ORGANIZATIONAL BYLAWS
NORTHWEST PENNSYLVANIA NURSE PRACTITIONERS ASSOCIATION
REVISED October, 2008
ARTICLE I - NAME AND PURPOSE
Section 1: The name of this organization shall be the Northwest Pennsylvania Nurse Practitioners Association.
Section 2: The purposes of this organization shall be:
a. To promote quality standards of practice in health care delivery.
b. To improve communications among nurse practitioners, other healthcare professionals, and the community.
c. To address political and legislative issues pertinent to nurse practitioners in the delivery of health care.
d. To promote the role of NPs to the public, legislators, policy makers, and other healthcare professionals.
e. To design and implement continuing educational opportunities for nurse practitioners.
f. To foster individual and group research projects.
Section 3: The organization is composed of members from Northwest Pennsylvania and surrounding area.
ARTICLE II - MEMBERSHIP
Section 1: Membership shall include graduated and students of educational programs which specifically prepare registered nurses to be nurse practitioners and/or nurse midwives. Students are considered associate members.
Section 2: Voting privileges shall be afforded to paying members. These privileges are forfeited upon failure to pay dues.
ARTICLE III - DUES
Section 1: All members of this organization shall pay annual dues, which are due on May 1st of each year. The annual dues shall cover the calendar year and be determined by majority vote of the membership. Student dues are one-half the price of full dues.
ARTICLE IV – OFFICERS/EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
Section 1: The officers of this organization shall be President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer, who shall be elected as hereafter provided under Article X. Other members of the executive committee shall include representative(s) to the Pennsylvania Coalition of Nurse Practitioners, appointed chairpersons of committees and the directors of communications and education. Student NPs are not permitted to hold office. Students may serve on committees, but not as chairpersons.
ARTICLE V - TERMS OF OFFICE
Section 1: No officer shall be elected to serve in the same office for more than two consecutive terms. Terms shall run for two consecutive years. The President and the Secretary shall be elected in the even calendar years. The Vice President and the Treasurer shall be elected in the odd calendar years.
Section 2: Unexcused absences from two consecutive meetings are considered resignation from the office.
Section 3: Association members may remove for good cause any elected officer from their position, at a scheduled meeting and by two-thirds vote, as long as a quorum as defined in Article VIII is present.
ARTICLE VI - DUTIES OF OFFICERS
Section 1: The officers of this organization shall constitute the Executive Committee.
Section 2: The President shall chair the organization and the Executive Committee, in addition the President shall:
a. Preside at all meetings
b. Appoint committees not otherwise provided for by the Bylaws.
c. Serve as ex-officio member on all committees, except the Nominating Committee.
d. Sign all certificates, contracts, or other instruments requiring signature.
e. Appoint a member to fill a vacancy in any elected position for the unexpired term of office, with the approval of the Executive Committee.
Section 3: The Vice President shall assume the duties of the President in his or her absence and shall: a. Coordinate the activities of the appointed and standing committees. b. Arrange for continuing education program for business meetings not held at the Annual Conference and prepare flyer to be sent by the Secretary to the membership.
Section 4: The Secretary shall:
a. Keep a record of proceedings of all meetings and post a copy on the NPNPA Website.
b. Notify officers and committee members of their election or appointment.
c. Send notices of meetings and post on the NPNPA Website.
d. Keep an accurate list of members.
e. Sign such official correspondence as deemed appropriate to the secretary’s office.
Section 5: The Treasurer shall:
a. Receive and deposit all funds in the name of the organization in a savings institution designated by the Executive Committee.
b. Disperse these funds as authorized by the membership through checks signed by the Treasurer. In the event of the inability of the Treasurer to act, checks may be signed by a designated individual (current or past president).
c. Present an annual budget for the ensuing fiscal year at the annual meeting. d. Consult with an independent accountant every one to three years to ensure filing requirements are met (i.e. W9-tax exempt form).
e. Pay the annual fees for the NPNPA domain name, e-mail and website.
f. Provide a treasurer report at each meeting held during the calendar year.
g. Collect applications for annual scholarship awards; 1- $500 for doctoral student and 1- $500 or 2- $250 for CRNP student
Section 6: The Coalition Representative(s) shall attend meeting and be a member of the Pennsylvania Coalition of Nurse Practitioners, and report on the activities of the Coalition to the members of NPNPA.
Section 7: The Executive committee may appropriate funding, in the amount up to $500.00, for activities consistent with the purposes delineated in Article I, Section 2. This funding may be appropriated without the general consensus of the membership.
ARTICLE VII - MEETINGS
Section 1: Meetings shall be held a minimum of three times a year or as deemed necessary by the officers, or at the request of five or more members.
Section 2: The annual meeting shall be held at a time determined to be the most convenient for that year.
ARTICLE VIII - QUORUM
Section 1: At any scheduled meeting, a quorum shall consist of at least nine members with voting privileged as defined in Article II, Section 2, plus at least two members of the Executive committee. Other members may serve as a proxy for the executive committee as delegated.
ARTICLE IX - COMMITTEES
Section 1: A Nominating committee shall be elected by the membership at the spring meeting and shall consist of at least three and not more than five members. The committee shall prepare a slate of one or more nominees for each office to be filled. The Committee shall submit the slate to the President one month before the annual meeting.
Section 2: Other standing committees, such as the Scholarship and Conference committees, will be composed of members of the NPNPA. The Scholarship committee will evaluate nurse practitioner student applicants for eligibility for the annual NPNPA scholarship in the amount determined by this committee. The Conference committee will coordinate the annual conference, the time and location determined by this committee. Communications and education directors will be appointed by the members of the executive committee.
Section 3: Ad Hoc committees shall be appointed by the President and will initiate activity necessary to carry out assigned responsibilities.
ARTICLE X - ELECTIONS
Section 1: Elections shall be held at the last meeting of the year.
Section 2: All elections shall be by secret ballot.
Section 3: The slate of officers shall be presented at the final meeting of the calendar year by the Nominating Committee and voted upon at that time. The Nominating Committee shall count the votes.
Section 4: The nominees who receive the highest number of votes shall be declared elected. In case of a tie, a second vote will be conducted. If the results remain a tied vote, the choice shall be decided by lot to be drawn by a member to be designated by the President.
Section 5: The incumbent President shall announce the election results and the elected officers shall assume their responsibilities on January 1st of the next calendar year.
Section 6: The Secretary’s minutes shall serve as the official record of election.
ARTICLE XI - AMENDMENTS TO THE BYLAWS
Section 1: Any proposed amendments to the bylaws shall be distributed to the membership one month prior to the meeting of the organization at which the amendment is to be discussed. The Bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of voting members present as long as there is a quorum present.
Section 2: Bylaws will be reviewed as is deemed necessary by an executive officer, but no less often than every two years.
ARTICLE XII - EFFECTIVE DATE
Section 1: These Bylaws and any amendments hereto shall become effective upon adoption.
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