Constitution

Constitution of Women in French UK-Ireland

  1. Name: The name of the organisation shall be Women in French UK-Ireland.
  2. Aims: Women in French UK-Ireland is a scholarly association. Our aims are to foster and promote research and teaching into women’s situation, representation and cultural production in the field of French and Francophone studies. In line with our Mission Statement, available to view here, our aims are to foster and promote:
    • The study of Francophone women’s history, politics, social and political situation and cultural production (including writing, visual cultures, performance, etc)
    • The study of cultural representations of women and women’s lives within the Francophone world
    • The sharing of information and debates about the position of women in Higher Education in the UK and Ireland
    • A supportive and collaborative network of/for female scholars
    • Relevant publications (such as proceedings of the conference)
    • We aim for the Association to uphold ethical standards in all aspects of its activities, including funding, banking data collection, marketing and voting processes
  3. Powers: In order to achieve its aims the Association may:
    1. Open bank accounts
    2. Organise conferences, seminars and other events
    3. Maintain a website and appropriate social media accounts
    4. Organise and promote publications
    5. Work with other groups and exchange information
    6. Do anything that is lawful which will help it to fulfil its aims
  4. Membership: Membership is open to any person interested in helping the Association to achieve its aims, willing to abide by the rules of the Association and willing to pay any subscription agreed by the Executive Committee. Women in French welcomes an inclusive and diverse global membership of educators, students, independent scholars, and writers in the fields of French and Francophone language, literatures, cultures and history. Every individual member shall have one vote at elections and General Meetings.
  5. Management:
    1. Executive Committee
      • The organisation shall have an Executive Committee composed of a President, Vice-President (or Co-President), Secretary, Treasurer, Media and Publicity Officer, Postgraduate Student Representative, and one or two ‘Legacy Members’ co-opted to act as advisers. Sharing of posts by two joint appointees will be accepted. To ensure continuity and transmission of expertise, incoming postholders will join the Committee for a maximum of six months before formally taking office in a ‘shadowing’ capacity, and similarly remain on the Committee for a maximum of six months after their term of office expires. The organisers of the biennial conference will also join the Committee for the period leading up to the conference. Officers will be elected for a period of three years, as set out below, on a rolling basis to ensure the continuity of the Committee. While we warmly welcome membership from scholars of all genders, in honour of the origins and purpose of this Association (as set out in Section 2 above), Committee places are reserved for scholars identifying as women.
    2. Election Procedures and Terms of Service
      • Expressions of interest in assuming the role of President and Vice-President will be invited from the membership and on the basis of these an election will be held by an online ballot open to all members. The President and Vice-President are elected for a term of three years (with a maximum six-month membership of the Committee preceding and following this mandate – see 5.1 above). They may not be candidates for a second term except in exceptional circumstances. The President and Vice-President will invite expressions of interest from the membership for the other executive roles and nominate the Secretary, Treasurer, Media and Publicity Officer, and Postgraduate Student Representative subject to confirmation by the full Committee.
    3. Regularity of Meetings
      • The Executive Committee will normally meet three times per year, either in person or online.
  6. Duties of the Officers
    1. President
      • Sets and finalises the agenda for meetings, which they will normally chair. Acts as main contact for and representative of the Association. Ensures the Association constitution is adhered to and oversees all activity of the organisation.
    2. Vice-President
      • Supports and shares the role of the President, deputising for them where agreed across a range of activities. This role may be termed ‘Co-President’ where two Presidents agree to job-share.
    3. Treasurer
      • Manages and tracks Association finances. Prepares budget reports. Reports on any fiscal issues at meetings. Balances bank statements. Maintains Association’s tax-exempt status if necessary.
    4. Secretary
      • Prepares and maintains clear and accurate meeting documentation such as minutes, attendance sheets, sign-in forms etc. Maintains updated list of members. Maintains records of Association’s agreed-upon plans. Oversees elections.
    5. Media and Publicity Officer
      • Maintains and updates website. Publicises events, CFPs, etc to the wider community. Manages WiF UK-Ireland Twitter account.
    6. Postgraduate Representative
      • Represents postgraduate students on the committee. Publicises the activities of the Association to postgraduate students. Organises postgraduate-specific events.
  7. AGM: the AGM will normally be held at the biennial conference of the Association.
    1. All members shall be given at least fourteen days’ notice of the AGM and shall be entitled to attend and vote.
    2. The business of the AGM shall include:
      • receiving a report from the President on the Association’s activities over the year
      • receiving a report from the Treasurer on the finances of the group
      • considering any matter to be decided
  8. Alterations to the Constitution: Any changes to the Constitution must be agreed by at least two-thirds of those members present and voting at any General Meeting. Written notice of any proposed change must be distributed by email to all members at least thirty days prior to the voting period.

This Constitution was adopted at the meeting of the Interim/Establishing Committee held on the 23rd of May 2022.

Signed by:

Interim Co-Presidents

Siobhán McIlvanney

Véronique Desnain

Interim Secretary

Julie Rodgers

Interim Treasurer

Caroline Verdier

Interim Media and Publicity Officer

Ciara Gorman

Interim Postgraduate Representatives

Emma Flynn

Ally Pugh

Legacy Members

Shirley Jordan

Diana Holmes

Maggie Allison