GEORGIA RECREATION AND PARK ASSOCIATION, INC. THERAPEUTIC SECTION BYLAWS Section One: Name ARTICLE I Name and Administrative Office This section shall be known as the Therapeutic Section of the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc. Section Two: Administrative Office The location of the administrative office shall be the professional office of the Section Chairperson. Section One: Purpose ARTICLE II Purpose and Objectives The purpose of the Therapeutic Section is to provide a medium of professional association for all recreation professionals and students interested in working, in any setting, with individuals with disabilities or illnesses. This includes, but is not limited to the following populations: individuals with mental or emotional disabilities, mental retardation or developmental disabilities, physical disabilities, sensory impairments, chemical addiction, or senior adults, or adult or youthful offenders. Section Two: Objectives The objectives of the Therapeutic Section are: A. To complete two educational site visits annually to recruit students to become certified and to join the TR Section of GRPA. B. To offer a minimum of two GRPA CEU-earning opportunities annually for Therapeutic Recreation professionals to expand/extend their knowledge and skill base. C. To provide each member of the section the opportunity to select from several committees to enhance the development of the TR Section and the professional association at large. A. To provide organizations affiliating with GRPA the support needed to develop quality recreational programming for all individuals with disabilities in the F-43 Therapeutic (revised 9-2003)
community (including community, clinical, correctional, long-term care settings and any other settings serving individuals with illness or disability.) E. Membership from the section will attend 75% of section meetings to inform and discuss with TR professionals around the state trends in the field, growth within the profession, and other issues related to the profession. F. Membership from the section will attend 75% of all meetings within the organization at large to inform other recreation professionals about the progress in the section and the importance of serving individuals with disabilities and illness in every community. Section One: ARTICLE III Power of Association The Therapeutic Section shall be an Interest Section of the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc. and shall function in accordance with the Charter and By-Laws of that Association. Section One: ARTICLE IV Section Year The Section year shall correspond with the Georgia Recreation and Park Association. Inc.'s year. Section One: Eligibility ARTICLE V Membership Membership in the Section shall be individuals who are members of the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc., and who represent individual interest or special interest groups primarily concerned with therapeutic recreation or related fields as one aspect of the total leisure and recreation field. Section Two: Categories The membership classification of this Section shall be the same as the membership classification of the Association. F-44 Therapeutic (revised 9-2003)
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Section One: Executive Committee ARTICLE VI Officers A. The officers of the Section shall consist of a Chairperson, Chairperson Elect, Past Chairperson, and Secretary, all of whom shall constitute the Executive Committee of the Section. B. The officers of the Section shall perform the duties usually performed by such officers and as described in Robert's Rules of Order (Revised), together with other such duties as shall be described in the By-Laws or by the governing body of the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc. Section Two: Duties of the Chairperson The Chairperson of the Section shall have the following duties: A. Act as the presiding officer for business and Executive Committee meetings of the Section. B. Represent the Section on the governing body of the Association. C. Keep an accurate account of expenses and income and shall make this available in the Section's annual report. D. Appoint at least one Section member to serve on all GRPA committees, i.e. awards, documents, public policy, etc. Section Three: Duties of the Chairperson Elect The Chairperson Elect of the Section shall have the following duties: A. Become acquainted with the activities of the Section and that of the Chairperson. B. Act as the presiding officer in the absence of the Chairperson. C. Assume the position of Chairperson at the expiration of the term of the incumbent. D. Fill an unexpired term of the Chairperson. E. Represent the Section on the annual conference committee of GRPA. Section Four: Duties of the Past Chairperson F-46 Therapeutic (revised 9-2003)
The immediate Past Chairperson shall have the following duties: A. Serve as a standing member of the Executive Committee B. Serve as Chairperson of the Nominating Committee of the Section. Section Five: Duties of the Secretary The Secretary of the Section shall have the following duties: A. Those duties usually performed by such an officer. B. Serve as chairperson of the Annual TR Workshop Committee. Section Six: Duties of the Executive Committee The Executive Committee of the Section shall have the following duties: A. Establish policies and procedures within the scope of the By-Laws of the Therapeutic Section that are consistent with the Charter and By-Laws of the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc. B. Appoint committee members when appropriate and approve the plan of work of all committees C. Serve on Section committees in an advisory capacity as needed. D. Handle balloting procedures for the Section. E. Fill vacancies by appointment for offices vacated between elections. Section Seven: Training All officers shall be responsible for training their successors. Section Eight: Terms of Office Officers elected shall assume office immediately after installation at the GRPA annual meeting and shall serve one-year terms. Section One: Standing Committees ARTICLE VII Committees Standing committees of the Section shall be as follows: F-47 Therapeutic (revised 9-2003)
A. State Committees 1. A Section representative to each GRPA standing Committee shall be appointed by the Chairperson to ensure section interests are communicated through the GRPA committee structure and to ensure participation by Section members in GRPA activities. 2. The Section representative shall serve as chairperson of Section committees as required to carry out the State and Section programs of work. B. Nominating Committee The Nominating Committee shall submit a dual slate of candidates for offices of the Section to the Chairperson at least sixty days prior to the Annual Conference. C. Annual Conference TR Program Committee The Annual Conference TR Program Committee shall plan therapeutic recreation sessions for the annual conference in accordance with the desires of the Section membership. D. The Annual TR Workshop Committee The Annual TR Workshop Committee shall design and implement a oneday educational program at a reasonable charge to enhance professional development of therapeutic recreators. Section Two: Ad Hoc Committees Ad Hoc committees may be appointed by the Chairperson with the advice and consent of the Executive Committee of the Section as the need arises. A. The Section Chairperson may appoint Special Interest Committees where members identify with a particular interest area. These committees shall consist of Section members with an interest in the area and chaired by a member in good standing appointed by the Chairperson. Section One: Procedures ARTICLE VIII Elections A. Professional members of the Section shall be eligible to vote. F-48 Therapeutic (revised 9-2003)
B. Professional members of the Section shall have one vote, and in order to have that vote recorded at the annual meeting, the member must be present or have returned an absentee ballot before the above said meeting. C. Voting on all Section matters may be handled by mail with the exception of the election of officers and By-Laws amendment(s). Mail votes shall be completed within thirty days after ballots are mailed. Results of mail votes shall be reported at the next meeting of the Section. D. Voting for officers and amendment(s) shall be at the Annual Meeting of the Section, held in conjunction with the GRPA Annual Conference. Members shall be notified of any proposed amendments to By-Laws 45 days prior to this meeting. Any professional member may request an absentee ballot from the Section Chairperson to vote on officers or amendments. All absentee ballots shall be returned to the Section Chairperson seven days prior to the annual meeting. A method will be utilized to ensure that ballots are not duplicated, and when returned are clearly identifiable. The Chairperson shall submit these ballots to be counted with those cast at the annual conference. E. A majority vote by the eligible Section members present shall decide all section matters with the exception of amendments which shall require two-thirds of all votes cast. F. Secret ballots shall be used at the discretion of the presiding officer or Executive Committee for voting on matters before the Section. G. There shall be an election held at the annual business meeting of the Section for Chairperson Elect and Secretary. Section One: Loss of Rights ARTICLE IX Removal of Privileges A Section member shall lose rights and privileges in the Section at any time when rights are lost in the Association. Section Two: Loss of Office A Section Officer may be removed from office by acting in contradiction to Section By- Laws, GRPA, Inc., By-Laws, or by showing irresponsibility with the Section's functioning. A. An officer may be brought up for removal by a petition signed by a majority of the Professional Membership of the Section. F-49 Therapeutic (revised 9-2003)
B. An officer brought up for removal shall be given not less than 15 working days to prepare a defense that shall be presented at a meeting called by notifying professional members of the time and place. C. A 2/3 vote of the professional membership present shall be required to remove an officer. Section Three: Appeals/Reinstatement Any action taken under the auspices of this article may be appealed within 15 working days of the decision. A 3/4 vote of the professional membership present shall be required to reinstate a member or officer. Section One: Meeting Times SECTION X Meetings Meetings of the Section shall be held at the annual TR workshop and the annual conference. Section Two: Additional Meetings Additional meetings of the Section shall be called by the Chairperson or by a call from two-thirds of the Section membership petitioning the Chairperson for a meeting. Section Three: Executive Committee Meetings The Executive Committee of the Section shall hold quarterly meetings or conference calls to carry out the management and official business of the Therapeutic Section. ARTICLE XI Amendments Section One: Introduction of Amendments Amendment(s) to the By-Laws of the Section may be proposed in writing by any member of the Section to the Executive Committee. The committee shall then direct the Documents Committee to study the proposed amendment(s) and to submit its findings to the Executive Committee. Section Two: Notification F-50 Therapeutic (revised 9-2003)
The amendment(s) shall be submitted in writing by the Executive Committee to the entire membership of the Section forty-five days prior to voting. Section Three: Passage A two-thirds majority of all votes cast shall be necessary to affirm the proposed amendment(s). Section Four: Final Approval Upon approval of the amendment(s), the Executive Committee shall petition the Governing Body of the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc. to have the amended By-Laws approved. Section One: ARTICLE XII Parliamentary Reference Robert's Rule of Order (Revised) shall be the parliamentary reference for the Section. Section One: ARTICLE XIII Delegation of Powers The Therapeutic Section shall be an entity of the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc. All powers not expressed in this document are hereby delegated to the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc., Board of Trustees. All powers are granted to this Section by the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc. Any action done by this entity is ultimately the responsibility of the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc. If actions or powers expressed in this document or enmity are not consistent with those of the Georgia Recreation and Park Association, Inc., they will be considered null and void. F-51 Therapeutic (revised 9-2003)