Constitution

Tri-State Bookstores Association Constitution & By-Laws

Tri-State Bookstore Association Constitution and By-Laws Revised June 2026

ARTICLE I. Name

The name of the voluntary association shall be the TRI-STATE BOOKSTORE ASSOCIATION (Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota). Hereafter referred to as the Association.

ARTICLE II. Mission/Objectives

Section 1.  We shall unite into one organization all college bookstores in Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota and the firms that provide products and services to these stores.

Section 2.  We shall, through discussion and correspondence, help each other with common problems and challenges that are unique to the college bookstore industry.

Section 3.  We shall work closely with the Industry Associations to improve the college bookstore industry.

Section 4.  We shall encourage the professional development of our members through meetings and educational seminars on a local, regional and national level.

ARTICLE III. Meetings

Section 1.  Bookstore members are those individuals employed in the college bookstore industry.  Member stores must be located in the upper Midwest region.  There shall be one vote per member store.  The active voting member shall be the manager of the store or his/her designee.

Section 2.  Memberships may be extended to vendors who wish to engage in business activity with college bookstores in the Tri-State area.  There shall be one vote per each paid vendor member.  The active voting member shall be one person designated by each of the paid vendor companies.

ARTICLE IV. Officers

Section 1.  The executive officers of the Tri-State Bookstore Association shall be:  President, President-Elect, Past President, Secretary, Treasurer, Secretary-Elect, Treasurer-Elect,  Vendor Representative and Vendor Representative-Elect. (6.14)

Term Limits:

  • The President shall be the President-Elect from the previous year.
  • The President-Elect, Secretary Elect, Treasurer Elect and Vendor Representative-Elect shall be selected by a majority vote of the Association members that are present at the annual business meeting of the Association.
  • The Past President shall be the President from the previous year.
  • The term of office for the Secretary and Treasurer shall be three years, and Vendor Representative-Elect shall be one year(s) immediately following the one-year as Secretary-Elect, Treasurer-Elect or Vendor Representative-Elect.

 

Section 2.  The general supervision and direction of the affairs of the Association are the responsibility of the officers.

Section 3.  The officers shall be members of the Association as defined in Article III.

Section 4.  If any of the officers can’t complete the term of their office, the Executive Committee of the Association shall select a replacement.

ARTICLE V. Amendments

Section 1.  All proposed amendments should be submitted to the current officers thirty (30) days in advance of the annual meeting.

Section 2.  Amendments to the constitution and BY-LAWS of the Association shall be made only at the annual meeting each year.  Members will have 15 days notice of proposed changes.

Section 3.  A three-fourths (75%) vote of the members present is required for amendments to pass.

BY-LAWS

ARTICLE 1.  Duties of the Officers

Section 1.  It shall be the duty of the President to:

  • Preside over all annual and special meetings of the Association.
  • Enforce all laws and regulations relating to the administration of the Association.
  • Be responsible for the overseeing of the financial affairs of the Association.
  • Resolve matters that arise between meetings that need immediate attention.
  • The President shall be responsible to communicate, as needed, to members. 

 

Section 2.  It shall be the duty of the President-Elect to:

  • Take over the duties of the President if he/she is unable to perform these duties.
  • Assist the President with his/her duties.

 

Section 3.  It shall be the duty of the Past President to:

  • Assist the President in hosting the current annual business meeting by passing on information from the previous annual business meeting.
  • Assist the President with his/her duties.

 

Section 4.  It shall be the duty of the Secretary to:

  • Keep a record of all business transacted at the Conference meeting and report action taken to the membership at the following meeting.
  • Complete any related duties as assigned by the President.
  • Assist with Associations social media presence with continual communication to members. 

 

Section 5. It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to:

  • Receive all monies from the activities of the Association and deposit in the Association checking account.
  • Be responsible for all payments for goods and services provided to the Association.
  • Present a financial report to the membership at the annual business meeting.
  • Be responsible for billing and collection of membership dues.
  • Complete any related duties as assigned by the President.
  • Keep records of current membership.
  • Submit IRS documentation. 

 

Section 5. It shall be the duty of the Secretary-Elect to:

  • Take over the duties of the Secretary if he/she is unable to perform these duties.
  • Assist the Secretary in all assigned duties.
  • Prepare to take over the duties of the Secretary for the following year.

 

Section 5-1. It shall be the duty of the Treasurer-Elect to:

  • Take over the duties of the Treasurer if he/she is unable to perform these duties.
  • Assist the Treasurer in all assigned duties.
  • Prepare to take over the duties of the Treasurer for the following year.

 

Section 6. It shall be the duty of the Vendor Representative to:

  • Represent the vendor members of the Association to ensure their needs are being met.
  • Assist the Education/Host committee with the planning of the vendor event at each annual meeting.

 

Section 7. It shall be the duty of the Vendor Representative-Elect to:

  • Take over the duties of the Vendor Representative-Elect if he/she is unable to perform these duties.
  • Assist the Vendor Representative in all assigned duties.
  • Prepare to take over the duties of the Vendor Representative for the following year.

 

ARTICLE II. COMMITTEES

Section 1.  The Executive Committee shall select all committees of the Association.

Section 2.  Executive Committee

  • The Executive Committee shall consist of the President, President-Elect, Past President, Secretary/Treasurer, Secretary/Treasurer-Elect, Vendor Representative, Vendor Representative-Elect, and each committee chairperson.
  • The President shall chair the committee.
  • The committee shall take care of all business of the Association that occurs between the annual meetings.
  • The amount of financial assistance dollars available to the membership will be determined on an annual basis and distributed by the committee.
  • There shall be at least two (2) meetings of the committee per year between the annual meetings.  The number of meetings will depend on the needs of the Association.

 

Section 3.  Education/Host Committee

  • This committee is responsible for all aspects of conference (i.e- logistics, program, signage, set up, etc).
  • The committee shall determine conference schedule. Bring forward session topics and speakers by investigating the needs of the membership and the quality of the speakers to Executive Committee for final approval.
  • The committee shall schedule education seminars.  This could include industry association seminars and other educational opportunities.
  • The committee is chaired by someone from the host school or location.

 

Section 4.   Travel expenses to and from meetings, meals, and lodging required during that travel may be reimbursed by the Association upon approval of the Executive Committee.

Section 5.  Other committees shall be set up as needed and approved by the Executive Committee.

ARTICLE III.  MEETINGS

Section 1.  There shall be a meeting of the Association each year.

Section 2.  Vendors and stores who are not dues paying members of the Association prior to the Annual Conference, shall pay dues before completing conference registration.  

Section 3.  Other meetings may be scheduled by the President as necessary.

ARTICLE IV.  DUES

Each college bookstore and each vendor shall pay membership dues to the Association.  The dues per member shall be set for the upcoming year by a vote of the membership at the annual business meeting.

ARTICLE V.  VOTING

Bookstore and Associate members represented at the annual meeting shall be entitled to one vote per member.  If the manager of the store is not present, he/she may designate the voting member for that store.  If the regular voting Associate member is not present, he/she may designate the voting member from that vendor company.

ARTICLE VI.  FISCAL YEAR

The fiscal year of the Association shall be from July 1 through June 30.

ARTICLE VII.  RULES

The rules of parliamentary procedure as laid down in “Robert’s Rules of Order” shall govern any meeting of the Association.

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