ARTICLE 1

Section 1. NAME

The name of the corporation shall be VOLUNTEERS IN PROBATION, INC., herein referred as “V.I.P. Inc” or “VIP”.

Section 1.1 PRINCIPAL OFFICE

The principal office of the corporation, for the transaction of this business, shall be located in San Diego, CA (P.O. Box 881141 San Diego, CA 92168). The Corporation Board of Directors may, from time to time; change the principal office from one location to another provided such located within San Diego County, California.

ARTICLE 2

Section 2. MISSION

Through community partnership and engagement, Volunteers In Probation, Inc. (VIP, Inc.) strives to enrich the lives of probation clients and their families, support the law enforcement community, and promote the positive development of families in San Diego County.

Section 2.1 OBJECTIVES AND PURPOSES

The primary objectives and purposes of this corporation shall be: 

a) To provide assistance (medical needs, educational assistance and basic necessities) to probation clients and their immediate families through community partnerships, engagement and fundraising efforts; 

b) To collaborate with and distribute funds to other organizations, which emphasize or contribute to youth enrichment programs of various sorts;

c) To accept voluntary donations or funds raised through fundraising efforts;

d) To contribute to probation personnel wellness; 

e) Provide assistance to the County of San Diego Probation Department personnel and their immediate families who are in need of assistance due to a catastrophic event or have medical needs that are not completely covered by health insurance or have other related emergencies; 

f) To award an annual scholarship of $500.00 under each of the following categories: Community Member, Probation Client, Probation Personnel/Family Dependent. Specific eligibility and details are provided on the VIP’s Scholarship Application; 

g) To acknowledge and appreciate those who donate to VIP; “Thank You” will be sent out soon as possible. If the donation is $100.00 or less a Thank You cards is sent to the donator. If the donation is more than $100.00, a formal letter is written on VIP letterhead signed by the President of VIP.

ARTICLE 3

Section 3. MEETINGS OF MEMBERS

Section 3.1 Place of Meeting: Meetings shall be held at any place designated by the President or designee. Any meeting, regular or special, may be held by telephone conference, electronic video screen communication, or other communication equipment available. 

Section 3.2 Regular Meetings: Board members shall meet at least 11 times per year, which includes the Annual Retreat. Meeting shall be held on the 3rd Thursday of each month, unless otherwise noted by the President. 

Section 3.3 Annual Retreat Meeting: There shall be an Annual Retreat Meeting held between February 1 and March 31 each year for the purpose of evaluating the prior year’s success and to discuss future planning. A financial annual report from the previous twelve (12) months will be presented at this time for review and discussion. Written notice of the scheduled Annual Retreat Meeting shall be forwarded to the Board members and shall also be postponed on the VIP website at least (14) fourteen days prior to the meeting date.

Section 3.4 Special Meetings: A special meeting may be called at any time and as often as necessary for any proper purpose by any of the following: (1) the President

(2) The Vice President (3) The Secretary or (4) upon presentation to the President of a petition signed by at least three Board members.

Section 3.5 Voting: Fifty percent (50%) plus one of the voting members of the Board will constitute a quorum for the purpose of transacting business.

Section 3.6 Attendance: After unexcused absences exceeding three (3) general meetings, the membership position on the board may be subject to forfeiture at the discretion of the President. A written warning will be furnished to a member after the second unexcused absence within three (3) business days of the missed meeting.

An unexcused absence is considered when lack of advance notice to the President, Vice President or Secretary is given, except in an extenuating circumstance.

ARTICLE 4

Section 4. EXECUTIVE BOARD, BOARD MEMBERS, and PARTISAN BOARD

Executive Board, Board members shall be comprised of not more (13 voting, 2 non-voting) members; consisting of Probation staff and community members. The Board shall be responsible for the direction for the affairs of this corporation.

Section 4.1 Qualification, Election, and Term of Office: Any person may apply for membership. An application of interest must be submitted to the President for review; however, the Board members shall make the final election.

Community members may be nominated by any existing board member, they will require a successful background check, and a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Board. Each member of the Board, except the Chief Probation Officer, and the non-voting members, shall serve for a term of three (3) years, expiring on the date of the third Annual Retreat Meeting following his/her appointment or until the appointment of his/her successor, whichever occurs first. Members may be reappointed following expiration of their term. At each Annual Retreat Meeting, current board members who are about to reach their three-year term, with their agreement, will be voted on for reappointment.

Section 4.2 Removal and Resignation: Any member may resign, at any time, by submitting a written notice to any member of the Executive Board. Membership may be terminated with justified cause upon a motion from any board member and majority vote of the members present at a regular meeting. A written notice of the termination and the reasons therefore must be furnished, by the class, or registered mail sent to the last address of the member shown on corporation records fifteen (15) days from termination. It is incumbent upon each member to update contact information with the Secretary, as often as deemed necessary. 

Section 4.3 Vacancy: Any vacancy occurring in the membership within the President or Vice President positions may be filled for the unexpired term by one of the Board members. In the event of any member other than that of President, such vacancy may be temporarily filled by appointment by the President until such time as the Board shall fill the vacancy.

Section 4.4 A representative from the  San Diego County Probation Department is a non-voting member of the Partisan Board. 

Section 4.5 Executive Board: The Executive Committee of the Board shall be comprised of the President, Vice- President, Immediate Past President, Treasurer, and Secretary.

ARTICLE 5

Section 5. DUTIES OF COMMITTEES AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS

Section 5.1 PRESIDENT: The President shall call to order and preside over all meetings of the Board members. He/she shall also be responsible for planning and conducting the Annual Retreat; for making reports to the members; for calling special meetings of the members, public relations, managing the VIP website and social media site(s). The President may annually appoint standing committees to conduct the business of the Board. Committee Chairpersons must be Board Members; committee members may be Board Members or others. Such committees may include: 

(a) Scholarship Committee: Duties may include the acceptance and review of applications. Presenting the application to the board for approval. Completing the process of granting/denial of funds.

(b) Other Committees: The President shall have the power to appoint such standing or special committees as the Board may deem necessary and to designate their duties.

Section 5.2 POWERS OF COMMITTEES: Each committee may be authorized to act for the Board in planning, organizing and supervising the matters assigned to it, provided (1) all actions taken are consistent with policies previously determined or precedents established by the Board, and (2) the committee may formulate for recommendation to the Board such new or revised policies, as may seem advisable for more effective discharge of the duties assigned to it. 

Section 5.3. VICE-PRESIDENT: In the absence of the President, the Vice President shall perform all the duties of the President, and when so acting shall have all the powers of, and be subject to all the restrictions on, the President.

Section 5.4 TREASURER: The Treasurer shall maintain all records of request for funds and distributed of funds, to be available for review by the Board members. 

Section 5.5 SECRETARY: The Secretary shall record and maintain a permanent file of the Board meeting minutes. The Secretary shall also handle and maintain a file of all correspondence relative to the work of the organization. If the President and Vice President are unavailable to conduct the meeting, the Secretary may facilitate or trail the meeting.

ARTICLE 6

Section 6. FUNDS

Section 6.1 Donations (monetary or gift) /Contributions: Except as otherwise provided in Section 66 of the Administrative Code of the County of San Diego, the Board of

Directors may accept on behalf of the Corporation any contribution, gift, bequest, or devise for general purposes or for any specified purpose of the Corporation.

All donations received will be recorded by the Secretary and all records will be kept for proper documentation. 

Funds shall be deposited in a bank or trust fund account to be disbursed as set forth in the following section.

Section 6.2 Fund Requests: All requests for funds will be disbursed in accordance with policy established by the Executive Board. Prior to any authorization of consideration of funds to be disbursed by a designated board member, the Treasurer will be contacted to determine if applicable funds are available. Requests for funds up to $299.99 require a signature of the requestor as well as the designated VIP representative on the completed VIP Funds Request form. The form will then be sent to Treasurer/Accounting for processing, no additional signatures from the VIP board will be required. Fund requests of $300 and above also require completion of the VIP Funds Request form, the Treasurer will be contacted to determine if applicable funds are available, and the request must be brought before the Board in person for a presentation for consideration and approval. After the approval of the $300 and above request, the President will sign the form to note approval by the Board. All approvals by the Board at a board meeting will be documented in the board meeting minutes. All approvals by an email vote will be documented at the next board meeting in the minutes. The Treasurer authorizes the check(s) to be prepared.

All expenditures are subject to review by a quorum of the Executive Board of this Corporation.

Section 7. RULES OF ORDER

Robert’s Rules of Order: shall be the parliamentary authority for all matters of procedure not specifically covered by these bylaws.

Section 8. AMENDMENTS

These bylaws will be reviewed at each Annual Retreat Meeting. These bylaws may be amended only by a majority of the voting members of the Board. Upon posting of the proposed changes for period of (30) days on the VIP website, the new bylaws will be enacted. The President will notify the board when the proposed bylaws are posted and when the 30 days have completed. This will be documented at the next board meeting in the minutes.