THE CONSTITUTION OF THE MILTON SOCIETY OF AMERICA

I. Name—The name of this Society shall be THE MILTON SOCIETY OF AMERICA.

II. Purpose—The objectives of this Society shall be to further Milton scholarship, not only in this country but also abroad, by bringing Milton scholars together at an annual dinner, by selecting outstanding scholars for honor, by publishing an annual booklet honoring these scholars and summarizing the work of the Society, by gathering books, articles and other materials pertaining to Milton, by encouraging research in progress, by promoting exchange of ideas in the field of Milton study, and by carrying on such other activities as the members of the Society may determine from time to time.

III. Membership—Any person may become a member of the Society upon payment of annual dues as fixed in the Bylaws, and may continue as a member by payment of subsequent annual dues. Honored Scholars, selected in accordance with the provisions of the Bylaws, shall be deemed to have become a member for life. Any other member may become a Life Member by the payment, at one time, of a sum specified in the Bylaws.

IV. Officers—The officers of the Society shall be: a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary, and a Treasurer. The President and Vice-President shall be elected for a term of a year at the Annual Meeting in accordance with the provisions of the Bylaws. They shall serve until their successors have been elected and they shall be eligible to succeed themselves. The Secretary and Treasurer shall be chosen by the Executive Committee, and shall hold office for terms and under such conditions as the Committee may specify.

V. Administration—The affairs of the society shall be administered by an Executive Committee, consisting of the President and the Vice-President ex officio, The Secretary and the Treasurer, and six term members, two of whom shall be elected at each Annual Meeting for terms of three years in a manner described by the Bylaws. The Committee shall take all appropriate action on behalf of the Society, naming committees when it so desires, and through the Secretary and Treasurer shall furnish a Report at the Society’s annual meeting. Term members shall be eligible to succeed themselves. Five term members and officers shall constitute a quorum.

VI. Annual Meeting—The Society shall hold an Annual Meeting, normally a dinner meeting, during the annual session of the Modern Language Association of America.

VII. Amendments—Any amendment of this Constitution shall take effect immediately upon approval of two thirds of the members present at the Annual Meeting, provided that it shall have been presented by mail to the entire membership at least one month before the date of this meeting.

BYLAWS OF THE MILTON SOCIETY OF AMERICA

I. Dues—The annual dues for regular membership shall be twenty dollars and for student membership ten dollars. Any member who shall not have paid by December 31 shall be considered to have resigned or who has become delinquent in the payment of dues shall be reinstated as a member immediately upon the payment of dues for the current year. Life membership dues shall be two hundred and fifty dollars. All dues shall be payable in United States dollars.

II. Honored Scholars—At such times as may seem appropriate the Executive Committee shall, on the basis of a poll of the general membership, cite one or more scholars who have made notable contributions to Milton scholarship. They shall pay no dues thenceforth and may be invited in an advisory capacity to meetings of the Executive Committee.

III. Duties of Officers—The President shall preside at the Annual Meeting and at meetings of the Executive Committee, shall direct the call of meetings of the Executive Committee upon his or her]own initiative or upon the request of any two of the other officers, shall name a replacement for any officer who is unable to serve, and shall promptly act on any matter properly referred to him or her by the officers between meetings of the Committee. The Vice President, in the President’s absence, shall preside at the Annual Meeting and at the meeting of the Executive Committee and upon the death or resignation of the President, shall become President. The Secretary shall also act as the Secretary of the Executive Committee, shall at the direction of the President call all meetings of the Committee, shall within one month of any Committee meeting issue minutes to the members thereof, shall conduct the general correspondence of the Society, shall maintain the official records of the Society, and have such charge of the arrangements for the annual meeting as the Executive Committee may direct. The Treasurer shall be the custodian of all funds, shall call for and collect annual dues, shall pay all bills properly incurred, shall prepare a proposed budget by January 31 and shall submit his or her records for audit by the Executive Committee whenever the Committee so directs.

IV. Elections—Each year the Executive Committee shall prepare a slate of nominations for the President, Vice-President and two new members of the Committee. These nominations shall be reported at the Annual Meeting of the Society. Nominations from the floor shall also be called for. The members shall then proceed to an election. A person receiving a clear majority of the votes cast shall be deemed to have been elected.

V. Participation in the Annual Meeting—The Annual Meeting is open to non-members, but only members may vote upon Society business.

VI. Exempt Status—The Milton Society of America is organized exclusively for educational purposes, including, for such purposes, the making of distributions to organizations that qualify as exempt organizations under Section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (or the corresponding provision of any future Internal revenue Service Law).

No part of the net earnings of the Milton Society shall inure to the other benefit of, or be distributed to its members, trustees, officers or other private persons, except that the Society shall be authorized by empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes set forth in the preceding paragraph. No substantial part of the activities of the Milton Society shall be the carrying on of propaganda or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the Society shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of any candidates for public office.

Notwithstanding any other provision of these articles, the Milton Society shall not carry on any other activities not permitted to be carried on (a) by an organization exempt from Federal income tax under Section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal revenue Code of 1954 (or the corresponding provision of any future United States Revenue Law) or (b) by a corporation, contributions to which are deductible under Section 170 (c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (or the corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue Law).

Upon the dissolution of the Milton Society of America, assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of Section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 or corresponding section of any future federal tax code or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose.

VII. Amendments—Any amendments to these Bylaws shall take effect immediately upon approval by two-thirds of the members present at the Annual Meeting, provided that it shall have been presented by mail to the entire membership at least one month before the date of this meeting.