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Bylaws

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American Psychology-Law Society. (2013, September 18). Bylaws of the Student Committee of the American Psychology-Law Society. American Psychological Association. https://www.apadivisions.org/division-41/education/students/bylaws

  1. The name of this committee shall be the American Psychology-Law Society (Society)/Division 41 of the American Psychological Association (Association) Student Committee (Student Committee).
  2. The Executive Committee of the Society (Executive Committee) governs the Student Committee and must approve any modifications to these By-Laws or the Student Committee Policies and Procedures.
    1. The Student Committee Chair is an ex officio, voting member of the Executive Committee.
    2. The Executive Committee allocates a budget to the Student Committee to enable the Student Committee to effectuate its purpose. The Student Committee submits a past-year accounting and budget request annually to the Executive Committee.
    3. These By-Laws are intended to be consistent with the Society’s By-Laws. In the event of any conflict between the two, the Society’s By-Laws control.
  3. Regarding its purpose and mission, the Student Committee works to advance the interests of Student Affiliates within the Society, including by enhancing communication among Student Affiliates and between Student Affiliates and other members in the Society, enhancing the participation of Student Affiliates in Society affairs, and generally advancing the professional development of Student Affiliates.
  1. Student Affiliates are undergraduate or graduate students who join the Society.
  2. Minimum membership dues are set by vote of the Executive Committee and may be imposed on all members, including Student Affiliates.
    1. Non-payment of dues for two consecutive years is considered as equivalent to resignation from the Society.
  1. Student Committee Officers (Officer) collectively govern the Student Committee and develop student programming.
    1. All Officers participate in periodic meetings throughout their terms via distance communication technology, in addition to in-person meetings at the Society’s annual conference and the Association’s annual convention. The Chair also participates in Executive Committee meetings, with the Chair-Elect accompanying the Chair to in-person Executive Committee meetings for training purposes.
    2. Each Officer contributes a minimum of five hours of work per month on any outstanding Student Committee projects. The Chair and Chair-Elect might need to complete up to five hours of work per week on Student Committee projects.
  2. The Student Committee consists of a Chair, Chair-Elect, immediate Past-Chair, Secretary, Communications Officer, Campus Representative Coordinator, and three Members-at-Large—a Clinical Liaison, an Experimental Liaison, and a Law Liaison. The term for each position is one year, although the Chair-Elect automatically transitions into the role of Chair for the next year, and the Chair rotates into the role of Past-Chair.
  3. With the exception of Chair, each Officer position is filled via a yearly-scheduled election. The Chair constitutes the second year of a three-year-term cycle that begins with election as Chair-Elect. The Chair-Elect then automatically serves one year as Chair, followed by one year as Past-Chair.
    1. The Student Committee oversees its own election process, which is held in the summer of each year. The Student Committee uses its communication outlets to inform Student Affiliates of the self-nomination and voting processes.
    2. All candidates self-nominate themselves for Officer positions, and only Student Affiliates who are continuously enrolled as a graduate student in pursuit of a terminal degree are eligible to self-nominate.
    3. Candidates for the Member-at-Large/Liaison positions must be enrolled through the academic year of the term in office in a graduate program consistent with the Liaison role: for Clinical Liaison, a graduate program (e.g., MA, MS, PsyD, or PhD) in clinical, counseling, or school psychology; for Experimental Liaison, a graduate program (e.g., MA, MS, or PhD) in experimental psychology (i.e., a non-clinical, research-focused degree program); and for Law Liaison, a graduate program (e.g., JD, JD/PhD, JD/PsyD, JD/MLS, JD/MA, LLM, MLS, or MSL) in legal studies. Determination of whether a nominee meets the requirements of a particular liaison position will be made by the Chair and Chair-Elect prior to elections, with the Past-Chair breaking any ties.
    4. There are no other prerequisites for running for any of the Officer positions.
    5. In the event a candidate for a Student Committee position is in violation of election rules promulgated by the Student Committee during that election cycle, the candidate will be disqualified by consensus of the Student Committee Chair and the Society’s President.
    6. All Student Affiliates are eligible to vote for self-nominated candidates.
    7. If an election does not result in all vacant Officer positions being filled, another election will be scheduled immediately to fill the vacant positions. Prospective candidates will again need to self-nominate themselves to be considered.
      The outgoing and incoming Officers officially transition at the Society’s business meeting at the Association’s annual convention.
  4. Each Officer performs the standard duties of his or her respective position in addition to other tasks assigned by the Student Committee.
    1. Chair: The Chair leads and oversees the Student Committee and its development of student programming. He or she presides at all Student Committee meetings and in general performs all duties incident to the office and such other duties as may be prescribed by the Student Committee. The Chair is responsible for ensuring that the Student Committee is meeting all of its obligations and responsibilities, and that all Officers are acting in accordance with the Student Committee’s By-Laws and satisfying the duties of their positions. The Chair is also responsible for the Student Committee’s budget. In addition, as an ex officio, voting member of the Executive Committee, he or she is responsible for attending all meetings connected to that role and for serving as the chief liaison among Student Affiliates, the Student Committee, and the Executive Committee.
    2. Chair-Elect: Duties of the Chair-Elect include supporting the Chair with student programming, overseeing the Student Committee-coordinated presentation awards, attending in-person Executive Committee meetings with the Chair, and creating the past-year committee report and budget request for the following year. The Chair-Elect will also assist the Conference Co-Chairs in planning and preparation for the Society’s annual conference, as needed. If the Chair is unable to act on behalf of the Student Committee, the Chair-Elect will assume the responsibilities of Chair.
    3. Past-Chair: The Past-Chair assists the Chair with the oversight and activities of the Student Committee on an as-needed basis. The primary role of the Past-Chair is to serve as a consultant to the Chair and to support the Chair in his or her duties, as needed. The Past-Chair will participate in Student Committee meetings only as needed, and will vote on motions only in the event of a tie.
    4. Secretary: The Secretary is responsible for keeping minutes of Student Committee meetings, serving as custodian of Student Committee records, and supervising the Student Committee’s publications and printing (e.g., student conference guide, t-shirts, forms). The Secretary may also be tasked with heading student programming that seeks to connect Student Affiliates (e.g., conference and convention roommate finder, shared interests databases). The Secretary will also assist the Conference Co-Chairs in planning and preparation for the Society’s annual conference, as needed.
    5. Communications Officer: The Communications Officer is responsible for all Student Committee communications via social media, including regularly advertising student programming and posting other miscellaneous content relevant to Student Affiliates. To this end, the Communications Officer is expected to post to, e.g., the Student Committee Facebook page, and other social media outlets at least twice per week. The Communications Officer is also responsible for supervising the Student Committee social media sites to ensure continuous compliance with the Association’s social media/forum policies. The Communications Officer also coordinates with the Society’s Social Media Committee, as needed.
    6. Campus Representative Coordinator: The Campus Representative Coordinator is responsible for overseeing the Student Committee Campus Representatives program. This includes regular outreach, communication, supervision, and record keeping duties. The Campus Representative Coordinator is also responsible for planning events or programs to recognize the contributions of the Campus Representatives (e.g., identifying a Campus Representative of-the-month or term; planning a Campus Representative Appreciation event at the Society’s annual conference).
    7. Members-at-Large/Liaisons: The Members-at-Large or Liaisons each represent a particular area for Student Affiliate professional development.
      1. Clinical Liaison: The Clinical Liaison serves as the Student Committee representative for Student Affiliates with clinical interests, overseeing student programming relevant to such students (e.g., internship resources; clinical post-doctoral resources).
      2. Experimental Liaison: The Experimental Liaison serves as the Student Committee representative for Student Affiliates with experimental or research interests, overseeing student programming relevant to such students (e.g., experimental post-doctoral position resources; grant/research funding resources).
      3. Law Liaison: The Law Liaison will serve as the Student Committee representative for Student Affiliates who study law, overseeing programming relevant to such students (e.g., law school and legal resources).
      4. Diversity Liaison: The Diversity Liaison serves as the Student Committee representative for Student Affiliates who identify with any historically underrepresented group (including race, ethnicity, gender, religion, sexual orientation, first generation, ability, and any other such group as may be identified), providing a voice to those students in programming, activities, and resource allocations decisions by the Student Committee. The Diversity Liaison will be entrusted with a responsibility to promote a process of self‑reflection and critique, continuous analysis of power dynamics, and developing mutually respectful relationships amongst the Student Affiliates. The Diversity Liaison also coordinates with the Minority Affairs Committee, as needed.
  5. For voting purposes, a quorum exists when a preponderance (i.e., more than 50 percent) of Officers are present at a meeting. The Student Committee establishes and amends Student Committee operations by majority vote of a quorum. Any Officer can request that an issue be discussed and submitted to a vote. Voting can be conducted in any reasonable way, including through electronic ballot, via distance communication technology, or in person at a meeting of the Society.
  6. In the event that a Student Committee Officer is unable or failing to meet the responsibilities of his or her position, the Chair and Chair-Elect work with the Executive Committee to resolve the matter in a fair and reasonable manner, which may include removal of the Student Committee Officer. If the Chair, Chair-Elect, and Executive Committee agree that removal of an Officer should be pursued, the other Officers will proceed to vote on that Officer’s removal. An Officer will be removed from his or her position if a preponderance of the other Officers vote in favor of removal.
  1. Officers develop student programming for the Society’s annual conference, for the Society at the Association’s annual convention, and generally throughout their terms.
    1. “Student programming” refers to events and resources that, consistent with the Student Committee’s purpose and mission, are relevant and useful to Student Affiliates.
    2. In charting student programming for the term, each cabinet of Officers considers student programming effectuated by past cabinets. However, a respective Student Committee cabinet is not bound to continue any student programming from past years that is not indicated with specificity in these By-Laws or that is preceded by “e.g.” That is, specifically indicated student programming that is immediately preceded by “e.g.” is not considered mandatory student programming. Student programming that is specifically indicated in either source and not preceded by “e.g.” is mandatory and must be continued until it is removed from the Student Committee’s By-Laws by the amendment process.
    3. In deciding whether Officers should be eligible to apply for Student Committee-coordinated awards each year, each Student Committee cabinet should be mindful of the appearance of impropriety.
  2. The Student Committee submits a committee update report in the September, February, and June editions of the Society’s monthly e-news.
  3. The Student Committee communicates with Student Affiliates and, when appropriate, the Society as a whole, via the Society’s electronic mailing lists and other communication outlets (e.g., social media, Campus Representative listserv).
  1. The Student Committee can propose By-Laws amendments through its voting process for subsequent approval by the Executive Committee. Proposed amendments become effective upon Executive Committee approval.
Date created: 2013
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