About NSPRA
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Author: Sarah Loughlin/Thursday, June 2, 2022/Categories: News
In April, the National School Public Relations Association shared with members that the NSPRA Executive Board had approved several proposed changes to NSPRA Bylaws. Bylaws may only be amended by a majority vote of professional-level association members, who were invited to cast their votes on the proposed changes from May 6-27. Following the closing of the ballot, the NSPRA Teller Committee has certified the results showing that all proposed bylaws changes have passed.
The approved bylaws changes affect Article II – Membership, Article III – Executive Board, Article IV – Officers and Article VII – Committees. The effective date of the changes is Oct. 1, 2022. Following are the results of the vote on each change:
There were 1,937 professional-level members who were eligible to vote. Of those, 389 or 20% decided to cast a ballot. All association members were notified of the vote via email on May 5. Then professional-level members only were emailed their ballots on May 6 and emailed reminders to vote on May 16 and May 26.
As NSPRA grows in size and scope, the Executive Board is leading the association with a focus on the future. That focus included member-approved updates to NSPRA’s mission and goals and the development of a new strategic plan in 2021. Then in March 2022, the Executive Board identified the now-approved bylaws changes as part of its ongoing governance work, which includes reviews of association bylaws and policies.
The following bylaws changes have been approved by members:
Approved Bylaws Amendment Wording (changes in bold)
Article II – Membership
Section 1. Membership in the Association shall be defined as follows:
Professional Member – A person who has professional responsibilities in educational public relations in a non-profit or not-for-profit capacity (i.e., school district, education agency, government agency) is eligible for NSPRA professional membership. Professional members have the right to vote and to hold office, and to apply to become candidates for Universal Accreditation.
Associate Member – A person who is interested in and supportive of educational public relations may become a NSPRA associate member. Associate members may not vote, are not eligible to hold office, and are not eligible to become candidates for Universal Accreditation.
Professional Partner – A person who has professional responsibilities in educational public relations in a for-profit capacity may become a NSPRA professional partner. Professional partners may apply to become candidates for Universal Accreditation but may not vote and are not eligible to hold office.
Article III – Executive Board
Section 8. The Executive Board may remove any elected officer from office: a) if the officer fails to attend two consecutive Board meetings; b) if in the Board’s judgment the officer’s actions have caused serious damage to the Association or its reputation. Such removal shall require a two-thirds vote of the Board.
Article IV – Officers
Section 3. The President shall hold office for the period of one year. It shall be the duty of the President to preside or to arrange for presiding officers at all meetings and, in conjunction with the Executive Board, to prepare programs for the Annual and other meetings of the Association, and to appoint all committees not otherwise provided for. The President shall be chairperson and a member of the Executive Board and shall call meetings of the Board on not less than ten (10) days notice whenever the president deems it necessary or whenever the president is requested to do so by a majority of the membership of the Board. The President shall be a nonvoting ex-officio member of all committees and shall perform all other duties commonly associated with this office.
Section 4. The President-elect shall hold office for the period of one year, beginning the first day of October following the individual’s election as President-elect and shall become President one year later, beginning on the first day of October. In the event of the President’s temporary disability or absence from meetings, the President-elect shall perform the President’s duties.
In case of vacancy in the office of President, the President-elect shall at once succeed to the office of President to fill out the unexpired term, and shall continue to serve as President for the full term to which the individual has been elected.
Section 8. A vacancy of one year in the office of Regional Vice President or Vice President for Diversity Engagement will be filled by the Executive Board until the next regular election, at which time a successor will be elected to fill the unexpired term. In the case of a vacancy that is two years in length, the Executive Board will appoint an individual to fill the two-year term to ensure continuity and stability in the position. Vacancy in the office of President-elect, caused by the succession of the President-elect to the Presidency shall remain unfilled. In all cases, a vacancy in the office of President-elect shall be filled by a special election conducted in the same manner that is provided for holding the annual election of officers. Vacancy in the office of Vice President at Large shall be filled by the Executive Board for the remainder of the term.
Article VII – Committees
Section 1
(b) Audit Committee. There shall be an Audit Committee of at least three members, comprised of Executive Board members and at least one NSPRA member-at-large. The Audit Committee shall prepare a report for inclusion in the association annual report.
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