NAME CHANGE PROCEDURES

FOR COMMISSIONS AND INTEREST GROUPS

A commission or interest group may wish to change its name at some point, usually due to a change of focus or purpose for the unit. The following procedures must be followed for such a unit name change.

1. Unit Chair writes a short rationale (one or two paragraphs) for the name change and e-mails it first to the CIG Division Reps and the Division Liaison in the Executive Office.
2. The name change proposal will then be e-mailed to all members of that particular commission or interest group by the Executive Office before the annual conference. This e-mail message will provide the rationale for the name change, inform these members that the name change will be discussed at the unit’s annual meeting held at the annual conference, and will request feedback on this name change to be submitted to the Chair prior to the conference. This message will provide an opportunity for all unit members to participate in the name change process and not just those attending the annual conference.
3. The CIG Division Reps will add the name change request as an agenda item for the CIG Division meeting for discussion and feedback from the division representation.
4. The name change will then be discussed at the unit’s annual meeting. A decision is made at the commission or interest group meeting whether to put the name change up for a vote by its members. The initial proposal might be reworked after the CIGD meeting and/or the unit’s annual meeting.
5. The proposed name change is brought to the Council for discussion, and then forwarded to the Board of Directors for informational purposes. The primary purpose for this step in the process is to ensure that the name change is appropriate and does not overlap with, impose upon, or have implications for any other unit within NACADA.
6. An electronic vote by all current unit members will be conducted after the fall annual conference.
7. If the vote results in approval of the name change, this proposal will become an agenda item at the mid-year meeting of the Council, and forwarded to the Board of Directors for informational purposes. It is possible that this issue could be out on the agenda of teleconference meetings before then.
8. After receiving approval by the Council and being forwarded as an informational item to the Board of Directors, the NACADA Executive Office will proceed with implementation of the name change, which includes updating applicable web pages, leadership lists, membership forms, etc., and sending an e-mail to all members of this unit to inform them of the official name change.