BYLAWS

BYLAWS
LOUISIANA CAREER DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION
AN ORGANIZATIONAL AFFILIATE OF THE LOUISIANA COUNSELING ASSOCIATION
 
 
Article I.
Name and Mission
Section 1.            
Name.
The name of this Association will be the Louisiana Career Development Association (LCDA), an organizational affiliate of the Louisiana Counseling Association (LCA) and a Chartered State Division of the National Career Development Association (NCDA)
 
Section 2.            
Mission. 
LCDA is an association for those whose professional identity is career counseling and coaching and whose purpose is fostering career development throughout the life span. LCDA strives to support and enhance the practice of career counseling, to promote ethical and responsible professional practice, to promote communication and exchange among K-12, college, government, and private settings, to encourage cooperation with other organizations related to career development, and to provide leadership and advocacy for the profession of career counseling.  Its mission shall be in accord with the mission of the Louisiana Counseling Association, its parent organization.
 
Article II.
Membership and Dues
Section 1.            
Active Membership.
Any person with an interest in career development is eligible for membership. For those individuals holding a degree outside of counseling who wish to be members of LCDA, they will join LCA as a Regular or Affiliate Member and select LCDA as their division membership.  LCA shall be a condition of membership in LCDA.
 
Section 2.            
Rights and Privileges.
All members in good standing shall be entitled to hold office, vote, attend meetings, and receive publications and other benefits of the Association.
 
Section 3.            
Dues.
Each member in good standing shall pay the annual membership fees.  Failure to pay dues as prescribed by the Association and by LCA shall be interpreted as withdrawal from membership.  At that time membership shall cease to exist.  The membership year shall conform with that of LCA determined by the Executive Council.
 
Article III.
 
Officers and Duties
Section 1.            
Qualifications. 
All officers shall be members in good standing of LCA.
 
Section 2.             
Elected Officers. 
The elected officers shall be President, Immediate Past-President, President-Elect, Secretary, Treasurer, and two Members-at-Large.
 
Section 3.            
Term of Office.
The term of office for the President is one year; and for the Secretary and Treasurer, a two-year term.  Members-at-Large will be elected each year and serve two-year terms.  Terms of office will coincide with the membership year, namely, July 1 through June 30.
 
Section 4.            
Duties of Officers. 
(A)   President. 
President shall be the chief officer of the Association and shall (1) exert leadership in achieving the purposes of LCDA, (2) preside at business meetings and Executive Council meetings of LCDA, (3) submit all reports and other information as requested or required by LCA, (4) appoint chairpersons of both standing and special committees of LCDA which are established under the office of President, as otherwise specified in these Bylaws, (5) serve as ex-officio member of all committees of LCDA, and (6) serve as representative to the Executive Counsel of LCA.
 
(B)    Immediate Past-President. 
The Immediate Past-President shall (1) serve as Chairperson of the Nominations and Elections Committee and (2) serve as a member of the Executive Council.
 
(C)    President-Elect. 
The President-Elect shall (1) succeed to the Office of President at the end of the term of the incumbent President, (2) appoint standing committee chairpersons at the beginning of the term, (3) serve as President in the absence of the President, (4) attend committee meetings at his/her discretion, (5) serve as Professional Development and Program chairperson, and (6) serve as a member of the Executive Council.
 
(D)   Secretary.
The Secretary shall (1) keep all records of the Association, (2) record and disperse the minutes of all LCDA business meetings of the Association and the Executive Council, (3) handle all correspondence of the Association, (4) maintain up to date membership records, (5) serve as membership chairperson in recruiting new members, and (6) serve as a member of the Executive Council.
 
 
(E)    Treasurer.
The Treasurer shall (1) receive all monies belonging to the Association, (2) keep an account of all receipts and expenditures, (3) disburse Association funds subject to approval of the President, (4) compile a mid-year and annual financial report, (5) Prepare and provide an annual budget to LCA, and (6) serve as a member of the Executive Council.
 
(F)    Members-at-Large. 
The two Members-at-Large shall (1) serve as members of the LCDA Conference committee, (2) serve as members of the Executive Council, and (3) perform other duties as needed by the Council.
 
Article IV.
Executive Council
Section 1.            
Membership. 
The Executive Council shall consist of the elected officers (President, President-Elect, Immediate Past-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and two elected Members-at-Large.  The Website Manager shall be an ex-officio member of the Executive Council.  This Council shall be empowered to conduct the business of the association between its annual business meetings.
 
Section2.            
Members-at-Large.
The Members-at-Large shall be elected to serve on the Executive Council.  One member shall be elected each year and serve a term of two years.  This group shall strive to reflect the geographic areas and varied interests and activities of the membership throughout the state.
 
Section 3.            
Duties.
The Executive Council shall be the agency in which the general administrative, legislative, and executive functions are formulated in order to develop the general policies concerning the objectives and purposes of the Association.  The Executive Council will recommend such actions as seems necessary to present these policies to the voting members of LCDA for adoption.  The Executive Council shall conduct, manage, and control the business of the Association by making all necessary policy decisions during the periods between the annual business meetings of the Association, subject to the Constitution of the Louisiana Counseling Association and the Bylaws of LCDA.  The Council will consider all proposed amendments to these Bylaws.
 
Section 4.            
Vacancies.
In the event of a vacancy in any office but that of the President or President-Elect, the Executive Council shall, by majority vote, elect a successor to serve until the next annual election.  If a vacancy occurs in the office of the President, the President-Elect shall complete the unexpired term of office, and shall serve a full term for which he/she was elected.  The Past-President shall perform the duties of the President-Elect until the next election. If a vacancy occurs in any other elected office, the remainder of the term shall be filled by an appointment of the President upon approval of the Executive council.  Upon completion of partial terms, appointees shall be eligible to run for election to that office.
 
Article V.
Committees
Section 1.            
Standing Committees.
The standing committees of the Association shall include Nominations and Elections; Membership; LCDA Conference committee; Career Month; and Website Manager.  Ad hoc committees shall be appointed as deemed necessary by the President in consultation with the Executive Council.  The President shall appoint the committee chairpersons striving for regional representation.  The committee chairpersons shall select their committee members, unless already provided within these Bylaws.
 
Section 2.            
Reporting.
Each chairperson shall submit to the President a mid-year and annual report and a description of committee procedures upon completion of his/her assignments as chairperson.
 
Section 3.             
Composition and Function of Standing Committees.
 
(A)   Nominations and Elections Committee
 
(1)  The Nominations and Elections Committee shall conduct the nominations and elections of the Association and review and recommend procedures for conducting the annual election by mail and e-mail ballot. The election dates shall be consistent with LCA procedures.
 
(2) The Nomination and Elections Committee consist of three people, including the chairperson.
 
(3) The Past-President shall serve as the chairperson.
 
(4) The term of office for the members of the Nomination and Election Committee shall be one year.  If a committee member becomes a candidate for office, he/she shall automatically resign from the Committee and be replaced with a new member by the President.
 
(B)    Membership Committee.
 
(1)     The Membership Committee shall recruit and maintain members for the Association.
 
(2) The Membership Committee shall consist of three members.
 
(3)     The chairperson of the Membership Committee shall be the Secretary.
 
(C)    LCDA Conference Committee.
 
(1)     The LCDA Conference Committee shall plan and conduct the annual LCDA conference and other programs as desired.
 
(2)  The LCDA Conference Committee shall consist of three members.
 
(3)     The President-Elect shall serve as committee chairperson and the two Members-at-Large will serve as the other two committee members.
 
(D)   Career Month Committee.
 
(1)     The Career Month Committee shall plan and conduct activities for Career Month in Louisiana.
 
(2)     The Career Month Committee shall consist of three members.
 
(3)     The Career Month Committee chairperson shall be appointed by the President.
 
(4)     Members of the committee will be selected by the Career Month Committee chairperson and serve for one year.
 
(E)    Other Standing Committees. 
There shall be such other Standing committees as may from time to time be established by the LCDA Executive Council to deal with matters of a continuing or reoccurring nature related to the accomplishments of the general purposes of LCDA.
 
(F)    Special Committees.  
The LCDA Executive Council or the President may establish special committees to deal with matters of an immediate or non-recurring nature related to the specific purposes of LCDA.
 
(G)   Number of Members and Tenure.
The number of members and the tenure of committee members will be established by the Executive Council.
 
 Article VI. Meetings and Reports
 
Section 1.            
Executive Council. 
At least one meeting of the Executive Council shall be called annually by the President.  The President or a majority of the Executive Council may call additional meetings.  At least one-half of the members of the LCDA Executive Council shall constitute a quorum throughout any meeting of the LCDA Executive Council at which official business is transacted.
 
Section 2.            
General Membership Meetings. 
An annual general membership meeting of the Association shall be held yearly at the LCA conference for the purpose of hearing summary reports from officers and committees and conducting such business of the Association as deemed necessary by the Executive Council.         
 
Section 3.            
Committee Meetings.
Meeting of committees shall be called by the chairperson
 
Section 4.            
Mid-Year and Year-End Report
Executive Council officers shall submit a written report of their activities mid-year and year-end to the President.  The chairperson of each committee shall submit a written report of the committee’s activities and recommendations to the LCDA Executive Council as requested.
 
Article VII.
 
Nominations and Elections
 
Section 1.            
Procedures. 
 
(A)    The nominations and elections Committee shall canvas the voting members of LCDA for nominations for elective offices of LCDA.
 
 
(B)     Any member of the Association in good standing shall be eligible for nomination to any office.
 
 
(C)     Guided by the nominations, the Nominations and Elections Committee shall prepare a competitive slate of officers containing, if possible, at least two names for each LCDA office to be filled.
 
 
(D)    The Nominations and Elections Committee shall select nominations to appear on the slate on the basis of qualifications for office, number of nominating votes received from the LCDA membership, and the consent of the nominee.
 
Section 2.            
The officers of the Association shall be elected annually by e-mail ballot, or at the LCDA annual conference or at the LCA Conference (updated wording) as determined by the Executive Council, and the candidates receiving the largest number of votes for each office shall be elected to that office.
 
 
Article VIII. Business Affairs of the Association
 
Section 1.             
Severable or Transferable Interest.
No member shall have any severable or transferable interest in the property of the Association.
 
Section 2.            
Control and Management.
All property of the Association shall be subject to the control and management of the Executive Council.
Any accumulation or disposal of real property, except upon dissolution of the Association, must be approved in advance by the Executive Council.
 
Section 3.              
Disposal Upon Dissolution.
Upon Dissolution of the Association, none of its property shall be distributed to any of the members and all of such property shall be transferred to such other organization or organizations as the Executive Council shall determine to have purposes and activities most clearly consonant with those of the Association, provided that such organizations shall be exempt under Section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code or corresponding provision of the Internal Revenue laws.
 
Section 4.             
Appropriation of Association Funds. 
 
(A)    No appropriations of Association funds shall be made except pursuant to the authority of the Executive Council.
 
(B)     The Executive Council shall adopt an annual budget.
 
Article IX.
 
State and National Representation
Section 1.  
National Career Development Association. 
The President of this Association shall be the delegate to the NCDA Convention.  If unable to attend, the President will ask another member of the Executive Council to represent the state association.
 
Section 2.             
Louisiana Counseling Association. 
The President of this Association shall represent the Association on the Executive Board of LCA.  The President-Elect shall serve in the absence of the President.  
 
Article X.
 
Amendments
 
Section 1.            
Amendments with Previous Notice. 
Procedures for the amendment of these Bylaws with previous notice shall be as follows:
 
(A)    Amendments may be proposed by the LCDA Executive Council, by the Bylaws Committee, or a petition signed by voting members of LCDA in advance of a general business meeting of the Association.
 
 
(B)     Proposed amendments shall be conveyed in person, by mail, or email to the membership at least thirty (30) days preceding the general business meeting.
 
 
(C)     Proposed amendments shall be considered to have been adopted if approved by a majority of votes cast by the voting members of LCDA.
 
Article XI.
 
Nondiscrimination.
 
Section 1.            
Nondiscrimination.
LCA shall not discriminate against any individual on the basis of ethnic group, color, creed, sex, age, disability or sexual orientation.
 
Article XII.
 
Parliamentary Authority
 
Section 1.            
Parliamentary Authority. 
Robert’s Rules of Order, most recent edition, shall govern the proceedings of LCDA not otherwise specified in the Bylaws.
 
 
Updated 06/2018