Governance

Bylaws

Article I - Name

This unit of the American Physical Society shall be called the Forum on Diversity and Inclusion (FDI).

Article II - Objective

The objective of the Forum on Diversity and Inclusion is to support the mission of the APS by:

• Working to ensure that all physicists, particularly those from historically or currently marginalized or underrepresented backgrounds or identities, will be fully included and have the opportunity to thrive within the physics community
• Emphasizing, educating, and publicizing the important role of APS members and leadership in diversifying physics
• Engaging stakeholders to initiate opportunities and support efforts to increase diversity and inclusion in physics

Article III - Enabling Constitutional Provisions

Article VIII of the Constitution and Bylaws, and the associated Policies & Procedures of the Society, as said Article, and Policies & Procedures, may be subsequently revised or amended, are hereby incorporated in these bylaws by reference.

Article IV - Membership

The members of the Forum shall consist of members of the Society who have indicated in accordance with procedures established by the Board and Council their desire to join the Forum and who retain membership from year to year by the payment of designated dues or other method established by the Board.

Article V - Executive Committee

Governance: The Forum shall be governed by an Executive Committee, which shall have general charge of the affairs of the Forum.

Composition: The voting members of the Executive Committee shall be the Officers, five Members-at-Large elected to staggered two-year terms, at least one of whom shall be an early career or student member of APS, and the Forum Councilor, if any. Voting members of the Executive Committee shall be appointed by the Chair as representatives for particular marginalized or underrepresented communities, as described in the FDI Operating Procedures. The non-voting members of the Executive Committee shall consist of a member of the APS Committee on Minorities (COM), a member of the APS Committee on the Status of Women in Physics (CSWP), the Forum Webmaster, and the Forum Social Media Coordinator. All members of the Executive Committee (voting and non-voting) must be members of the Forum.

Executive Committee Meetings: The Executive Committee shall meet at least once each year at a meeting called by the Chair of the Forum. If at least four voting members of the Executive Committee submit a request in writing to the Chair to convoke a meeting, the Chair must do so within sixty days. A quorum shall consist of at least two-thirds of the voting members of the Executive Committee, rounded up, two of whom shall be Officers. The Chair may conduct Forum business and hold a vote of the Executive Committee by mail, email, phone, or other means on issues that require attention in the time between meetings.

Article VI - Officers, Members-at-Large, and Forum Councilor

Officers: The Officers of the Forum shall be the Chair, Chair-Elect, Vice Chair, Past Chair and the Secretary/Treasurer.

Duties of the Chair: The Chair shall have overall responsibility for the operation and affairs of the Forum and shall preside at all meetings of the Executive Committee at which his or her attendance is possible. The Chair shall prepare the agenda of Executive Committee meetings in consultation with the Secretary/Treasurer and shall perform such other functions as may be provided in these bylaws. After consultation with the Executive Committee, the Chair, or the Chair's Designee on the Executive Committee, shall make all appointments necessary to conduct the affairs of the Forum. The Chair shall prepare a yearly report of the activities of the Forum to be presented at an Executive Committee Meeting and to be made available to the Society Corporate Secretary and members of the Forum. The Chair shall perform other functions as may be explicitly provided in these bylaws and in the associated FDI Operating Procedures.

Duties of the Chair-Elect: The Chair-Elect shall act in place of the Chair if the latter is unable to perform the duties of the office. The Chair-Elect shall serve as Chair of the Program Committee. The Chair-Elect shall work with the Past Chair in regularly reviewing the Forum bylaws. The Chair-Elect shall perform other functions as may be explicitly provided in these bylaws and in the associated FDI Operating Procedures.

Duties of the Vice Chair: The Vice Chair shall act in the place of the Chair-Elect if the latter is unable to perform the duties of the office. The Vice Chair shall serve as Chair of the Fellowship Committee. If this individual declines to serve as Chair of the Fellowship Committee, the Chair of the Forum shall have the power to appoint a replacement. The Vice Chair shall perform other functions as may be explicitly provided in these bylaws and in the associated FDI Operating Procedures.

Duties of the Past Chair: The Past Chair shall serve as Chair of the Nominating Committee. If this individual is declines to serve as Chair of the Nominating Committee, the Chair of the Forum shall have the power to appoint a replacement. The Past Chair shall work with the Chair-Elect in regularly reviewing the Forum bylaws. The Past Chair shall perform other functions as may be explicitly provided in these bylaws and in the associated FDI Operating Procedures.

Duties of the Secretary/Treasurer: The Secretary/Treasurer shall maintain and preserve the records of the Forum. The Secretary/Treasurer shall prepare minutes of Executive Committee meetings and shall submit these minutes to each member of the Executive Committee within six weeks after each meeting and post these on the Forum's website. The Secretary/Treasurer shall supervise the Forum elections in accord with Article VII of these bylaws. The Secretary/Treasurer shall approve and coordinate communications with Members of the Forum via email, the Forum website, and social media outlets. The Secretary/Treasurer shall have responsibility for all funds in the custody of, or placed at the disposal of, the Forum and shall, in consultation with the Chair, authorize disbursements from such funds. The Secretary/Treasurer shall notify the Executive Committee of budgetary and financial matters requiring the decision of said Committee. The Secretary/Treasurer shall present a financial report and a proposed budget annually at a meeting of the Executive Committee. The Secretary/Treasurer shall perform other functions as may be explicitly provided in these bylaws and in the associated FDI Operating Procedures.

Members-at-Large: The Members-at-Large of the Forum shall represent historically or currently marginalized or underrepresented backgrounds or identities including physicists of color, women physicists, LGBT+ physicists, physicists with disabilities, and others. The Members-at-Large of the Forum shall perform functions as may be explicitly provided in the associated FDI Operating Procedures.

Forum Councilor: The Forum Councilor shall serve as liaison between the Council and the Executive Committee of the Forum. Following each Council meeting, the Forum Councilor shall report to the Chair and the Secretary/Treasurer regarding Council actions that affect the status and operations of the Forum. Reports shall be made to the entire Executive Committee during a regularly scheduled meeting. Until the requirements for appointment of a voting member of the Council are achieved, a member of the Council shall be appointed as an ex officio member of the Executive Committee to provide liaison with the Council, serving as the Assigned Councilor.

Article VII - Election and Tenures of Officers, Executive Committee Members, and Forum Councilor

Qualifications: Officers, Members-at-Large, Executive Committee Members, and the Forum Councilor must be members of the Forum for at least one year prior to nomination.

Nomination and Election of the Vice Chair, Secretary/Treasurer, Forum Councilor, and Members-at-Large of the Executive Committee: Each year the Nominating Committee shall select at least two candidates for the office of Vice Chair, four candidates for the two openings for Members-at-Large, and at least two candidates for Councilor during the final year of the term of the current Councilor. The Nominating Committee shall also nominate two candidates for the office of Secretary/Treasurer during the final year of the term of the current officer. In the case of nomination of any candidate for a second term, the Nominating Committee, in consultation with the Chair, will determine if the re-election is appropriate.

Balloting: The Secretary/Treasurer shall distribute election ballots to all Members, electronically and/or by mail, each year, setting a closing date no less than four weeks after balloting has commenced. Ballots shall be returned to and counted by the Secretary/Treasurer or their designee. In the case of elections when the Secretary/Treasurer is a candidate for a second term, the election shall be administered by a process determined by the Executive Committee. The election shall be decided by a plurality of those voting. If there is a tie, the Executive Committee shall decide the election, with the Chair voting only in the case of a tie among the other Executive Committee members. The Secretary/Treasurer shall communicate the results of the election to the Executive Committee and to the Society Corporate Secretary, and shortly thereafter to all candidates.

Terms of Office of Executive Committee: The tenure of the members of the Executive Committee shall coincide with the calendar year, beginning January 1 and ending December 31.

Vice Chair, Chair-Elect, and Past Chair: The Vice Chair shall be elected by the membership for a one-year term and shall successively become Chair-Elect, Chair and Past Chair in the following years for a total of four years. The Past Chair shall not be eligible for the Vice Chair office for four years after service as Past Chair.

Secretary/Treasurer: The Secretary/Treasurer shall be elected by the membership for a term of three years and may not serve more than two consecutive terms.

Members-at-Large: Each Member-at-Large of the Executive Committee shall be elected by the membership for a term of two years and may not serve more than two consecutive terms. The tenure of a Member-at-Large of the Executive Committee shall terminate in the event of that individual’s assumption of a post as an Officer of the Forum, either through election or appointment, and the unexpired portion of their term shall be filled as hereinafter provided for a vacancy.

Forum Councilor: The Forum Councilor shall serve for a term of four years, beginning January 1 of the year following election. The Forum Councilor may not serve more than two consecutive terms.

Vacancies in Office: If a vacancy occurs in the office of Chair, the Chair-Elect shall become Chair and shall serve as Chair also in the following year. The Vice Chair shall serve simultaneously as Vice Chair and Chair-Elect during the remainder of the term and shall continue to serve as Chair-Elect in the following year.

If a vacancy occurs in the office of Chair-Elect, the Vice Chair shall become Chair-Elect and shall advance to Chair in the following year. In this case, and also if the office of Vice Chair becomes vacant for other reasons, the office of Vice Chair shall remain vacant for the remainder of the term. If the Vice Chair position is vacant before or during the service of the Nominating Committee, the Chair shall appoint a member of the Executive Committee to be Chair of the Fellowship Committee. The offices of both Chair-Elect and Vice Chair will be filled at the next scheduled election.

If vacancies occur in the offices of both the Chair and the Chair-Elect, the Vice Chair shall become Chair and shall continue to serve as Chair in the following year. In this case, the Executive Committee will appoint one of their members to serve the remaining term as Chair-Elect, and the offices of both Chair-Elect and Vice Chair will be filled at the next scheduled election.

If a vacancy occurs in any other elected position, the Executive Committee shall appoint a member of the Forum to fill the position until the next scheduled election. If any member of the Executive Committee is absent from two consecutive Meetings of the Executive Committee without consent of the Chair, that position shall be declared vacant. A member is considered present if that individual attends either in person or electronically.

Official Year: The official year shall be the calendar year.

Article VIII - Appointed Committees

Nominating Committee: The Nominating Committee shall consist of the Past Chair, and at least two members appointed by the Forum Chair, in consultation with the Past Chair. All appointed members must be members of the Forum. The APS shall appoint one member to the Nominating Committee, whose identity shall be obtained from the Society Corporate Secretary. The Past Chair shall serve as the Chair of the Nominating Committee. At an appropriate date each year, the Past Chair shall invite, via email and other means, Forum members to suggest candidates for all positions that will be elected that year, with a due date of June 1. The Nominating Committee shall prepare a slate of candidates for election to the Executive Committee in accord with Article VII of these bylaws. The term of office for members of the Nominating Committee shall be one year.

Program Committee: The Program Committee shall consist of the Chair-Elect and up to nine members appointed by the Chair, in consultation with the Chair-Elect. The Chair-Elect shall serve as the Chair of the Program Committee. The Program Committee shall work with the APS Director of Meetings in arranging Forum-sponsored sessions at meetings of the Society. The Program Committee shall be responsible for the solicitation, selection, and scheduling of invited and contributed papers for Forum-sponsored sessions at meetings of the Society, for the arrangement of the programs of such meetings, and organizing of Forum-sponsored conferences. The term of office for members of the Program Committee shall be staggered two-year terms.

Fellowship Committee: The Fellowship Committee shall consist of the Vice Chair and up to five members appointed by the Chair, in consultation with the Vice Chair, no later than May 1 of each year. All appointed members must be members of the Forum. The Vice Chair shall serve as Chair of the Fellowship Committee. This Fellowship Committee shall solicit the nomination of candidates for Fellowship, review the qualification of such candidates, and report its recommendation to the Executive Committee for approval before submission is made to the APS Fellowship Committee. The term of office for members of the Fellowship Committee shall be one year.

Terms of Office for Appointed Committees: The terms of committee members appointed or recommended by an incoming Chair shall commence at the beginning of the official year in which he or she assumes office.

Article IX - Meetings

The Executive Committee may authorize Forum sponsorship of special conferences and workshops, subject to the rules and regulations specified in the Society Constitution and Bylaws and associated Policies & Procedures.

Article X - Dues

Dues for maintenance of membership in the Unit shall be established by the Board.

Article XI - Official Announcements

Official announcements shall be made in an appropriate publication of the Society, APS News (at the discretion of the APS News Editor), or in such a manner as the Executive Committee may direct. The Forum may, at its discretion, maintain a social media presence.

Article XII - Procedure For Amendment of Bylaws

Proposal of an amendment of these bylaws may be made by the Council, by the Executive Committee, by the Society Governance Committee, or by a petition to the Chair signed by not fewer than ten percent of the members of the Forum. However a proposal for an amendment is initiated, it must be reviewed by the Society Governance Committee and approved by Council before further action can be taken. Following Council approval, the Secretary/Treasurer shall distribute copies of the proposed Amendment to all members of the Forum accompanied by ballots, by mail and/or electronically, setting a closing date for voting on the amendment no less than four weeks after distribution of the ballots. Adoption of the amendment shall require a two-thirds majority of those voting on the amendment.