Question 1

Submit Comments by January 5 to Proposed Amendments to CEC’s Bylaws

Accepted Answer

Notice of Proposed Amendments to CEC’s Bylaws

CEC’s Bylaws require that members receive a summary of proposed amendments to the Bylaws and have a 60-day period to comment. Members wishing to comment on the proposed amendment that follows should submit comments to president@exceptionalchildren.org or to the Council for Exceptional Children, ATTN: Sharon Rodriguez, 3100 Clarendon Blvd., Suite 600, Arlington, VA, 22201. The deadline for input is 11:59 p.m. ET, January 5, 2020. All comments will be provided to the Board of Directors. 
 

Proposed Revision:

Remove item f., “To conduct recognition activities,” from Article X (Representative Assembly), Section 6. (Duties) of the Bylaws.
 

Rationale:

The purpose of the Representative Assembly (RA), as stated in CEC’s Bylaws, is to act as “the membership advisory body of The Council.” Accordingly, the RA meeting must be more focused on gathering input regarding CEC initiatives, such as the 2017 input opportunity on the draft IDEA Reauthorization Recommendations, or what CEC/units/divisions can do to address the shortage of special educators.


Over the past several years, a concerted effort has been made by the Representative Assembly Committee to make the meeting more streamlined and move away from formalities and ceremonial items, vestiges from the Delegate Assembly (the previous incarnation of the RA before the 2000 governance reform). One example is having representatives check in at the meeting in lieu of each representative coming to a microphone to report the name of their unit/division and the number of representatives present. 


The RA Committee proposes the following:
 

In Memoriam:

In lieu of reading the names of members who have passed away since the prior RA meeting, names could be included in the last issue of the year of Special Education Today, and possibly observe a moment of silence at the RA meeting. 

 

Courtesy Resolutions: 

RA Courtesy Resolutions recognize individuals who have held a leadership position in CEC at the international level and/or made significant contributions to the international organization. This process is not meant to preclude Units/Divisions from developing their own courtesy resolutions or other recognition activities of their own. 


In lieu of presenting and reading the resolutions at the RA meetings, these would be more appropriately presented by Units or Divisions, where people know the person being recognized. The RA Committee would still have the responsibility for review and approval of requests, and the Pioneers Division’s Resolutions Committee would continue to write the resolutions. Final resolutions would be provided to units/divisions to present at their annual meeting, via their website/newsletter, etc. 
 

The committee believes these changes will allow for the RA to better serve the Board of Directors and the organization by maximizing the opportunity to provide input from a variety of perspectives.

Question 2

Proposed Revision 3: Student and Early Career Committee Restructure

Accepted Answer

The Board of Directors approved changes to the structure of the Student and Early Career Committee as part of its triennial recharter application. The size of the committee will be reduced from seven to six; terms will be changed from two years to three; the two third-year members of the committee will serve as co-chairs; and the two second-year members of the committee serve as the Student and Early Career Representatives to the Representative Assembly.

 

It is this last proposed change that would require amending the Bylaws as follows:

 

ARTICLE X

 

Representative Assembly

 

Section 2. Representatives


	Individuals Eligible to be Representatives:
	
		Individuals eligible to be unit or division representatives to the RA must be members in good standing of The Council and the unit or division of representation at the time of selection (either by appointment or election) and remain so throughout the term of representation.
		Individuals eligible to be sStudent/Early Career membership representatives to the RA must will be the student and early career members in their second year of service on the Student and Early Career Committee and members in good standing of The Council at the time of application and at the beginning of throughout his or her term as student membership representative.
	
	
	Each unit, and division, and the student membership shall select two eligible members to serve as its representatives to the RA.
	Each unit and division shall determine the specific qualifications for eligibility to serve as its representatives to the RA.
	Each unit and division shall develop a process to select representatives as part of its Bylaws. Student representatives to the RA shall be elected by the student membership.
	Each unit, division and the student/early career membership will possess one vote in the RA.

Question 3

Proposed Revision 1: Revision to Member Comment Period on Proposed Bylaws Amendments

Accepted Answer

Revise Bylaws Article XI, Amendments, Section 2. Procedure to Amend, as follows:


	The President shall ensure that notice of any proposed amendment to the Articles of Incorporation or Bylaws is provided to the CEC membership at least 60 30 days prior to the consideration of action implementation on the proposed amendment by the Board of Directors. The notice shall be placed in one of The Council’s official publications. At the President’s discretion, the notice may include the complete text of the proposed amendment(s) but must include a summary of the intent of the proposed amendment(s) with administrative and financial implications.


Rationale:

 

As far as can be determined, the 60-day member comment period on proposed amendments to CEC’s Bylaws has been in place since at least 2000. Executive Services staff reports that, since at least 2010, if not before, no written (as opposed to electronic) input on proposed bylaws revisions has been received.

 

In the age of the internet and email correspondence, the 60-day comment period hampers the ability of the organization to rapidly respond to changes that can positively impact the organization and the field.

Question 4

Proposed Revision 2: Modification to Board Thought Leader Eligibility Criteria

Accepted Answer

Revise the Bylaws Article V (Board of Directors) as indicated below:

 

Section 1. Composition. 


	The board will consist of no fewer than 12 members and no more than 15, including the four officers (specifically, the President, President Elect, Immediate Past President, and Treasurer). The board may appoint up to three voting Thought Leaders to serve on the board each year as needed, which will be in addition to the 12-15 elected Board members. The board has the authority to determine annually the number of board members necessary to fulfill the mission of the organization based on a needs assessment performed by the Leadership Development Committee. Of this number In addition, the CEC Executive Director serves as a non-voting member of the Board. 
	The board may, in its sole discretion, appoint not more than three Thought Leaders to serve on the board each year. A Thought Leader is an individual who is may or may not be a member of CEC and may be outside of the field of special education, education, or disabilities. These individuals may be recruited and selected by the board or LDC at the request of the Board. Thought Leaders bring in-depth knowledge and expertise in one or more areas that represent a pressing need of the board. Thought Leaders are voting members of the Board but are not eligible to become officers.


Section 3. Selection of Members of the Board of Directors.

 

Add:


	Thought Leaders will be appointed by simple majority of the board.


Rationale:

 

By CEC’s definition, “Thought Leaders bring in-depth knowledge and expertise in one or more areas that represent a pressing need of the board.” If there are members with such knowledge and expertise, there should be no reason not to allow them to serve by being appointed by the board, rather than subject their service to the organization to completing  the application process and, than, placing the outcome in the hands of a member election. Further, their value as Thought Leaders would be enhanced by their knowledge of, and experience within, CEC.

 

As the number of board members decreases, it is increasingly difficult to ensure that there is a pool of candidates who can commit to apply for the position of president elect (applicants must have served on the board for at least two years or within the past five years). Having Thought Leaders as additional to other board members helps to mitigate that. In addition, if the board is at its maximum number of 15, the current bylaws would not allow for a Thought Leader position to be filled, even if the board determines a critical need for one or more.

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