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Kansas Mental Health Counselors Association ByLaws -Listed Below |
Report July 2004 Report November 2005 Report July 2006
Report March 2007 Report September 2007
Meeting Minutes March 2007 Meeting Minutes March 2008
President:
Theresa Clark
3000 Northrdige Ct.
Hays, KS 66724
| Kansas Mental Health Counselors Association ARTICLE I: NAME AND PURPOSES Section 1. Name. The name of the Association shall be the Kansas Mental Health Counselors Association, a division of the Kansas Counseling Association and a State Division of the American Mental Health Counselors Association. Section 2. Purposes. The purposes of this Association are as follows: a. To promote the profession of mental health counseling. b. To provide a system of information exchange between mental health counselors. c. To provide programs to mental health counselors to assist the updating and enhancing of competencies. d. To promote legislation which advances and recognizes the profession of mental health counseling. e. To provide a public forum for mental health counselors to address the social and emotional needs of their clients. f. To provide an alliance with counselors in other work settings to advance the entire profession of counseling. g. To promote minimal training standards necessary for mental health counselors. h. To promote scientific research and inquiry into mental health concerns. i. To provide a liaison on the state and national level with other professional groups to assist the advancement of the mental health field. j. To provide the public with information concerning the role and function of the mental health counselor. k. To promote equitable licensure and certification for counselors on the state and national level. ARTICLE II: MEMBERSHIP Section 1. Membership in KMCHA shall be by individual. KMHCA members must pay annual dues and be a member of KCA. Section 2. Types of membership. a. Professional: Professional members must hold a Masters or higher degree in counseling or a related field. b. Regular: Regular members will be those whose interests and activities are consistent with those of the Association but are not qualified for Professional memberships. Students and retired individuals who wished to be active in the Association would be regular members unless they were qualified for Professional status. Student members must be enrolled-in a planned program leading to a degree in mental health counseling or a related area from a graduate school of recognized standing and who is planning to become a mental health counselor. Students and retired members would pay dues of one-half the regular rate. Section 3 Dues. Annual Association dues shall be recommended by the Executive Committee and approved by a majority vote of the members present in a regular business meeting. Dues will be collected by the treasurer of the Kansas Counseling Association who will then forward the dues monies to the Association's treasurer. Section 4 Ethical Standards. Members of KMHCA shall abide by the ethical standards of ACA and/or AMHCA. Section 5 Severance of Membership. a. A member shall be dropped for non-payment of dues. b. A member shall be dropped from membership for any conduct that is in conflict with these By-laws and the Code of Ethics of the American Counseling Association and/or the Code of Ethics of the American Mental Health Counselors Association. Any complaints against a member for unethical and/or unprofessional conduct shall be handled according to the Policy and Procedures for Processing Complaints of Ethical Violations as established by the Kansas Counseling Association. ARTICLE III: MEETINGS OF THE ASSOCIATION Section 1. The official business year of the Association shall be that of the Kansas Counseling Association. Section 2. An annual meeting of the Association shall be held in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Kansas Counseling Association. Section 3. The President may, with the approval of the Executive Committee, call additional meetings of the Association when necessary or desirable. Section 4. The Secretary shall mail announcements of the annual meeting and any additional meetings of the Association to all members at least twenty (20) days prior to the meeting. ARTICLE IV: OFFICERS Section 1 Officers The officers of this Association shall be a President, President-elect, Immediate Past President, Secretary and Treasurer. Section 2. President The President shall be the Chief Executive officer of the Association and Chairperson of its Executive committee. The President shall appoint the chairpersons and members of all committees unless otherwise specifically provided for in these Bylaws or by the motion establishing such committees. The President shall serve as representative to the Executive Committee of the Kansas Counseling Association and shall be the representative to the American Mental Health Counselors Association. Section 3. - President-Elect The President-elect shall act as President at all Association and Executive committee meetings in the absence of the President and shall succeed to the presidency at the expiration of the term as President-elect. Section 4. - Past President The Immediate Past President shall serve on the Executive Committee for one year following expiration of his/her presidential term, and shall serves as Chair of the Nominations and Elections Committee. Section 5. - Secretary The Secretary shall keep all records of the current activities of the Association and its Executive Committee, and provide a report to the membership at the annual meeting of the Association. Section 6. - Treasurer The Treasurer shall have custody of all the funds of the Association and other properties belonging to the Association. The Treasurer shall deposit all funds of the Association according to the financial policy of the Kansas Counseling Association. The Executive Committee shall prescribe methods and procedures for authorizing the expenditure of and the accounting for such funds. The Treasurer shall provide a report to the membership at the annual meeting of the Association. Section 7. Each officer shall be a member in good standing and shall have been so for at least one year previous to nomination. In addition, each officer must be a member of the American Counseling Association and the American Mental Health Counselors Association. No member is eligible to serve in the same office for more than two consecutive terms in office. Section 8. The term of office for the President, the President-elect, the Secretary and the Treasurer shall be one year. Section 9. In the Event that the President, President-elect, Secretary, or Treasurer should resign or be unable to complete their unexpired terms, their positions - shall be filled in accordance with Article VII, Section 5, of these Bylaws. ARTICLE V: EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Section 1. The Executive Committee shall be the agency through which the general administrative and executive functions of the Association shall be carried out. It shall conduct, manage and control the business of the Association between official meetings of the Association. Section 2. The Executive Committee of this Association shall be composed of: a. the officers of this Association. b. the chairpersons of the standing committees. c. other persons appointed by the President and approved by the Executive Committee. Section 3. All members of the Executive Committee of this Association shall be voting members. Section 4. To be eligible for appointment to chair a standing committee or otherwise be appointed to the Executive Committee, the individual must be a voting member of the Association. ARTICLE VI: COMMITTEES Section 1. The standing committees of the Association shall be: a.Credentialing and Licensure Committee shall be responsible for monitoring the state and national legislatures and other appropriate regulatory bodies and to advise and inform the Association of the developments relative to these groups that affect the welfare and working conditions of mental health counselors. b.Membership Committee shall seek ways to increase the membership of this Association through the addition of new members and shall provide guidance for retention of members. c.Nomination & Elections Committee to be chaired by the immediate past-president, shall be responsible for carrying out nominations and election procedures in accordance with these Bylaws and the Bylaws of the Kansas Counseling Association. d.Program Committee shall be responsible for the programs and arrangements for all meetings of the Association. e.Publications Committee shall coordinate and direct all publications of this Association. f.Public Relations Committee shall initiate, encourage and direct activities to build good public relations. g.Resolutions Committee shall solicit and develop appropriate resolutions to be presented to the membership of the Association at the annual meeting, such resolutions to be consistent with the overall purposes of the Association. Section 2. Special committees may be authorized by the Association or by the Executive Committee. Such committees shall continue for not more than two years unless otherwise specified in the motions establishing them. Section 3. The Chairperson of each committee shall serve for a period of one year, but may be reappointed for one additional year. ARTICLE VII: ELECTION OF OFFICERS Section 1. The Nominations & Elections Committee shall prepare an official slate of nominees for the positions of President-elect, Secretary and Treasurer and for the President when necessary. This Committee shall take into consideration the individual's qualifications for office, geographical location, the nominee's fields of interest, and the individual's consent. Section 2. Election of officers shall take place prior to the close of the business meeting in the spring with members of KMHCA in good standing participating in the voting. The selection of balloting procedure shall be determined by the Executive committee and shall be one of the following: a. By mail if members receive their ballots at least thirty days prior to the Annual Business Meeting of KMHCA. b. By written ballot at the annual Spring Business meeting of KMHCA with the members in attendance voting. In either case, the nominee receiving the most votes is elected. Section 3. Elected officers will assume the duties of their office on June 1 the year of their election in accordance with the policy of the Kansas Counseling Association. Section 4. In case of a vacancy in the office of President, the President-elect shall succeed to the President's unexpired term and continue through the term for which elected. In case of a vacancy in any of the other offices, the Executive Committee shall have the power to fill the vacancy until the next regular election. ARTICLE VIII: CONDUCT OF BUSINESS Section 1. The Constitution and Bylaws of the Kansas Counseling Association shall govern the proceedings of this Association not otherwise specified in these Bylaws. Section 2. A quorum for the transaction of business by the Association shall consist of the members of the Association present at any Association meeting to which written notice was duly given. Section 3. A majority of the authorized membership of the Executive Committee shall constitute a quorum for conducting the business of that Committee. ARTICLE IX: AMENDMENTS TO THESE BYLAWS Section 1. Meeting Procedures Except as provided in Section B, below, amendments to or revisions of the By-Laws may be acted upon only at a designated business meeting of the Association. If presented in writing to all members of the Association at least thirty (30) days in advance of the meeting at which it will be submitted for a vote, such an amendment or revision may be adopted by two-thirds (2/3) vote of the members present. Any amendments or revisions not presented at least thirty (30) days in advance to all members of the Association may be adopted by at least a four-fifths (4/5) vote of the members present at the general meeting. Section 2. Mail Procedures If in the judgment of the Executive Committee, action on a proposed amendment to or revision of the By-Laws is desirable before the next KMHCA Business Meeting, it may be taken through a mail ballot of the Association. For adoption, amendments to or revision of the By-Laws require two-thirds (2/3) affirmative votes from the members returning ballots within the succeeding thirty (30) days from the date of mailing the ballots. |
| A Branch of the American Counseling Association |