RITC Constitution

Article- I - Name and Objective

Section 1. The organization shall be known as the Radiation Instrumentation Technical Committee of the IEEE Nuclear and Plasma Sciences Society, referred hereinafter to as the RITC.

Section 2. The RITC shall strive for the advancement of the theory and application of Ionizing Radiation Instrumentation and of its allied arts and sciences and maintenance of high scientific and technical standards among its members.

Section 3. The RITC shall aid in promoting close cooperation and exchange of technical information among its members and to this end shall hold meetings for the presentation and discussion of original contributions, shall assist in the publication of the Transactions on Nuclear Science, provide for peer recognition of individuals, promote a positive image of ionizing radiation instrumentation science and applications, act as liaison between IEEE and other organizations in the area of radiation instrumentation, and otherwise provide for the needs of its members.

Article- II - Field of Interest

Section 1. The field of interest of the RITC is Ionizing Radiation Instrumentation and its applications. The emphasis is on the tools utilized, primarily the radiation sensors, associated electronics, and techniques for processing the measured data. It shall devote itself to publication or other dissemination of original contributions to the theory, design, experiments, educational methods and applications of Ionizing Radiation Instrumentation. Areas of technical interest will include, but not be limited to, the following:

Section 2.

a) Sensors for detecting and quantifying ionizing radiation, including X-ray, gamma ray, alpha particle, electron (beta particle), positron and neutron radiation as well as products of high energy interactions or nuclear interactions.

b) Sources of ionizing radiation.

c) Analog and digital electronics used in conjunction with the components in a) and b).

d) Instrumentation, systems, and applications incorporating the components in a), b), and c).

Article- III - Membership

Section 1. Members of the RITC are those individuals who are members of the IEEE and NPSS having an interest in Ionizing Radiation Instrumentation.

Section 2. Affiliates may participate in the activities of the RITC as provided by the IEEE Bylaws and subject to the applicable IEEE rules and regulations and to any additional limitations imposed by the NPSS Bylaws.

Article- IV - Administration

Section 1. The RITC shall be managed by a Radiation Instrumentation Steering Committee (RISC) consisting of elected members-at-large, plus certain ex-officio members as specified herein and in the Bylaws. The number of elected members-at-large shall be fifteen .

Section 2.

(a) The terms of office of the elected members-at-large of RISC shall be three years. Members-at-large who have served a full term may not become a member-at-large again until at least one year after the expiration of their term. Election of members-at-large shall be held annually to fill vacancies for the coming year.

(b) Any RISC member or subcommittee member may be removed from office if they fail to perform their duties in a manner that is consistent with the best interests of the IEEE, the NPSS, the RITC or the RISC. This prerogative of the RISC should be exercised only in extreme cases and only after due process and consideration as specified in the Bylaws.

Section 3.

(a) The affairs of the RITC shall be managed by a Chairperson, as directed by the RISC and in accordance with his or her powers and duties as defined hereunder and in the Bylaws. In the event of the Chairpersonís absence or incapacity, the Vice-Chairperson, or if the Vice-Chairperson is unavailable, then the Most Recent Past-Chairperson, shall perform the Chairpersonís duties.

(b) In the event that neither the Chairperson, the Vice-Chairperson, or the Most Recent Past Chairperson is able to take office as prescribed in the Bylaws, or if all are incapacitated or if all offices become vacant, the RISC shall promptly elect an Acting Chairperson from among the members-at-large to assume the duties of Chairperson until either a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, or Most Recent Past Chairperson takes office or resumes their duties.

(c) The Chairperson shall appoint a Secretary for the RISC. The Secretary need not be chosen from among the elected members at large.

Section 4.

(a) The Vice-Chairperson, who is Chairperson-elect, shall be elected by the voting members of the RISC from among the eligible members of the RISC. The term of office shall be three years as Vice-Chairperson, followed by three years as Chairperson, followed by three years as the Most Recent Past Chairperson. The election of Vice-Chairperson shall be held as defined in the Bylaws.

(b) All elected members-at-large presently serving their elected term shall be eligible for election as Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson .

(c) No person can be elected as Vice-Chairperson for two consecutive terms. However, if the Vice-Chairperson is required to perform the duties of the Chairperson, the Vice-Chairperson is eligible to become Chairperson when his or her nominal term as Vice-Chairperson is complete.

(d) After the terms as elected members-at-large of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and Most Recent Past Chairperson expire, they shall be considered ex-officio members of the RISC with vote for the duration of their terms in their respective Chairperson positions.

Section 5. The Chairperson, with the concurrence of RISC, shall have the power to create and disband Subcommittees of the RISC, including, but not limited to, those listed in the Bylaws. The Chairperson shall be an ex-officio member with vote on all Subcommittees.

Section 6. The Chairperson, as soon as expedient after his or her election, shall appoint the Chairpersons of the Subcommittees provided for in the Bylaws.

Article V - Nominations and Election of RISC Members-at-Large

Section 1. Nominating procedures shall be as prescribed in the Bylaws and shall include provision for nomination by Society members.

Section 2. Election of the members-at-large of the RISC shall be as prescribed in the Bylaws.

Section 3. If a member of the RISC does not complete their term and the term has more than one year remaining, the vacancy shall be filled at the next election for the unexpired portion of the term.

Article VI - Meetings

Section 1. The RITC may hold meetings, conferences, symposia or conventions and publish associated proceedings either alone or in cooperation with other organizations subject to applicable IEEE and NPSS rules and regulations.

Section 2. Eight voting members of the RISC shall constitute a quorum. No member shall have more than one vote by reason of multiple offices or responsibilities.

Section 3. A majority of the votes cast by those members of the RISC attending a meeting shall be necessary for the conduct of its business except as otherwise provided in this constitution.

Section 4. Business of the RISC may be handled by correspondence, telephone, facsimile, E-Mail, telegraph, or other means of communication where, in the opinion of the Chairperson, matters requiring prompt action can be adequately handled in that manner. A majority vote of the full RISC is required to take action in such a case. Telephone actions or other actions that do not involve a written record are to be promptly confirmed in writing by the Chairperson.

Section 5. The RISC shall meet as required to conduct business and in accordance with the Bylaws.

Article VII - Amendments

Section 1. Amendments to this Constitution may be initiated by petition submitted by a two-thirds vote of the RISC, such petition being submitted to the AdCom of the NPSS for approval. After such approval, the proposed amendment shall be publicized in the NPSS Newsletter, with notice that it goes into effect unless 20 RITC members object within 90 days of the date of mailing of the notice. If such objections are received, a copy of the proposed amendment shall be mailed with a ballot to all members of the RITC at least 30 days before the date set for the return of the ballots; the ballots shall carry a statement of the deadline for their return. When a mail vote of the entire RITC membership is made necessary, approval of the amendment by at least two-thirds of the ballots returned shall be necessary for its enactment.

Section 2. As an alternative to this procedure outlined in Section 1 above, 10 members of the RITC may submit a petition to the AdCom of the NPSS. If approved by the NPSS AdCom and after notification of the RISC, the proposed amendment shall be submitted to the membership by mail ballot as described above.

Section 3. RITC Bylaws, and amendments thereto, may be adopted by two-thirds vote of those present at a RISC meeting, provided that notice of the proposed Bylaw or amendment has been sent to each member of the RISC at least a week prior to such meeting. Alternatively, a RITC Bylaw or amendment may be adopted by a two-thirds mail vote of the members of the RISC, provided a 30-day period is provided for such responses. In either event, the proposed Bylaw or amendment shall be published in the NPSS Newsletter. No Bylaw or amendment shall take effect until it has been approved by the AdCom of the NPSS.

Article VIII - Revision

Section 1. The Chairperson of the RISC shall appoint a seven-person Subcommittee no later than January 1, 2000, and every five years thereafter to evaluate the effectiveness of this Constitution and Bylaws, to study the rules of governance required by the activities of the RITC at that time, and to consider revising the Constitution and Bylaws appropriate to the existing and anticipated needs of the RITC.

RITC Bylaws

1. RISC: Article IV of the Constitution provides that the RISC shall consist of a number of elected members-at-large plus certain ex-officio members. The ex-officio members of the RISC shall be (unless they are already elected members-at-large) the Chairperson of RISC, the Vice-Chairperson of RISC, the Most Recent Past Chairperson of RISC, the Chairperson of each Subcommittee, the Chairperson of the Nuclear Medical and Imaging Sciences Council, the Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Nuclear Science, the Conference Editor for the Nuclear Science Symposium, and such other ex-officio members as are provided for in the Constitution and Bylaws of the NPSS.

1.1 The voting members of the RISC shall be the elected members-at-large, the Chairperson of RISC, the Vice-Chairperson of RISC, and the Most Recent Past Chairperson of RISC.

1.2 The RISC shall meet at least once per year, upon dates determined by the Chairperson at least three weeks in advance of the meeting. Additional meetings may be called at the discretion of the Chairperson or upon request of at least two-thirds of the voting members of the RISC with at least three weeks notice.

1.3 The last regularly scheduled RISC meeting in the calendar year shall be considered the Annual Meeting of the RISC.

2. Nomination and Election of RISC Members: Article IV of the Constitution specifies the number of RISC members-at-large, as well as the term length and restrictions. One third of the RISC members-at-large posts, plus any vacancies occurring in the previous year, are to be filled each year by election by the general membership of the RITC.

2.1 The Chairperson of the RISC is responsible for ensuring that at least one nomination is made for each vacant post. Nominations may be made by any member of the RISC or any member in good standing of the RITC. Self-nominations are allowed.

2.2 The individual making a nomination must determine in advance that the nominee is willing to serve if elected.

2.3 If there are more nominations than posts to be filled, those nominees receiving the highest number of votes will be elected to the vacant posts.

2.4 The Chairperson of the RISC shall assure that a call for nominations is conveyed to the entire RITC membership via the NPSS Newsletter before April 1. Nominations must be submitted to the RISC Chairperson by July 1. Such nominations must include an expression by the nominee of willingness to serve if elected.

2.5 All nominees must be either members in any grade of IEEE and of the RITC or must have submitted applications for membership at the time the nominations are forwarded to IEEE Headquarters.

2.6 On or about July 31, the Secretary shall arrange for the distribution to the members of the RITC a ballot to elect the candidates to fill vacancies on the RISC. The ballot shall be accompanied by short biographical sketch of each nominee with an indication of his Radiation Instrumentation activities and former or present IEEE activities.

2.7 Sixty days after distribution of the ballots, the IEEE Headquarters shall count and tabulate the votes received and report the results to the RISC.

2.8 The RISC shall submit to the Secretary of the NPSS AdCom the names of the candidates with the largest number of votes to fill the designated vacancies.

3. Subcommittees: The Chairperson of the RISC, in concurrence with the RISC, shall appoint the Chairpersons for the following Subcommittees:

-Fellows and Awards Subcommittee.

-Other Subcommittees as shall be required for the operation of the RITC.

3.1 The term of office of a Chairperson of a Subcommittee shall be one year, but a Subcommittee Chairperson may be re-appointed to the same position.

3.2 The Chairperson of a Subcommittee must be a member of the RITC. However, in general, preference should be given to elected members of the RISC to serve as Chairpersons of its Subcommittees.

3.3 Each of the Subcommittees shall submit a written report of its activities to the RISC prior to or at the Annual Meeting.

3.4 The membership of the Subcommittees shall be appointed by the Chairperson of that Subcommittee. The membership and activities of the Subcommittees should be publicized to the membership of the RITC via the NPSS Newsletter, and suggestions for Subcommittee membership should be invited from RITC members.

3.5 The Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference Oversight Subcommittee shall be a Joint Subcommittee of the RISC and NMISC. Its Chairperson shall be appointed by a Joint Executive Subcommittee of the RISC and NMISC consisting of the current Chairpersons, the Most Recent Past Chairpersons, and Vice Chairpersons of the RISC and NMISC. The Chairperson of the Oversight Subcommittee must be a member of either the RITC or the NMISTC. The Chairperson of the Oversight Subcommittee shall appoint the committeeís membership, subject to the approval of the Joint Executive Subcommittee. The charge of the Oversight Subcommittee shall be to provide for the continuation and long term planning of the NSS/MIC conference, including the selection of the sites and General Chairpersons of future conferences. The General Chair of a given yearís conference shall, in consultation with the Oversight Subcommittee, the RISC and the NMISC, also select the NSS Program Chair and MIC Program Chair for that yearís conference. The term of office of the Chairperson of the Oversight Subcommittee shall be one year, but the Chairperson may be re-appointed to the same position.

4. Ballots: All ballots, whether for purposes of election or changes in the Constitution, shall be issued to the voting members by the Secretary pursuant to action by the RISC. No ballot shall be counted unless unambiguously marked by a qualified voter to indicate his or her choice, and sent in a sealed envelope bearing the voterís name on or before the specified deadline date. This specified deadline date shall be at least thirty days subsequent to the date of the mailing of the ballots. The distribution and counting of the ballots shall be entrusted to IEEE Headquarters. The Secretary of RISC shall report the results to the RISC.

5. Beginning of Terms of Office: All terms of office of elected members-at-large of the RISC shall begin January 1 of the year immediately following their election.

6. Election of Vice-Chairperson of RISC: The Vice-Chairperson of RISC shall be nominated and elected from among the eligible members-at-large of the RISC. A minimum of one month before the annual meeting of the RISC, the RISC Secretary will notify all current RISC members of the upcoming election and solicit nominations (self-nominations are allowed). The nominations will be closed two weeks before the annual meeting of the RISC, and the Chairperson of the RISC is responsible for ensuring that at least one nomination for Vice-Chairperson is received by this time. The Secretary of RISC shall announce to all voting RISC members-at-large the identities of the candidates at least one week before the annual meeting, and also inform them of the procedure for casting a ballot if they are unable to attend the RISC annual meeting. The vote will occur during the annual meeting of the RISC. If there is only one candidate, then that candidate will be elected at the annual meeting by those RISC members in attendance. If there is more than one candidate, a secret ballot will be taken during the annual meeting and the Chairperson shall designate tellers to immediately count the ballots. Voting RISC members-at-large who are not attending the annual meeting of the RISC may submit a ballot by notifying the RISC Secretary of their choice. The results of the vote shall be announced and the nominee receiving a majority of votes cast shall be declared elected. In the event that no candidate receives a majority of votes cast, runoff elections shall be conducted by secret ballot at the annual meeting of RISC among the candidates receiving the two highest number of votes until one candidate receives a majority of the votes cast. For these runoff elections, only those RISC members in attendance may cast a vote. The terms of office of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and Most Recent Past Chairperson of RISC shall begin January 1 of the year immediately following their election.

7. Removal from Office: In order for a member of the RISC or a RISC Subcommittee member to be removed from office, a petition signed by a minimum of five voting RISC members is necessary to initiate the removal process. The petition must include the name of the member to be removed, the position in question, and a description of the grounds for removal. Upon receipt of the petition, the Secretary will notify all RISC members that such a petition has been received, notify the member in question, and give that member 30 days to provide a written response. After this period, the Secretary will send a ballot that includes the statement of the grounds for removal and its rebuttal to each voting RISC member. The ballots will be returned to the Secretary who will tally the votes within 30 days after the ballots were sent. A minimum of two-thirds vote is required to remove the member from office. In the event that the Secretary is the member in question, the Chairperson will designate an alternate RISC member to perform these duties. If the Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson is removed from office, an election will be held within 30 days to select a new Chairperson or Vice-Chairperson according to the rules listed in the Bylaws for the election of the Vice-Chairperson

8. Open Business Meeting: An open business meeting of the RITC shall be held in conjunction with the annual IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference.

9. Records: The Secretary shall maintain a permanent record of all non-routine motions passed by the RISC, and provide a tabulation of the most recent five years of motions and a copy of the RITC Constitution and Bylaws to each newly elected member-at-large of the RISC.

Revised, May 2005