The Round Table Club of Eugene, Oregon was founded on November 20, 1912 for "the social and intellectual enjoyment of its members." Implicitly, the Club was also intended to serve as a town-gown organization, providing a forum in which citizens and members of the University of Oregon could share friendship and the opportunity for intellectual growth.

The Club meets eight times a year for a social hour, a dinner, and a presentation prepared by one of the members. Over the years, the presentations have ranged from Eric Allen's speech on the history of newspapers in 1913 to Wayne Morse's analysis of the Vietnam War in the 1960s and Martha Bayless' 2009 discussion of "What's the Difference Between a Duck?"

When the Club began in 1912 the enrollment of the University of Oregon was a mere 862, the faculty numbered 45, and the population of Eugene was 12,000. In the years that have passed, Eugene and the University have grown and changed in countless ways. But the Round Table has been remarkably stable, preserving the town-gown character and pursuing the same intellectual and social goals. Thus, the Round Table has become one of Eugene's core organizations, helping to define and preserve the culture of our community.

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Meetings                   

The Round Table meets eight times a year, on the second Tuesday of each month, beginning in October and ending in May.

Currently the Club meets on the 12th floor of the Eugene downtown Hilton at Willamette Street and 6th Avenue. There is a social hour from 6:00 PM to 7:00 PM. The formal meeting at 7:00 PM includes an inspirational moment, a historical moment, dinner, the introduction of the speaker, presentation of the evening's paper, and a question-answer period. A business meeting follows the close of the formal meeting, generally requiring only a few minutes. Guests are excused prior to the beginning of the business meeting. The May meeting includes spouses and significant others.

Members may bring one or more visitors as guests and pay for the cost of their dinners. Guests are frequently persons who might become candidates for membership in the Club, and in this case, with prior approval of the Executive Committee, the cost of the dinner may be waived.

 Annual dues for the Round Table are currently $210. The Executive Committee sets the dues for each Club year. Dues are intended to cover the Club's expenses (primarily the dinners) and to create a small reserve to handle contingencies. Dues may be paid to the Treasurer in person at the October meeting, or by mailing a check to the Treasurer prior to that meeting.

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Presentations & Papers                   

The members' presentations (known as papers) and the spirited discussions occurring afterwards, are the heart of the Round Table. Click here for a catalog of papers presented at the Club since 1913.

 The Constitution and Bylaws do not set standards for the papers. Certain practices, however, have emerged over the years.

·         Papers seldom relate directly to the presenter's specialty or occupation.

·         Most papers can be presented in 30 to 35 minutes.

·         Graphics are acceptable if they are important to the theme of the paper.

·         The Vice President is responsible for lining up the papers for a Club year, several months in advance.

·         The presenter is responsible for arranging an introducer.

·         Each year the Executive Committee selects the best paper of the year, copies of which are made available at. the May meeting.

·         Papers are filed in the Special Collections section of the University of Oregon Library.

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Membership                   

Click here for a photographic roster of the Club's current members.

The Club has four classes of membership—Active, Inactive, Honorary, and Life.

Active Membership

The active membership consists of not more than 70 persons, 30 of whom are from the town and thirty are from the University. The remaining ten may be either town or gown. Active members are required to have college degrees, except that a maximum of 12 active members may be chosen on the basis of distinguished citizenship or talents equivalent to those indicated by academic degrees.

If an active member resigns because he or she expects to depart from Eugene permanently, but later returns to Eugene, then he or she may be re­elected in the same manner as new members, except that there is no need to wait for a vacancy.

Any active member who has been absent for more than three meetings during a club year may be consider­ed for termination of membership, under standards and procedures described in the Constitution.

Inactive Membership

Inactive membership may be granted to any member who is absent from Eugene during a year or whose duties or responsibilities do not permit attendance on meeting nights.

Honorary Membership

The members of the Round Table may extend honorary membership to any active member who has been a member of the Club for five or more years (or to persons of distinc­tion whose duties preclude them from active participation) upon recommendation of the member­ship committee. Honorary members do not pay dues, but have all the privileges of membership.

Life Membership

The members may also give life membership, upon recommen­dation of the Membership Committee, to any active member with a long record of participation, if it is desirable that he or she take a somewhat less active part in Club. At age 65, members are automatically advanced to life membership. Life members may vote but have the option of paying annual dues, or paying only the annual fee and for meals when they are present. They may present papers and are eligible to hold office but are not obligated to do either.

Admitting New Members

The Round Table's procedures for admitting new members are partially described in the Constitution and are partially based on tradition. The following process is a composite of the two.

Generally, a current active or life member initiates the membership process on behalf of a man or woman who the member be­lieves will benefit from, and contribute to, the Round Table's intellectual and social traditions. The initiating member locates two other members who know the candidate or who can become acquainted with the candidate. It is customary for the initiating member to bring the candidate to a meeting.

The initiating member fills out a Nomination Form, which is signed by the other two sponsoring members. (Not more than two of the members signing the Nomination Form can be on the Membership Committee.) The form is sent to the Secretary of the Club. Among other things, the form outlines the candidate's academic degrees or distinctions and his or her accomplishments in business, professional and civic affairs. A brief resume or curriculum vitae should be attached to the nomination form.

At the next opportunity, the Secretary reads the nomination to the members present. The nomination is considered by the Nomination Committee. If any member has an objection to the nomination, he or she should let it be known, either in writing or in an oral communication to any mem­ber of the Membership Committee. An application is approved by a vote of not fewer than seven members of the Committee.

The Membership Committee places on an eligible list the names of candidates it has approved and reports to the membership at the next Club meeting. The membership votes on the names in the order they were placed on the list, as vacancies occur. Candidates are elected to membership by a two-thirds vote of the members present and voting at a meeting. Voting is by secret ballot, on each name separately, and the results are announced without figures. Names of persons put into nomination are not included in the Club's permanent records, nor are the names includ­ed of persons who receive an unfavorable membership vote at a Club meeting.  

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Officers                   

The Round Table has four officers—a President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary (click for a list of duties). Officers are elected at the April meeting and hold office for one year, beginning at the close of the May meeting. The President selects the Club's Archivist and the Membership Chair.

Officers for 2008-2009:

Don Kahle, President (shh@dksez.com)

 Dave Meredith, Vice President (mereditch_d@4j.lane.edu)

Terry Carter, Treasurer (terry.carter@comcast.com, 2901 Baker Blvd. Eugene 97403)

Liz Cawood, Secretary (liz@cawood.com)

Bill Sullivan, Membership Chair (sullivan@efn.org)

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Committees                   

The Round Table has three committees—the Executive Committee, Nominating Committee, and Membership Committee.

The Executive Committee has six members, the President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary and two members appointed by the President. The Executive Committee's responsibilities are similar to those of a Board of Directors.

The Nominating Committee makes nominations for the Club's officers. It has three members, who are appointed by the President. Nominations are made in the April meeting.

The Membership Committee examines the qualifications of candidates for membership. It has a maximum of eleven members, including the President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary, the preceding year's President, Treasurer and Secretary. Other members and/or a chairperson are appointed by the President.

Roster of Members     Meetings     Presentations & Papers     Membership     Officers     Committees     Top of Page

Contents of presented papers are copyrighted by the author in the year of presentation. Other information on this website is copyrighted (c)2009 by the Round Table Club of Eugene. Send comments to sullivan@efn.org. Updated 4/21/2009