The official name of this SIGMAA is The Special Interest Group of the Mathematical Association of America on Mathematical and Computational Biology, which will normally be shortened to simply BIO SIGMAA.

The focus of BIO SIGMAA is on the pedagogy of mathematical and computational biology at the undergraduate level. This includes the support of curriculum development, faculty development, and undergraduate research in those fields.

The purpose of BIO SIGMAA is to support those activities that will enhance the exchange of ideas and access to educational opportunities among undergraduates and undergraduate faculty in the fields of mathematical and computational biology. This necessarily includes interaction with all concerned departmental structures (i.e. mathematics, computer science, biology, and other related departments) and also institutions and organizations that feed into, and from, the undergraduate programs.

BIO SIGMAA will

a. Organize faculty development workshops (PREP or other) in the summer to develop or introduce material designed to enhance student understanding at the interface of mathematics, computation, and the biological sciences.

b. Coordinate or write grants to support the activities of BIO SIGMAA.

c. Maintain a SIGMAA webpage listing activities in the field and links to other resources.

d. Maintain a moderated list serve/ electronic newsletter to provide a useful and productive means of communication among members.

e. Hold regular meetings and events at National MAA meetings.

a. BIO SIGMAA will work with the subcommittee of CUPM on Mathematics Across the Disciplines and the Science Policy Committee. BIO SIGMAA will also interac t with organizations that share common interests to sponsor and/or co-organize r egional conferences/sessions on Computational and Mathematical Biology Education and Undergraduate Research. These sessions will not necessarily be limited to MAA conferences and will be designed to give increased exposure to the issue we espouse.

b. BIO SIGMAA will organize or coordinate regular workshops through the sponsored programs of the MAA.

c. No activity of this SIGMAA, including publications, shall be represented as coming from the MAA at large, but rather from this SIGMAA, unless such activity and representation have been approved by the Executive Committee of the MAA.

d. Reports of this SIGMAA's activities will be included in an annual report submitted by the SIGMAA to the MAA Committee on SIGMAAs, with copies to the chair of the Coordinating Council to which the SIGMAA is assigned.

Official business meetings of BIO SIGMAA will be held annually at the Joint Mathematics Meetings. Other meetings will be held as needed for the organization of the activities of the SIGMAA.

Meetings of BIO SIGMAA will follow Roberts Rules of Order Newly Revised, 10th ed ition. Agenda items for the official business meetings will be solicited from the membership by email two months prior to the meeting, with the final agenda b eing available on the SIGMAA website or by email one month prior to the meeting. Other meetings will be announced one month prior to the meeting along with th e proposed agenda, with a final agenda available two weeks prior to the meeting.

A quorum at the official business meeting will be at least twenty-five members including at least two officers.

Membership in this SIGMAA shall be open to any MAA member.

The officers of BIO SIGMAA will be the Chair, Chair-elect, past Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, Electronic Communications Manager, and the Program Chair. These officers shall comprise the Executive Committee of BIO SIGMAA. The Chair-elect, Secretary, and Program Chair are elected while the Treasurer and Electronic Communications Manager are appointed by the chair and approved by the membership.

The SIGMAA Executive Committee will be responsible for carrying out the directives of the membership, as well as day-to-day business.

a. The Chair will preside at BIO SIGMAA business meetings. The Chair will organize and coordinate the activities of the group, and will serve as its chief spokesperson. The Chair also will serve as liaison with the MAA Associate Secretary.

b. The Chair-Elect and Past-Chair will serve as vice-chairs, assisting the Chair and presiding at BIO SIGMAA business meetings in the absence of the Chair.

c. The Secretary will prepare and distribute minutes of official meetings of BIO SIGMAA and its Executive Committee, including a record of those attending, and will maintain the membership roll. Other duties include keeping a record of the affairs of BIO SIGMAA, handling correspondence and preparing written reports for submission to the MAA as required. The secretary will also be in charge of archiving the activities of the SIGMAA in order to maintain a historical record of those activities.

d. The Treasurer is responsible for requesting disbursement of funds as directed by the BIO SIGMAA Executive Committee. The Treasurer will also maintain all financial records of BIO SIGMAA and prepare financial reports as required by the MAA Executive Committee or by the BIO SIGMAA Executive Committee.

e. The Electronic Communications Manager will oversee the organization of a BIO SIGMAA webpage and be responsible for keeping its content current. Duties of this officer will also involve the BIO SIGMAA list serve/electronic newsletter.

f. The Program Chair, in consultation with the Executive Committee, will assist in programmatic details associated with planning for conferences and BIO SIGMAA paper sessions held at the Joint Math Meetings, MathFest, or other meetings.

a. Decisions of the Executive Committee will be by majority vote.

b. The Executive Committee will appoint a Nominating Committee of three members and will designate one of the three as Chair. No more than one member of the Executive Committee may serve on the Nominating Committee. The Executive Committee will notify the membership of BIO SIGMAA regarding the composition of the Nominating Committee at least two months prior to the elections and will request that suggestions for nominations be sent to the Chair of the Nominating Committee. The Nominating Committee will propose and publicize a slate of more than one officer per position, if possible, at least one month before the October period during which the election is to occur.

c. Voting for all officers will be by the online balloting system by the MAA Office between October 1 and October 31. Elected officers will assume their roles at the end of the January Meeting. If there is only one nominee for a given office, that person will be deemed elected. For all other offices, the person receiving the most votes will be elected.

d. Officers other than the Chair and Past-Chair will assume their duties after the January business meeting. The Past-Chair and Chair-Elect serve one-year terms and all other officers serve two-year terms.

An annual MAA dues supplement shall be assessed each member of this SIGMAA. This fee will be used to support in part the activities of this SIGMAA. The amount will be determined by the membership, with the initial amount begin $10 per year. The manner of collection and disbursement of these funds will be determined by the MAA Executive Committee.

This SIGMAA shall submit an expense budget for each calendar year to the chair of the MAA Budget Committee no later than March 15 of the preceding year. It shall include the projected cost for any regularly planned activities including receptions, equipment, etc. at national meetings. The budget is subject to the approval of the MAA Executive Committee.

This SIGMAA may apply to the MAA for specific funding beyond what is provided from dues. All requests for funds shall be substantiated by a budget for the proposed expenditures.

Section 1. Obtaining External Funding

This SIGMAA may write grant proposals to be submitted by the MAA. The SIGMAA will follow the policies and procedures of the MAA for all such submissions.

Neither this SIGMAA nor any officer nor any representative thereof shall have any authority to contract debts for, pledge the credit of, or in any way bind the MAA.

Changes to this Charter may be proposed if a recommendation for such changes is supported by a two-thirds vote majority of the members voting. The proposed changes must then be submitted for consideration to the Committee on SIGMAAs, which will forward a recommendation on approval to the MAA Executive Committee.

Changes to this Charter may also be initiated by the MAA Executive Committee, which will forward such a request to the MAA Committee on SIGMAAs. In turn the Committee on SIGMAAs will work with the SIGMAA to develop specific new language for the charter that is acceptable to the SIGMAA. The Committee on SIGMAAs will then forward the revised charter to the MAA Executive Committee to be considered for approval. In this event, changes must be approved by the Board of Governors.

This SIGMAA shall be dissolved for either of the following reasons:

a. Failure to maintain at least 30 members for two consecutive years.

b. Reasons agreed to by a majority vote of the Board of Governors of the MAA.

If dissolved, any unspent funds of this SIGMAA shall be returned to the general fund of the MAA.

Copyright © 2006 BIO SIGMAA (Special Interest Group on Mathematical and Computational Biology of the Mathematical Association of America)

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