CHESPRA Bylaws
Chesapeake Chapter Bylaws
NATIONAL SCHOOL PUBLIC RELATIONS ASSOCIATION
(updated March 2025)
Article I. Chapter Name
This organization shall be known as the Chesapeake Chapter, or informally referred to as The Chesapeake School Public Relations Association (CHESPRA), hereafter referred to as the Chapter, of the National School Public Relations Association, hereafter referred to as the Association.
Article II. Obligations
This Chapter will conduct its operation in accordance with the Bylaws of the Association.
Article III. Purposes and Objectives
The Chapter is organized and shall be operated exclusively for charitable, scientific, and educational purposes, as may qualify it as exempt from Federal income tax under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, or any corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue Law. More specifically, such purposes include, but are not limited to:
- The purposes and objectives of the Chapter shall be: (1) to serve the citizenry of Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia by promoting an understanding of the goals, aims, accomplishments, and needs of the schools within these four jurisdictions; and (2) to provide professional development for its members.
- The Chapter shall seek to accomplish its purposes and to achieve its objectives: (1) by encouraging the use of sound public relations practices by all those at work in the schools within the Chapter jurisdiction; (2) by placing before the citizens facts and viewpoints that will lead to better understanding, appreciation, and support of their schools; and (3) by developing materials that will assist the schools within the Chapter jurisdiction in building an increased public understanding of the role of public education.
Article IV. Membership
There shall be three membership categories to help individuals, school districts/divisions and other organizations take advantage of the Chapter’s services. Membership levels and fees are established by the Chapter’s Board.
Section 1. Professional Membership – Open to any individual who has primary responsibilities in the field of public school education, communication and public relations.
Section 2. Institutional Membership – Open to a public school district/division or public school educational association or agency or education foundation whose primary purpose is to support a public school district/division or an individual public school within the Chapter’s jurisdiction.
Section 3. Special Class Memberships – Special class members outlined below are not eligible to vote or hold office in the Chapter.
- Student Membership – Student members are individuals who are pursuing full-time coursework in public relations or education at accredited colleges or universities.
- Retiree Membership – This membership is reserved for retired school public relations practitioners who are interested in continuing to interact and network with CHESPRA members in a non-business relationship.
Article V. Officers
Section 1. Elected officers of the Chapter shall be president, president-elect, vice president of membership, vice president of public relations, vice president of awards and recognition, secretary, treasurer and vice-treasurer. In addition, an Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) chair and regional officers will be appointed by the Board. The immediate past president, while not elected, also serves as a Chapter officer. All officers must be current professional members of the Chapter.
Section 2. The term of office for all officers shall be one year and shall begin at the
Board Retreat to be held no later than June 30 each year. Neither the president nor the president-elect offices may be held for consecutive terms by the same individual unless the office was held immediately prior to the current term as a partial term resulting from a vacancy.
Section 3. Vacancies in elected offices shall be filled by appointments made by the president with the approval of two-thirds of the Chapter’s Board.
Section 4. The Chapter president and president-elect, treasurer and one other Board member shall be members of the National Association in good standing. All other Chapter officers and members are encouraged to be members of the National Association in good standing.
Section 5. Officer Responsibilities
a. The President shall preside at all regular and special meetings of the Chapter and the
Board. They shall appoint all committee chairpersons, subject to the approval of the Board. They shall exercise general leadership and supervision in the affairs of the Chapter and shall maintain a liaison with the Association and Regional Vice President. They will ensure the chapter submits reports to NSPRA as required annually by national policy. The president shall perform all other duties commonly associated with this office. Upon conclusion of the officer's term as president, the officer will automatically become the immediate past president.
b. The president-elect shall be responsible for arranging appropriate programs for the meetings of the Chapter, preparing and distributing program announcements and coordinating conferences. They shall perform all duties of the president in the event of the president’s absence or inability to act, and will chair a committee, to assist with conference logistics. Upon conclusion of the officer's term as president-elect, the officer will automatically become the president.
c. The vice president of membership shall maintain the Chapter’s membership records, send out annual dues notices and promote membership to appropriate individuals with particular emphasis on maintaining a membership representative of the region’s diversity. They shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the president and may appoint a committee, which they will chair, to assist with membership functions.
d. The vice president of public relations shall be responsible for publishing and distributing chapter news and information, maintaining content on the Chapter website and social media channels and informing Chapter members and the Association about Chapter activities and individual accomplishments of its members. They shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the president, and may appoint a committee, which they will chair, to assist with public relations/marketing functions.
e. The vice president of awards and recognition shall be responsible for managing and
promoting chapter award and recognition programs. They shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the president, and may appoint a committee, which they will chair, to assist with award and recognition activities.
f. The secretary shall keep minutes of all meetings of the general membership and the Board. They shall be responsible for all correspondence as assigned by the president and be generally responsible for the records and files of the Chapter. They shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the president.
g. The treasurer shall receive and disburse all monies for the Chapter, including membership fees and conference registrations. They shall keep accurate records of the finances of the Chapter and submit regular (monthly) financial reports to the Board and the membership. They shall perform such other duties as may be assigned by the president.
h. The vice-treasurer shall assist the treasurer in receiving and disbursing all monies for the Chapter, including membership fees and conference registrations. They shall serve in the role of the treasurer at Board meetings and Chapter meetings in the absence of the treasurer.The vice-treasurer shall also be responsible for securing sponsorships.
I. The immediate past-president serves in an advisory capacity on the past practices, general administration and other matters to assist in the effective ongoing operation of the Chapter.
j.. The APR chair shall promote and encourage members to pursue Universal Accreditation for APR. The APR chair shall also provide support to members during the accreditation process and will report APR achievements of its members to the Board and membership on a regular basis.
k. Regional officers shall encourage and support membership in their geographic area. The regional officers will work with the vice president for membership to promote an annual membership drive and support new members.
Article VI. Board
The Chapter Board shall function as the governing body of the Chapter, assume general responsibility for policy decisions between membership meetings and carry out directives as voted by the membership. A majority of the Board shall constitute a quorum. The Board shall consist of the elected and appointed officers, and the immediate past president.
The Board shall prepare an annual report of the Chapter and present it annually. Copies of the report shall be sent to the regional vice president and the Association office. All members of the Board are voting members.
Article VII. Elections
The election of officers shall take place annually in the spring. The election of officers will take place virtually through a process outlined by the Board. A Nominating Committee shall be formed by the Board to recruit candidates and coordinate elections.
Article VIII. Committees
Section 1. Standing Committees are those engaged in activities that are permanent in nature in the program of the Chapter. With the exception of any named in this Article, standing committees may be created or dissolved by the president, with the approval of the Board. The president shall appoint all committee members, including chairpersons, subject to the approval of the Board.
a. Nominating Committee. There shall be a Nominating Committee consisting of not fewer than three professional members in good standing, to recruit candidates, coordinate elections and which shall propose a slate of officers for the Chapter. The Nominating Committee will be formed in December each year.
b. Conference Committee. There shall be a Conference Committee responsible for planning and executing the Chapter’s professional development conferences. This committee shall coordinate logistics, programming, speaker engagement, sponsorship outreach and related activities to ensure the success of the Chapter’s conferences. The Conference Committee may include as many additional members as needed to fulfill its responsibilities.
Section 2. Ad hoc committees may be appointed by the president with the approval of the Board. Such committees shall have a specific task and a specific time period after which they shall be automatically dissolved.
Article IX. Dues
Dues shall be set by the Board.
Article X. Meetings
Section 1. There shall be at least one annual meeting of the Chapter. In the event an in-person meeting is not possible, the Chapter may meet virtually through a process outlined by the Board.
Section 2. A majority of members of the Chapter, or ten members, whichever is smaller, shall constitute a quorum.
Section 3. Business may be transacted by a majority vote of members present at any meeting, in-person or virtually, provided a quorum is present.
Section 4. The number, time, place and program of meetings shall be determined by the Board.
Article XI. Prohibited Activities
No part of the earnings of the Chapter shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributed to, its directors, officers or other private persons, except that the organization shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes set forth in these Bylaws. Except as provided in Section 501(h) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, or any corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue law, no substantial part of the activities of the organization shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the Corporation shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of campaign statements) any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office.
Notwithstanding any other provisions of these Bylaws, the organization shall not carry on any other activities not permitted to be carried on (a) by a corporation exempt from Federal income tax under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, or the corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue law, or (b) by a corporation, contributions to which are deductible under Section 170(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, or the corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue law. Upon dissolution of the corporation, the Board shall, after paying or making provision for the payment of all the liabilities of the corporation, dispose of all the assets of the corporation exclusively for the purposes of the corporation in such manner, or to such organization or organizations organized and operated exclusively for charitable, educational or scientific purposes as shall at the time qualify as an exempt organization or organizations under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, or the corresponding provision of any future United States Internal Revenue law, as the Board shall determine.
Article XII. Amendments
Section 1. These Bylaws may be amended by a vote of the membership, provided that at least 30 days’ notice in writing has been given of any proposed amendment. Amendments shall be submitted in writing to the president for presentation to the Chapter.
Section 2. Approval of the amendments by the Board of the Association (NSPRA) is required before final adoption by the Chapter.
Article XIII. Parliamentary Authority
When a question arises concerning procedure, the most recent edition of Robert’s Rules of Order shall be used as a guide.