Constitutions

CONSTITUTIONS

NAME
The name of the Association shall be the Association of English Medium Secondary Schools（香港英文中學聯會）.

ADDRESS
The address of the Association shall be the correspondence address of the school represented by the Chairperson.

MISSION
The mission of the Association shall be:
To promote English as the medium of instruction in schools;
To plan future development of member schools in collaboration with the Government;
To enhance the image of member schools;
To seek parity of treatment with other public sector schools; and
To canvass support from parents and the community.

MEMBERSHIP
(a) Qualification:
There shall be two classes of membership: Full Membership and Associate Membership.
(i) Full Membership: All Government, Aided and Direct Subsidy Scheme secondary schools using English as the medium of instruction for all subjects in all classes of all levels with the possible exception of Chinese History, Chinese Language, Chinese Language and Culture, Chinese Literature, Putonghua, Liberal Studies, Buddhist Studies, Ethics and Religious Studies, Religious Studies, Design and Technology, Home Economics, Music, Visual Arts and Physical Education shall be eligible for Full Membership.
(ii) Associate Membership: All Government, Aided and Direct Subsidy Scheme secondary schools using English as the medium of instruction for all subjects in all classes of at least one level, with the possible exception of those listed in (i) above shall be eligible for Associate Membership.
(b) Rights:
(i) Full Members:
Full Members shall have the right to participate in all activities and to enjoy all privileges of the Association, including the right to elect office-bearers, to be elected office‐bearers, to vote at meetings which they are entitled to attend.
(ii) Associate Members: Associate Members shall have the right to participate in all activities and to enjoy all privileges of the Association except the right to elect office‐bearers, to be elected office‐bearers, to vote at meetings which they are entitled to attend.
(c) Obligations: All Full Members and Associate Members shall:
(i) Observe the Constitution;
(ii) Abide by the decisions of meetings; and
(iii) Pay a non-refundable annual subscription of $300, or such amount as may be determined by the Executive Committee from time to time.

ORGANISATION
(a) The General Meeting shall be the highest authority of the Association and is composed of all the members. When the General Meeting is in recess, all matters of the Association shall be managed by the Executive Committee.
(b) The General Meeting may be annual or extraordinary and shall be convened by the Executive Committee. Members shall be informed of the date, time, venue and agenda of the meeting two weeks in advance.
(c) The General Meeting shall be held at least once a year. At the meeting, the Chairperson shall report on the general affairs and the Treasurer shall give an audited financial report of the Association. The Chairperson shall also conduct, where applicable, the election of Executive Committee members for the ensuing two years. (d) Extraordinary General Meetings (EGM) may be called by the Executive Committee or on receipt of a written request from at least 1/4 of all Full Members or twenty Full Members, whichever is the higher.
(e) The quorum for all Annual General Meetings (AGM) and Extraordinary General Meetings shall be 1/4 of all Full Members or twenty Full Members, whichever is the less. The Chairperson of the Executive Committee shall preside over all AGM and EGM.
(f) The Executive Committee shall be composed of ten principals of schools which are Full Members.
(g) The Executive Committee shall meet at least twice a year. The quorum of the Executive Committee meetings shall be five Executive Committee members.
(h) The new Executive Committee shall hold its first meeting as soon as possible after the AGM and shall elect the following office‐bearers among themselves:
(i) Chairperson,
(ii) Vice‐chairperson,
(iii) External Secretary,
(iv) Internal Secretary,
(v) Treasurer,
(vi) Social Convenor, and
(vii) Regional Liaison Officers.
(i) All offices in the Executive Committee are honorary.
(j) The Executive Committee shall have the power to co‐opt principals of schools which are Full Members to fill vacancies occurring during the year. Anyone so co‐opted shall hold office until the next election.
(k) The Executive Committee shall have the power to co‐opt principals of schools which are Full Members in an advisory capacity for any specific purpose over a specified period.
(l) The Executive Committee shall have the power to invite members of the community to be Patrons and Advisers of the Association.
(m) At all the meetings mentioned above, the Chairperson shall have the casting vote in the absence of a simple majority when both sides have an equal number of votes.
(n) Executive Committee members, once elected, shall serve in such capacity and hold such position for two years or until after new committee members have been elected or as and when they cease to work in schools which are Full Members.

FINANCE
(a) The purposes to which the funds of the Association may be applied are to pursue the mission of the Association and to meet recurrent expenditures.
(b) It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to report on the financial position of the Association at Executive Committee meetings.
(c) The Executive Committee shall cause all sums of money received by the Association to be deposited in an appointed bank. Any cheques issued by the Association shall be valid provided they are signed by any two of the following persons – Chairperson, Vice‐chairperson, Treasurer, and External Secretary.
(d) In case the Association should be involved in any debts, it shall be the responsibility of all the Executive Committee members of the term in which the debts are incurred to meet such debts.

AUDIT
Each year, the Executive Committee shall invite an Honorary Auditor who shall audit the accounts of the Association. The person so invited shall not be a member of the Executive Committee of the forthcoming term. His/Her appointment shall be confirmed at the AGM.

AMENDMENT
Any proposed amendment to the Constitution must be sent to all members two weeks prior to the EGM. The amendment must be approved by a two‐thirds majority of schools which are Full Members present at the EGM.

DISSOLUTION OF THE ASSOCIATION
The decision to dissolve the Association shall be assented to by a two-thirds majority of schools which are Full Members present at a General Meeting. Any remaining assets shall be disposed of as decided by the members present at the meeting.