BYLAWS: Written by Kelly Gessert, MAA President and Douglas Beck, MAA Past-President
1997.
Revised October 22, 1997
Approved by: Barbara Beck, Douglas Beck, Kelly Gessert, Pam Isaacson and Joanne
Slater
Revised June 1999, Effective January 2000
Approved by A.U. Bankaitis, Steve brown, Brenda Diebold, Pam Isaacson, and Mary
Lewis.
Revised September 2001, Effective January 2002
Approved by Kelly Gessert, Larry Mazzeo, Pam Isaacson, Carol Bergman, and Janet
Napoli.
Revised March 16, 2006, effective April 3, 2006
Approved by Roanne Karzon, President; Clay Franklin, President elect; Steve Brown,
Past President; Lisa Guillory, Secretary; Kathleen Sinks, Treasurer.
ARTICLE ONE: PURPOSE AND INTENTION
1.1 The Missouri Academy of Audiology is an organization of, by, and for audiologists
that was initiated to serve the people of Missouri with hearing and/or balance disorders
through the education, professional growth, development and promotion of the profession
of audiology.
1.2 The bylaws herein are not exhaustive and, therefore, will not address every
potential situation. Rather, the intention of the bylaws is to provide general guidelines
to the Board of Directors when making decision, amendments, rulings and/or judgments
that arise and that pertain to the best interest of the MAA.
ARTICLE TWO: OFFICIAL ADDRESS
2.1 The official mail address of the MAA will be that of the Treasurer elected for
his/her term. At the end of his or her term, the newly elected Treasurer will be
responsible for the change of the mailing address.
2.2 The principal office and phone number of the MAA will be identified as the local
professional office of the current MAA President and will, therefore, change with
each Presidential term.
ARTICLE THREE: MEMBERSHIP
3.1 Members. The membership of MAA shall be comprised of Founders, Members, Student
Members and Professional Affiliates.
3.2 Definitions.
A. Founders will be audiologists who provided the initial financial backing required
to establish the MAA in 1994. Founder status can only be maintained with consecutive
renewal of annual membership dues. The Board of Directors maintains the right to
deny or reinstate founder status.
B. Members will be comprised of audiologists who hold a Masters or Doctoral degree.
C. Student Members shall be enrolled full time or part time in a residential audiology
program and in pursuit of a graduate degree. Audiologists pursuing post-Master’s
education including but not limited to the Au.D. or Ph.D. do not qualify as student
members.
D. Professional Affiliates will be comprised of non-audiology professionals including
but not limited to physicians, speech-language pathologists, hearing instrument
specialists, and the like who wish to participate in the MAA. As an organization
of, by, and for audiologists, student and professional affilliate status does not
entitle individuals to voting privileges or other privileges made available to Members
and Founders.
3.3 Application for Membership. Candidates for membership will submit an application
and application fee that will be established by the MAA Board of Directors. Membership
fees for the Membership year will be due no later than January 31 of the membership
year. Applications will be reviewed by the Treasurer to ensure that appropriate
fees and membership status have been issued. In the event of a discrepancy, the
Treasurer will consult with the Board of Directors to assess application status.
Candidate denied membership may appeal to the Board of Directors for second and
final review of candidacy.
3.4 Annual Renewal. Annual membership dues will be determined by the Board of Directors
and are due by January 31 of the membership year. The Board of Directors may also
establish and apply a “late fee” for membership applications/dues received after
the due date.
3.5 Membership confirmation will be issued after January 31. If a member applies
for renewal membership after January 31, all late dues must be paid prior to member
receiving his/her membership notification.
3.6 Termination of Membership. Any member of the MAA may submit a resignation in
writing to the Board of Directors. The membership shall expire on the date the resignation
is accepted by the Board of Directors and dues that have been paid are not refundable.
If at any time the MAA Board is made aware of a member’s unprofessional conduct,
the Board of Directors reserves the right to discontinue membership for that individual.
If this occurs, the member will forfeit the remaining dues paid for that year and
will not be eligible for reinstatement as a member for a minimum period of one year,
at which time the individual may re-apply. The MAA Board reserves the right to approve
or deny the reinstatement application.
ARTICLE FOUR: MEETINGS
4.1 Time and Locations of the MAA Meetings. The MAA shall hold an annual meeting
within the state of Missouri for the general membership. The Board shall schedule
board meetings at their discretion on an as needed basis.
4.2 Time and Location of CEU Meetings. The Board will be responsible for one annual
meeting, which will offer CEU’s. The Board of Directors will determine the time
and location of this meeting. Additional opportunities for CEU’s will be offered
throughout the calendar year upon the discretion of the Board of Directors. Advance
notification of all educational meetings will be sent to all members.
ARTICLE FIVE: BOARD OF DIRECTORS
5.1 Board of Directors. The MAA shall be governed by the Board of Directors, who
shall initiate and establish policies governing the MAA. The Board shall be responsible
for the executive, financial and managerial affairs of the MAA including the following:
1) addressing state and federal legislative issues and policies affecting audiology;
2) interacting with other organizations and the public in the interest of audiology;
3) managing and maintaining the MAA website, www.maaaudiology.org ; 4) planning
and conducting the annual Scope of Practice Convention and any additional CEU conferences.
The Board may establish committees and task forces as needed to guide and assist
the mission of the MAA.
5.2 Board Meeting. Any meeting that is called or attended by the Board shall consist
of a quorum. A quorum consists of at least three Board Members who are present either
in person or by telephone conference call. If no quorum is present, the meeting
shall not be held. Actions of the Board require the approval of at least three board
members.
5.3 Board action without a meeting. The Board may act without a meeting with the
written consent of at least four Board Members.
5.4 Composition. As of January 1, 2002, the Board shall be comprised of five members
consisting of: President, President-Elect, Past-President, Secretary and Treasurer.
Each of the members of the Board shall be elected by the MAA membership. An administrator
of the MAA may be appointed or hired by the Board to attend administrative functions
of the MAA and/or those in which the MAA is involved. The administrator shall not
have Board voting privileges, nor will the administrator be considered a Board member.
5.5 President. The President of the MAA shall serve as the chair of the Board and
preside over all the meetings of the general membership of the MAA. The President
shall serve a term of one year as President-Elect, one year as acting President,
and another year as Past-President. The duties of the President will include acting
as the primary spokesperson for the MAA. If the President is unable to fulfill his
or her duties as President, the President-Elect shall assume the responsibilities
of the President.
5.6 President-Elect: The President-Elect is a one year term that assumes the progression
of that individual to a one year term of President followed by a one year term as
Past-President. The President-Elect shall assist the President in his or her responsibilities
as deemed necessary by the President. The President-Elect shall serve a term of
one year prior to assuming the Presidency.
5.7 Past President: The President, upon completion of the term of office, shall
serve in the capacity of Past-President for a one year term. The Past-President
shall assist the President as needed.
5.8 Secretary: The Secretary shall serve a two year term and be responsible for
record keeping of the MAA membership list. MAA membership directory and CEU registration
for state and national accounts including AAA and ASHA, requesting and collecting
speaker biographies, vitas and required paperwork for CEU approval, the preparation
and distribution of certificates of attendance, and maintenance of CEU attendance
records in the event of an audit. The Secretary will also be responsible for the
keeping of Board minutes.
5.9 Treasurer: The treasurer shall serve a two year term and assume financial responsibility
of the MAA including balancing of checkbook, paying bills in a timely manner, timely
deposit of collected monies, issuance of honorarium checks to speakers, and oversight
and signatory of MAA issued checks.
ARTICLE SIX: ELECTIONS
6.1 The President shall oversee the nominations for the MAA Board of Directors.
The President shall seek qualified candidates for the Board by September 30.
6.2 Election Process. The names of the Board qualified candidates (i.e., the member
is in good standing) shall be compiled on an official ballot. Ballots will be distributed
to MAA members via standard mail or email. Votes may be forwarded to the President
of MAA via mail, fax or email.
6.3 The results of the election will be tabulated by the President and subsequently
reviewed by the Board. The results will be announced on the website by December
31 of each year. Each candidate will be notified by the President regarding election
results.
ARTICLE SEVEN: AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS
7.1 The Bylaws of the MAA may be altered, amended, or repealed as deemed necessary
by a vote of at least three members of the Board of Directors.
ARTICLE EIGHT: BOARD OF DIRCTORS LIABLITY
8.1 The individual board members of the MAA assume no individual or personal liability
for the actions of the Board or the MAA.
ARTICLE NINE: MISCELLANEOUS ISSUES
9.1 Any issues and protocols not addressed by these bylaws can be denied and ruled
or based on a majority vote of the Board of Directors.