Eastern Oregon University

Established in 1964, the Eastern Oregon University Foundation is a public,
non-profit foundation, created to support the mission and vision of Eastern
Oregon University. Over the past four decades, the Foundation has become a
vital force for higher education in eastern Oregon, with assets of over $3
million. More than 85 individual scholarships provide over $100,000 to EOU
students each year, and the Foundation continues to grow, seeking
philanthropic gifts from alumni and friends. For more information about the
EOU Foundation, please visit www.eou.edu/foundation or call (541) 962-3740.

All members of the Foundation Board of Trustees and its committees are volunteers who work with University leadership and the Office of University Advancement. More information about the Office of University Advancement can be found at www.eou.edu/ua.

Governance: Board of Trustees

The EOU Foundation is governed by a board of 53 Trustees. The Trustees represent a wide range of interests and are spread throughout Oregon and the United States, but they share a common belief in the University and its mission. The Board meets once per year at the Annual Meeting held during spring term on campus to review the previous year and elect new members and officers.

EOU Foundation Trustees 2005

Lorence "Doc" Savage

Tom Insko, '94
Greg Smith

Lowell and Carol Knopp

Governance: Board of Directors

Planning, policy and financial decisions for the Foundation are made by the Board of Directors of the Board of Trustees. The Board of Directors numbers from 15-21 and meets quarterly on campus. The Board of Trustees and Board of Directors are lead by an elected President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary who meet monthly. back to top

Board of Directors Members 2007-08

Jerry Young, '51, President

Lyle Schwarz, Past President

Steve Joseph, '72, Vice President

Jim McMahan, '76, Secretary

Julie Bodfish, '83, Treasurer

Tom Insko, '94
Ginger Skinner, '00

Governance: Bylaws

Bylaws of the Eastern Oregon University Foundation

ARTICLE 1: NAME AND OFFICE

Section 1. The name of this nonprofit corporation shall be: “EASTERN OREGON

UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION.” The period of existence of this corporation shall be perpetual.

Section 2. The registered office of the corporation shall be located at Eastern Oregon University in La Grande, Oregon.

ARTICLE 2: MEMBERS

The Foundation will have no members as such; a governing body known as the Board of Trustees shall exercise all the powers of this corporation. Those firms, corporations or individuals making annual contributions to the Foundation shall be enrolled as donors to the corporation and the Board of Directors may establish classifications of donors.

ARTICLE 3: TIME AND PLACE OF MEETINGS

Section 1. An annual meeting of the Board of Trustees shall be held at Eastern Oregon University, La Grande, Oregon during the spring quarter of said University each year; the exact time, date and place of this meeting shall be selected by the Board of Directors.

Section 2. Special meetings of the Board of Trustees may be called by the President of the Foundation, eight (8) members of the Board of Trustees or three (3) members of the Board of Directors.

Section 3. Written or printed notice stating the place, day and hour of any meeting of the Board of Trustees shall be delivered, either personally or by mail to each Trustee entitled to vote at such meeting, not less than ten (10) nor more than forty (40) days before the date of such meeting.

Section 4. At any meeting of the Board of Trustees, a majority of those present shall be able to transact any and all business of the Foundation. A referendum for written ballot by the entire Board may be requested of the President of the Foundation by five (5) Trustees.

Section 5. At any meeting of the Board of Trustees, members entitled to vote may grant their proxy executed in writing prior to the meeting.

ARTICLE 4: BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Section 1. The affairs of the corporation shall be managed by its Board of Trustees. The Board of Trustees shall consist of individuals actively promoting the interest of Eastern Oregon University, its faculty, staff and students.

Section 2. There shall be not less than twenty-one (21) voting members of the Board of Trustees. The President of Eastern Oregon University shall automatically be an ex-officio, non-voting member of the Board of Trustees. Any employee of the Oregon State System of Higher Education who is a member of the Board of Trustees must be an ex-officio, non-voting member of the Board of Trustees.

Section 3. Members of the Board of Trustees shall be elected at the Annual Meeting to hold office for a three (3) year term, with no limit on the numbers of terms. Their election shall be by a majority vote of the Board of Trustees in attendance at the meeting.

Section 4. If the voting membership of the Board of Trustees drops below the requisite twenty-one (21), any vacancies shall be filled by the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE 5: OFFICERS

Section 1. The officers of the corporation shall be a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary and a Treasurer.

Section 2. The officers of the corporation shall be elected from the Board of Trustees at the Annual Meeting of the Board of Trustees. Each officer shall hold office for a one (1) year period or until such time as a successor shall have been duly elected.

Section 3. Any officer elected or appointed by the Board of Trustees may be removed by the Board of Trustees whenever, in its judgment, the best interests of the corporation would be served thereby. A vacancy in any office because of death, resignation, removal, disqualification or otherwise, shall be filled for the unexpired portion of the term from the Board of Trustees by a majority vote of the Board of Directors.

Section 4. The officers shall meet as needed to discuss meeting materials and agendas prior to regular Board of Directors meetings. The officers shall also maintain operations and communication with the Advancement Office between Board of Directors meetings, will review Foundation policies and bylaws and will recommend amendments to the Board of Directors.

Section 5. President. The President of the Foundation shall be principal executive officer of the corporation and shall, in general, supervise all of the business and affairs of the corporation. The President shall preside at all meetings of the Board of Trustees and all Board of Directors meetings, shall appoint necessary committees, and in general shall perform all duties incident to the office of President of the Foundation and such other duties as from time to time may be assigned by the Board of Trustees or the Board of Directors.

Section 6. Vice-President. In the absence of the President of the Foundation, or in the event of the President’s inability to act, the Vice-President shall perform the duties of the President and, when so acting, shall have all the powers of and be subject to all of the restrictions of the office of President.

Section 7. Secretary. The Secretary shall be responsible for: keeping the minutes of the meetings of the Board of Trustees and Board of Directors, seeing that all notices are duly given in accordance with the provisions of these Bylaws, maintaining the security of the corporate records, keeping a register of the post office addresses of each donor and in general performing all duties incident to the office of Secretary and such other duties as from time to time may be assigned by the President of the Foundation, the Board of Trustees or the Board of Directors.

Section 8. Treasurer. The Treasurer shall be responsible for: supervising the custody of all funds, property and securities of the corporation; receiving and giving receipts for monies in the name of the Foundation in such banks, trust companies, or other depositories as shall be selected by the Board of Directors, and performing all duties incident to the office of Treasurer and such other duties as from time to time may be assigned by the President of the Foundation, by the Board of Trustees or the Board of Directors .

ARTICLE 6: COMMITTEES

Section 1. There shall be four (4) standing committees appointed by the President of the Foundation Board of Trustees. The committees shall be the Finance Committee, the Fundraising committee, the Membership Committee and the Nominating Committee.

Section 2. The Finance Committee shall consist of the Foundation President, Treasurer and at least three other members of the Board of Directors. The EOU Vice President for Administration and Finance shall serve as an ex-offico, non-voting member of the committee. The committee will develop a proposed budget for consideration by the February meeting of the Board of Directors each year, review the investment portfolio of the Foundation at least annually and recommend changes to the Board of Directors for discussion and final consideration. The Fundraising Committee shall be made up of a chair, who shall be a member of the Board of Directors, the Foundation President, and 5 other members of the Board of Trustees. The committee will review fundraising policies and priorities, including the policies and administration of scholarships, and recommend modifications to the Board of Directors.

The Fundraising committee will also review new gifts and fund agreements to determine if they meet criteria for acceptance by the Foundation as stated by the Foundation Gift Acceptance policy, oversee affinity and special fundraising groups, including the President’s Club, and determine giving levels and criteria for membership in these clubs. The Nominating Committee shall have three (3) members from the Board of Directors. Duties of the Nominating Committee are to nominate officers of the Board and members of the Board of Directors. The Membership Committee shall consist of five (5) Trustees whose duty is to conduct an annual review of current and prospective members.

Section 3. A majority of a standing committee shall constitute a quorum.

ARTICLE 7: BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section 1. The Board of Trustees shall elect a Board of Directors of fifteen (15) to twenty-one (21) voting members from the Board of Trustees. They shall be elected to a three (3) year term and may not serve more than three (3) consecutive terms. The Board of Directors shall supervise the affairs of the Foundation. Each Officer of the Foundation shall automatically be a member of the Board of Directors; likewise, the President of Eastern Oregon University shall also be an ex-officio, non-voting member of the Board of Directors. All members of the Board of Directors who are employed by the Oregon State System of Higher Education shall be ex-officio without vote. The Board of Directors shall meet at a minimum of at least once in each regular academic quarter at such time and place as may be determined by a majority of the Board of Directors. A majority vote of the members of the Board of Directors present shall be binding as to the action taken.

Section 2. A vacancy occurring on the Board of Directors shall be filled for the unexpired term at any regular or special meeting of the Board of Directors with the majority approval of the Board of Directors present.

Section 3. There shall be vested in the Board of Directors the right and authority to determine how funds of the corporation are to be expended without prior approval of the Board of Trustees.

ARTICLE 8: BOOKS AND RECORDS

Section 1. The corporation shall keep correct and complete books and records of account and shall keep minutes of the proceedings of the Board of Trustees, Board of Directors and any committee having any of the authority of the Board of Trustees and shall also keep at the registered office a record giving the names and addresses of donors to the Foundation.

Section 2. The fiscal year of the corporation shall commence January 1 of each year and shall end on December 31 of the same year. The books and records of the corporation shall be maintained on a calendar-year basis.

Section 3. The Board of Directors shall have the Foundation accounts submitted to an audit annually.

ARTICLE 9: AMENDMENTS TO BYLAWS

These Bylaws may be altered, amended or repealed and new Bylaws may be adopted by a majority of the Trustees present at any regular meeting of the Board of Trustees or at any special meeting if at least twenty (20) days written notice is given of the intention to alter, to amend, to repeal or to adopt new Bylaws at such meeting.

ARTICLE 10: DISSOLUTION

In the event of the dissolution of this corporation, all remaining assets (after satisfying all debts and liabilities) shall be distributed to Eastern Oregon University.

For additional information please sign up for the EOU Foundation's E-NEWS letter.

About the Foundation

Overview

Governance: Board of Trustees