Bylaws

ASAP BOARD STRUCTURE AND BYLAWS

January 15, 2024


Purpose

The Arecibo Observatory offered a unique, multidisciplinary facility that facilitated ground-breaking research in all aspects of space science. As such, we at ASAP seek to preserve the historical legacy of the Arecibo Observatory and advocate to the public, to the research community, and to the US government for restoring its capabilities.

The membership

ASAP membership is open to anyone who pays a fee set by the Board for the annual membership. All members who have paid the annual membership fee can serve in the committees, vote in the annual Board election, and stand for election themselves. The membership expires after a three month grace period if not renewed. The membership fee will follow a pay-what-you-want model. The Board will set a minimum fee that should be accessible to most, if not all, would-be members. New members will be asked to specify how much they wish to pay, provided it is at least equal to the minimum amount.

The Board

The ASAP Management Board will consist of 9 Board members:

  • Chair, who convenes and facilitates the Board meetings and all-member meetings, sets agendas and sends them 24 hours in advance to all Board members,
  • Secretary, who is responsible for maintaining the membership email list, taking notes during the Board meetings, providing email minutes to all board members within 48 hours of the meeting, indicating decisions and actions made or to be made, and coordinating the Board elections,
  • Treasurer, who is responsible for the organization’s budget, fundraising, reimbursements, and, if viable, coordinating travel support and research awards for students,
  • Education and Public Outreach (EPO) officer, who maintains ASAP’s website and social media accounts, coordinates newsletter preparation, and acts as a point of communication to other scientific EPO organizations,
  • Government Advocacy officer, who maintains relations to the government entities (US Senate and House of representatives, NSF, and other government agencies as needed) and leads and coordinates government advocacy efforts,
  • Arecibo Liaison and Legacy officer, who maintains knowledge of the remaining scientific instrumentation, current operations at the site, maintains relations with the site operators as a point of communication, and, together with the EPO officer, prepares materials on the historical legacy of Arecibo that can be used for outreach and advocacy, and
  • three at-large members, consisting of one representative from each of the three scientific disciplines, which have primary long-term interest in Arecibo scientific operations, (i.e. atmospheric and geospace sciences, planetary science, and radio astronomy), who act as bridges between ASAP and their respective scientific communities.

The Board shall maintain an advisory committee of prominent and/or influential people, who have either experience in scientific advocacy or can otherwise advance the purpose of ASAP. Advisory Committee members are not on the Board but could serve on other committees. The purpose of the advisory committee is to advise the Board, particularly the Government Advocacy and EPO officers, on how to best carry out the mission of ASAP. All Board members can make an initiative for the Board to form additional committees made up of the general membership to help them with their respective tasks as needed. If the Board forms a committee under a specific role, the holder of the role will chair the committee and report its decisions and actions to the Board.

If funding is available after advocacy costs such as travel reimbursements, the Board, under the direction of the Treasurer, can grant travel or research awards to undergraduate, masters, or doctoral students (or their international equivalents). The purpose of these awards is to motivate early career scientists to utilize Arecibo Observatory’s legacy data and to promote awareness about the unique capabilities the Arecibo Observatory possessed. Travel awards can be granted to students who are presenting thesis or research work that utilized Arecibo Observatory legacy data at a scientific conference or workshop. Research awards can be granted to students who are utilizing Arecibo Observatory legacy data in their thesis or research work.

The Board election

The term of the Board members is one year. There is no limit to the number of terms. Elections for all Board roles are held simultaneously with each role being elected separately. Board members are elected by a simple majority vote of the voting members.

A designated election officer, who is a member of the Board, will be responsible for counting the votes and resolving the winning candidates. The Secretary will be the election officer, except in cases where the Secretary is on the ballot. In these instances, the Board will designate a different member of the Board who is not standing for election to serve as the election officer. If a role has no candidates, the Board may appoint an interim member until someone runs for the role. If a Board member should resign from the Board or dies before their term expires, the Board shall organize a special election within four weeks of the vacancy, unless the general Board election is due in eight weeks or less, in which case the vacancy can be filled in the general election. The special election follows the same principles as the general election.

The Board meetings and all-member meetings

The Board is the responsible authority for every aspect of ASAP operations. The ASAP Board will hold virtual meetings monthly, and more often should events require. A quorum consisting of five Board members, including the Chair, must be present to vote on official business and to adopt any goal or position. A majority vote of the full Board is required for funding allocations of over USD500 or a decision to bring changes to these bylaws or the Statement of Purpose before the membership. Issues raised and seconded by any two Board members will be discussed and voted on promptly by the Board. Voting will be carried out in real time, if there is a quorum. Otherwise, it can be done electronically by any other means that the Board decides as a suitable platform for the purpose. Board members will make every effort to vote promptly. In case of ties, the Chair of the Board will cast the deciding vote.

At least two all-member meetings will be held annually to keep the members up to date and to provide the Board with an opportunity to gain constructive feedback and recommendations from the members. Members are encouraged to send feedback and recommendations at any time by email, which will be discussed at the Board meetings. If the member expresses that they want to be anonymous, their decision will be respected. A majority vote of the ASAP members participating in the meeting is needed to amend the Statement of Purpose or these Bylaws. ASAP in general follows a "Shared Leadership Model", with all members having equal weight/voice.