Constitution

Section 1

The Society shall be called the Canadian Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies/Société canadienne d'étude du dix-huitième siècle. Its purposes are to advance interest within Canada in the study of the culture and history of the eighteenth century (especially in Europe and the New World), to encourage research and investigation in eighteenth-century studies on a broad interdisciplinary basis, and to acquaint students of the eighteenth century with Canadian scholarship in this field. The Society's official languages shall be English and French.

Section 2

The Society shall accomplish these purposes by promoting the exchange of information and ideas among members of various scholarly disciplines engaged in eighteenth-century studies through meetings, publications, newsletters, and any other means it deems appropriate.

Section 3

The Society deems itself to qualify as a registered charity within the meanings assigned by subsection 149 (1) f) of the Income Tax Act, that is:

1) It is a Canadian society dedicated to the advancement of education in Canada.

2) Its benefits are available to all Canadians.

3) No particular rights, privileges, benefits, or advantages accrue to any of its members or officers.

4) Its resources are devoted wholly to its stated charitable purposes.

Section 4

The Society shall accumulate property for the sole purpose of carrying on its stated ends, including the holding of annual conferences and the publication of its newsletter and an annual volume of selected conference proceedings.

Section 5

The fiscal year of the Society shall be from the first day of April to the thirty-first day of March in the year following.

ARTICLE 2 -- MEMBERSHIP

Section 1

Membership shall be open to all those interested in the purposes of the Society who pay the annual membership dues determined by the Society.

Section 2

The Society shall decide categories of membership, the amount of dues, and the privileges of membership.

ARTICLE 3 -- GENERAL MEETINGS AND CONFERENCES

There shall be a General Meeting of the membership held during the Society's conference. The General Meeting shall be held in order to make decisions affecting the business of the Society and its members. The quorum for the General Meeting shall be twenty (20) members. Conferences shall normally be held annually, and their location shall rotate between eastern, central, and western Canada. Only those who are members in good standing of the Society shall be allowed to vote in General Meetings and to present papers at its conferences.

ARTICLE 4 -- EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Section 1

There shall be an Executive Committee which shall meet at the conference of the Society in order to conduct the business of the Society, determine its policies, and administer its affairs in a manner consistent with the Society's purposes, subject to the direction and approval of the General Meeting of the Society. The quorum for the Executive Committee meeting shall be eight (8).

The Executive Committee is responsible for insuring that General Meetings are held, and it must make a full report on its activities at the General Meetings. Members of the Executive will serve as editorial advisors for the annual selected conference proceedings and, if called upon, they will assist in the organization of the programmes for the annual conferences.

Section 2

The members of the Executive Committee shall be:

a) a President

b) a Past-President

c) a Conference President

d) a Secretary-Treasurer

e) the Managing Editor of Lumen (formerly known as Man and Nature/L'homme et la nature)

f) the Editor(s) of the newsletter (Bulletin)

g) six Discipline Representatives, with one from each of the following groups of scholarly interest: English language and literature; French language and literature; other languages and literatures; history, politics, and economics; philosophy, science, medicine, and technology; art, music, and theatre.

h) a Delegate to the International Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies (ISECS).

The members of the Executive Committee shall be chosen in such a way as to ensure that all of the following regions of Canada will be represented: the Atlantic provinces, Quebec, Ontario, the Prairie provinces, and British Columbia.

Apart from the rotating position of Conference President (who must be a member of good standing in the Society and who will be appointed for a one-year term only) and the position of Past-President (who will serve a one-year term only), all members of the Executive Committee will be elected for three-year terms, renewable for one further term.

The President shall be responsible for chairing meetings of the Executive Committee and the Annual General Meeting of the membership, raising funds for the Society as a whole, and overseeing the ongoing functioning of the Society as a whole. In addition, the President (or a delegate) will act as a liaison with the American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies (ASECS), the Canadian Federation for the Humanities (CFH), and other relevant organizations.

The Past-President shall serve as an advisor to the incoming President and to the Executive regarding the affairs of the Society.

The Conference President shall be responsible for organizing, and for raising and disbursing funds for the annual conference and its associated volume of selected proceedings. The Conference President shall work in consultation with the President and the Secretary-Treasurer.

The Secretary-Treasurer shall be responsible for:

a) Matters pertaining to membership in the Society, including the publication and distribution of a Directory of Members.

b) The administration of the finances associated with the continuing operation of the Society, including receiving dues and disbursing them as directed by the membership, the administration of travel grants, and the payment of Society dues for membership in other national and international organizations.

c) Correspondence with other organizations and learned societies, such as ISECS, CFH, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC).

d) The submission of grant applications and annual financial statements to SSHRC (after consultation with the President and relevant members of the Executive Committee).

e) The maintenance of Society records.

The Managing Editor of Lumen shall be responsible for the regular production of Lumen, the setting of editorial guidelines, and the administration of business arising from the advertisement, sale, and distribution of back issues of Lumen and Man and Nature/L'homme et la nature .

The Editor(s) of the Society's newsletter shall be responsible for the production and distribution of the Bulletin on a regular basis.

Section 3

The members of the Executive Committee shall ordinarily be elected by the membership of the Society. If any vacancies arise because of resignation or death, these may be filled by the Executive Committee without the ratification of the membership of the Society.

Section 4

In the interval between the meetings of the Executive Committee, extraordinary business may be handled by the President and the Secretary-Treasurer in consultation with other members of the Executive.

ARTICLE 5 -- AMENDMENTS

The Constitution of the Society may be amended by a two-thirds majority of the membership, voting either at a General Meeting of the Society or in a postal ballot. Prior to the ballot, the proposed amendment(s) must be discussed by the Executive Committee, and then put forward to the membership for consideration or ratification.