Bylaws

I. Name and Purpose

A. The name of this organization shall be the Section on Pediatric Rehabilitation Psychology (Section I) of the Division of Rehabilitation Psychology (Division 22) of the American Psychological Association, herein referred to as the Section and the Division, respectively.

B. The purposes of this Section shall be to promote the general objectives of the American Psychological Association and the Division of Rehabilitation Psychology; to promote healthy development in children with disabilities through direct psychological services, consultation, advocacy, education and research; to provide a prominent voice for the rights of children with disabilities; to identify and address key factors in the disablement of children; to promote the development of models for the delivery of pediatric rehabilitation services; to foster collaboration in the sharing of information among clinicians working in pediatric rehabilitation settings; and to increase the quality and availability of pediatric Rehabilitation Psychology and neuropsychology training opportunities.

C. The Section shall establish no policies that are contrary to the policies of the Division or the American Psychological Association.

II. Membership

A. There shall be three categories of membership in this Section: Divisional member, Associate member, and Student member.

B. To qualify for the status of Divisional member, an individual shall be a member or a fellow of the Division and of the American Psychological Association who has an interest in the scientific or professional aspects of pediatric rehabilitation. A Divisional member shall be entitled to the rights and privileges:

To attend and participate in the meetings of the Section and to receive its
publications:
To hold office, to serve as a voting member on the committees of the Section, and to vote in its elections.

C. To qualify for the status of Associate member, an individual shall be an Associate member of the American Psychological Association and shall have a demonstrated interest in the scientific or professional aspects of pediatric rehabilitation. An associate member of the Section shall:

Be entitled to attend and to participate in meetings of the Section and to receive its publications:
Be entitled to serve as a nonvoting member of the Sections;
Not be entitled to hold office nor vote in Section elections.

D. To qualify for the status of Student member, an individual shall be enrolled in a graduate program or school of recognized standing in a field related to the purpose of this Section. Student members of the Section shall:

Be entitled to participate in meetings of the Section and to receive its
publications;
Be entitled to serve as a nonvoting member on committees of the Section;
Not be entitled to hold office nor vote in Section elections.

E. Student members shall automatically be reclassified as voting members of the Section upon submitting evidence of graduation from the programs and of their establishment of full membership in the American Psychological Association and, for Divisional member status, in the Division.

F. Election to membership shall be accomplished as follows:

Application shall be made to the Secretary of the Section, who may devise a special form for this purpose. Applicants shall state whether they are members, fellows, associate members or student members in good standing of the American Psychological Association and indicate whether they are members of the Division.
Election to membership in this Section will be by a majority vote of the Section’s Board of Directors or by decision of the Secretary, if this function is delegated by the Board.
The Secretary shall notify applicants of their membership status in a timely fashion after action on membership has been taken, and this notice shall specifically indicate the class of membership to which the individual has been approved. Such membership shall not be effective until payment of such Section dues as may be in effect at the time of the election.

G. A member in any membership category who wishes to resign membership in the Section shall indicate that intention in writing to the secretary. Any member who is in arrears of the payment of effective dues or assessments for a period of two years shall be presumed to be have resigned from the Section and shall forfeit all attendant rights and privileges.

III. Officers

A. The officers of the Section shall be President, and President-elect, Past-president, Secretary, Treasurer, and a Representative to the Division.

B. The President shall be a member who has just completed her/his term as President-elect. She/he shall succeed to office at the close of the year after her/his election as President-elect, and shall serve for one year. The President shall preside at all meetings, shall be the chair of the board of directors and shall perform all other usual duties of the presiding officer.

C. The President-elect shall be a Divisional member of the Section elected for a term of one year. The President-elect shall be a member of the board of directors with a right to vote, shall serve as the program chair, and shall perform the duties traditionally assigned to a Vice-president. In the event that the President shall not serve his/her term for any reason, the President-elect shall succeed to the unexpired remainder thereof and continue to serve through her/his own term as President.

D. The Past-president shall be the most recently retired president of the Section, shall serve as a member of the board of directors, and shall serve as chair of the committee on nominations and elections. If for any reason the Past-president cannot complete her/his term of office the office shall remain vacant through the year in which the vacancy occurs.

E. The Secretary shall be a Divisional member of the Section elected for a term of two years. During her/his term, she/he shall be a member and the Secretary of the Board of Directors with the right to vote, shall serve as chair of the membership committee, shall safeguard all records of the Section, shall keep the minutes of the meetings of the Section and of its Board of Directors, shall assist the President in preparing the agenda for business meetings of the Section and of its Board of Directors, shall maintain coordination with the Division in the central office of the American Psychological Association, shall issue calls and notices of meetings, shall inform the membership of action taken by the Board of Directors, shall keep an updated membership mailing list, and shall perform all other duties of a Secretary.

F. The Treasurer shall be a Divisional member of the Section elected for a term of two years. During her/his term she/he shall be a member of the Board of Directors with the right to vote, shall oversee custody of membership funds and property of the Section, shall oversee the receipt of all money to the Section, shall direct disbursements under terms of these bylaws, shall oversee the keeping of adequate accounts, shall prepare the annual budget in consultation with the President and the Board of Directors, shall make an annual financial report to the Section, and in general shall perform the usual duties of a Treasurer.

G. The Section’s representative to the Board of Directors of the Division must be a Divisional member of the Section and is an elected for a term of three years.

H. Newly elected officers shall assume their positions at the same time as those of the Division and shall maintain them until their successors are seated. During the period between their election and the assumption of office, the officers shall be given the title of Officer-designate and shall be ex officio members of the Board of Directors without vote.

I. During the first year of the Section’s operation, a President, President-elect, Secretary, Treasurer and Division representative shall be elected and will assume office immediately after election by a vote of Division members who petitioned to establish the Section. The Secretary shall be elected for a one year term and the Treasurer for a two year term and the Division representative for a three year term in the first year of Section operation. Hereafter, the Secretary and Treasurer shall be elected for a two year term in a staggered sequence.

J. In the case of death, incapacity, resignation or removal from office of any officer except the President or Past-president, the vacant office shall be awarded to the candidate for the position who was, at the time of the most recent past election the first runner-up for the office in question. If the runner-up declines to serve or is for any other reason unavailable, the Board of Directors of the Section shall, by majority vote, elect a successor to serve until the next annual election, at which time the position will be filled by election for the remainder of the term of office. When an individual is appointed or elected to serve the remaining term of his vacated office, such service shall not apply under such limitations on terms of office as may be specified in these bylaws.

IV. Board of Directors

A. There shall be a Board of Directors of the Section. Its membership shall consist of the following persons:

The elected officers of the Section as specified in Article III, Sections A
through G of these Bylaws;
The Editor of the Section newsletter or other publication that may be developed, who shall be an ex officio member of the board of directors without vote. The Editor shall be appointed by the President with the concurrence of the Board of Directors and shall serve for a three-year term, with the possibility of reappointment to additional terms.
The Chairs of all section standing committees, who shall be ex officio members of the Board of Directors without vote.

B. The duties of the Board of Directors shall include:

Exercising general supervision over the affairs of the Section, and the transaction of the necessary business of the Section provided, however that the actions of the Board of Directors shall not conflict with these bylaws and with the recorded votes of the membership and shall be reported to the members at the annual meeting;
Reporting of its activities to the members, and recommending matters for the consideration of the membership;
Filling such vacancies in offices Section is so empowered under the terms of Article III Section I of these bylaws.
Advising the President regarding the appointment of chair persons and members of the committees of the Sections in accordance of these bylaws;
Advising the officers of the Section regarding performance of their duties;
Advising the Representative to the Division as to matters concerning the relationship between the Section and the Division and/or the American Psychological Association and on issues that are currently before or which may be desirable to place before the Division;
Preparing a budget for presentation to the membership of the Section at the annual business meeting and adopting a final budget as amended following member response;
Recommending or approving the disbursement of funds of the Section in
accordance with Article VIII of these bylaws;
Electing new members in accordance with Article II Section F of these
bylaws;
Advising the President the regarding the appointment of the editor of any of the Section’s publications;
Setting policies for the conduct of its own affairs or for the affairs of the Section, provided, however, that such policies are not in conflict with any the terms of these bylaws;
Authorizing procedures or guidelines for the transaction of the business of the Section, provided the same did not conflict with the bylaws of the American Psychological Association, the Division, or the Section.

C. The Board of Directors shall meet at least once each year at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association. Additional meetings may be called by the President with a concurrence of a majority of the members of the Board of Directors.

D. The Board of Directors meeting shall be opened to all members of the Section except at such times as the majority of the Board of Directors may declare an executive session for purposes requiring confidentiality, such as reviewing matters of personnel. Any member of the Section may place a matter on the agenda for a meeting. A majority of the voting members of the board of directors shall constitute a quorum, following due notice of the meeting. Each voting member present shall have one vote and no member may vote by proxy. All decisions of the Board of Directors shall require assent by majority of those voting, except as otherwise noted in these bylaws.

E. Any officer may be removed from office before the expiration of her/his term by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Board of Directors if it appears that the best interests of the Section are not being served by the person in question.

F. With the exception that officers of the Section may serve as committee chairs or as otherwise provided in these bylaws, no individual may simultaneously hold two positions on the Board of Directors.

V. Committees

A. Committees of the Sections shall consist of such standing committees as are provided for by these bylaws and such ad hoc or task force committees that shall be established by the president with the concurrence of the board of directors. Unless reconstituted for a subsequent year or years, the existence of an ad hoc committee shall terminate at the close of the year in which it was established. All committee meetings shall be open to all members of the Section except at such times as executive sessions may be declared for the purposes of discussing confidential matters, such as issues concerning individual members or applicants. In the conduct of committee business, the Chair of the committee shall cast a vote only in the case of ties.

B. Except as otherwise provided in these bylaws, the chairs and all members of the Section’s committees shall be appointed on an annual basis by the President in consultation with the Board of Directors, and shall serve until their successors are appointed and qualified. In the case of a vacancy on a committee, such a vacancy shall be filled in the same manner as initial appointments.

C. The standing committees of the Section shall be:

The Program Committee, which shall be chaired by the President-elect and shall consist of such others as are necessary to conduct the business of the committee for the year. It shall be the duty of the committee to solicit, evaluate and select scientific and professional contributions to be presented as part of the Section’s annual meeting program, in coordination with the Division program committee, Board of Convention Affairs and the American Psychological Association. The chair of the Section’s program committee also serves as the Section’s Representative to the Division’s program committee.
The membership committee shall consist of the Secretary and two other members. It shall be the duty of the committee to solicit numbers and recommend applicants for the various membership categories described in ARTICE II of these bylaws
The committee on nominations and elections, which is described in Article VI, Section A.

D. Each standing committee shall have the privilege of recommending procedures, new policy or policy changes, and/or amendments to these bylaws to the board of directors.

E. The Board of Directors is empowered to authorize the formation of ad hoc or task force committees to accomplish the goals of the Section.

Each ad hoc committee shall have a specific charge for a specific period of time and shall be subject to annual review by the Board of Directors.
The number of numbers and terms of office of ad hoc committee members shall be determined by the Board of Directors.
The members and chair of each ad hoc committee shall be appointed by the
President in consultation with the Board of Directors.
The responsibilities assigned to ad hoc committees may include making recommendations concerning credentialing patterns in pediatric Rehabilitation Psychology and standards for the provision of pediatric Rehabilitation Psychology services, reviewing relevant legislation and regulations, and considering ethical issues confronting pediatric rehabilitation psychologists. All policy statements representing the Section or its committees shall be presented to the Board of Directors for review and approval.

F. All persons serving on the committees of the Sections must hold one of the classes of membership in the Section.

G. It shall be the responsibility of the Chair of each standing and ad hoc committee to submit a report on its operations and recommendations to the Board of Directors by June 30 th of each calendar year.

VI. Nominations and Elections

A. The committee on nominations and elections shall consist of the Past President ex officio as chair and up to three other members of the Section who will be appointed by the President in consultation with the Board of Directors. In the case of the death, resignation, or incapacity of the past-president, the president shall assume the duties of the chair. The committee shall be responsible for implementing the policies required for the nomination and election of officers.

B. The committee on nominations and elections shall solicit nominations from members each calendar year. Only Divisional members shall participate in the nomination of the Section representative to the Division.

C. The nomination committee shall present a slate of nominees to the Board for approval. There shall be at least two candidates for each position to be filled in a given year. In assigning places on the elections ballot, the committee on nominations and elections shall be guided by the number of nominations received by the various nominees who are willing to stand for election, using its discretion in creating slates.

D. After a proposed final election ballot and its slate of nominees has been composed for submission to the membership by the committee on nominations and elections, the chairperson shall submit a report on its actions to the Board of Directors for approval.

E. The officers of the Section shall be elected by a preferential vote of the members on a ballot on which the names shall appear in random order. Only Divisional members of the Section may vote for the Representative to the Division. The committee on nominations and elections shall be responsible for overseeing the mailing of the ballots, the count of the vote, the notification to the Board of Directors of the results of the election, the notification to the members whose names appear on the ballot, and the reporting of the election to the annual business meeting of the Section and in the pages of its publication.

VII. Meetings

A. The Section shall coordinate its program with, and shall participate in, the program of the Division and of the American Psychological Association.

B. There shall be at least one membership business meeting of the Section each year. The purpose of such meetings shall be to provide an opportunity for personal exchange of information and perspectives about matters of mutual concern between the general membership and the members of the Board of Directors. Any member of the Section shall have the right to place a matter on the agenda of a business meeting by directing it to the Secretary or the President at least forty-eight hours before the meeting.

C. A quorum for the annual membership business meeting shall consist of a majority of those Board members present at the national meeting. If a quorum is not present, the Board of directors of the Section shall conduct the business at their next meeting and distribute the results by mail.

D. Other scientific, professional, and/or business meetings of the Section may be called by the President with the concurrence of the Board of Directors.

VIII. Finances

A. The Section reserves the right to establish membership dues as determined by the Board of Directors and to be paid to the treasurer of the Section.

B. The Board of Directors of the Section may set separate dues for student members with such dues to be lower than the annual assessment for the Divisional and the Associate members.

C. As required by the Division bylaws, the Section Board of Directors shall present an annual budget to the Division Board of Directors for informational purposes and for comment during the calendar year preceding the year covered by the budget in question, and submit a final financial report on its operations during the year following the one covered by the report periods

D. The Board of Directors shall prepare an annual budget of anticipated income and expenditures that shall be presented for the review of the members at the annual business meeting.

E. Disbursement of funds of the Section shall be made as follows:

The Board of Directors shall only authorize disbursements within the amounts of the approved budget for purposes that are consistent with the bylaws of the Section, of the Division, or of the American Psychological Association or the recorded actions of the membership.
The Treasurer, with the concurrence of the President, is authorized to reallocate unexpended funds from one category of the approved budget to another, provided only that the total expenses for the year are not exceeded
Once the budget has been approved, disbursements of any amount for items not contained in the approved budget but for purposes harmonious with the objectives of the Section may be authorized by a two-thirds vote of the Board of Directors, provided only that such expenditure will not require an increase in the approved assessment during the fiscal year in which it shall be made.

F. The treasurer or any other officer authorized by the Board of Directors is authorized to sign checks on behalf of the Section or to direct the disbursement of funds duly approved under the provisions of these bylaws.

G. All contracts and other financial documents other than checks, necessary to undertake programs approved by the Board of Directors in accordance with these bylaws shall be executed jointly by the President and the Treasurer.

H. In the event of dissolution of the Section all funds in the Section treasury at that time shall be turned over to Division 22 of the American Psychological Association.

IX. Amendments

A. These bylaws shall be amended only by ballot to all members of the Section. An amendment to these bylaws may be proposed to the Board of Directors or by a petition signed by at least ten percent of the voting members presented to the board of directors. After the Board of Directors has reviewed a proposed amendment, it shall be sent within sixty days to each member. In such mailings, each proposed amendment, other than those limited to minor housekeeping changes to these bylaws, shall be accompanied by statements which specify the arguments for and against the proposed change. The voting period shall then be considered closed sixty days after the mailing and ballots shall then be counted. An affirmative vote of a majority of a majority of the votes cast shall be required to ratify the amendment, which shall then be effective immediately.