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EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 2021-22

President – John O’Brien, UCC

Vice President – Lisa Moran, SETU

Treasurer – Ciara Bradley, MU

Minutes Secretary – Tanya Watson, Independent Researcher

Membership Secretary – Hazel O’Brien, SETU

Events Secretary – Lorcan Byrne, TUS

Communications Secretary – Melissa Meyer, UCC

Study Group Secretary – Robert Hamm, MU

Second Level Sociology Secretary – Aimie Brennan, MIE

Irish Journal of Sociology Rep – Lisa Smyth, QUB

Postgraduate Representative – Daniel Guigui, UCD

Ordinary Members:

Mat Creighton, UCD

Egle Gusciute, UCD

Susan McDonnell, ATU

Amin Sharifi Isaloo, UCC

Jacqueline O’ Toole, ATU

Gerard Boucher, UCD
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Please contact the SAI Executive Committee here

Chair’s Report 2023

Annual Accounts 2022

SAI CONSTITUTION 1979 (UPDATED 2021)

1 The official title of the Association shall be The Sociological Association of Ireland – Cumann Socheolaíochta na hÉireann.

2 The aims of the Association shall be: a)  to promote the development of sociology in Ireland; b)  to seek and maintain high standards of scholarship and responsibility in research; c)  to encourage publication, discussion and debate on issues of interest to the discipline of sociology; d)  to act as a professional association.

3 There will be four grades of membership in the Association.

A Full Membership

Conditions of Full Membership:

1. university qualifications in sociology at the Bachelor’s level or higher, or in related disciplines.
2. payment of an annual membership fee, with a reduced fee for full-time students, to be determined at the Annual General Meeting.

Rights of Full Members: Full participation in all functions of the Association, including full voting rights at general meetings, and the right to stand for any office or committee within the terms of this Constitution.

B Honorary Membership

Conditions of Honorary Membership:

The Committee shall have the power to propose eminent individuals for honorary membership of the Association. As a rule, these should be not be professional sociologists, but persons who have made a major contribution to Irish or global society. Such proposals will be put to the members of the Association and shall require a two-thirds majority of members present and voting at the Annual General Meeting.

 Rights of Honorary Members: Honorary members will not pay membership fees or receive copies of the IJS and will not have voting rights at general meetings or eligibility for election to offices and the Executive Committee.

C Distinguished Membership

Conditions of Distinguished Membership:

The Committee shall have the power to arrange a selection committee to select a person to receive the honourific title of Distinguished Member of the Association.

Rights of Distinguished Members: Distinguished members shall retain full rights of members and eligibility for election to all offices and the Executive Committee. The designation shall be purely honorific.

D Student Membership

Student membership is open to all full-time students of sociology or related discipline courses leading to a degree at a recognised third-level institution.

4 Organisation of Association

The Executive Committee:

The Executive Committee shall be composed of the following:  President, Vice-President, Honorary Secretary (Minutes), Honorary Secretary (Membership), Honorary Treasurer, and six (6) Committee Members.  A quorum shall consist of five (5) members. If no member of the committee can be deemed to represent the Irish Journal of Sociology, the committee shall appoint a representative from the Editorial Board. Officers and Committee shall serve for one (1) term of two (2) years, half retiring annually.  A member who is absent from three (3) consecutive meetings shall be relieved of duty.  The President and Vice-President shall retire on alternate years, as shall the (2) two Honorary Secretaries.

Elections to fill vacancies shall be held annually at the Annual General Meeting, or by electronic means within the membership year of the AGM if vacancies in Executive Officer positions remain after the AGM, with members at the time of the AGM eligible to vote by such means.

No member may serve more than two (2) consecutive full terms in any particular office, or more than (4) consecutive full terms as officer or elected committee member.  The President shall, when retiring from the office of President, ex officio become Past-President for a period of no more than one (1) term. This applies mutatis mutandis for the office of Vice-President.

Nominations for election to all positions on the Standing Committee must be submitted in writing, with the name and contact details of the proposer and seconder, and reach the Honorary Secretary (membership) at least one calendar month before the date of the Annual General Meeting.  Accepted nominations must be circulated to all Members at least ten (10) days before the date of the Annual General Meeting.  In the event of there being only one (1) candidate for any particular office, that candidate shall be declared elected.  In the event of the candidates for Executive Committee membership being equal or fewer than the number of positions available they shall be declared elected.  In the event of there being no candidate for any particular office or seat on the Executive Committee, the President may, at her/his discretion, accept nominations at the Annual General Meeting.

5  All voting for election of officers and members of the Committee shall be by ballot.  Election shall be based on a single transferable vote and will require an overall majority of members present and voting at the Annual General Meeting. Separate ballots will be held for each vacant post.

6 The Committee shall have power to co-opt not more than four (4) members to the Committee and shall co-opt members to fill vacancies occurring during their term of office, such co-opted members to hold office until the next Annual General Meeting.

7 The President shall preside at all meetings of the Association.  In her/his absence the Vice-President or any other elected member of the Committee will preside.  In the event of the President resigning during his/her term of office, the Vice-President shall assume his/her duties.  The Committee shall then elect a Vice-President from the Committee members.

8 The Committee shall have power to make and vary such bye-laws and regulations and appoint such sub-committees as they deem necessary for the proper management and welfare of the Association.

9  Applicants for membership shall apply in writing to the Honorary Secretary (membership).  All applications for membership must be accompanied by the annual subscription.

10  The annual subscription payable by each grade of member shall be fixed in general meetings from time to time.

11 All annual subscriptions shall fall due on the last day of November each year.

12 Only paid members shall be entitled to vote at the annual or other general meetings of the Association, to nominate candidates for election to the Committee or to be nominated for election to the Committee.

13 There will be an Annual General Meeting of the Association to promote discussion and debate through the presentation of scholarly papers; in addition the business of the Association shall be transacted.

14 Motions for discussion shall be received by the Honorary Secretary (minutes) at least ten (10) days prior to a general meeting and shall be in writing with the name of the proposer, who shall be present to propose the motion, or represented by deputies, such appointment of a deputy to be notified to the Honorary Secretary (minutes) before the commencement of the meeting. Emergency resolutions may be brought to the annual general meeting, on condition that the emergency resolution be communicated to two committee members prior to the commencement of the Annual General Meeting.

15 A simple majority of those voting shall decide any vote on a motion.

16 The funds of the Association shall be administered by the Committee for the purposes of the Association.  Cheques shall be signed by two authorised signatories: the Honorary Treasurer shall be an authorised signatory; others shall be nominated by the Executive Committee.

17 Proper accounts recording the financial affairs of the Association and a register showing the names and addresses of all members shall be kept.  The accounts of the Association shall be kept by the Honorary Treasurer, shall be audited and certified annually, and the audited accounts for the calendar year shall be submitted to the next Annual General Meeting for approval.

18 The Association shall not be responsible for expenditure incurred in the name of the Association by unauthorised persons.

19 An Extraordinary General Meeting of the Association shall be called within twenty-eight (28) days of the receipt by the Honorary Secretary (minutes) of a request for such a general meeting in writing and accompanied by the signatures of twelve (12) supporting full members, together with the reason for such a meeting.  Notice of an extraordinary meeting shall be sent to all members fourteen (14) days prior to the meeting.

20 Motions to amend the Constitution must be received by the Honorary Secretary (minutes) at least ten (10) days prior to the Annual General Meeting in writing and accompanied by the signatures of four (4) supporting full members.  The Executive Committee shall however be empowered to accept emergency resolutions at the Annual General Meeting upon condition that two committee members are informed of this emergency resolution before the commencement of the annual general meeting.

The following HEI’s maintain Sociology as a core part of their activities in the social sciences:

• Maynooth University
• Queens University Belfast
• Trinity College Dublin
• Ulster University
• University College Cork
• University College Dublin
• University of Galway
• University of Limerick

The following HEI’s offer Sociology as part of either their Undergraduate or Postgraduate Programmes:

• Technological University Dublin
• Institute of Technology Sligo
• South East Technological University
• Dublin City University
• Institute of Technology Blanchardstown
• Mary Immaculate College, Limerick
• Cork Institute of Technology

Links below last updated April 2018 – please advise any changes / broken links to sociology.ie@gmail.com