The Rotary Balita no. 770 (April 28, 1955).

With all but two of its 14 members present, the Board of Directors of Rotary International held its annual midyear meeting at the Central Office of the Secretariat in Evanston, Illinois, in January. The Board dealt with some 100 different items. Here is a summary of some of its decisions. The Board: - Nominated the following Rotarians for membership on the Board of Directors for the years 1955-56 and 1956-57, in accordance with the provisions of the By-Laws of Rotary International: Alejandro Garreton Silva, Santiago, Chile, and C. P. H. Teenstra, Hilversum, The Netherlands. - Continued without change in geographical area the zone designations in the U.S.A. effective for 1956. - Agreed to offer three Proposed Enactments for consideration at the 1956 Convention (Philadelphia): To modify the provisions relating to the composition of the Council of Past Presidents which would provide membership on the Council for all Past Presidents, prior to the Immediate Past President, holding membership in a Rotary Club. To provide changes in the chronology of the District Conference which would provide for the District Conference to be held on any dates agreeable to the District which are not the same as the dates of the District Assembly, International Assembly, or International Convention. To provide that the Board of Directors shall determine the time and place of the holding of the Convention in the calendar year commencing 30 months after the expiration of the term of office of the Board instead of 18 months after the expiration of the term of office of the Board as now provided for, and which experience of recent years has proved as insufficient. To provide a broader reporting of Rotary activities, the Board authorized the publication of a printed reports booklet to contain the annual report of the Secretary, the report of the Treasurer to the Convention, the report of the Trustees of the Rotary Foundation, and the budget of Rotary International for the ensuing year. Such booklet is to be made available to the delegates at the Convention and mailed to all Rotary Clubs. Plans for the 1956 Convention (Philadelphia) are being made on the basis of an estimated attendance of 8,500 persons and procedures governing the assignment of hotel accommodations at the Convention has been established. Having agreed that the 1957 Convention shall be held in Lucerne and Central Switzerland, subject to the availability of transport facilities, the Board reviewed information furnished by the 1957 North. It is not practicable to form a Rotary Club in a community wherein there does not exist a sufficiently wide field of the usual business, professional, institutional, or related services to provide the necessary balanced territorial limits of such Club. In light of the foregoing the Board does not look with favor upon any proposal to amend the Constitution of Rotary International which would provide for membership in a Rotary Club on the basis of residence within the territorial limits of such Club. - Provided for the establishment in the Secretariat of a special research unit and amended the terms of reference of the Executive Committee of the Board by providing for that body to act for the Board in reviewing matters referred for research. - Received an interim report of the Constitutional Redrafting Committee which was appointed as an Ad Hoc Committee by the Board at its first meeting of 1954-55. - Noted with interest increased activity in the holding of Intercity General Forums in all parts of the Rotary world and recognized that this or any other Rotary activity is subject to adaptation to local conditions and circumstances. - Reviewed the report of the Rotary Foundation Committee of three members, authorized at the first meeting of the year, and requested its transmission to the Rotary Foundation Trustees, together with the Board's reactions to each of the 28 recommendations of the Committee. - Adopted the following statement of policy governing reproduction of the Four-Way Test. 1. All reproductions of the Four-Way Test must be identical in wording with the copyrighted text and must be followed by the reference: Copyright, 1946, Rotary International 2. The sole purpose of the reproduction should be the development and maintenance of high ethical standards in human relations 3. The reproduction should not be for sale, or be part of anything that is for sale, without special permission from Rotary International 4. The reproduction should not be a direct part of any advertisement intended to increase sales or profits; it may, however, be worked into a letterhead or other piece of literature, if done in a way to explain that a sincere attempt is being made to have all of the human relations of the firm, organization, or institution conducted along the lines of the Four-Way Test 5. The reproduction may be printed on the back of any ordinary business card, or on the envelopes of individuals or firms, provided that such card or envelope is consistent with the provisions above. 6. Individuals, firms, organizations, or institutions may reproduce their own names on folders, posters, or other presentations of the Four-Way Test as made available by Rotary International. 7. The individual, firm, organization, or institution making the reproduction should have a full occupation whose worthiness is above criticism, and whose advertisements would be accepted in the official Magazine of Rotary International under established policy. For many years Rotary International has received annually hundreds of requests from various organizations or individuals that Rotary International endorse, promote, participate in, support financially, or otherwise further the program er activity of such organizations or individuals. To assist in responding to such requests the Board adopted the following statement of policy with reference to Rotary International and other organizations: Rotary International is the association of Rotary Clubs located in many countries or geographic regions of the world with varying political, economic, social, and religious points of view, to all of which due regard must be given. The purposes of Rotary International, as set forth in its Constitution, are to encourage, promote, extend, and supervise Rotary throughout the world and to coordinate and generally direct the activities of its member Clubs. Accordingly, Rotary International has a bread program of service and devotes its energies and resources to the furtherance of this program through the activities of each Club. Rotary International recognizes that activities of its Clubs often are similar to activities of other organizations. However, the policy of Rotary International is one of interest in and appreciation for the worthwhile activities other organizations, but without corporate active participation or endorsement by Rotary International as such, no matter how meritorious their activities may be considered to be within the scope of Rotary Inter Specifically it is not con national or its member Clubs (1) to become a member of any other organization; of (2) to participate corporately in the activities other organizations even though it may decide to be represented on an observer basis; (3) to furnish lists of Clubs or Rotarians to, or distribute literature for, other organizations; (4) to endorse programs or other activities of any other organizations. The funds of Rotary International have been provided by its member Clubs exclusively for its own purposes and, therefore, contributions cannot be made for activities of other organizations At the same time, Rotary International, through its member Clubs, encourages each individual Rotarian to support and personally participate in worth-while service activities in the community. - Agreed that the third meeting of the Board in 1954-55 shall be held in Evanston, Illinois, May 1, 16-18, 1955.