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Greetings!
ACVS continues to outline suggested Constitution and Bylaws (PDF) amendments that support the proposed governance change that would separate certification functions from membership activities. ACVS's review of the Constitution and Bylaws also includes identifying opportunities to modernize the governance document to meet current best practices, simplify the language, and ensure ACVS can effectively adapt to changing business and market conditions.
With that in mind, and as ACVS seeks to define membership independent from certification, two areas I want to touch on today relate to membership classifications: Honorary Members and Charter Diplomates.
Honorary Members
The Constitution and Bylaws states that "Honorary Members may be selected as persons of unusual eminence in the veterinary or allied professions." In total, the College has recognized only nine Honorary Members, with the last selected in 1986. The Honorary Member status has essentially been superseded by the ACVS Merit Award, which acknowledges contributions to the progress of veterinary surgery made by an individual from outside the College.
A suggested amendment would be to remove Honorary Member content from the Constitution and Bylaws.
Charter Diplomates
Charter Diplomates were originally selected when the College was formed in 1965 and per the ACVS Constitution and Bylaws, "no additional Diplomates shall be classified as Charter Diplomates." In the years since, revisions to the Constitution and Bylaws changed Charter Diplomate content to past tense, capturing the history of the membership classification.
As the amended Constitution and Bylaws will outline membership categories going forward, a suggested amendment would be to remove the Charter DIplomate content.
Removing Honorary Member and Charter Diplomate content from the Constitution and Bylaws does not remove the status granted to those individuals and does not diminish their contributions to ACVS. ACVS celebrates these individuals and honors their legacy and contributions with dedicated pages on the ACVS website.
I will share with you additional recommendations for proposed amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws as we continue to move through the process. Diplomates will have the opportunity to review proposed amendments and provide feedback.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at aseery@acvs.org or (301) 916-0200 x106.
Sincerely,
Adam Seery, CAE
Membership Director
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