Wednesday, 15 May 2019 - 11:51am

Wednesday, 15 May, 2019

The ACPA Governing Board has approved a set of proposed changes to the ACPA Bylaws to come before the full voting membership of the Association. Changes to the ACPA Bylaws require a two-thirds approval vote from the members who participate in the voting process before amendments can be made. The proposed changes are being presented to you as individual voting decisions and each is described below for additional context and consideration.

I am providing these proposed amendments to you 30-days in advance of when the electronic vote is to begin, as required by the ACPA Bylaws. As a result, you will receive a second communication from me on Wednesday, 19 June, 2019 announcing the beginning of the voting period for the proposed Bylaws amendments. The voting period on the proposed Bylaws changes will end on Friday, 19 July, 2019 at 11:59pm ET.

I invite you to click here to review a red line, tracked changes PDF version (also linked here in Word format) of the ACPA Bylaws with the proposed amendments.

One of the values of ACPA is that each member has a vote and a voice in Association matters. I hope that you will join me in exercising your membership rights in the upcoming Bylaws amendment process. Please let me know if you have any questions or feedback that would assist in ensuring that you are included and have access to our core value of association-wide decision-making.

Sincerely,

Vernon A. Wall
ACPA Vice President and Bylaws Committee Chair

Summary of Proposed 2019 ACPA Bylaws Changes

The following descriptions provide an overview of the context and content for each of the proposed amendments to the ACPA Bylaws, as reviewed and approved by the Governing Board to go to a membership vote.

Objective #1:

Relocating Mission, Core Values, and Core Functions to Bylaws Preamble (rather than as an Article) and Relocating the Preamble to be located in front of Bylaws heading

  • ACPA’s legal counsel has recommended that responsibility for setting the mission and purpose of the Association is the responsibility of the Governing Board rather than leaving it to a member vote. This proposed change recommends relocating the Association’s mission, core values, and core functions statements to be a part of the Preamble to the Bylaws instead of one of the Articles. By relocating to the Preamble, the mission, core values, and core functions statements can be amended by a vote of the Governing Board.

  • This objective also follows ACPA’s legal counsel guidance to relocate the Preamble to the beginning of the document, ahead of the ACPA Bylaws heading.

  • As a result of moving these components to the Preamble, Article II now fully stands alone as the Association’s Anti-Discrimination Statement.

Objective #2:

Mission Statement Revision

  • The proposed mission statement is: “ACPA transforms higher education by creating and disseminating influential scholarship, shaping critically reflective practice, and advocating for socially just learning environments.”

  • The proposed mission statement change intends to reflect the Association’s commitment to inclusion, equity, and social justice as the leading organization that boldly transforms higher education, while also attending to our ongoing centering of student learning, growth, and development through scholarship and practice.

Objective #3:

Inclusion of Assembly Coordinators in Governing Board as Voting Members

  • This proposed amendment extends Governing Board membership and voting authority to the five Assembly Coordinator positions, thereby increasing the number of voting members of the Governing Board from 12 to 17. The Assembly Coordinators are currently considered guests to ACPA Governing Board meetings at the discretion of the ACPA President, yet are the leadership representatives of the Coalitions & Networks, Commissions, Communities of Practice, International Members & Divisions, and State & Regional Chapters. As guests, Assembly Coordinators have been offered access to voice in Association decision-making, yet these positions are otherwise treated as full members of the Governing Board who represent a broad range of constituents. This proposed Bylaws change authorizes the five Assembly Coordinators as full members of the Governing Board, with access to continued voice and now voting rights in Association decision-making.

  • The proposed changes maintains the intent and process for selection/election of Assembly Coordinators, including the practice of the appointment process for Assembly Coordinator for Coalitions & Networks to be selected by consensus process by Coalition & Network Chairs.

  • The proposed amendments also address a gap in current documented procedures for the removal of and appointment to vacancies in Assembly Coordinator positions. If approved, the ACPA Bylaws would now streamline the processes for filling vacancies and removal of officers between Governing Board members and Assembly Coordinators.

  • As a result of the changes to Governing Board membership, the proposed amendments require a reorganization of Article VII with qualification and election/selection processes of Assembly Coordinators moved to Article V for consistency with other Governing Board positions.

Objective #4:

Modernization of Language and Naming of ACPA Entities

  • In each place where “Coalitions” are named, the proposed amendments advocate for updating nomenclature to “Coalitions and Networks” instead to more fully and inclusively describe the purposes and structures of these ACPA entities.

  • In each place where “State Chapters” are named, the proposed amendments advocate for updating nomenclature to “State and Regional Chapters” instead to more fully and inclusively describe the purposes and structures of these ACPA entities.

Objective #5:

Relocation of References to Governing Board Committee and Task Force Membership Appointments to Standard Operating Procedures

  • The current ACPA Bylaws inconsistently name and provide structure for appointments to the permanent and ad hoc committees and task forces of the Association. The proposed amendments related to this objective relocate all references to committee appointments and duration of terms, beyond Governing Board members, to the ACPA Standard Operating Procedures.

  • Committee appointments and associated operational logistics require greater nimbleness than currently allowed by the Bylaws, and the relocation to the Standard Operating Procedures gives the Governing Board greater flexibility in modifying these operational tasks without requiring a full member vote to make committee appointments or to change term limits, for example.

Objective #6:

Other Administrative and Legal Language Clarification and Clean-up

  • ACPA’s legal counsel has recommended a number of additional changes to the Bylaws to assist with clarity of responsibilities and language. Rather than vote on these changes individually, the ACPA Governing Board is requesting that members review and vote on these changes as a collective of administrative and legalistic proposed changes. These additional changes can be found in the following sections:

    • Article III:  Membership - Sections 3.01, 3.02, 3.04, 3.12, 3.13, and 3.15

    • Article IV:  Officers - Sections 4.03 and 4.06

    • Article V:  Governing Board - Sections 5.03, 5.05, 5.06, 5.10 and 5.13 (new addition)

    • Article VI:  Committees - Section 6.06

    • Article IX:  Amendments - Sections 9.01 and 9.02

    • Article X:  Indemnification (new addition)