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Bylaws * CITY OF TIGARD TIGARD YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL BY-LAWS r SECTION I. CHARGE AND COMPOSITION The Tigard Youth Advisory Council (TYAC) was formed in 2003 as the official advisory body on youth issues to the Tigard City Council. The TYAC's goal is to empower Tigard's youth and give them a voice in the community. The TYAC is made up of 15 to 30 residents of the City of Tigard who attend schools around Washington County. TYAC members may also serve as non-voting members of other boards and committees. A. It shall be the function of the TYAC to act as an advisory body to the City Council. B. The Board and its members shall conduct itself in a manner that's in keeping with applicable federal, state, and local laws pertaining to conduct and ethics and the City of Tigard Code of Conduct.Any violation of the provisions of such laws shall be grounds for removal from office. C. The Youth Advisory Council is charged with advising the City Council. • Vision:The youth of Tigard will be equal partners empowered and involved in the community helping the youth in Tigard. • Mission:To empower,improve and connect the lives of Tigard's youth. • Guiding Princples: o Through empowerment young people know they are valued by the adults in their community. o Through involvement,young people serve useful roles in their school, family and community. o Through volunteering,young people provide service to others in the community. o Through respect,young people feel safe in their community. • Provide review and comment to elected officials and City decision makers regarding public issues, projects, and proposals that have an impact on youth. • Work with the Mayor, City Council, City departments, Chamber of Commerce, civic clubs, and other community organizations to create civic engagement opportunities for local youth. • Serve as ex-officio members of city boards and commissions. • Find creative ways to educate the general public concerning issues affecting Tigard's youth. Adopted by City Council 10-14-14 1 * CITY OF TIGARD TIGARD YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL BY-LAWS r SECTION II. COUNCIL MEMBERSHIP Any youth who is in grade 6-12 and a Tigard resident is eligible for membership. Any vacancies left after the normal application process should be filled as soon as possible through the announcement of openings. The TYAC will maintain relations with local businesses and organizations with a common interest in the Youth Advisory Council. Council members may attend meetings of these groups to serve as a resource to the community. Any member of the TYAC may propose an amendment to the Bylaws at any regular meeting of the Youth Advisory Council. The amendment shall be voted on by the members present but requires a majority vote of the entire membership to pass. A. Officers: There shall be four (4) elected officers, the President,Vice President,Treasurer, and Secretary. Terms are for one year. No officer shall serve more than two (2) consecutive terms. Candidates for elected office must be members of the Youth Advisory Council and have served on the Council for at least one year prior to elections. Candidates for elected office are elected by majority vote of the membership. Members may only hold one elected office at a time. SECTION III. ORGANIZATION OF THE YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL A. Elections: At its first meeting of the year, and thereafter annually, the Youth Advisory Council shall elect a President from its members who shall hold office at the pleasure of the Youth Advisory Council. The following officers were elected by the membership on an interim basis on September 11, 2014,with the intent to hold further elections in several months once membership has grown. B. Duties of Elected Officers: Each candidate for elected office and subcommittee chairs must make a brief speech to the full membership prior to the election of officers, even if running unopposed. Speeches shall run less than 5 minutes each and shall include information about the candidates' background,interests, and how their goals for the TYAC relate to the Tigard Youth Advisory Council's vision, mission, and goals. Elections shall be held at the first TYAC meeting in June of each year. A candidate running unopposed must still receive a majority vote to be elected. i. President. The President will be responsible for facilitating meetings and ensure the TYAC is working together toward its goals,mission, and vision. The President shall preside at all meetings and,in consultation with support staff, set the agendas and notify the TYAC of all meeting times and place. The President shall also be an ex-officio member of all subcommittees and shall be the sole spokesperson for the TYAC unless this responsibility is delegated to support staff. The President is responsible for creating agendas based on the current issues of the Council and topics from previous meetings. The President of the TYAC officer may act as an ex-officio member of the Tigard City Council. When the President is unable to attend meetings he/she may appoint another officer to attend in his/her place. Adopted by City Council 10-14-14 2 CITY OF TIGARD TIGARD YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL BY-LAWS ii. Vice President. The Vice President shall assume the duties of the President, Secretary, and Treasurer in his/her absence. S/he is responsible for ensuring that the TYAC projects and programs are assigned to the appropriate subcommittee. iii. Secretary. The Secretary's duty is to take notes of the meetings and assist the President in setting the agenda. He/she is also responsible for distributing meeting agendas to members and must have good note-taking and organizational skills. iv. Treasurer. The Treasurer's duty is to keep track of the Council's monetary assets. He/she reports on the Council's finances at each meeting and is in charge of fundraising. C. If the President should resign, the TYAC shall, at its next meeting, conduct an election and provide a replacement to fill the unexpired term. D. Staff liaisons are the primary contacts for City of Tigard boards and the primary interface between these bodies and the City Council, City Manager, and departments. Besides serving as a technical resource, staff liaisons are responsible for meeting logistics,member recruitment and recognition, recordkeeping, and monitoring board effectiveness. E. Committees: Committees are organized based on the collective interests and talents of the members of the TYAC and reflect the Council's vision,mission and goals. Committee appointments are for one year. Each committee consists of a set amount of subcommittees. Subcommittees are focused on a specific area of interest and are in charge of the Council's effort in that area. i. Selection of Committee Members.When applying for membership to the TYAC, applicants must select (at least) one committee to serve on. Committee members are selected by the Subcommittee Chairs who will review the applicants and select members based on interests and talents. ii. Assembled Subcommittee Chairs—The subcommittee chairs of a particular committee form the committee's Assembled Subcommittee Chairs (ASC). Together they will work to organize their respective subcommittees, and make any decisions directly pertaining to their committee or specific subcommittee. They also serve as meeting coordinators. iii. Subcommittee Chairs—Subcommittee chairs organize their respective subcommittees. They report to the Committee Chairs and Council about the projects of their respective committees. They also serve as meeting coordinators. iv. Meeting Coordinators—The Subcommittee Chairs and Elected Officers form the Meeting Coordinators Board. The role of the Meeting Coordinator is to ensure that meeting agendas accommodate the needs of each committee and subcommittee for speaking and presentation time. The Coordinators are responsible for ensuring that subcommittees coordinate their activities when projects and programs overlap. The Meeting Coordinators are responsible for setting annual goals Adopted by City Council 10-14-14 3 CITY OF TIGARD TIGARD YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL BY-LAWS for the Youth Advisory Council and developing and maintaining a Strategic Plan based on input from the general Youth Advisory Council membership and outreach to the youth of the community. F. Outreach Committee—The Outreach Committee is responsible for community relations. It consists of the School and Recreation, Community Connection, and Community Boards subcommittees. The Secretary acts as the liaison to the Outreach Committee. i. School and Recreation Subcommittee-The School and Recreation Subcommittee connects the City of Tigard with local arts, athletics, academics and extracurricular programs. It is also responsible for the Councils involvement in schools, and highlighting ongoing or current news or events from these local schools for the community to see. ii. Community Connection Subcommittee—The Community Connection Subcommittee is in charge of the Council's communication with the community. It is responsible for maintaining the Council's web page,newsletter column, flyers, and posters. The Community Connection Subcommittee is responsible for getting information about the events the Council is hosting out to the community. iii. Community Board Subcommittee-The Community Board Subcommittee devotes its members to serve on the various community boards and report upcoming and current activities to the Youth Advisory Council. G. Action Committee -The Action Committee is responsible for creating and facilitating active projects such as fundraisers, events and gatherings. The Treasurer acts as the liaison to the Action Committee and handles all monetary aspects of projects. i. Events Subcommittee—The Events Subcommittee is in charge of coordinating all Youth Advisory Council events other than meetings. It is responsible for planning the events and working with the Community Connection Subcommittee to get information about the event out to the community. It also works with the Service Subcommittee for fundraisers, and the Treasurer to make sure the necessary amount of funds for an event are available. ii. Service Subcommittee—The Service Subcommittee organizes service projects for other subcommittees and the general Council. Areas of service for the Youth Advisory Council may include but are not limited to schools, the arts, athletics, the environment and parks. The Service Subcommittee may also organize its own projects as it deems fit. H. Community Based Boards and Committees—TYAC members interested in serving on Community Boards and Committees (School Board,Tigard-Tualatin based non-profits) shall file interest applications with the Outreach Committee by the deadline set by the committee. The Outreach Committee shall select representatives based on criteria set by the specific Board or Committee. Any TYAC members interested in positions on boards and committees of the City of Tigard shall complete an application stating why he/she thinks he/she should represent the Council on a certain board or committee and deliver a brief statement to the Council. The Council shall then vote on Adopted by City Council 10-14-14 4 CITY OF TIGARD TIGARD YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL BY-LAWS whom to send to be a representative. Candidates must be approved by a majority vote. If only one person is interested in being a representative on a certain board he/she must still be approved by a majority vote. SECTION IV.APPOINTMENTS A. The City Council shall fill vacancies with individuals who meet the compositional requirements listed in Section 1I. B. Appointments of at-large members shall be made the City Council,with recommendations from the Mayor. SECTION V.TERM OF OFFICE A. Election of Members: The term of membership to the TYAC runs from initial election to membership through graduation from the 12th grade. Members have no term limits, and may continue to serve until graduation in 12th grade. Election for membership is held in May of each year. Election for the four (4) elected officers will be held during the first week of June. B. Youth interested in membership shall file an application with the TYAC.Applications shall be reviewed and admission voted on by the general membership of the Tigard Youth Council. All applicants must also complete an interview process and be appointed by the Tigard City Council. Adopted by City Council 10-14-14 5 * CITY OF TIGARD TIGARD YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL BY-LAWS r SECTION VI.MEMBER DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES A. Attendance: Members are expected to attend all meetings of the Youth Advisory Council and the meetings of any committees or subcommittees which they are a member. If a member needs to miss a meeting due to illness or another important event, the member is responsible to notify the President, Committee or Subcommittee Chair in advance whenever possible. Prior notice of an illness,important event, and family emergency shall constitute an excused absence. Members who have 3 unexcused absences will be removed from the Youth Advisory Council. Members are responsible to obtain notes and/or assignments from any general or committee meetings they miss. B. Duties: • Each member of the Youth Advisory Council shall serve on a minimum of one committee or subcommittee. • Each member of the Youth Advisory Council is expected to conduct himself/herself in accordance with the following ground rules: o This Youth Advisory Council belongs to YOU and its success rests largely on YOU. o Enter into the discussion ENTHUSIASTICALLY. o GIVE FREELY of your experience. o CONFINE your comments to the issue under discussion. o Say what you THINK. o Only ONE PERSON should talk at a time (Avoid private conversations while someone else is speaking.) o LISTEN ALERTLY to the discussion. o BE PATIENT with other members. o APPRECIATE the other person's point of view. o BE PROMPT and REGULAR in attendance. o ASK A QUESTION when you have one. o Think of how you can apply and/or pass along the information. • Each member of the TYAC must reaffirm the TYAC Bylaws by signing a copy at the meeting in which election of Officers is held each year. New members whose membership begins mid-year must sign a copy of the Bylaws at the meeting at which they become members. • The TYAC Board and its members shall conduct themselves in a manner that's in keeping with applicable federal, state, and local laws pertaining to conduct and ethics and the City of Tigard Code of Conduct. Any violation of the provisions of such laws shall be grounds for removal from the Council. Regularly attend meeting and contribute constructively to discussions. C. Meetings: Regular meetings of the TYAC shall be held at least monthly and more often as agreed to by a majority of the members. The meeting time and place shall be determined by consensus of the membership. Every TYAC meeting shall be open to all youth in the community and the dates of upcoming meetings shall be posted on the Council's webpage. Adopted by City Council 10-14-14 6 CITY OF TIGARD TIGARD YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL BY-LAWS r i. Committee and subcommittee meetings shall be held as deemed necessary by the subcommittee and at a time and place agreed on by a majority of the subcommittee members. ii. The President may call a special meeting, and the President shall call a special meeting if requested by three or more members. The call shall state the purpose of the meeting. Notice of a special meeting must be in writing and communicated to all members at least 24 hours before the meeting. iii. A majority of votes of TYAC members present shall determine the official position of the Youth Advisory Council on a given issue. iv. Agendas and minutes shall be posted for the public on the City of Tigard web page and in the lobby of City Hall in compliance with Oregon Public Meetings Law. All meetings shall be open to the public. SECTION VIII. QUORUM At any meeting of the TYAC, a quorum shall be a majority of the current members of the Youth Advisory Council. No action shall be taken in the absence of a quorum except that the meeting may continue with discussion on agenda items. Excused absent members shall be counted as present in regards to the quorum. SECTION X. REMOVAL OF MEMBERS The City Council may remove members,when,in its judgment the conduct of a member does not conform to the City of Tigard Code of Conduct for Boards, Commissions and Committees or based on other conduct unbecoming a representative of the City. SECTION XII.AMENDMENTS These bylaws are adopted by resolution of the Tigard City Council, are binding on the Youth Advisory Council, and may be amended by the City Council. Boards may propose amendments for City Council consideration. Adopted by City Council 10-14-14 7