Norwood Knickerbocker Baseball

Borough Hall=

455 Broad Street

Norwood, N.J.07648<= /span>

Constitution and By-Laws<= /o:p>

(Supersedes Any and All By-Laws before 03-01-06)

Objective

The objective of this organiza= tion is to provide the 7^th & 8^th grade boys of Norwood= with an opportunity to learn the fundamentals of baseball, the importance of self discipline and good sportsmanship and the cooperation demanded by a team sp= ort. The object of the these Bylaws are to organize and offer a recreatio= nal baseball program for all 7^th & 8^th grade Boys who= are residents of and live within the boundaries of the corporate limits of the Borough of Norwood, NJ (also includes those that qualify from the ICS progr= am). In addition, a separate competitive program that includes traveling teams f= or all- star tournament participation

Article I

Name=

The= name by which this association is known is the NORWOOD KNICKERBOCKER BASEBALL LEAGUE (NKBL)

Article II

Governance

NORWOOD KNICKERBOCKER BASEBALL= shall be part of the official “Borough of Norwood Recreation Committee”. As such, the organization is subject to municipal budget control and also local Borough contracts law. In Agreement for By-Laws, on the field of play (dugouts etc.) when in the presence of children, This also applies to representatives when using out of town facilities, it is the Policy of the League that any offic= ial (Umpires, Managers, Coaches, Referee etc.) is prohibited from smoking or chewing tobacco. Consequently, the Association’s liability insurance is covered under the Borough’s insurance program.

Article III<= /u>

Membership

Any adult resident of the Boro= ugh of Norwood (& those that attend the ICS Program) is eligible to become a Member of the Association. Any exception to this may be approved by a majority vote of a quorum of the Executive Board. = &nb= sp; = &nb= sp;

Article I= V

Organized Leagues

The League shall consi= st of the Boys Knickerbocker Baseball League.

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Article V

Executive and Presidential Board Members

The Knic= kerbocker Board has the responsibility to oversee the operations of the league, as we= ll as, manage the financial affairs.

Sec 1 The Board shall consist of 5 office= rs. These officers will be members of the Board.

Elected<= /span>:

1. President - 2 y= ear term

2. Treasurer - 2 y= ear term

3. Commissioner – 2 year term

4. Assistant Commissioner – 2 year term

5. Program Enhancement – 2 year term

(a) Each of= ficer shall be a regular member of the Association.

(b)= Each officer shall enter upon his/her official duties at the first meeting in Se= ptember of each year and shall serve a term of two years. The Association President shall, w= ith the approval of the Board, appoint replacements for any and all vacancies occurring in his/her term of office. In the absence of a President, the Board shall appoint a replacement= to complete the unfinished term.

(d) Terms of office shall be limite= d to 3 consecutive terms in any one Board position. (Unless position is vacant)

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(e) The= Board will recommend Board Members for appointment. The President, Treasurer, Commissioner and Asst.Commissioner will select or appoint members to finali= ze the Executive Board.

(f) F= uture needs may require the appointment of s= pecial committees to fulfill the objectives of the Board. The methodologies applie= d to the specific positions cited above are also applicable to those future organizational needs.

(g) The President may appoint Com= mittee Directors to work and communicate with the Board

Article VI

Duties of Executive Board

President - shall be the Executive Offi= cer of this Association, and shall preside at all meetings. He/she shall perform s= uch other duties usually pertinent to the office. The President will help, plan, direct, motivate and control the operational and administrative affairs of the Norwood Knickerbocker program= .

Commissioner- shall maintain records of membership, retain the minutes of meetings & maintain meeting attendance records. He/she shall notify the Board of any meetings. He/she shall submit/communicate to= the Board such correspondence as he/she may receive & maintain proper files, records as pertain to his/her office. He/she shall have charge of all correspondence. He/ she shall receive all funds belonging to the Association & present them to the Treasurer for d= eposit in the official depository. Commissioner is responsible for the day to day operation of the league, including coaching selection, scheduling, running = the draft, All-Star selections, Fields, Ordering Equipment, Uniforms & any other related duty that may be required to run the Knickerbocker league. He= /she may delegate or assign the above responsibility, but will still maintain fi= nal responsibility. He is require= d to attend all league meetings. In the absence of a President, shall assume all= of the responsibilities, until an appropriate replacement can be named.

Assistant Commissioner- will work very closely with the Commissioner and will be responsible for ma= ny of the responsibilities included in the Commissioner role. Asst Commissioner will work closely with the selection of teams to ensure a competitive balan= ce (draft), selecting coaches, ordering equipment, attending all league meetin= gs and other related duties necessary to run the league in an efficient manner= . In the absence of a President, shall assume all of the responsibilities

Treasurer- shall maintain adequate accounting records to support the financial activi= ty of the Knickerbocker Baseball Association.= The Treasurer is responsible for safeguarding the checking account assets, insuring proper authorization for expenditures & preparation ba= nk reconciliation’s, including cash receipts/disbursements, Check regist= er representing the financial activity. He/she shall have the authority to manage & con= trol the bank accounts monthly, shall provide a cash fund report accounting for = the balance in the bank accounts, reporting all cash receipts deposited, all ca= sh disbursements paid, & any bank charges, resulting in the closing balanc= e at the end of the period reported. His / her accounts and books shall be at all times open to the Board and shall have a reporting, whenever requested.= The Treasurer must have control and knowledge of all accounts.=

Program Enhancement

Responsible for programs that will enhance the Knickerbocker program while working with other board members to fulfill responsibilities. Will coordinate any fundraising efforts.

Scheduling & Umpiring will be handled by the Commissioner; schedule is prepared by league director, as well as securing the umpiring group<= span style=3D'font-size:12.0pt;font-family:Arial;layout-grid-mode:line'>

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Article VII

Duties of President Board

Article VIII=

Meetings

Sec 1 The annual meeting of the Association shall be held during the month of<= o:p>

Sept each year. The Commissioner shall notify all = Board Members of the meeting at

least one week prior to the da= te of the meeting listing the time, date and place of the

meeting. Any appointments must= be communicated to Norwood’s Recreation Director.

At meetings of the, in order for business to be transacted, there mus= t be a quorum of sixty (60) percent. In the absence of a quorum, the President w= ill conduct a telephone (or e-mail) poll to achieve a quorum to transact busine= ss discussed during the meeting.

Article IX

Election of Officers

= Sec 1 The election of officers shall be held at the annual meeting.=

= Sec 2 Election to office must be by a majority vote of the membership present, providing a quorum exists.

Article X

Equipment, Uniforms and Suppli= es

The= coaches shall be responsible for the issuance, collection and storage of all equipm= ent, uniforms, supplies, etc. owned by the Association and used by his/her team. However, the coach has no financial liability for lost or stolen league equipment.

Article XI

Rules of Play

= Sec 1 The composition of teams, uniforms and equipment, selection of players, age lim= it, boundaries, playing rules and all other regulations and equipment shall be those regulations as made official by High School Federation or, by such ot= her regulations as may be approved in writing by the Board. The league will also adhere to the Northern Valley Knickerbocker rules & regulations.

= Sec 2 The program shall field as many teams as recommended by the Commissioner.

= Sec 3 Any Child involved in the program must play a minimum of two innings (will stri= ve for 3 inning minimum), unless game ends prematurely i.e. rain, mercy, darkn= ess etc...

= Sec 4 All Managers or Coaches must complete the Coaches Code of Ethics & also attend the NVOT HS coach’s clinic in February.

Draft

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= Sec 5 The Commissioner will select the coaches based on experience, ability to work= with the kids & overall baseball knowledge (consideration will be gi= ven to coaches with 8^th grade children). The goal is to select the b= est head coach.

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= Sec 6 By the end of the season, all Managers should rate all graduating players to be used for the following year’s draft.= Players shall be rated in the following categories: Hitting, Pitching/Throwing, Fieldi= ng, Position Versatility, Coachability & Attitude. Commissioner to discuss rating system with each coach

-Th= e President & Commissioner will preside over the draft. The draft will be coordinat= ed by the Commissioner, using a method that will result in the most equally balanced teams.

-Th= e Board must approve any Player who wants to tryout to play in a higher division. T= his would be a very exceptional situation. The Commissioner shall determine selection of players. Each Pl= ayer will be determined for selection based on their basic skill levels (rating), safety and such other factors as are conducive to the safety and well being= of all participants for all age groups. Age limit shall be determined by those regulations as made official by High School Federation or, by such other regulations as may be approved by the Board.

= Sec 7 At the beginning of the official Norwood League season, the League may enter Spring All Star competition. = The Commissioner & All-Star Manager shall make all final selections. Eligibility will be= any player who is a current active player in the Norwood Baseball program (including those from ICS that qualify).

= Sec 8 At the end of the official Norwood League season, the League will enter Summer/ Fall All-Star competition. Al= l-Star players will be selected by this process:

-Each Manager will enter their All-= Star selections based on ability displayed on and off the field. Consideration will be given for commitment, coachability = and position.

-The Managers will select each Player using a point voting system. The Commissioner & All-Star Ma= nager shall make all final selections.

-Pl= ayers shall be rated in the following categories: Hitting, Pitching/Throwing, Fieldi= ng, Position Versatility, Coachability & Attitude. A point system should be used.

-Th= e Commissioner can choose to manage or select a manager among his/her division managers (s= ee Sec 5 criteria). The Managers should consult among the other team managers & select among those team managers who offer to volunteer or coach.

-El= igibility will be any player who is a current active player in the Norwood Knickerboc= ker Baseball program.

Any exceptions to these rules must be brought to vote & approved by the Boa= rd.

Sec 9 Managers & coaches must recognize that it is their obligation to set a good exam= ple for their players & must exhibit good sportsmanship at all times. Any coach or manager that argues w= ith an umpire over any judgment call or argues with another coach or manager for a= ny reason may be asked by the umpire to leave the playing field for the remain= der of the game. Any person asked= to leave the playing field during a game will be suspended for the next regular season game. The Board will review the circumstances of the ejection & = will take whatever action they deem necessary. Appeals of suspension should be submitted to the Board within 24 hours (e-mails will be accepted).

Sec 9A – The Northern Valley Knickerbocker “Player Code of Conduct” is in full force. Fighti= ng, profanity and any disregards for sportsmanship will not be tolerated and may result in game or league suspension.

Sec 9B – Coaches must represen= t the Norwood Knickerbocker program in a positive way. Any coach or assistant that does not promote the program in a positive way or has negative statements to make against the program, will be asked to leave.

Sec.9C - Managers and Coaches have t= he obligation to immediately notify the Commissioner whenever they witness or = are involved in any situation involving ejection or other exhibition of poor sportsmanship or other inappropriate conduct involving managers, coaches, players, umpires, spectators (including parents) or other persons. The Repo= rt must be submitted within 24 hours of the incident reported upon. Action and appeals procedure shall be governed by the procedure set forth in Article X= I, section 9.

Sec.10 - Any Coaches or Managers, as= it is the Policy of the League, cannot Manage more than one Team within the Association unless under the Approval of the Board.

Article XII<= /u>

Compensation=

No = elected officer, coach, player or any member of the League shall not be entitled to= any compensation, but may be reimbursed for expenses, upon approval by the Board.

Article XIII

Fund Raising Activities

The= Board must approve all fundraising campaigns and programs.

Article XIV<= /u>

Eligibility<= /u>

All= Boys who are in 7th & 8th grade are eligible for this league. A Player may only be on one team’s roster.

Article XV

Rosters<= /b>

No = change can be made once Rosters are set, unless a unanimous decision among the managers involved in that division.

Article XVI<= /u>

Amendments to the By-Laws=

The= se by-laws may be amended by approval of the Board by a majority vote, providi= ng a quorum as outlined in Article VIII, is present.

ARTICLE XVII=

CODE OF CONDUCT

All= Board Members, Directors Coaches, parents & players must sign and abide by the code of conduct rules. All punishments will be determined by individual circumstances.