Proposed By-Law Changes
As you know, the Illinois Association for College Admission Counseling is affiliated with the National Association for College Admission Counseling. In order to remain a member in good standing, we need to adhere to the guiding principles of that organization, especially in the area of Membership and adherence to the Statement of Principles of Good Practice.
From time to time, NACAC reviews the By-laws of its affiliates and makes recommendations to bring us into compliance with NACAC By-laws. Such a review occurred during this fiscal year. Most of the proposed changes involve minor language adjustments and will not affect the way that we conduct IACAC business. Where there are substantive changes in Board policy, these are explained in the rationale below each section.
Respectfully,
The Credentials Committee
Illinois Association for College Admission Counseling By-Laws
New Language:
The purposes for which the corporation is organized are: exclusively educational and are to promote high professional standards in guidance and to maintain maximum communication pertaining to postsecondary admissions at primary and secondary and postsecondary levels in order to serve the interests of students, parents and primary, secondary and postsecondary institutions and promote adherence to the Statement of Principles of Good Practice of the National Association for College Admission Counseling.
Rationale:
Rather than restating the purposes of our Association in each section, this statement, taken from our Articles of Incorporation, covers the entire document. Including language about the Statement of Principles of Good Practice of NACAC makes it clear that IACAC members must adhere to these principles.
Article I. Membership.
Old Language:
Section 1. Voting Membership.
Voting membership in the Illinois Association for College Admission Counseling (IACAC) shall be extended to the following individuals or institutions charged with the responsibility for counseling or admitting students:
A. Any two- or four-year college or university or other postsecondary educational institution which is not-for profit, which is accredited by a regional or state accrediting agency or by a professional accrediting agency noted in the latest edition of the Higher Education Directory published by Higher Education Publications, Inc. or any successor listing approved by the Executive Board, provided that such institution maintains an office or educational facility in the State of Illinois or that it has a professional admission residing counselor within the State of Illinois, and which is in agreement with the purposes of IACAC. Such a member shall be represented by a person or persons charged with the responsibility for counseling or admitting students.
New Language:
A. Any two- or four- year college or university or other postsecondary educational institution which is not-for-profit, which is accredited, as approved by the Executive Board, provided that such institution maintains an educational facility in the State of Illinois or that it has an individual performing the majority of their professional duties within the State of Illinois.
Rationale:
Because we have added a blanket statement at the top which covers all voting membership categories, we no longer need to have all of this verbiage within each section. The language about which accrediting agencies should be allowed has been modified to reflect NACAC’s policies on accreditation. The new language allows the Board, from time to time, to review resources without having to amend the By-laws. NACAC defines an affiliate territory as that which is limited to the location of the members’ institutions or where members perform the majority of their professional duties.
Old Language:
B. Any not-for-profit individual primary or secondary school in the State of Illinois as approved by the Executive Board. which is accredited by a regional or state accrediting agency and which is in agreement with the purposes of IACAC. A member school shall be represented by a person or persons charged with the responsibility for guiding students in planning for postsecondary education.
New Language:
B. Any individual primary or secondary school in the State of Illinois as approved by the Executive Board.
Rationale:
As above, NACAC no longer designates particular accrediting agencies, since there does not appear to be a clear source of accreditation. Unlike post-secondary institutions, secondary or primary schools may be for-profit and still be eligible for voting NACAC membership.
Old Language:
C. Any organization, agency, or institution which is not-for-profit, maintains an office in the State of Illinois, and provides postsecondary counseling, admission and financial aid services and supports the purposes which are in agreement with those of IACAC. Such a member shall be represented by a person or persons charged with the responsibility of performing services related to the counseling or admission of students.
New Language:
C. Any organization, agency, or institution which is not-for-profit, maintains an educational facility in the State of Illinois and provides postsecondary counseling, admission and financial aid services
Rationale:
As above, our blanket statement covers this membership category, and the new language is compatible with that of NACAC. We cannot require a member to live within the state.
Old Language:
D. Any not-for-profit primary or secondary school district or college or university system in the State of Illinois which is in agreement with the purposes of IACAC. A member district or system shall be represented by a person or persons charged with the responsibility for services related to the counseling or admission of students for postsecondary education.
New Language:
D. Any not-for-profit college or university system in the State of Illinois
Rationale:
This is covered in our blanket statement and again, differentiates between for profit post-secondary systems and primary/ secondary systems.
Old Language:
E. Any individual residing in the State of Illinois who provides counseling, admission, or financial aid services for postsecondary education, with professional objectives consistent with the purposes of IACAC, who meets the professional criteria which shall be established by the Executive Board from time to time, and who is not affiliated with (1) a college, university, or other postsecondary educational institution, primary or secondary school, agency, organization, school district, college or university system, which qualifies for membership in IACAC or (2) a proprietary college, university, or other postsecondary educational institution in the State of Illinois.
New Language:
E. Any individual employed by voting member institutions or other non-profit organizations whose professional activities consist primarily of counseling, admission, or financial aid services
Rationale:
Adjustment to comply with NACAC’s policy on affiliate territory, which is not based on individual residency but rather where they work or where their institution/ organization is located. Further, NACAC informed us that we need a separate category for individuals employed at voting member institutions and organizations. We have reordered E and F in order to keep individuals who are employed by member institutions or organizations under those categories and independent or self employed individuals as a distinct category.
Old Language:
F. Any individual residing in the State of Illinois whose activities are in the area of counseling, admission, or financial aid services and who is employed by a not-for-profit organization or is employed at a voting member institution that supports education opportunities for students, with professional objectives consistent with the purposes of IACAC, and who meets the professional criteria which shall be established by the Executive Board from time to time.
New Language:
F. Independent educational consultants or counselors who are self employed or employed by a company providing counseling, admission, or financial aid services to students and/or their parents, as approved by the Executive Board.
Rationale:
Again, NACAC’s affiliate territory definition requires this change. The new language more clearly and directly describes this membership category.
Old Language:
G. Any individual who was actively engaged in providing counseling, admission or financial aid services at one or more National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) or ACAC member institutions for an aggregate of at least 10 years and who is deemed retired under the retirement program of an institution formerly employing said individual; provided in each case, that such individual is not otherwise employed providing counseling, admission or financial aid services.
New Language:
G. Any individual who was actively engaged in providing counseling, admission or financial aid services at one or more National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) or ACAC member institutions who is deemed retired under the retirement program of an institution formerly employing said individual; provided in each case, that such individual is not otherwise employed providing counseling, admission or financial aid services.
Rationale:
This is an actual change in our policy in an effort to be more inclusive. The ten year requirement is out of line with NACAC’s much less restrictive policy for retired professionals. It also allows otherwise eligible retirees who move to Illinois from other states to be welcomed to IACAC, regardless of whether or not their prior institutions were IACAC members.
ARTICLE II. Executive Board.
Old Language:
Section 1. Eligibility.
Any voting member who is actively engaged in guidance pertaining to postsecondary admission is eligible to serve as a member of the Executive Board. In addition any such member shall, prior to election as a Delegate to the NACAC Assembly, be the principal representative of a voting NACAC member institution or a voting individual member of NACAC. Only one person employed by an eligible member organization, agency or institution shall serve as a Delegate to the NACAC Assembly at any time.
New Language:
Section 1: Eligibility
Any voting member is eligible to serve as a member of the Executive Board. In addition any such member shall, prior to election as a Delegate to the NACAC Assembly, be the principal representative of a voting NACAC member institution or a voting individual member of NACAC. Only one person employed by an eligible member organization, agency or institution shall serve as a Delegate to the NACAC Assembly at any time.
Rationale:
This change would allow qualified retirees who would like to stay active in IACAC to serve on the Executive Board. NACAC benefits from encouraging any voting member in good standing to run for the Board of Directors, so long as they have served in other leadership roles within their Affiliates.
Old Language:
Section 5. Loss of Eligibility.
A. In order to remain as an Officer or Director of IACAC or Delegate to the NACAC Assembly, an incumbent must continue to provide post-secondary counseling, admission or financial aid services, be a person charged with responsibility for admitting students, or with responsibility for guiding students in planning for postsecondary education, or with responsibility for performing services relating to the counseling or admission of students as defined in Article I of the NACAC By-Laws; provided that an incumbent shall be deemed to continue to be a person charged with such responsibilities until the one-hundred-eightieth day following the termination for any reasons of such incumbent?s qualifying employment or the date on which such incumbent accepts nonqualifying employment, whichever occurs first.
New Language:
A. In order to remain as an Officer or Director of IACAC an incumbent must continue to provide post-secondary counseling, admission or financial aid services. If an incumbent’s qualifying employment changes, he or she could continue until the one-hundred-eightieth day following such incumbent’s qualifying employment or the date on which such incumbent accepts nonqualifying employment, whichever occurs first.
B. In order to remain a Delegate to the NACAC assembly, an incumbent must continue to provide post-secondary counseling, admission or financial aid services. If a Delegate’s qualifying employment status were to change, he or she could continue as a Delegate until the sixtieth day following such incumbent’s qualifying employment or the date on which such incumbent accepts nonqualifying employment, whichever occurs first.
Rationale:
We have removed unnecessary verbiage, which is now covered in our “Purposes” section at the beginning of this document. While NACAC only allows a 60 day grace period between qualifying employment, IACAC has allowed a 180 day grace period. We feel this is a more appropriate amount of time, especially in a challenging job market and is reflective of most educational calendars. Since NACAC only allows a 60 day period, we must follow that eligibility requirement for delegates to the national assembly. We have added “B” to reflect the difference.
ARTICLE IV. Nominations and Elections.
Old Language:
Section 4. Voting and Election.
A. Two separate written ballots shall be cast at each annual membership meeting. One ballot shall consist of candidates to fill the offices of President-Elect, Secretary (alternate years), Treasurer (alternate years) and the Directorships, the terms of which expire at such meeting and shall be distributed to the voting membership. The other ballot shall consist of the candidates for Delegates to the NACAC Assembly to be elected at such meeting and shall be distributed only to those eligible to vote for Delegates to the NACAC Assembly as determined by Article VI, Section 2 and Section 3, of the By-Laws of NACAC. At each Annual Membership Meeting the ballots shall be counted by tellers appointed by the Chairperson of the Credentials Committee. The candidates securing the highest number of votes cast for each office shall be declared elected and the Most Recent Active Past President shall then publicly announce the names of the newly elected members of the Executive Board to the general membership. In the case of a tie-vote between candidates for specific position(s) on the Executive Board, voting members will revote for said position(s) during the Annual Membership Meeting.
New Language:
A. Two separate written ballots shall be cast at each annual membership meeting. One ballot shall consist of candidates to fill the offices of President-Elect, Secretary (alternate years), Treasurer (alternate years) and the Directorships, the terms of which expire at such meeting and shall be distributed to the voting membership. The other ballot shall consist of the candidates for Delegates to the NACAC Assembly to be elected at such meeting and shall be distributed only to those eligible to vote for Delegates to the NACAC Assembly as determined by the By-Laws of NACAC. At each…during the Annual Membership Meeting.
Rationale:
This section is identical except that we have removed the specific section of the By-Laws to which this refers. If numbering or lettering change in the future, we will not need to revise the By-Laws to reflect changes.
ARTICLE VI. Finance.
Old Language:
Section 2. Dues.
Annual dues shall be determined by the Executive Board with the approval of the membership. Dues may vary between and within different categories of members. Participation in IACAC is dependent upon the payment of dues. Statements for the succeeding year shall be mailed as soon after May 1 as possible. Dues shall cover the period of fiscal year. After January 1, Dues may be prorated by action of the Executive Board.
New Language:
Section 2: Dues
Annual dues shall be determined by the Executive Board with the approval of the membership. Dues may vary between and within different categories of members. Participation in IACAC is dependent upon the payment of dues. Dues shall cover the membership year. Dues may be prorated by action of the Executive Board.
Rationale:
Because school calendars traditionally begin in early fall, the membership year has been changed to October 1-September 30. Our fiscal year will remain June 1-May 31st. Statements will be sent in late summer, but this is a procedure and does not need to be a part of our By-Laws.
Previously revised: May 2010
