ARTICLE I
NAME, AFFILIATION, AND PURPOSE
Section
1. Name. The name of the organization shall be the Maryland
Career Development Association (hereafter referred to as MCDA or as the
Association).
Section 2. Affiliation. MCDA is a division of the National Career
Development Association (hereafter referred to as NCDA) and shall be subject to
those provisions of its Bylaws that apply to divisions.
Section 3. Purpose. The purpose of MCDA shall be
to create a partnership among career development practitioners from
business/industry, elementary/secondary schools, colleges, public and private
agencies, and private practices, and to establish and improve the standards of
professional service in the field of career development in
A.
Promote a greater understanding of the meaning of work and career.
B.
Foster career development over the life span.
C.
Encourage the establishment of innovative and
responsive career development and career counseling services in
D.
Gather and disseminate information regarding career development,
guidance, and occupational information.
E.
Stimulate the improvement of career services, including assessment,
guidance, and dissemination of occupational information
and job search resources.
F.
Promote high standards and principles of career
development/career counseling.
Section 1. Categories of Membership. There will be four general
categories of membership in MCDA: professional, regular, retired, student. All
members may vote, and all except student members may hold an elective office in
the Association.
Sections 2. Qualities for Membership. The categories of membership shall be
determined in accordance with the following:
A. Professional Members. A professional member shall
hold a master’s degree or higher in counseling or a closely related field from
a college or university that was accredited when the degree was awarded by one
of the regional accrediting bodies recognized by the Council on Post-secondary
Accreditation. Professional members must present proof of academic credentials
upon request.
B. Regular Members. Regular members are those
who have an interest in career development and have a desire to uphold the
purpose and principles of MCDA.
C. Retired
Members. Retired members are those
who have retired from the counseling profession and have been a member of MCDA
for ten years.
D.
Student. Students enrolled in programs preparing them for guidance and
personnel work as defined for Regular Membership shall be eligible to become
Student Members of the Association upon application and endorsement by their
faculty advisors.
Section 3. Continuity of Membership. Membership in MCDA shall be
continuous on an annual basis.
Section 4. Termination of
Membership.
A. Members may be
dropped from membership for unethical behavior as defined in the Code of Ethics
of the American Counseling Association (ACA) or for conduct that tends to
injure the Association or to affect its reputation adversely. Any charge
relating the unethical behavior or misconduct shall be presented to the Board
over the signatures of two members. The Board shall provide for investigation
of the charges and, if they are found to have substance, the Board shall counsel
the members with a view toward possible modification of their behavior. Failing
this, the Board shall determine appropriate action. The Board shall have the
power to terminate membership in the Association. However, before taking such
action, the Board shall notify the members of the precise nature of the charge
and give them an opportunity to present evidence in their own behalf.
B. Members will be
dropped from membership for non-payment of dues.
FINANCES
Section 1. Dues and Assessments. The following procedures shall be followed in establishing MCDA
dues and assessments, in addition to those required by the Bylaws of MCDA:
A. Annual dues for
all classes of membership shall be established by the Executive Board, subject
to approval of the Association at its annual meeting.
B. The Board may
specify the manner in which dues and assessments shall be collected.
Section 2. Fiscal Year. The fiscal year of MCDA shall be July 1st through June 30th.
NOMINATIONS
AND ELECTIONS
Section 1. Procedures. The Nominations and Elections Committee shall follow the following
procedures.
A. Nominations.
Members may be nominated for office in one of three ways:
(1) The Committee on Nominations and Elections
shall canvass members for names of suitable nominees.
(2) A member may be nominated for any elective
office by any member of good standing. The nomination shall be in writing to
the Chairperson of the Committee of Nominations and Elections.
(3) All nominations must include:
(a) A professional resume of
the proposed nominee.
(b) A letter from the nominee stating his or her
willingness and ability to serve.
(c) When applicable, a letter from the nominee’s
employer recognizing the time and
resource commitment involved.
(4) A call for nominations shall
be published in an official publication of MCDA newsletter at least 90 days
prior to the circulation of ballots
(5) A list of the names of all
persons nominated for all elective offices by procedures (1) and (2) in ARTICLE
IV, Section 1.A. shall be distributed by the Nominations and Elections
Committee to all certified members of the Association by mail or e-mail.
(6) All mail or e-mail ballots shall be returned to the
Past-President in accordance with established policy.
OFFICERS, EXECUTIVE
BOARD AND REPRESENTATIVE TO MACD GOVERNING BOARD
Section 1. Officers, Representative to MACD Governing Board.
A. The Officers of
the Association shall be the President, President-Elect, immediate
Past-President, Secretary, and Treasurer. Officers of the Association shall be voting
members of NCDA.
B. The
MACD Governing Board representative shall be the President of the Association
or his/her designee.
C. The Executive
Board of Directors shall consist of the Officers.
Section 2. Method of
Selection.
A. The
President-Elect, Secretary, Treasurer, shall be elected in accordance with
ARTICLE IV.
Section 3. Terms of Office.
A. The
President-Elect shall be elected annually and shall hold office for one year or
until his or her successor is chosen.
B. The President-Elect
shall succeed to the Presidency for a one-year term and then to Past-Presidency
for a one-year term.
C. The Secretary and
the Treasurer shall serve for a period of one year or until their successors
are chosen.
D. In the event of
resignation, continued absence, illness, or death of any officer other than the
President, the Board shall, by majority vote, elect a successor to serve. In
the event that the President-Elect is unable to assume the duties of President,
the Board may, by majority vote, choose a member of the Board to serve as
President until his or her successor takes office.
Section 4. Functions of
Officers and MACD Governing Board Representative
A. President. The
President shall:
(1) Exert leadership in the achievement of the
purpose of MCDA.
(2) Preside at meetings of the Executive Board.
(3) Appoint chairpersons of all MCDA committees.
(4) Serve ex officio on all MCDA committees
except the Nominations and Elections Committee.
(5) Organiza the annual MCDA conference
B. President-Elect.
The President-Elect shall:
(1) Perform the duties of the President in the
absence or incapacity of the President.
(2) Serve as a member of the Executive Board.
(3) Carry out such other duties and
responsibilities as may be assigned by the Executive Board.
C. Past-President.
The immediate Past-President shall:
(1) Serve as a member of the Executive Board.
(2) Serve as Chairperson of the MCDA Nominations
and Elections Committee.
D. Secretary. The
Secretary shall:
(1) Keep a record of the proceedings of the
Executive Board and Association meetings.
(2) Serve as a member of the Executive Board.
E. Treasurer.
The Treasurer shall:
(1) Serve as a member of the Executive Board.
(2) Assist in the preparation of the budgets for MCDA,
its committees, and its publications.
(3) Follow accepted procedures for handling the
funds of MCDA.
(4) Recommend to the Executive Board any needed
modifications in procedures for managing the fiscal affairs of MCDA.
F. Representative
to the MACD Governing Board. The Representative to the MACD Governing Board
shall:
(1) Serve as a member of the Governing Board
(2) Represent MCDA on the MACD Governing Board.
Section 5. Sanction and Removal from Office. Any individual noted in
Article V, Sections 1 to 4 above, may be sanctioned or removed from office in
accordance with procedures as prescribed by official policy of the Association.
Any member of the Executive Board may be
sanctioned by a majority vote or removed from office by a two-thirds vote of
the Executive Board any regular or special meeting of the Executive Board at
which a quorum is present for engaging in conduct prejudicial to the best
interest of the Association or for repeated failure to perform the duties and
responsibilities of an Executive Board Member.
Section 6. Functions and Composition of the
Executive Board. The members of the Board shall be those
designated above. The Executive Board
shall be the agency through which the policies of the Association shall be
determined and shall have the following powers and functions:
A. To establish
policies to govern the affairs of the Association.
B. To act on
recommendations from the Standing Committees such special committees as are
responsible to the Board.
Section 7. Meetings of the
Executive Board.
A. The Board shall
meet at least once a year. Other meetings of the Executive Board may be held at
the call of the President or of a majority of the Executive Board.
B. At least one-half of the
members of the Executive Board shall constitute a quorum throughout any meeting
of the Executive Board at which official business is transacted.
ARTICLE
VI
MEETINGS
OF THE ASSOCIATION
Section 1. Scheduling of
Meetings. At
least one meeting of the Association shall be held annually. Such a meeting
shall constitute the annual membership meeting of the Association and be held
at the winter conference of MCDA. Additional meetings of the Association may be
called by either a majority vote of the Executive Board or a majority vote of
the Association.
Section 2. Quorum. The members of the Association who are present at the annual conference, which has been duly announced and actively advertised at least one month in advance, shall constitute a quorum.
Section 3. Summary of
Proceedings.
A summary of proceedings of the Association shall be available upon request.
Section 4. Emergency Action. In an emergency and on
recommendation of two-thirds vote of the Executive Board, business may be
presented by mail or e-mail ballot to the members of the Association
COMMITTEES
Section 1. Standing
Committees. The
standing committees of MCDA and their duties shall be:
A. The Membership Committee
shall promote membership in MCDA and recommend procedures for processing
applications.
B. The Nominations
and Elections Committee shall consist of five members: the three most recent
Past- Presidents and two members appointed by the Immediate Past President the
immediate Past-President shall serve as Chairperson. If any Past-President is
unable to serve, the Executive Board may fill the vacancy. The Committee shall
be responsible for carrying out the nominations and elections procedures in
accord with these Bylaws.
C. The Bylaws
Committee shall have responsibilities for drafting proposals for amendments to
these Bylaws and for the final wording of amendments passed by the Delegate
Assembly to insure their consistency with the style and substance of these
Bylaws. The committee shall carry out such other functions as may be assigned
to it in these Bylaws or by the Executive Board.
D. The Ethics
Committee shall be responsible for educating the membership as to the
Association’s ethical standards, making suggestions to the MCDA Executive Board
for the modification or development of ethics-related and ethical behavior of MCDA
members.
E. The
Communications Committee shall be responsible for publicity, website and other
communications activities.
Section 2. Special
Committees.
These Committees shall be established by the Executive Board to carry out such
activities as it believes will further the objectives of MCDA. The Executive
Board shall, from time to time, review the charge and function of all special
committees and shall make changes in their number, characteristics, or
organization as may seem desirable.
Section 3. Appointment of Committees. In the absence of any
provision to the contrary in these Bylaws or in the motion creating a
committee:
A. The President-Elect shall
appoint chairpersons of committees. The term of office so appointed shall
coincide with the assumption of the Presidency. Said appointees shall serve for
a period of two years. Completing an unexpired term may be followed by an
appointed term. Chairpersons of committees shall be subject to confirmation by
the Executive Board. They may be re-appointed.
B. The chairperson shall
designate the members of his or her committee.
C. Except as otherwise specified
in these Bylaws, members of committees shall serve for one year or until the
appointment of their successors. They may be re-appointed.
Section 1. Annual Audit. The Executive Board shall
make recommendations for an annual audit of the financial records of MCDA by a
certified public accountant. The report shall be reviewed by the Executive
Board and institute any recommendations that may be appropriate. A full report
on the financial condition of MCDA shall be made available to the members of
the Association upon request.
AMENDMENTS
Section 1. Amendments. The Association in accord
with either of the following methods may amend these Bylaws from time to time:
A. A proposed amendment may be
presented to the Executive Board by a member of the Executive Board or
Committee of MCDA, or by an individual, provided that in the case of an
individual the proposed amendment shall be presented over the signatures of at
least 25 voting members of MCDA. All such proposed amendments shall be
presented in writing to the Secretary of MCDA at least 120 days prior to the
annual meeting. They shall be reviewed by the Bylaws Committee and published in
an official organ of the Association at least 30 days prior to the annual
meeting of the Association.
B. An amendment also may
originate at an annual meeting of the Association. A two-thirds vote by members
in attendance is required to approve the amendment.
Section
2. Adoption.
A proposed amendment shall be considered adopted if approved by a majority of
members.
Section 1. Rules of Order. Robert’s Rules of Order, as
from time to time revised, shall govern the proceedings of MCDA, unless otherwise
specified in these Bylaws.
Section 2. In all official MCDA
communication and publications, it is recommended that the “Guidelines for
Non-Sexist Language,” which appeared in the February, 1978 Personnel and
Guidance Journal, be followed, and that the terms "“chair” or
“chairperson” be preferred to the term, “chairman.”