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Article I‐ Name
Section 1. The Name of the Organization shall be International Embryo Technology Society (IETS) Morulas, hereafter referred to as the Morulas Association, and its participants referred to as “Morulas”.
Section 2. The Morulas association was initiated in 2010 as a subcommittee of the International Embryo Technology Society, hereafter referred to as the Society, and is subject to all by‐laws and regulations of that Society.
Section 3. The principal office of the Morulas shall be designated by the membership.
Article II‐ Purposes
Section 1. The purpose of the Morulas Association is to cultivate a supportive organization within the Society that is dedicated to the personal and professional development of its morulas. The Morulas Board of Governors, hereafter referred as Morulas BOG, shall strive to motivate morulas to become active and integral participants of the Society and work to create opportunities that foster their continued investment into the society. The Morulas BOG will also aim to encourage interaction among members and institutions, creating instances for networking and companionship.
Article III‐ Membership
Section 1. A Morula can be defined as any student member of the Society, specifically: persons enrolled in an academic institution at the undergraduate, graduate, professional, or post‐doctoral level as certified annually by an academic advisor. Morulas are eligible to register for Society membership as a Morula and can participate in all Morulas activities.
Section 2. Membership is achieved when the annual fees are current on dues and renewed. Membership is not renewed automatically. Members are encouraged to be participative and express their opinions.
Section 3. Only active members are eligible access to the Morulas webpage and exclusive content, are eligible to run for the Board of Governors, are eligible to vote, are eligible to be a speaker in the virtual research meetings, and are eligible to be a co-chair during the annual IETS conference.
Section 4 . Morulas association funding is only available to active and registered members of the society with all dues paid. If membership dues are overdue, or a term expires prior to or during a funding event, the Morulas association funding may be withdrawn or owed to the Society. Withdrawment of funding will be handled by the Society BOG, as advised by the Morulas BOG.
Article IV‐ Dues and administrative finance
Section 1. All dues will be handled by the Society on the official IETS webpage.
Section 2. The Morulas Budget is controlled by the Society BOG.
Section 3. No one from the Board of Governors or active members can take profit from Morulas activities, research meetings, or any online or in-person events. ?
Section 4. Morulas Governors and President will not receive direct payment/salary/scholarship from Morulas activities during the term of office.
Article V‐ Meetings
Section 1. A business meeting of the Morulas will be held annually in conjunction with Society’s annual meeting.
Section 2. The Morulas BOG will meet at least 4 times in the year either in person or by remote access.
Article VI‐ Board of Governors
Section 1. The Board of Governors will consist of one President and two Governors who will be voted into position by society members. The Morulas BOG will report to the Society BOG and work with their Board‐assigned liaison who will provide advisory and oversight assistance.
Section 2. The President and Governor positions will be filled on alternate years by a general membership election conducted by the current Morulas BOG. The elections will be electronic and take place in English with specific guidelines for candidates defined before each election. Candidacy can be revoked at the discretion of the current Morulas BOG if election guidelines are not followed. Candidates for the President position must be *active morulas members of society. Preferably the election will be held between the candidates that have been governor in the past. If only one candidate was a governor, the election will be held for all applicants.
*Active member is defined as a candidate who had participated in morulas activities during the conference (like mentor luncheon, career luncheon, Student mixer) and any one of the virtual research webinars.
Section 3. Candidates for the Governor and President positions must be members of the Society for the past three years, be an *active member during the last year, and have attended one IETS conference in person during the last 3 years. The candidate should not have committed to a non-trainee position at the time of election.
*Active member is defined as a candidate who had participated in morulas activities during the conference (like mentor luncheon, career luncheon, Student mixer) and any one of the virtual research webinars.
Section 4. Candidates for the President position must be active morulas members* of the society. The election will be held between the candidates that have been governor in the past. If only one candidate was a governor, the election will be held for all applicants.
Section 5. In the event that a current Governor is elected President, or that a Governor leaves their position, elections must be held within three months to fill the position. If the Governor or President resigns before 6 months of the term of office, the second most voted in the previous election will be invited to take their place, otherwise new elections will be called. In special cases and under IETS board approval, previous governors or president can be invited to fill vacant positions until next elections are called.
Section 6 .Was listed as Section 5 A term will be two years for any person elected to a Board of Governors position. A person who holds the position of President may only serve one term. Persons holding a Governor position will be allowed to serve for two terms and may be elected to the President position.
Section 7. A person may be removed from the Morulas BOG if their actions do not represent the best interests of the Morulas association. First, the Board of Governors must go through mediation with their Society liaison. Second, the issue will be brought before the BOG with their recommendation being the final ruling on the issue.
Section 8. The president of the Morulas BOG will act as the main contact between the Society BOG and Morulas association and will participate in the Society BOG meeting representing the Morulas association. Should the president leave his position prematurely, Morulas BOG will act immediately to designate a new member to have representation in the Society BOG meetings.
Section 9. The Morulas BOG is responsible for sending an official report annually to the Society BOG with the activities and accomplishments of the year. Newsletters are also available for all the members.
Section 10. The Morulas BOG is responsible for all reports and documents signed, and must always be aware of the bylaws of IETS in order not to compromise the society in court. The Morulas BOG is also responsible for the online information and posts done in social media pages, being eligible for penalty or expulsion from the board if a serious infraction is committed. Any problems should be immediately reported to the Society BOG for assistance.
Section 11. When term of office of the Governors and President ends, they must be available to help the new Board members for a minimum of 6 months.
Article VII‐ Committees
Section 1. The Morulas BOG will annually appoint standing, special, or subcommittees that are required by the by‐laws or determined necessary. Such committees may include, but are not limited to:
‐International Student Affairs Subcommittee (ISAS)
The description of each committee and a definition of its responsibilities will be approved by the society Board of Governors.
Article VIII‐ Amendments
Section 1. Amendments to the by‐laws must be approved by the Society Board of Governors