By-Laws
By-Laws of Big Country Home Educators
-A Christian-led Organization-
I. Statement of Purpose
Mission Statement
Big Country Home Educators is a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of home education in Taylor County Texas and the surrounding area. BCHE will, through its endeavors, provide a resource to prospective, new, and seasoned home educators to help them navigate the journey they have chosen.
Vision Statement
The vision of Big Country Home Educators (BCHE) is to support the efforts of Christian home educators through disseminating information of interest and the pooling of resources to provide supplemental educational opportunities. We will also provide avenues for fellowship, encouragement, and the exchange of ideas among our member families through our various sponsored activities.
II. Statement of Faith
We believe the Bible to be the inspired, inerrant and infallible Word of God, and of supreme and final authority in faith and life. We believe that there is one living and true God, an infinite, intelligent Spirit, perfect in all His attributes, one in essence but eternally subsistent in three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We believe in the fall of man: although originally created in the image of God, through the disobedience of Adam, man fell into a sinful and spiritually impotent state, totally unable to justify himself before God. We believe that Jesus Christ is the express image of the invisible God, which is to say, He is God; that He became man, yet without sin, being conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary; that He died on the cross as a substitutionary sacrifice for sin; that He arose from the dead in the body in which He was crucified; that He ascended into heaven in that body glorified, He is now, our interceding High Priest; and that He will return again personally, visibly and gloriously. We believe that salvation is wholly of God, by grace; that God in love gave His only begotten Son to die on the cross for sin, thus procuring the redemption of those who come to Him; that this salvation is not merited in any way by man; that God commands men everywhere to repent of sin and believe in Christ; and that this salvation is eternal in its duration and results in good works.
III. Organization
A. Leadership
1. The BCHE Board will be composed of six couples serving together, each couple having one vote. The Board shall consist of president, vice-president, secretary, treasurer, director of athletic and academic sports and membership chairman. Four votes will constitute a quorum at Board meetings.
*The president is responsible for working as a team with the Board to ensure overall coordination of BCHE activities, presiding over Board meetings, serving as master of ceremonies for special events, and facilitating the coordination of special events, including the Book Fair, as well as overseeing the maintenance of the website.
*The vice-president is responsible for facilitating the coordination of PE at Hardin-Simmons and field trips as well as overseeing the production and maintenance of the calendar of events.
*The secretary is responsible for keeping a record of each meeting, handling any necessary correspondence, assisting the Director of Athletic and Academic Sports in performing background checks on any persons having extensive contact or teaching time with BCHE children. Assisting with the maintenance of the website.
*The treasurer is responsible for receiving funds, disbursing payments, composing a budget, and presenting and accounting this activity at each Board meeting. Financial reports shall be gathered from each individual sports account and combined into the Treasurer’s report for each board meeting. Records shall be reviewed or audited annually or as determined by the Board. The Treasurer will be responsible for gathering the documents necessary for yearly tax returns. It is also the responsibility of the Treasurer to take those documents to the accountant for tax return preparation.
*The membership chairman is responsible for maintaining accurate membership data, providing a list of TEAM members to the TEAM Leaders, communicating member responsibilities to people interested in joining BCHE, and facilitating the composition of a phone tree, if needed.
*The Director of Athletic and Academic Sports, here after referred to as D.A.A.S., is responsible for maintaining open communication between the individual program directors and the BCHE Board, collecting the documented fund reports for each sport or academic team, provide a detailed accounting of these funds to the Board at each monthly Board meeting. If needed, the D.A.A.S. will assist with the fundraising for any academic or athletic team. The D.A.A.S. shall also see that the following criteria are met and upheld for each individual sport.
a. Each sport must have an acting director, unless specified by the D.A.A.S. The Sport Director will maintain a separate BCHE, Inc. checking account specific to the individual sport, if needed, and be responsible for those funds in an equal capacity to a sitting BCHE Board member. A funds report is to be provided to the D.A.A.S., complete with bank statements and receipts, prior to each board meeting.
b. The Sports Director will have the opportunity to be part of any board discussions concerning their sport and will have 10 days notice given prior to any formal voting on issues affecting their sport’s structure or funds.
c. The Sports Director will ensure that all coaches or assistants agree to a background check to be performed by the office of the D.A.A.S. for the safety of our students.
d. Once the BCHE board has approved a policies statement from the sports director, the board will fully support the coaches and director within the boundaries of those policies.
e. In the event a sport decides to function outside the structure of BCHE, the funds disbursed from the BCHE budget will remain within the BCHE account, however, any monies resulting from the fund raising efforts of the players, coaches and families will be transferred directly into the Sport’s outside business account once that account has been established.
2. All couples on the Board shall consist of a married couple (male and female), have been home educating children and been an active member of BCHE for at least two years , be a participating member of a local Christian congregation, and be in agreement with the BCHE Statement of Faith.
3. Board members will be elected to the Board in staggered two-year terms. No more than two thirds of the Board positions will be up for election in any given year. The Board terms begin June 1 and end May 31 two years later. Candidates must file for office by submitting their names to the Board by April 1. Nominations of qualified couples will also be accepted until April 1.
Names of qualifying, willing candidates will be posted on the BCHE website for a vote in May. Members have 14 days to vote by email. The new Board will be announced at the last BCHE event in May.
4. In case an office is vacated, the Board has the authority to appoint a replacement.
5. The Board members shall be subject to censorship or dismissal of office by a quorum of the Board or BCHE may call a special board election through petitions signed by 25% of BCHE members.
B. Members’ Responsibility
1. Members must read the by-laws and acknowledge only that they understand the position of this support group. Complete agreement with the Statement of Faith is only required by leadership.
2. All members must be willing to volunteer to assist with or coordinate one or more events per school year.
3. Members must agree to keep names, addresses and phone numbers of other members in strict confidence.
4. Members are responsible for underwriting their share of the cost of activities in which they participate and for a nominal annual membership fee determined by the Board.
5. Failure to fulfill your responsibility as a member of BCHE will be considered forfeiture of your membership.
C. Amendments
Amendments to these by-laws shall be made by the Board and approved by a simple majority vote of the BCHE membership.
D. Meetings
1. All meetings for the Board shall be open to the membership at large. Notification of meetings will be posted on the BCHE online calendar.
2. All Board meetings will be conducted under the rules of parliamentary procedure.
3. Members who wish to address the Board during a meeting will furnish an agenda on the topic to the Board president (or designated representative) not later than two days prior to the meeting.
E. Voting
Issues to be voted on by the membership shall be considered approved if a simple majority vote in favor of said issue. A simple majority shall be defined as not less than 50% plus one of the total ballots received. Notification and ballots shall be provided through the website not later than 14 days prior to the voting deadline. It is the responsibility of the members to ensure their vote receives a confirmation reply.
F. Dissolution
"Upon the dissolution of this organization, assets shall be distributed to the Texas Home School Coalition of Lubbock, Texas, provided such organization is exempt under section 501(c)(3) at the time of dissolution, or assets shall be distributed 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 federal tax code."
IV. INDEMNIFICATION AND INSURANCE
A. INDEMNIFICATION
Big Country Home Educators shall have the full power to indemnify and advance or reimburse expenses pursuant to the provisions of the Texas Business Organizations Code to any person entitled to indemnification under the provisions of the Texas Business Organizations Code.
B. INSURANCE
Big Country Home Educators (the "Organization") may purchase and maintain insurance or another arrangement on behalf of any person who is or was a member, director, officer, employee, or agent of the Organization or who is or was serving at the request of the Organization as a director, officer, partner, venturer, proprietor, trustee, employee, agent, or similar functionary of another foreign or domestic organization, employee benefit plan, other enterprise, or other entity, against any liability asserted against him or her and incurred by him or her in such a capacity or arising out of his or her status as such a person, whether or not the Organization would have the power to indemnify him or her against that liability. Without limiting the power of the Organization to procure or maintain any kind of insurance or other arrangement, the Organization may, for the benefit of persons indemnified by the Organization, (1) create a trust fund; (2) establish any form of self?insurance; (3) secure its indemnity obligation by grant of a security interest or other lien on the assets of the Organization; or (4) establish a letter of credit, guaranty, or surety arrangement. The insurance or other arrangement may be procured, maintained, or established within the Organization or with any insurer or other person deemed appropriate by the Board regardless of whether all or part of the stock or other securities of the insurer or other person are owned in whole or part by the Organization. In the absence of fraud, the judgment of the Board as to the terms and conditions of the insurance or other arrangement and the identity of the insurer or other person participating in an arrangement shall be conclusive and the insurance or arrangement shall not be voidable and shall not subject the Board members approving the insurance or arrangement to liability, on any ground, regardless of whether directors participating in the approval are beneficiaries of the insurance or arrangement.