Article 1-Name
The name of this organization shall be Guilford Boys Hockey Boosters, Inc., hereinafter referred to as “the Club.”

Article 2-Objective and Purpose

A. The organization is organized and operated exclusively for charitable and educational purposes within the meaning of 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. The Club shall provide funding to support the Guilford High School (“GHS”) Boys Varsity and Junior Varsity ice hockey program.

B. The purpose of the Club shall be to:
a. Operate, manage, and maintain itself in such a way as to provide for the objective in A above.
b. Solicit contributions and raise funds necessary to run the GHS ice hockey program.
c. Act as a liaison and facilitate communication between the Club parents/guardians and the GHS Athletic Director and Coaches.

C. The Club shall not be used by the parents/guardians as a forum for addressing coaching problems, policies or player placement or play time. Parents should address their concerns with the Coach(es) privately, and if necessary, the Athletic Director.

D. The program is funded through fees charged to each player’s parent/guardian and fundraising activities promoted by the Club which are necessary to cover the costs required to support the hockey program. The major costs to run the program include, but are not limited to: practice and game ice, locker room fees, tournament fees, hockey bags, and equipment, etc.

Article 3-Officers/Board Members

A. The Officers of the Club shall consist of the following positions: President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary and Fundraising Lead.

B. Non-Officer, non-voting board members shall consist of the following positions: Website & Social Media Lead and Player Advocate(s). Website & Social Media Lead is not required to be a current, future or former parent of a Guilford Hockey player. Player Advocate(s) must be on or expected to be on the existing or upcoming season’s active varsity roster.
C. All Officers, by virtue of their position, shall be members of the Board, hereinafter referred to as “the Board”. Each is entitled to one vote on any matter submitted to a Board vote.

D. Appointment of Officers/Board members will be made with at least three votes of acting Board members, excluding the vote of the member being voted upon.

E. The term of office shall be one year and shall run from May 1 to April 30.

F. The Board shall determine the policies and activities of the Club, approve the budget, approve all expenditures, take counsel with committees, and maintain general management of the Club. More specifically:

a. Coaches and Administrators are invited as guests to Club meetings whereby the Board shall discuss activities/events/needs of the team.
b. The Board will establish an annual budget and has authority to enforce it, even by the means of eliminating other budgeted activities when necessary.
c. The Board in conjunction with the GHS Athletic Director is responsible for coordination and compliance with the CIAC and SCC rules and guidelines.
d. The Board shall ensure that all necessary tax reports and filings are made as required.
F. A Board Member shall not take an action, nor attempt to influence or vote upon any decision, regarding any subject in which he/she is deemed by the remainder of the Board, and/or the parents/guardians, to have a conflict of interest.
G. The Board Members shall NOT have any influence with Head Coaches regarding playing time, player positions, or any other special player privileges. Attempts in doing so will be brought forward to the GHS Athletic Director and the Board Member may be removed from his/her elected position.

H. A majority of the Board Members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at any meeting of the Board. A quorum of any meeting is defined as a minimum of three Board Members.

I. Withdrawal of Board Members from any meeting of the Board shall not cause failure of a duly constituted quorum at the meeting.

J. The act of the majority vote by the Board present at a meeting where a quorum is present shall be the final vote.

3.1-Duties of the Officers/Board Members

A. The President shall:

a. Attend and preside at all meetings of the Club and Board.
b. Be chairman of the Board by virtue of his/her office as President.
c. Appoint all chairpersons of standing or special committees.
d. Be an ex-officio member of all committees.
e. See that all books, records, and certificates required by law are properly kept and filed.
f. Be one of two Officers authorized to sign all checks or drafts of the Club.
g. Be responsible for keeping Club parents/guardians informed, either directly or via delegation, of schedule changes from the Coach(es) as needed.
h. Act as a liaison to the Athletic Director and Coaches, either directly or via delegation.
i. Supply the Athletic Director with an annual list of important dates and proposed fundraisers for the purpose of managing any potential conflicts as foreseen by the Athletic Director and GHS staff.
j. Help to promote and fundraise for the Club.
k. As necessary, serve as an advisor to the Board the year following retirement from office to ensure a smooth transition of duties.

B. The Vice President shall:

a. Work closely with the President in carrying out objectives of the Club.
b. Preside at general meetings and assume the President’s responsibilities in the absence of the President.
c. Attend all Board meetings.
d. Be the coordinator of all committees, collect monthly committee reports for the President, and report on committee activities when the committee chairmen are unable to attend meetings.
e. Help to promote and fundraise for the Club.

C. The Treasurer shall:

a. Have care and custody of all monies or securities belonging to the Club and shall be responsible for such monies or securities.
b. Be one of two Officers authorized to sign all checks or drafts of the Club.
c. Exercise all other duties incident to the office of the Treasurer.
d. Be responsible for all funds, receipts and disbursements in association with the annual, approved budget.
e. Periodically update the budget with any invoice payments or funds received.
f. Provide a record of the budget status to the Board at Board meetings.
g. File annual 990 report with IRS; manage annual state of CT tax filings as necessary.
h. Attend all Board meetings.
i. Help to promote and fundraise for the Club.

D. The Secretary shall:

a. Schedule the Board meetings at a convenient time and place for all Board members.
b. Keep minutes, action items and records of each official meeting of the Board.
c. Keep a record of meeting attendance.
d. Keep and file any certificates required by federal or state statute.
e. Be responsible for all correspondence and communications addressed to the Club parents/guardians and team.
f. Be responsible for distribution of any written communications to the Club parents/guardians, such as meeting notices, or any communications requested by the coaching staff or President to the Club parents/guardians. Email communications requested from non-Board members must be approved by the Head Coach or Club President.
g. Be responsible for scheduling a facility at which meetings of the Club will be held.
h. Present draft meeting minutes to the Board for its review within one week following each Board meeting date.
i. Attend all Board meetings.
j. Help to promote and fundraise for the Club.

E. The Fundraising Lead shall:
a. Work closely with the President and Board to plan and conduct all fundraising events.
b. Complete and file all fundraising documentation with GHS Administration in a timely manner.

c. Be responsible for all correspondence and communications regarding fundraising events addressed to the Club parents/guardians and team with prior approval from Club President.
d. Closely manage fundraising efforts with approved budget for each event/initiative.
e. Be responsible for working with Treasurer to account for money raised through fundraising efforts.
f. Consistently update the Board with results of fundraising initiatives.
g. Attend all Board meetings.
h. Help to promote and fundraise for the Club.

F. The Website & Social Media Lead shall:

a. Attend some, predetermined board meetings
b. Make periodic, as-needed content updates to the website, per the Board’s instruction.
c. Post regular content to the organizations Facebook page.
d. Be responsible for communicating any website or Facebook platform updates, outages and/or any critical information related to the delivery of content on those platforms, to the Board.
e. Actively monitor public comments made on the organization’s Website & Social Media content and respond accordingly and/or notify the Board of any derogatory or defamatory comments within a reasonable timeframe.
f. Be available for direct communications, collaborations and feedback from parents and players, related to Website & Social Media content.

G. Player Advocate(s) shall:

a. Attend some, predetermined board meetings
b. Act as a general liaison between the Board and current Players
c. Actively participate in non-budgetary discussions that are pertinent to (but not limited to) player safety, player participation, potential player grievances deriving from these discussions, and provide input for other non-budgetary discussions that may be deemed relevant for player perspective.
d. Communicate important Board-specific information to the rest of the current, active players.
e. Communicate relevant information and/or other feedback from current, active players to the Board.
f. Work closely with Fundraising Lead to facilitate player support for fundraising initiatives.
g. Attend 3rd party speaking engagements and meeting attendance requirements, i.e. annual Board of Education meetings.
h. Partner with President and Vice President to determine the constant evolution of the position.

3.2-Officer Vacancies

A. In the event of the President’s absence or failure to exercise his/her office, the Vice President shall become acting President of the Club with all the rights, privileges, and powers of the President for the remainder of his/her existing term. If the Vice President declines the office, the Board shall fill the position of the President for the remainder of his/her existing term by a vote of approval of a majority of the Board members.

B. If, in the estimation of the Board, an Officer has not performed the duties required as per these bylaws, or exhibits conduct unbecoming of an Officer, he/she shall be removed from the Board via majority vote of remaining Board members.

C. If any office becomes vacant before the end of its term, the remaining Officers shall fill that position for the remainder of the term by a vote of approval of a majority of the Board members.

Article 4-Meetings & Voting Procedure(s)

A. Board meetings will generally occur between July 1 and April 30 of each academic year at a frequency so designated by the Board. The actual meeting time and location of each meeting will be determined by the Secretary and published by email to each Board member of record.

B. The rules contained in the current edition of the Roberts Rules of Order shall determine the rules of procedure regarding all meetings of the Board unless a board quorum decides on a less formal procedure prior to the meeting called to order.

C. The order of business at any regular Board Meeting shall be:

a. Call to order
b. Taking of attendance
c. Reading or voting to accept the minutes and action items of the last meeting
d. Reports of the officers
e. Reports of committees
f. Old business
g. New business
h. Adjournment

D. General and/or special meetings with the Club parents/guardians shall be held and determined by the Board and may be called by the President, or by a majority vote of the Officers of the Board. Notices of general and/or special meetings of the Club shall be delivered by the Secretary, indicating the time and place, the purpose of the general/special meeting and by whom it is being called.

E. Meeting agendas and minutes shall be made available to the Board via email by the Secretary.

F. If a board vote is required to be executed prior to the next scheduled board meeting, the board shall, with an engaged quorum, execute the vote via email. All board members must be carbon-copied on each relevant email including the content of the request and the votes of each member. Each issue or initiative should be presented and voted upon individually, when voting via email, in separate email chains.

Article 5-Finance

5.1-Fiscal Year

A. The Club’s fiscal year shall run from July 1st to June 30th.

B. The Club shall create and maintain an Operating Fund for the purposes of providing sufficient cash flow to cover the costs required to run the Club and support the hockey program.

C. If the Club has a net profit at the end of its fiscal year in the operating account, the balance will remain in place and will be used to support programs and other activities that benefit the sustainability of the program as a whole in future years. The Board should work to target a goal in the rollover balance of the Club account that is equal to approximately 10% of the annual operating budget. The accumulation of this amount may take multiple years to obtain.

D. If the Club has a net loss at the end of its fiscal year, the money required to cover the loss shall be collected from the parents/guardians of current players or through fundraising initiatives.

5.2-Budget

A. At the beginning of each fiscal year, the Board shall work to develop a budget for the following hockey season. The budget shall, at a minimum, include all anticipated major expenditures required to run the team for the current fiscal year, for example, ice time, hockey bags, new equipment, anticipated tournaments and travel expenses, and other Club-sponsored events.

B. The Board shall finalize the budget no later than September. The budget must be approved by a majority of the Board members in attendance at the meetings. If the budget is rejected by the Board, the Board shall reconvene to amend the budget and shall present a revised budget to the Board for its approval at a follow-on meeting. The Board must reach a budget consensus by the end of November of each academic year.

5.3-Player Fees

A. The Board shall, at its sole discretion, determine the player fees to be paid by each player’s parent(s)/guardian(s). Annual player fees are a function of: team expenses not covered by GHS and/or fundraising activities, divided amongst estimated number of players. The Board shall notify the parents/guardians as to the player fees due no later than the beginning of December.

B. The Club shall not be obligated to refund any player’s fees as paid due to a player getting injured, quitting the team, an athletic code violation that precludes play time, and/or moving out of the area, amongst other reasons.

C. Extenuating circumstances regarding player fee payments shall be addressed by the Board on an individual basis.

5.4-Expenditures

A. All non-budgeted expenditures of $500.00 or more must be approved by a quorum (3 or more members) of the Board.

B. The Coach(es) shall request approval from the Board for ALL expenditures anticipated to be paid with funds from the Club’s bank account.

C. The Treasurer shall not be obligated to reimburse any Board member or any parent/guardian for any non-approved expense or any expense for which no invoice or receipt is provided.

D. All bills of the Club shall be mailed to or received by the Treasurer, so he/she can keep proper records.

5.5-Contracts, Checks/Drafts, Deposits

A. The Board has the sole authority to enter into any contract or execute and deliver any instrument in the name of, and on behalf of, the Club.

B. All funds of the Club shall be deposited to the credit of the Club in such banks, trust companies, or other depositaries as the Board shall authorize.

C. The Board, at its discretion, may accept (or reject) on behalf of the Club, any contribution, gift, bequest, or device for the general and/or any special purposes of the Club.

ARTICLE 6: FUNDRAISING/SPONSORSHIP

A. The Club is a recognized 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. As a 501(c)(3) organization, donations made to the Club are deductible under §170(b) of the Internal Revenue Code. In order for such donations to be deductible and for the organization’s 501(c)(3) status to remain in good standing with the IRS:

a. The Club is permitted to fundraise to offset program/team-wide expenses by conducting fundraising events or obtaining individual or corporate sponsors for such expenses.
b. The Club is NOT permitted to fundraise in any way for the benefit of any specific individual player.
B. The Club will coordinate all fundraising activities with the GHS Athletic Director and are subject to the District’s rules and regulations.

C. Participation in fundraising activities is voluntary but highly encouraged to reduce ice bills and hockey fees. Funds produced through fundraising initiatives will be used to support the team’s needs.

Article 7-Committees

A. The Board may establish ad hoc committees under the supervision and control of the Board to assist the Board in its performance of its duties. Such ad hoc committees shall be comprised of one or more Officers, and shall report to the Board as appropriate or as requested by the Board. Committees may be established to support certain Club initiatives such as Senior Night, Alumni game, etc.

Article 8-Amendments

A. The Board shall determine whether any by-law amendments are needed and may appoint a committee to discuss proposed amendments.

B. All proposed changes to existing by-laws must be presented to the Board and must be made available in writing, via email or as otherwise determined by the Board at least five days before the expected voting date.

C. Existing by-laws may be amended or repealed only by the affirmative vote of the majority of the Board members in good standing present at a general or special meeting.

Article 9-Dissolution

Upon the dissolution of the Club, the Treasurer shall, after paying or making provision for the payment of all the liabilities of the Club, distribute remaining assets for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future tax code, or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose.