YARP: Young Adult Reading Program | Constitution

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Constitution and Bylaws

• Constitution
  • Article I. Name
  • Article II. Membership
  • Article III. Officers
  • Article IV. Meetings
  • Article V. Dissolution
  • Article VI. Amendments
• Bylaws
  • Article I. Membership
  • Article II. Meetings
  • Article III. Duties of the Committee Chairman
    • Duties of the Selection Committee Chairman
    • Duties of the Chairman of the Publications Committee
    • Duties of the Secretary of the YARP — Teen Reads Committee
  • Article IV. Criteria for Inclusion on the Booklist
  • Article V. Voting
  • Article V. Expenses

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CONSTITUTION

South Dakota Young Adult Reading Program (YARP) Teen Reads Committee

Article I. Name

The name of the program shall be the South Dakota Young Adult Reading Program (YARP) Teen Reads Committee of the South Dakota Library Association. Its purpose is twofold:

1. to provide a list of recently published outstanding young adult books to libraries throughout the state
2. to encourage young adults to read more quality contemporary literature. While schools will be the primary focus of promotional activities, public libraries will also be encouraged to promote reading activities to this age group and utilize the reading list.

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Article II. Membership

The SD YARP Teen Reads Committee will be comprised of at least 12 members. Every member must belong to SDLA. Individuals may volunteer to join the committee or may be recruited by members of the current committee. Members of the committee will serve one-year terms and may serve consecutive terms. If a member must leave the committee prior to the completion of their term, they must submit a written resignation to the Chairman to the committee and are asked to aid the committee in finding a replacement.

The Committee membership will be polled via email, asking if they wish to continue as members. They will be asked to indicate which committee tasks they will do. Those not indicating such willingness will be dropped from the roll.

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Article III. Officers

• The chairman of the committee will be elected by the membership of the whole committee at the SDLA Conference meeting and will serve a one-year term as overall chairman of SD YARP Teen Reads Committee.
• The secretary of the committee will be elected by the membership of the whole committee at the SDLA meeting and serve a one-year term and may serve consecutive terms.
• The book nomination chairman will be elected by the whole committee at the SDLA meeting and will serve a two-year term that will expire on the odd numbered years.
• The chairman of the publications committee will be elected by the whole committee at the SDLA Conference meeting and will serve a two-year term that will expire on the even numbered years.
• The membership chairman will be elected by the membership of the whole committee at the SDLA meeting and serve a one-year term and may serve consecutive terms.
• The web chairman of the committee will be elected by the membership of the whole committee at the SDLA meeting and serve a one-year term and may serve consecutive terms.
• The executive committee will be composed of these officers.

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Article IV. Meetings

Full committee meetings will be held twice each year:

• Once during SDLA Conference
• Once in June.

The subcommittees may meet at SDEA or as the need arises. Changes in the By-laws and constitution may be made at either the SDLA or June meeting.

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Article V. Dissolution

This committee may be dissolved by a 60% favorable vote of the whole committee (including absentee votes) and approval from the SDLA executive board.

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Article VI. Amendments

Amendments to the Constitution or By-laws can be made by any member of the Young Adult Reading Program committee at either the June or the SDLA meeting. If possible, the amendment should be in writing and available to each member present. Any amendments will require a 60% majority vote of the members present to be approved.

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BYLAWS

Article I. Membership

It will be the duty of each member of the South Dakota Young Adult Reading Program (YARP) Teen Reads to participate in book selection and attend both meetings. Membership must be renewed yearly.

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Article II. Meetings

Meetings shall be held at SDLA and in June. Other meetings can be scheduled as needed on the approval of the executive committee. A quorum for these meetings will consist of 60% of the committee members.

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Article III. Duties of the Committee Chairman

The chairman of the South Dakota YARP Teen Reads Committee will:

• preside over the meetings of the whole committee at the SDLA Annual Conference and in June, or as deemed necessary
• prepare the budget request
• represent the interests of the South Dakota YARP Teen Reads committee to the SDLA governing board.

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Duties of the Selection Committee Chairman

The chairman of this committee will see that:

1. All book suggestions from non-committee members are brought to the June meeting.
2. Books should interest teenagers in grades six through twelve.
3. All books meet the guidelines established by the bylaws.
4. A ballot is prepared so that members may vote on the books at the SDLA meeting.
5. All books have been read and reviewed by at least 2 members of the selection committee before a final vote is taken.
6. All BIP information and a short paragraph summary of the books that are selected are collected and sent to the promotion committee chairman by December 15th.
7. Any budget requests or bills are submitted to the chairman of the South Dakota YARP Teen Reads Committee at the June meeting.

The Chairman of the Selection committee will also serve as a member of the YARP Teen Reads Executive Committee to advised the chairman and make any emergency decisions between whole committee meetings.

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Duties of the Chairman of the Publications Committee

The Chairman of the Publications Committee will see that:

1. The booklist that is submitted by the selection committee is printed and distributed by March 31st to the libraries in the state and other individuals, institutions, and businesses the promotion committee deems appropriate.
2. Promotional activities at SDEA and SDLA concerning the new booklist are arranged, including arranging, for individuals to present booktalks, distribute lists, or any other activities the committee plans.
3. The promotional committee continues to research and plan appropriate activities geared to encouraging young adult reading; these activities may include circulating author information to librarians, publishing sample book talks, making sample activity packets that relate to the books on the booklist available to teachers, and coordinating promotional activities with the media.
4. Submit budget needs for the next year and all bills accrued from the current promotion activities to the committee chairman by the June meeting.

The Chairman of the Promotion committee will also serve as a member of the executive committee to advise the chairman and make any emergency decisions necessary between whole committee meetings.

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Duties of the Secretary of the YARP — Teen Reads Committee

The secretary of the Young Adult Reading Committee will:

1. Keep a record of all whole committee meetings and distribute them to all members following the meeting.
2. Receive and answer all inquiries and correspondence to the committee.
3. Assist the committee chairman in any correspondence to other members of the committee.

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Article IV. Criteria for Inclusion on the Booklist

• Individual titles will be included on the booklist, not author's entire works.
• Books will have a copyright date of no more than five years prior to the publication of the list.
• The books will be chosen on the basis of quality, suitability, and overall interest to SD teenagers, grades 6-12.
• Inclusion of the title on other reviewing lists such as Best Books for Young Adults is encouraged, but not mandatory if the book is thought by committee to be of exceptional quality.
• Books must be in print at the time of selection.
• Suggestions for inclusion on the booklist will come from librarians, teachers, students and members of the committee.
• All books must be read and approved by at least three members of the selection committee to be considered for inclusion on the list.
• The Booklist should include at least twenty titles selected and provide a balance of genre, and difficulty that appeal to SD teenagers. (Balance of genre should include gender representation, race diversity, diversity of social, political, economic and religious view points) It will also include both fiction and non-fiction titles.
• Criteria for inclusion on the booklist will be reviewed yearly at the June meeting.
• The list may include the 1st in a series, but may not include subsequent volumes in the series.
• Titles already on the Prairie Pasque list may not be chosen.
• Books need not have been written exclusively for a teen audience.
• Only one title by an author can appear on each year's list.
• The list shall be divided into two sections - middle school recommendations and high school recommendations. The final list will indicate these divisions.

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Article V. Voting

Voting will begin during Teen Read Week and will continue until April 1st, at this time the votes will be tallied and announced for National Library Week. Teenagers may vote for as many books as they would like on a scale basis. This voting will be done online. The awards shall be known as the SD Teen Choice Book Awards. One winner will be selected from the Middle School list and another winner from the High School list.

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Article V. Expenses

Expenses shall include funds to be used for printing, mailing, promotion, telephone calls and committee expenses that are accrued in selection and promotion of the booklist and promotional activities. It will not include defraying member's expense for participation (mileage, food, lodging, etc.)

Funding sources shall come from SDLA initially, but may evolve to include grants, donations, fees, or other funding source.

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Online Resources

Programs

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