\documentclass[11pt]{article} \addtolength{\voffset}{-0.5in} \addtolength{\textheight}{1in} \addtolength{\hoffset}{-0.5in} \addtolength{\textwidth}{1in} \usepackage{ulem} \begin{document} \vfill \title{Worcester County Mathematics League\\2005--2006 By-Laws} \date{October 12, 2005} \maketitle \hspace{1in} \newpage \vfill \newpage \tableofcontents \newpage \begin{center} {\LARGE \bf Worcester County Mathematics League\\ By-Laws}\\ revised \today \end{center} \section{\sc Name} \begin{enumerate} \item The name of the organization, that was established in the 1962--1963 school year, shall be the {\bf WORCESTER COUNTY MATHEMATICS LEAGUE}. \item Unofficially, it may be referred to as {\bf WOCOMAL}. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc Purpose} \begin{enumerate} \item To stimulate interest in mathematics among students. \item To expose students to competition in mathematics in order to enhance the learning of mathematics. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc Eligibility and Membership} \subsection{\sc School Membership} \begin{enumerate} \item Any school with students in grade 12 or below that wishes to join WOCOMAL may apply for membership after attending at least one meet during the previous year, or after an instructional meeting between the league President and the prospective team's coach. \item Any school that has not paid its dues for the previous year may be dropped from the league. \item Any school that has not competed for two consecutive years may be dropped from the mailing list. \item Each school is allowed one coach designated as the voting representative who is entitled to a subsidized dinner at the Spring meeting. \item PROVISIONAL MEMBERSHIP: In order to encourage new membership, any school that has not previously competed in WOCOMAL may, upon invitation of the President and Executive Committee, join the League as a provisional member. The provisional member shall be able to compete in all League meets, but shall not be subject to dues, nor be able to exercise voting privileges, nor be eligible to win individual or team awards. A school may opt for provisional membership only once, and such membership may extend for at most one year. \end{enumerate} \subsubsection{\sc Dues} Each member school shall pay an annual registration fee. In addition, there shall be an assessment per meet per team. All fees shall be determined at the Spring Coaches' meeting and shall be in effect for the following school year. \subsection{\sc Individual Eligibility} \begin{enumerate} \item Any student duly registered in a participating league school is eligible for competition in WOCOMAL with that school. \item Any student duly registered in a school that is under the same principal or headmaster as a participating league school is also eligible for competition in WOCOMAL with that participating league school. \item Any student in grade eight or below, who would otherwise be ineligible to compete in WOCOMAL, may compete in WOCOMAL with a participating league school that educates students in grades nine, ten, eleven, or twelve, subject to the following restrictions: \begin{enumerate} \item A public-school student must participate with the public high school in his or her school district. If more than one public high school exists in the district, the student must participate with his or her ``non-school-choice'' high school. \item A parochial-school student must participate with a parochial high school. \item Participation with a participating league school may only occur with the permission of the coach of the school's team. That coach shall have full authority to determine whether the student competes at any given meet. \end{enumerate} \item Students who are home schooled may compete for the school system under which they are registered. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc Officers and Their Responsibilities} To ensure the proper functioning of league meetings, meets, and other functions, persons shall be elected or appointed at the Spring Coaches' Meeting. These persons shall have duties as enumerated below. \subsection{\sc Elected Officers} The elected officers are the President, the First and Second Vice Presidents, the Secretary, the Treasurer, the Varsity Question Selection Chairman, and the Freshman Question Selection Chairman. \subsubsection{\sc The President} \begin{enumerate} \item Schedules Fall and Spring Coaches' meetings and presides over them, establishing the agenda under Section \ref{coachesmeetings}. \item Calls special (summer) meetings and Executive Committee meetings whenever necessary. \item Notifies schools of time and place of all meetings, providing written reports of same. \item At each meet, provides each coach with proctoring assignments, a letter for the coach, score sheets and a map for the next meet and any other necessary material. \item At the conclusion of the meet, announces the unofficial high scorers and the top three (3) teams in each division. \item Determines, along with the Executive Committee, which schools are eligible for State and New England competitions. \item Has the responsibility with the host school of canceling and rescheduling meets and notifying the participating schools. \item Keeps a record of all meetings, meets, results and activities and hands these results down to successive Presidents. \item Writes letters of commendation for officers and sends them to their building principals at the end of the season. \item In consultation with the Executive Committee has the final decision in all matters of controversy. \item Assumes all other duties as they arise. \end{enumerate} \subsubsection{\sc The First Vice-President} \begin{enumerate} \item Assists the President in the operation of the Varsity meet. \item Compiles the statistics for the Varsity meet as reported by the Head Scorer. \item Reports the team and individual statistics to the coaches as soon as possible after the meet, providing the President extra copies of these statistics. \item Notifies the news media of the results of each Varsity meet. \item For each Varsity meet, keeps a record of the average number of points scored per round for the top scoring team from each school. \end{enumerate} \subsubsection{\sc The Second Vice-President} \begin{enumerate} \item Performs the same duties as the First Vice-President as they pertain to the Freshman meets. \end{enumerate} In the event that the same person is both the First Vice-President and the Second Vice-President, that person shall be referred to as the Vice-President. \subsubsection{\sc The Secretary} \begin{enumerate} \item Takes the minutes at all regular and special meetings and Executive Committee meetings and provides all coaches with these minutes. \item Is responsible for other correspondence for the League. \item Compiles names of coaches for the directory and distributes this directory to each school. \item Writes thank you notes to host schools and a letter of commendation for the President. \end{enumerate} \subsubsection{\sc The Treasurer} \begin{enumerate} \item Determines dues for each school and issues bills to all schools requesting same. \item Reimburses officers, Committee Chairmen, and host schools for expenses incurred, upon proper receipt. \item Makes reports, at the Fall and Spring meetings, of the League's financial status. \end{enumerate} \subsubsection{\sc The Varsity Question Selection Chairman} \begin{enumerate} \item Selects questions from the varsity question bank and verifies answers. \item Writes the varsity test and provides the moderator with test copies for the students and the Head Scorer, with the answers for the scorers. \item During the varsity meet, provides the coaches with answers and test copies. \item Provides the coaches with complete solutions to all varsity meet questions. \item Provides the website maintainer with a computerized, typed version of meet questions in the form that students received them, and a computerized, typed version of the official solutions. \item Following the Fall meeting and preceding each varsity meet, informs the President of coaches who have not submitted questions to the question bank. \item Receives remuneration as determined at the Spring meeting. The current yearly stipend for the Varsity Question Selection Chairman is \$1000. \end{enumerate} \subsubsection{\sc The Freshman Question Selection Chairman} \begin{enumerate} \item Performs the same duties as the Varsity Question Selection Chairman as they pertain to the Freshman meets. \item The current yearly stipend for the Freshman Question Selection Chairman is \$750. \end{enumerate} In the event that the same person is both the Varsity Question Selection Chairman and the Freshman Question Selection Chairman, that person shall be referred to as the Question Selection Chairman. \subsection{\sc Appointed Officers} The President appoints officers to assist with meets, meetings, and other functions. Appointed Officers include the Head Scorer, the Moderator, the Proof Reader, the Banquet Chairman, the Trophy Chairman, the MAML Representative, and the Nominating Chairman. \subsubsection{\sc The Head Scorer} \begin{enumerate} \item Oversees the scoring room and makes final decisions. \item Determines the high scorers and school standings and informs the President of same. \item Provides the vice-presidents with the team score sheets. \end{enumerate} \subsubsection{\sc The Moderator} \begin{enumerate} \item Oversees the competition area(s) and is responsible for final decisions. \item Is responsible for arranging competitors, instructing competitors in filling out the information on the answer sheet, and providing warnings at two minutes and again at fifteen seconds, during each round. \item Appoints a ``runner'' to bring students to the competition area(s) and to bring the score sheets to the Head Scorer in the scoring room. \end{enumerate} \subsubsection{\sc The Proof Reader} Has the responsibility to verify all answers before the scorers check the students' answers. \subsubsection{\sc The Banquet Chairman} Has the responsibility, under the direction of the President, to make the facilities and dinner arrangements for the Spring Coaches' Meeting. \subsubsection{\sc The Trophy Chairman} Has the responsibility, under the direction of the President, to purchase trophies. \subsubsection{\sc The MAML Representative} Has the responsibility to represent WOCOMAL at all Massachusetts Association of Mathematics Leagues (MAML) meetings, and to report to the coaches at the Fall and Spring meetings. \subsubsection{\sc The Nominating Chairman} \begin{enumerate} \item Heads a committee of three to review the work of the current officers and to solicit coaches for the positions of President, First Vice-President, Second Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer and Question Selection Chairman. \item Proposes a slate of officers for election at the Spring meeting. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Rules Concerning Officers} \begin{enumerate} \item The Varsity Question Selection Chairman shall not be a coach of any varsity team competing during the year the office is held, and the Freshman Question Selection shall not be a coach of any freshman team competing during the year the office is held. \item Ordinarily, no officer, other than the Treasurer and the Question Selection Chairman, shall serve in the same office for more than two consecutive years. \item The duties of these officers may be changed, and other offices initiated, by a two-thirds vote of all member schools (one vote per school). \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc The Executive Committee} \begin{enumerate} \item Consists of all six elected officers, the immediate past-President and the MAML representative(s). \item Acts in the best interest of the League concerning matters not addressed in these by-laws. \item Advises the President in controversial matters. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc Coaches and Their Responsibilities} \subsection{\sc Question Bank} \label{questionbank} \begin{enumerate} \item Each school must contribute questions to the bank no later than the Fall Coaches' meeting, in accordance with the assignment by the President at the Spring meeting. \item Each question shall be submitted on a $3'' \times 5''$ index card. On the front, the coach will print SCHOOL NAME, COACH'S NAME, VARSITY or FRESHMAN, MEET NUMBER, ROUND, CATEGORY, and the QUESTION. On the back, the coach will provide a complete solution and all acceptable answers. \item The Question Selection Chairman may request more examples for the bank as deemed necessary. \item All officers shall be exempt from submitting questions. \item Coaches from new member schools shall be exempt from submit questions. New coaches from existing member schools must submit questions, the number of which shall be left to the discretion of the President. \item \label{qbpenalty} PENALTY: The professional responsibility of all coaches is to submit questions. Any school that has not submitted the full assignment by the Fall meeting shall be reminded of its obligation. A school's continued failure to submit all required questions prior to a meet shall result in a five point reduction from that team's score for that meet. Such penalty, issued by the Question Selection Chairman in conjunction with the President, shall then be reported to the Head Scorer. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Scoresheets} \begin{enumerate} \item Coaches must provide a completed scoresheet for each team to the Head Scorer before the commencement of each meet. \item Coaches must ensure that each team is properly composed, in accordance with Section \ref{composition}. \item For freshman meets, coaches must mark which round will be the ``odd'' round. \item It is the responsibility of each coach to check student papers to make sure that they have been accurately corrected and recorded. \item At the conclusion of the meet, individual answer sheets will be retained by the Head Scorer. They will be given to coaches at the next meet or at the Spring Coaches Meeting. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Competitor Sheets} \label{competitorsheets} \begin{enumerate} \item Coaches must provide a completed competitor sheet to the appropriate Vice President before the commencement of each meet. \item A competitor sheet must list all students from a school who are competing at the meet but who have never before competed at a WOCOMAL meet. \item The competitor sheet must be as legible as possible, and must include full name, grade, and gender. \item Students who have competed in previous years for a school should not be listed on a competitor sheet for that school. \item Students in grades nine or below who compete in both varsity and freshman meets should be listed only at the first meet they attend. \item \label{cspenalty} PENALTY: If a school fails to submit a Competitor Sheet for new students, or fails to list new students on a submitted Competitor Sheet, the school's score shall be reduced by one point for each such error, with one error allowed without penalty and a maximum penalty of five points. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Meet Duties} \begin{enumerate} \item Each coach who is not also an officer shall be assigned either to the scoring room, to the competition area, or to the non-competition area. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc The Host School} \begin{enumerate} \item The host school shall provide refreshments for all students and coaches. WOCOMAL shall provide stipends to cover the cost of the refreshments. A combined \$500 stipend shall be given to schools hosting a Varsity meet, split appropriately between the two host schools. A \$300 stipend shall be given to schools hosting a Freshman meet. \item The host school shall establish a competition area, a non-competition area and a scoring area, each of which shall be separate. The host school shall also provide scrap paper for the students. The scrap paper shall be any paper other than $8\frac{1}{2}'' \times 11''$ white copy paper. \item The host school shall provide member schools with a map giving directions to the school. \item The host school shall allow WOCOMAL use of a photocopier during the meet. \item With notification from the President, the host school shall make provisions for any student with special needs. \item The host school may request a member of the local news media to report on that meet. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc The Meet Proper} \label{meet} \subsection{\sc Number of Students} \label{students} \begin{enumerate} \item No school shall bring more than five (5) teams for a total of twenty-five (25) students. \item Any school that brings more than ten (10) students to a meet must bring an extra coach. \item \label{secondcoachpenalty} PENALTY: A school that brings more than 10 students but does not bring a second coach shall be assessed a five (5) point penalty on its school score. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Composition of Teams} \label{composition} \begin{enumerate} \item \label{official} An official varsity team contains no postgraduates, at most two (2) seniors, and at most four (4) juniors and seniors combined. \item \label{unofficial} A Varsity team which consists of more than two (2) seniors or more than four (4) upperclassmen shall be deemed unofficial. Also, any Varsity team containing a postgraduate shall be deemed unofficial. For unofficial teams, individual scores shall count, but the team score shall not. \item \label{massacad} In the event that no freshmen or sophomores attend a school, a team of five students, including no more than two seniors, shall be considered a complete team. For purposes of team scoring only, the median junior score shall be subtracted from such a team. This rule shall be reconsidered at the end of the 2004--05 season. \item Each student is to compete in at most three rounds. \item For varsity meets, a maximum of three students from each team may compete in each individual round. This rule applies to all teams, official and unofficial. (See Section \ref{composition}.\ref{unofficial} for the definition of an unofficial team.) \item For freshman meets, a maximum of four students from each team may compete in any three of the individual rounds. A maximum of three students from that team may compete in the other remaining, or ``odd,'' round. \item A school may have at most one incomplete team (team with fewer than five students). \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Conduct} \begin{enumerate} \item Exemplary conduct is expected at all times. \item During any individual round, two students who know each other should not sit together. Specifically, two students from the same school or who both participate at ARML should not be at the same table. \item Students are responsible for learning the procedures and rules pertinent to the competition. \item In the event of student misconduct, the Executive Board shall have full discretion to penalize the individual, the team, and/or the school. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Varsity Meets} \begin{enumerate} \label{varsity} \item There shall be four meets each year. \item Each meet shall consist of five individual rounds and one team round. \item All students from each team may compete in the team round, and each team shall submit one answer sheet. All rounds, including the team round, are worth eighteen points per team. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Freshman Meets} \begin{enumerate} \label{freshman} \item There shall be three meets each year. \item Each meet shall consist of four individual rounds and one team round. \item All students from each team may compete in the team round, and each team shall submit one answer sheet. All rounds, with the exception of the ``odd'' round, are worth twenty-four points. The ``odd'' round is worth eighteen points. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Meet Procedures} \subsubsection{\sc Before the Meet} \begin{enumerate} \item Teams should arrive at the host school by 3:00 PM. \item Upon arrival, each coach should pick up any information provided by the President. The coach should then give completed official score sheets to the Head Scorer, and completed Competitor Sheets to the appropriate Vice-President. \item The meet shall begin when all schools arrive, but not later than 3:20 PM. Students shall be moved to competition and non-competition areas at 3:10 PM. \item When the meet begins, each coach should report to his/her assigned station. \item Teams that cannot attend a meet or that will be arriving late should notify the host school or any officers who, in turn, shall notify the President. \end{enumerate} \subsubsection{\sc During the Meet} \begin{enumerate} \item Each round shall be ten minutes in length. \item Students assigned to a specific round shall be directed to a Competition Area. Students not assigned to the round shall be directed to a Non-Competition Area. \item A student may not enter any Competition Area after a round has begun. \item A two-minute warning and a fifteen-second warning shall be given for each round. \item In an academic year, the first time that a school arrives late, it shall immediately be segregated and shall be allowed to make up the round in progress. The coach must notify any officer or official upon arrival. \item In an academic year, the second or subsequent time that a school arrives late, it shall not be allowed to make up the round in progress or any earlier rounds. \end{enumerate} \subsubsection{\sc After the Meet} \begin{enumerate} \item Reasonable time shall be provided at the conclusion of the meet for each coach to check individual answer sheets. No changes shall be permitted once the papers have left the scoring room. Also, no changes shall be permitted after the President declares the meet officially over. \item Any appeals after the conclusion of the meet may be made to the Executive Committee. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc Scoring} \subsection{\sc Individual Scoring} \begin{enumerate} \item A student can be in at most three rounds per meet. \item The maximum score per round is six points. \item Therefore, the maximum meet score for an student is eighteen points. \item If a student competes in more than three rounds, the lowest three round scores shall be counted for the individual score. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Individual Ranking} \begin{enumerate} \item After each meet, competitors shall be ranked against all other competitors in Varsity or Freshman. Within Varsity and Freshman, they shall also be ranked against other competitors in their division. \item Competitors shall be ranked by the total number of points that they have scored in all meets. \item Competitors shall also receive ``quality points,'' calculated as the signed difference between points scored in a round by the competitor, and the average number of points scored in that round by all competitors. \item The total number of quality points earned by a competitor shall be used to break ties in rankings. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Team Scoring} \begin{enumerate} \item A team score shall be the sum of the individual scores of all team members, plus the points scored by the team in the team round, minus any score adjustments. \item The maximum score in a varsity meet is 108 points; the maximum score in a freshman meet is 114 points. \item Team score adjustments shall be made as follows: \begin{itemize} \item If more than the appropriate number of team members compete in an individual round, the highest score(s) shall not count toward the team score. However, the score(s) may count toward the individual score. \item In the event that a team is unofficial, as described in section \ref{composition}.\ref{unofficial}, the team score for that team shall be zero. \item Per section \ref{composition}.\ref{massacad}, if no freshmen or sophomores attend a school, the school may field a team of two seniors and three juniors. In that case, the median junior score shall be subtracted from the team score. This rule shall be reconsidered at the end of the 2004--05 season. \item In the event that a school fields more than one incomplete team, the team score for all such teams shall be zero. \item In the event that freshmen and sophomores attend a school, but that school fields a team with more than four juniors and seniors combined, the team score for that team shall be zero. \end{itemize} \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc School Ranking} \begin{enumerate} \item A school's score shall be its highest team score. \item School score adjustments shall be made as follows: \begin{itemize} \item A five-point penalty shall be assessed against a school which brings more than ten (10) students but does not bring a second coach. (See section \ref{students}.\ref{secondcoachpenalty}.) \item A penalty shall be assessed against a school whose coach did not submit correct Competitor Sheets (see section \ref{competitorsheets}.\ref{cspenalty}). \item A five-point penalty may be assessed against a school whose coach has not submitted his or her questions (see section \ref{questionbank}.\ref{qbpenalty}). \end{itemize} \item For a specific meet, schools within a division shall be ranked according to their school score. The team with the greatest number of points is ranked first, etc. \item Schools that compete in each meet shall receive the following points, within their division: \begin{itemize} \item FIRST PLACE: ONE point \item SECOND PLACE: TWO points, etc. \end{itemize} \item Schools that tie for a position shall receive the average of that and the following position points. For example, if two schools tie for fourth, they each receive 4.5 points (the average of 4 and 5). If three schools tie for first, they each receive 2 points (the average of 1, 2, and 3). \item A school that has paid all its dues and does not compete at a meet shall be placed last with a one point penalty. \item Ties in the final year standing shall be settled by the school with the highest raw score. \end{enumerate} \subsection{\sc Announcement of Results} \begin{enumerate} \item Unofficial results shall be read at the end of each meet. \item Official results for the meet shall be made available to each school by the appropriate Vice-President. \item Official results for the year shall be announced at the Spring meeting. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc Cancellation of a Meet} \begin{enumerate} \item In the event that any league school cancels classes on the day of a meet because of inclement weather, where that school would otherwise have competed, that day's meet shall automatically be cancelled. \item If a meet is canceled, the officers shall contact the host school. Coaches who are uncertain whether the meet is cancelled should contact the host school. Each coach has the responsibility of verifying any cancellation. \item Normally, the make-up date for a meet shall be the following Wednesday. Exceptions to this rule shall be determined at the Fall Coaches' Meeting. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc Categories} The League shall periodically review categories for the season. A list of categories shall be presented for a vote at the Spring meeting, to be in effect for the following year. \section{\sc Classifications} \begin{enumerate} \item Ordinarily, there shall be four classes, designated as A, B, C and D. If there are twenty-one (21) or fewer member schools there shall be only three divisions. Schools shall be ranked according to averages, and from this list the Executive Committee shall suggest the classification and relate to all coaches the method that was used to arrive at such classifications. The guiding principles in arriving at classifications are to make the number of schools in each division as equal as possible, and to consider the gaps in averages. This suggestion shall be voted on at the Fall meeting. \item A coach may request re-classification of his/her school by notifying the President by the second meet. The Executive Committee shall hear reasons and shall, prior to the team round, notify all schools of any changes that have been made. \item Any school which finishes first in its division shall automatically move into the next higher division the following year. Any school which finishes last in its division may compete in the next lower division the following year. \item Averages shall be calculated as follows: \begin{itemize} \item VARSITY: The average of last year's Freshman raw score and the last two years' Varsity raw scores shall be computed. Schools shall then be ranked according to these averages. \item FRESHMAN: The same ranking shall be used to determine both Varsity and Freshman divisions. However, the number of divisions in Varsity and Freshman may differ. \end{itemize} \item New schools shall be classified by the Executive Committee after the new school's first meet. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc Coaches' Meetings} \label{coachesmeetings} \begin{enumerate} \item The President shall hold a Fall meeting on a Wednesday in September. The agenda shall include: introduction of officers and coaches; Secretary's and Treasurer's reports; collection of registration forms, dues and self-addressed stamped envelopes; President's message, appointing officials; discussing meet locations; and any other business to be brought before the coaches. \item The President shall hold a Spring meeting on the first Wednesday in May. The agenda shall include: Secretary's and Treasurer's reports, voting on by-law changes, awards, John Phelan Memorial Scholarship of \$200 (awarded to the top scoring senior in Varsity), the out-going President's message, banquet, Nominating Committee report, election of officers, dates and locations for the following year and the newly-elected President's message, including announcements of summer meetings. \end{enumerate} \section{\sc Post-Season Competition} WOCOMAL teams are eligible to compete in State, New England and other mathematics league meets. The number of participating teams for the State meet shall be determined by MAML. The President with the Executive Committee shall determine which teams are to be invited to the compete at the State meet. The MAML representative shall notify all schools that are eligible for the State Meet. The school with the highest raw score for the year qualifies for the New England meet. If a team does not wish to participate, the next ranking team is eligible to participate. The cost of participating (with the exception of meals and transportation) at the State and New England meets shall be paid by WOCOMAL. \section{\sc Awards} The awards usually given at the end of each school year are as follows: \begin{itemize} \item Top three schools in each division \item Top forty (40) scoring students, at grades 12 and below, in Varsity \item Postgraduate students who score above the 40th place non-postgraduate student \item Top twenty-five (25) scoring students in Freshman \item John Phelan Memorial Scholarship of \$200 awarded to top scoring senior in Varsity \end{itemize} \section{\sc By-Law Changes} By-law changes may be made only at the Spring and Fall coaches' meetings by a two-thirds vote of all schools, with each school casting one vote. \end{document}