magician for the purpose of obtaining an engagement.
ARTICLE XI
OPERATING POLICY – A list of rules, procedures, and responsibilities (herein after called ‘operating policy’ and attached as Appendix B) may be published annually by the Executive Committee. Suggestions for changes or additions to this published operating policy may be offered at any time. Objections to the current policy may be reviewed with the Executive Committee at any of their regular (monthly) meetings.
Appendix A
Code of Ethics
At a joint meeting in March of 1993, the officers of the International Brotherhood of Magicians, and the Society of American Magicians agreed to establish a Code of Ethics for its members and the fraternity of Magic. The following was ratified in May of that year and signed jointly at their National Conventions in July by IBM President “Obie” O’Brien and Sam President George Schindler.
All members of the Society of American Magicians and the International Brotherhood of Magicians agree to:
1) Oppose the willful exposure to the public of any principles of the Art of Magic, or the methods employed in any magic effect or illusion.
2) Display ethical behavior in the presentation of magic to the public and in our conduct as magicians, including not interfering with or jeopardizing the performance of another magician either through personal intervention or the unauthorized use of another’s creation.
3) Recognize and respect for rights of the creators, inventors, authors, and owners of magic concepts, presentations, effects and literature, and their rights to have exclusive use of, or to grant permission for the use by others of such creations.
4) Discourage false or misleading statements in the advertising of effects, and literature, merchandise or actions pertaining to the magical arts.
5) Discourage advertisement in magic publications for any magical apparatus, effect, literature or other materials for which the advertiser does not have commercial rights.
6) Promote the humane treatment and care of livestock used in magical performances.
Appendix B
Ring 101 Operating Policy/Rules
Adopted by Ring 101 Members on September 6, 2000
1. There shall be an “active member” attendance record by the year which delineates the member names and attendance by month.
2. There shall be an active roll call conducted by the Sergeant-At-Arms or any elected officer and recorded as to presence, absence, or excused absence at the opening of monthly meetings.
3. Members who cannot attend the scheduled monthly meeting should notify any of the elected officers. Any member not present for the monthly meeting, 3 times in a row without an excused absence, may be subject to suspension.
4. There shall be a “guest attendance” record which shall be taken and maintained at each monthly meeting. The guests shall be identified upon arrival by their sponsoring Ring member. Guests may not invite other guests. The record shall list the name of the attendee and the sponsoring Ring member. Attendance at three consecutive meetings (required) will be annotated to this record, to insure that the new attendee fulfill the requirement to perform three tricks during these three meetings.
5. Any interested person must apply to the IBM during the three month period. The Ring shall vote on the individual’s acceptance into the Ring on the fourth month. If accepted by the Ring, it is not official until receipt of the official IBM Certificate. While the candidate is an interim Ring member, he/she may attend meetings. Acceptance by the Ring requires a quorum of 60%.
6. The IBM Application, with check, must be submitted to the Ring Treasurer within three months of the first meeting attended. A photocopy of the application for IBM membership and Ring 101 membership will be reviewed and initialed by all Ring 101 executive board members. Thereupon, the prospective member shall be an “interim member.” The copy will be kept on file by the Ring Secretary.
7. An exact member count shall be maintained at all times.
8. It shall be incumbent on each active member who invites an “interested in magic” guest to explain the rules of participation in our Ring. The rules shall be briefly restated by the president at each meeting, as necessary.
9. It shall be mandated that all meetings shall start exactly at the scheduled time. In the event that the president, secretary, and treasurer is not present (or excused), it shall be stipulated that the business meeting will be deferred and the performance show will commence.
10. It shall be mandated that all members in attendance at the monthly meeting shall be seated at the exact scheduled start time. No loitering, etc. or performance of magic will delay start of the meeting.
11. Each scheduled monthly meeting (business portion) shall not extend beyond 30 minutes. Reports, correspondence, etc. will be briefly summarized. Any discussions and/or new business shall be limited (if possible) to 1-2 minutes by any active member.
12. Recognition to speak during business meetings shall be requested via a raised hand (not by vocal interruption). The presiding officer shall recognize the speaker.
13. It shall be mandated that during business meetings as well as magic performances, there shall be no side conversations or disruption or performing magic as a professional courtesy. The Sergeant-At-Arms shall maintain this standard.
14. Upon adjournment of the business portion of the monthly meeting, there shall be a ten minute break (precisely) after which time the magic performances shall commence. It shall be mandated that no informal magic tricks be executed during this ten minute period. It shall not be incumbent by the Sergeant-At-Arms to collect or gather the members to be seated after the ten minute break. It is their responsibility and continued infraction of these rules shall be subject to admonishment.
15. Guests shall be notified by any presiding officer that their presence is requested for the start of the magic performance at the conclusion of the business meeting.
16. The selection of the Master of Ceremonies (MC) for each magic show at the monthly meetings shall be assigned arbitrarily from the active member list by the secretary. The name of the MC will be recorded along with record of who performed during the show. Each and every member shall be required to perform this role. He/She may be notified of this task at a previous meeting if at all possible. The MC will be responsible for managing an entertaining magic show.
17. At the beginning of each monthly meeting, during roll call, those members who plan to perform later in the magic show will so indicate. Guests will state their intention to perform to the designated MC upon arrival (following the business meeting).
18. In the event of absence of the secretary at the meeting, it shall be required that one of the other duly elected officers record meeting notes, attendance, and performance information.
19. Active members doing a performance during monthly meetings shall refrain from teaching tricks or secrets in the presence of guests. Failure to comply will result in admonishment or suspension.
20. Each evening magic show will start no sooner than one half hour after the scheduled meeting start. Invited guests need not show up sooner than this time.