RevisedSeptember 2007

Preamble

The Association of Counseling Center Training Agencies (ACCTA) is dedicated to promoting excellence in pre-doctoral psychology internship training within university and college counseling centers. Fundamental to our values is appreciation of and support for diversity and the enrichment an inclusive multicultural community brings to the organization and to training generally. As an organization we dedicate ourselves to attending to the impact of oppression and privilege and are committed to addressing these issues within the organization, the training community and beyond.

Article I. Name

A. The name of this organization shall be the Association of Counseling Center Training Agencies (ACCTA).

B. Counseling centers are defined as the units primarily responsible for providing counseling and mental health services within university or college settings.

C. Training Agencies are defined as organizations providing a one year full-time or two year half-time predoctoral training experience in a university or college counseling center for trainees completing the internship requirement for their doctoral degrees in professional psychology. Counseling center training agencies which are members of a consortium are also eligible for membership.

D. Representatives of Training Agencies shall be defined as persons who are designated by the College or University Counseling Center responsible for the direction of the predoctoral psychology internship training program. These individuals shall represent their member training agencies at ACCTA meetings.

Article II. Purpose

A. The primary purpose of the Association shall be to provide for the development and promotion of the professional training of psychology interns in university and college counseling center settings.

1. To facilitate the exchange of information and discussion of issues among college and university training directors and coordinators, agencies, potential interns, and interested professionals.

2. To enhance the professional development of persons delegated as responsible for directing/coordinating intern training programs.

3. To influence the establishment and maintenance of standards and policies on selection, training, and service of interns commensurate with the purposes of university and college counseling centers.

4. To promote the views of university and college counseling center internship training agencies to groups and organizations whose functions and objectives affect internship training or professional credentialing.

5. To promote the professional development of individuals with diverse backgrounds who are interested in the administration of internship programs in university and college counseling centers.

B. A secondary purpose of the Association shall be to provide for the enhancement of related counseling center activities.

C. A third purpose of the organization shall be to promote diversity and the enrichment a multicultural community brings within our organization and in the training profession; to promote sensitivity to the impact of oppression and privilege on various individuals and groups generally and specifically to oppression and privilege based on affectional preference, age, cultural background, disabilities, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, language, race, religion and spirituality, sexual orientation, size and physical appearance, and socioeconomic status and to work toward the elimination of such oppression and any barrier to full citizenship by anyone within our organization and profession.

D. This organization shall be for exclusively educational purposes including making distributions to organizations that qualify as exempt organizations under section 501(C)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code. No part of the net earnings of the organization shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that the organization shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes set forth in the purpose clause hereof. No substantial part of the activities of organization shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the organization shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office. Notwithstanding any other provision of this document, the organization shall not carry on any other activities not permitted to be carried on (a) by an organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501 (c) (6) of the Internal Revenue Code, corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or (b) by an organization, contributions to which are deductible under section 179 (c) (2) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code.

Article III. Membership

A. Membership. The membership shall be composed of university and college counseling center predoctoral psychology internship training agencies. Counseling Centers, which are in the active process of developing a predoctoral internship program, may also become members. The agency shall be represented by the person responsible for the internship training program or the program's representative. One representative from each Agency attends the annual ACCTA Conference except in a year of transition when the out-going and in-coming Directors may attend. Only one member may vote on behalf of the Agency membership.

B. Dues. Each member of the Association shall pay dues annually which are determined by a majority of the membership.

C. Fees. The Board of Directors is empowered by the membership to set fees and disperse monies by majority vote of the Board for the effective management of the organization.

Article IV. Procedures

A.Elections and Other Voting. Elections and other voting shall be conducted electronically. A quorum shall consist of representatives from one-third of the dues-paying members.

· Elections. The solicitation for nominations must begin no later than six weeks prior to the conference. Nominations may be made over the ACCTA listserv until seven days prior to the conference. Additional electoral activity shall be included in the agenda of one of the business meetings at the conference. The business meeting agenda items shall include nominations from the floor, followed by live or digitally recorded speeches from each candidate. By no later than ten days following the conference, each candidate must submit to the voting coordinator a written statement of candidacy, and if technology allows, a video recording of the speech s/he delivered at the ACCTA business meeting. The voting coordinator will arrange to post the candidates’ materials on the ACCTA website and arrange for electronic voting to begin by no later than three weeks following the conference.

· Budget. ACCTA’s proposed budget shall be presented to the membership for discussion at the annual conference, and then the membership shall vote on whether or not to ratify the budget after the conference, concurrent with elections.

1. Identifying Issues to be Discussed at Meetings.

Any member may bring an issue to the business meetings at the annual conference to be discussed by the membership. Members should contact the President to place an issue on the conference agenda.

2. Action by Electronic Vote.

a. Any matter or issue requiring the vote of the Members, or upon which the Board resolves to seek action by the members, may be submitted to the members for approval by electronic vote, so long as the requirements for action set forth in this section 2 are satisfied. The determination to seek Member approval for actions by electronic vote shall be made by the Board, by the President, or by Members possessing 10 percent of the total voting potential of the Membership signing a written request and delivering the request to the President.

b. The first of the following persons whose name will NOT appear on the ballot (i.e., who is not running for an election) is designated by the President as coordinator of an election: Past President, President-Elect, Secretary, Treasurer, President, President’s Designee. The voting coordinator arranges for the opportunity for members to vote via the ACCTA website and notifies the membership of the opportunity.

c. Balloting Time Requirements. The President shall direct the voting coordinator to arrange an electronic process by which all members entitled to vote on the matter may vote within 14 days of the determination to seek action. The voting coordinator shall arrange a minimum of 14 days between the start date and end date for voting. In the election notice, the date by which the ballot must be received n order to be counted shall be stated. A written ballot will be mailed to any members who are not on the ACCTA listserv.

d. Content of Ballots. Ballots distributed to the members shall describe the proposed actions and provide an opportunity to specify approval or disapproval of each matter or group of related matters.

e. Requirements for Valid Action. Approval by ballot shall be valid only when: (i) the number of votes cast by ballot within the time period specified equals or exceeds the quorum as specified in Article IV, Section A, and (ii) for matters other than elections or bylaws amendments, if the number of approvals equals or exceeds 50 percent of the ballots cast.

f. Solicitation Rules. Ballots shall be solicited electronically to all voting members on the ACCTA listserv, with written ballots solicited by first-class mail to those members who are not on the listserv. All solicitations of ballots shall: (i) indicate the number of responses needed to meet the quorum requirements for the actions; (ii) the time by which the ballot must be received by the Association in order to be counted; and (iii) when relevant, the percentage of affirmative votes necessary to approve the matter submitted for membership approval.

g. Ad-Hoc Elections Committee. The Association's Voting Coordinator is charged with chairing the Association's Elections Committee. Other members of the Association may be appointed to the Committee by the President. The committee shall tabulate all returned ballots within two days of the date by which the ballot must be returned in order to be counted.

h. Notification of Results of Balloting Process. Upon tabulation of the ballots or if the number of ballots cast is insufficient to constitute a quorum, the voting coordinator shall notify the members of the outcome by e-mail and at the first business meeting of the Annual Conference.

i. Prohibition on Revocation. Once cast, a ballot may not be revoked.

B. Officers. The officers of this association shall be a president, secretary, treasurer, and past-president who shall serve terms of two years, and a president-elect who shall serve a one-year term. The Officers of the Association constitute the Executive Committee. Presidential terms begin and end at the close of the conference during even years. Terms for board members and other officers begin and end upon the announcement of election results following the annual conference. The president-elect shall succeed the president at the end of the president's term of office as president, at which time the latter becomes immediate past-president. A president may serve more than one term but not consecutively. The president-elect shall be elected at the end of the first year of the president's term. The secretary and treasurer shall serve staggered terms so that one is elected each year. The secretary and treasurer shall serve no more than two consecutive two-year terms of office. After one term out of office, the secretary or treasurer is eligible to be elected again.

1. President

a. to chair the meetings of the Association.

b. to prepare an agenda for all Association meetings which shall be distributed among the members.

c. to be responsible for the representation of the Association to other professional organizations that interface with that of the Association.

d. to prepare an annual report for review of the members at the annual meeting.

e. to oversee the committees, task forces, and liaisons of the Association.

2. President-elect

a. to carry out the responsibilities of the president in the event the president is unable to discharge his/her duties

b. to chair the meetings in the absence of the president.

c. to serve as voting coordinator for the Association as directed by the President when the Past President is not eligible to do so as stated in IVA2b.

d. to carry out responsibilities assigned by the President.

3. Past-president

a. to carry out the responsibilities of the president and/or president-elect in the event that the president is unable to discharge her/his duties

b. to chair the meetings in the absence of the President or President-elect.

c. to carry out responsibilities assigned by the President.

d. to serve as consultant to the President and Board of Directors.

e. to serve as voting coordinator for the Association as directed by the President as stated in IVA2b.

4. Secretary

a. to be responsible for all correspondence of the Association as assigned by the President or Board.

b. to oversee a clearinghouse of information for the Association.

c. to prepare and distribute the minutes and proceedings of all of the Association's meetings.

d. to keep written notes of the Board listserv activities and to include a summary of those activities in an annual report to the Association.

5. Treasurer

a. to be responsible for all financial transactions of the Association.

b. to present a complete financial report at each annual meeting.

c. to prepare an annual budget for approval by the Association.

C. Board of Directors

1. Responsibilities: The Board of Directors shall consist of the executive committee and ten members elected by the membership. The Board shall establish policy and procedures for the Association in keeping with the stated objectives of the Association. The Executive Committee and Board of Directors of the Association shall be responsible for conducting the business affairs of the Association and making recommendations regarding the Association's fiscal assets and expenditures to be voted on by the membership.

2. Election to the Board. The members of the Board of Directors shall each be elected for two year terms with five members elected each year. Nominees for the Officers and Board of Directors shall represent active internship programs which are in good standing with the Association. Election to membership on the Board of Directors shall be held following the fall business meeting. For each election, one of the positions on the Board of Directors shall be designated for a member elected from a slate of three candidates nominated by the Standing Committee on Diversity.

3. Board Meeting: The Board of Director meetings may be held in conjunction with the ACCTA Fall Conference or annual meetings of other professional organizations such as ACPA and APA. Board meetings may be conducted electronically. Voting at Board Meetings may be by voice or ballot. The percentage of affirmative votes necessary to approve a matter submitted is greater than 50%.

4. Board Listserv. The Board of Directors may conduct business throughout the year via e-mail.

D. Removal of Board and Executive Committee Members

1. Members of the ACCTA Board of Directors or Executive Committee may resign at any time, provided they give notice to the President.

2. If a member of the Board of Directors or Executive Committee is no longer a Training Director and/or at an ACCTA member agency, they may be allowed, at the discretion of a majority of the Board, to fulfill or transfer their assigned duties to another board member for no longer than the time remaining until the next election.

3. Members of the Board of Directors or Executive Committee may be removed by a majority of the Board of Directors in the event of any of the following:

a. Death

b. Having been declared of unsound mind by a final order of a court

c. Having been convicted of a felony

d. Having been found in violation of any ethical standard of the Ethics Committees of the American Psychological Association, the Canadian Psychological Association, or any other relevant and nationally recognized professional organization or State or Provincial Licensing/Credentiality Board

e. Exhibiting personal or professional conduct unbecoming of the office.

4. Any ACCTA member may bring a concern about any Board or Executive Committee member to the attention of an Executive Committee member at any time.

E. Filling Vacancies on the Board and Executive Committee

1. Unexpired positions on the Board which become vacant shall remain vacant until the next election. During the next election, the open position will be filled as a one-year Board position by the Board nominee who receives the highest number of votes after all the two-year Board positions are filled.

2. In the case of a vacancy in the Secretary or Treasurer position, the President shall appoint an Interim Secretary or Interim Treasurer, with the advice and consent of the Board of Directors. The Interim Secretary or Interim Treasurer shall serve until the next annual election, at which time the membership shall elect a Secretary or Treasurer to complete the unexpired term of office.

3. In the case of a vacancy in the President position, the President-Elect will become acting President and a new President-Elect will be elected at the next annual conference. In the case of a vacancy in both the offices of the President and the President-Elect, the Past-President will act as President until a new President can be elected at the next annual conference.

F. Committees

1. Ad Hoc Committees shall be established by the President to complete specific tasks required by the Association.

a. Standing Committees shall be established at the annual meetings by a two-thirds majority vote of the members voting, which must constitute a quorum. Once established, Standing Committees will function for a minimum of five years. After five years, the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors may review the function of the Standing Committee and make a recommendation for termination to be voted on by the membership.

b. Standing Committees are established to serve the ongoing functions, goals and mission statement of the organization, and are established to serve the Association in the following ways: (i) As consultant to the Executive Committee, the Board of Directors, and the membership in domains relevant to the Associations goals; (ii) In developing and maintaining services for the Association.

c. The Standing Committees of the Association are:

i. The Standing Committee On Diversity

ii. The Bylaws, Policies and Procedures Standing Committee

iii. The Research Standing Committee

iv. The Training Resource Standing Committee

v. The Conference Site Planning Standing Committee



vi. The Standing Committee on Nominations

2. Appointments to the Association's Committees

a. the President shall appoint or solicit members to participate on Committees.

b. The President will appoint a Board member to serve as liaison between Standing Committees and the Executive Committee / Board of Directors.

3. Procedures and Responsibilities of the Association's Committees.

a. The Association's Committees shall develop and establish their own operating policies and procedures, except that a quorum for transacting business shall be one-third of each Committee's members.

b. The Committees will elect their own chair or a chair will be appointed by the President. Committee chairs are responsible for ensuring that the liaison to the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors is knowledgeable regarding the Committee's activities, and shall receive approval from the President and/or Board of Directors before representing the Association to the public. Committee Chairs will facilitate all committee meetings. Each liaison in collaboration with the Committee Chair is responsible for writing an annual report to the membership describing the activities of the committee. If there is no liaison to a committee, the Committee Chair will provide the liaison function and write the annual report.

Article V. Amendments

A. Amendments or changes to these bylaws may be proposed by any dues-paying member. Proposed changes are to be brought to the attention of the President. The determination to bring an amendment to the membership for an electronic vote shall be made by the Board, by the President, or by 10 percent of the total voting potential of the membership who sign a written request and deliver it to the President. Discussion of the proposed changes must occur either via the ACCTA listserv, website, and/or the issue may be placed on the conference business agenda. Voting on the proposed amendment will occur electronically. Bylaws changes shall be established by a two-thirds majority vote of the members voting. To pass an amendment, members voting must constitute a quorum.

Article VI. Dissolution of Organization

In the event of the dissolution of ACCTA, remaining assets would be distributed among the following, which must be in existence and exempt at the time of dissolution: Association of Psychology Postdoctoral and Internship Centers (APPIC); Association of University and College Counseling Center Directors (AUCCCD); and the American Psychological Association Minority Fellowship Fund. Decisions regarding the distribution of funds during the dissolution of the Association will be made by the Executive Committee. If these conditions are not met, assets will be distributed for section 501 (c) (3) purposes. Assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose. Any such assets not disposed of shall be disposed of by the Court of Common Pleas of the county in which the principal office of the organization is then located, exclusively for such purposes or to such organization or organizations, as said Court shall determine, which are organized and operated exclusively for such purposes.