New York State College Health Association
BYLAWS
ARTICLE I: NAME
This organization, herein referred to as the Association, shall be known at the New York State College Health Association (NYSCHA), an affiliate of the American College Health Association (ACHA).
ARTICLE II: PURPOSE
The purpose of the Association is to provide an organization in which institutions of higher education and individuals in New York State may work together to promote health in institutions of higher education. This organization shall be an educational, non-profit organization.
ARTICLE III: MEMBERSHIP
- Eligibility: All individual members of the American College Health Association (ACHA) from the state of New York will automatically become members of NYSCHA upon joining ACHA and will remain members of NYSCHA as long as they remain members of ACHA.
- Categories: Membership shall be of four types: (a) regular, (b), student, (c) associate, and (d) emeritus. These categories are defined in the ACHA Bylaws. All NYCSHA members will be in the same category as they are as ACHA members.
- A regular member shall be eligible to vote in any election and hold office in NYSCHA.
- A student member shall be eligible to vote in any election and may hold office as the student representative on the NYSCHA Board.
- An associate member may not vote nor hold any office nor can they be a member of any NYSCHA committee.
- An emeritus member has the privileges of the class he/she belonged to before becoming emeritus.
ARTICLE IV: DUES
Annual dues for the various categories of membership (regular, student, associate and emeritus) are established by ACHA. Dues are collected by ACHA with a portion sent to the NYSCHA. The fiscal year is January 1 to December 31.
ARTICLE V: OFFICERS
- The officers of the Association shall be President, President-Elect, Secretary, and Treasurer. These officers, except the President, shall be elected by mail-in ballot prior to the Annual Meeting. The President-Elect shall assume the office of President during the Annual Meeting one year following the one at which his/her election was announced.
- The term of office for President and President-Elect shall be one year or until their successors are elected and take office. The term of Secretary and Treasurer shall be two years. They shall be elected on alternate years. The Secretary assumes office at the annual meeting at which he/she was elected. The Treasurer assumes office on January 1 of the even years. All officers and members of the Executive Board shall be on the staff (current or emeritus) of or a student at a NYS institution of higher education during their term of office.
- As soon as possible after the annual meeting and before the end of the current calendar year, there will be a meeting of both the new and previous Executive Board members.
- The duties of the officers shall be those commonly performed by such officers and as outlined in job descriptions developed by the NYSCHA Executive Board and any other duties which the Association or ACHA may assign.
- Vacancies in office which occur between annual meetings shall be filled as follows:
- If the office of President becomes vacant, the President-Elect shall assume the office of President for the remainder of the term and shall continue as President for his/her regularly designated term of office. The office of President-Elect shall remain vacant until the next annual meeting.
- Vacancies in all other offices shall be filled by a majority of an electronic ballot of the Executive Board. Nominees will be selected by the nominating committee. In the absence of a nominating committee, nominees will be selected by the current President and at least two other members of the Executive Board.
ARTICLE VI: ELECTIONS OF OFFICERS
- Nominations for all elected Executive Board positions shall be solicited by members of the Nominating Committee.
- Candidates shall be identified from among college health colleagues, who are members of NYSCHA. They shall meet all qualifications outlined in the NYSCHA Bylaws and NYSCHA Executive Board job descriptions.
- General Election Ballots shall be sent to all NYSCHA members prior to the Annual Meeting of the election year. In this mailing (electronic or paper), candidates for elected offices shall be introduced to NYSCHA membership by written notification, including a brief summary of each nominee’s experience and qualifications.
- Members of NYSCHA shall vote by mail-in ballot (electronic or paper). There will be an opportunity to cast a vote for a write-in candidate as part of this General Election Ballot.
- Completed and certified ballots shall be returned to the Nominating Committee Chair within a specified time period prior to the NYSCHA Annual Meeting.
- The Nominating Committee Chair shall tally General Election Ballots submitted in the specified time period. In the event of a tie vote, the President shall cast the deciding ballot. Therefore, the President does not cast a vote in the General Election.
- The Nominating Committee Chair shall notify candidates of election results before the Annual Meeting.
- The Nominating Committee Chair shall announce and introduce newly elected officers during the NYSCHA Annual Meeting at the time of the Business Meeting.
ARTICLE VII: EXECUTIVE BOARD
- There shall be an Executive Board composed of the Officers, the Region V Representative to the ACHA Board of Directors, the immediate Past President, the Chairperson of each Section, the Chair of each Standing Committee, and Appointed Members.
- The Executive Board shall transact the business of the Association in the interim between meetings. At least 50% of the Executive Board members must be present in order to transact business. The Executive Board shall present a report at the annual meeting.
- Voting members of the Executive Board shall include: Officers, the immediate Past President, Section Chairs, Standing Committee Chairs, and the Regional Representative to the ACHA Board of Directors when that person is from NYSCHA.
ARTICLE VIII: COMMITTEES
- There shall be four Standing Committees: Networking/Resource, Membership, Nominating/Awards and Advocacy. The President shall appoint the Chairs of the Networking/Resource, Membership and Advocacy Committees to two-year, renewable terms. The members of the Nominating/Awards Committee shall include the Past President (Chair) and at least two representatives from different districts.
- The President, with the approval of the Executive Board, shall appoint such other committees as needed to promote the affairs of the Association.
- All Committee Chairs must be current NYSCHA members.
ARTICLE IX: SECTIONS
- Students and each professional discipline may form a Section and choose a chairperson. This chairperson will hold a one to three year renewable term and will be a member of the Executive Board.
- All Section members must be current NYSCHA members.
ARTICLE X: LOCAL DISTRICTS WITHIN THE ASSOCIATION
- There may be one or more local affiliates hereinafter referred to as Districts within the Association. The purpose of these local districts is to provide institutions of higher education and individuals the opportunity to work together to promote health in higher education at the local level.
- Each district will have a representative. The chair of the Networking/Resource Committee will appoint the district representatives for one- to three-year renewable terms. In the event a district does not have a representative, the Executive Board will appoint a representative for that district to a one year term. The district representative must be a member of the Association. District representatives will compose the Networking/Resource Committee listed in Article VIII.
- The Chair of the Networking/Resource Committee shall serve a two-year renewable term and be a member of the Executive Board. This Chair shall submit an annual report of the activities of the local districts to the Executive Board.
ARTICLE XI: REGION V REPRESENTATION TO ACHA
- The Region V Representative is elected for a two-year term on the ACHA Board of Directors by regular and student members of Region V (includes NYSCHA and the New England College Health Association) in accordance with the ACHA Bylaws.
- The principal function of the Regional Representative is to provide a communication link between members and affiliates in Region V and the leadership of the ACHA. The Region V Representative serves as the official representative of ACHA leadership at meetings of the Region V affiliates when requested by the ACHA President or ACHA Board of Directors. The Region V Representative is responsible for presenting discussion items from regional affiliate leadership and other members in Region V to the ACHA Board of Directors. Lastly, the Region V representative is responsible for appointing a regional member to the ACHA Nominating Committee who will serve a concurrent two-year term with the Region V Representative.
ARTICLE XII: MEETINGS
- There shall be an annual meeting at the time and place selected by the Executive Board.
- The Executive Board meets periodically throughout the year as determined by the President to complete Association business and to meet the needs of the mission and goals of NYSCHA.
ARTICLE XIII: RULES OF ORDER
In the absence of any provision to the contrary in these Bylaws, all meetings of this Association shall be governed by the current edition of “Roberts Rules of Order.”
ARTICLE XIV: AMENDMENTS
Amendments to these Bylaws may be adopted by a two-thirds vote of the members present and voting at any annual meeting or voting by mail-in ballot (electronic or paper), provided that notice of any proposed amendments shall have been presented, in writing, to the membership at least three weeks prior to the meeting or mail-in voting.
ARTICLE XV: DISSOLUTION OF ORGANIZATION
Upon dissolution of this organization, all assets remaining after payment of debts or provision therefore shall be distributed to the American College Health Association or to other organizations exempt from Federal Income Tax, as described in Section 501 (C) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
REVISIONS TO THE BY-LAWS:
5/22/09
Revisions approved by electronic vote to NYSCHA members.
2/11/05
Revisions approved by electronic vote to NYSCHA members.
11/1/01
Revisions approved by NYSCHA members at the 2001 Annual Business Meeting.
10/17/97
Revisions in format to be consistent with ACHA By-laws approved by members at the NYSCHA Annual Business Meeting.
10/13/94
Revisions to By-Laws approved by NYSCHA members at the 1994 Annual Meeting