BYLAWS
Version April 2025
Division on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities/Autism Spectrum Disorder
(Division 33)
American Psychological Association
Article I - Name and Purpose
SEC. 1 The name of this organization shall be Division on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities/Autism Spectrum Disorder of the American Psychological Association (hereinafter to be referred to as the Division and the APA respectively).
SEC. 2 The purpose for this Division shall be the advancement of psychology as based on scientific inquiry and the maintenance of high professional standards of practice in the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities and autism spectrum disorder as a means of furthering knowledge and promoting human welfare.
ARTICLE II - Membership
SEC. 1 The membership of the Division shall consist of six classes: Fellow, Member, Associate member, Life, Affiliate, and Student Affiliate.
SEC. 2 To qualify for the status of Member an individual shall be a Member or Fellow of the APA who has an interest in the scientific or professional aspects of work with persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities or autism spectrum disorder. A Member or Life Member shall be entitled to all the rights and privileges of the Division.
SEC. 3 To qualify for the status of Associate member an individual shall be an Associate member of the APA who has an interest in the scientific or professional aspects of intellectual and developmental disabilities or autism spectrum disorder. An Associate shall be entitled to all rights and privileges of the Division, except that an Associate shall not be entitled to hold the positions of Division President, President-Elect, President-Elect Designate or Division Representative to the APA.
SEC. 4 To qualify for the status of Affiliate an individual must: 1) have at least a Bachelor's degree in human services or a health related field and, 2) an interest in and commitment to the field of intellectual and developmental disabilities or autism spectrum disorder. Affiliates may or may not be Members of APA, and affiliation with Division 33 does not confer affiliation with National APA, nor with any other Division of APA. Affiliates can be added to the Division’s listserv, receive the Division Newsletter, and may participate in some Division business affairs such as serving on ad hoc committees except that they may not vote in elections and may not hold office.
SEC. 5 To qualify for the status of Student Affiliate an individual must be a matriculated student in good standing in human services or a health related field. Student Affiliates have all of the benefits of Division membership except they may not vote in elections and may not hold office, with the exception of two Student Affiliates, who are appointed to serve as Student Representatives on the Executive Council and as co-chairs of the Student Committee.
SEC. 7 Nonpayment of dues can result in resignation from the Division.
SEC. 8 Fellows shall be Members of the Division who are primarily engaged in the advancement of psychology as a science and as a profession, and who, in addition to meeting the requirements for Membership in the Division, have been judged by the procedures described below to have made an outstanding contribution to psychology as a science and a profession. Fellows shall be entitled to the rights and privileges of the APA without restriction.
SEC 9 The Division will follow APA’s provisions regarding revoking membership. If mentorship is revoked from APA, it will also be revoked from the Division.
Article III - Officers and Executive Council Members
SEC. 1 The elected officers of the Division shall be a President, a President-Elect, a President-Elect-Designate, a Secretary-Treasurer, a Council Representative(s) to APA, and two Members-at-Large. With the exception of the President and President-Elect, these officers are elected by majority vote in an annual election open to all Division Members. Each year at the annual business meeting, the President-Elect Designate will assume the office of President-Elect, and the President-Elect shall assume the office of President. There shall be an Executive Council consisting of the above officers, the immediate Past-President, the Past-Past President, the Past-Past-Past President, and the following appointed Executive Council Members: the Chairpersons of all Standing Committees and Standing Subcommittees, an Early Career Psychologist Representative, and two Student Representatives. The term of the Office of the President, the President-Elect, and the President-ElectDesignate shall be one year, and run from the close of the annual meeting to the close of the next annual meeting. The term of the Secretary-Treasurer and the Representatives to the APA shall be three years. The term of the Office of the Members-at-Large shall be two years. All elected officers shall take office at the close of the annual meeting following their election and shall serve until replaced by new duly elected officers.
SEC. 2 The President shall be a Fellow or Member of Division who has just completed a term as President Elect. The President shall perform such duties as are customary incident to the office and shall, in addition, have over-all responsibility for the Division function and contribution to the annual meeting of the APA.
SEC. 3 The President-Elect shall be a Fellow or Member of the Division who has just completed a term as President-Elect-Designate and shall assist the President and serve as Chairperson of the Program Committee.
SEC. 4 The President-Elect-Designate shall be a Fellow or Member of the Division and shall assist the President-Elect and serve on the Program Committee.
SEC. 5 The immediate Past-President shall serve as Chairperson of the Nominations and Elections Committee.
SEC. 6 The Representative(s) to the APA must be a Member or a Fellow of the APA and just have served on the Division 33 Executive Council. The Representative(s) and the President shall represent the Division in all matters before the APA. The Representative(s) shall be a member of the APA Council of Representatives if the Division is allocated a seat(s) under the APA balloting procedure.
SEC. 7 The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep the records of the Division, conduct the official correspondence and have custody of all funds of the Division. The Secretary-Treasurer shall have all authority to sign checks on behalf of the Division for the disbursement of funds authorized in the budget. The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep a full record of all money received and all money disbursed, and shall report thereon at the annual meeting of the Division and shall at all reasonable times exhibit the Division books of accounts to the Executive Committee and to any member of the Division.
SEC. 8 Each year a Student Affiliate shall be appointed by the Executive Council as Student Representative for a two-year term. The two Student Representatives will be voting members of the Executive Council. Each will receive a stipend, amount determined each year by the Executive Council, for each annual meeting attended.
SEC. 9 In the event that an elected official is unable to assume office, another Fellow or Member will be elected by the Division members.
SEC. 10 The Executive Council shall perform those duties usually delegated to this body, such as planning programs, approving committee work, setting budgets and determining general policies. The Executive Council meets twice per year: mid-year and at the APA Annual Convention.
Article IV – Committees
SEC. 1 The Standing Committees of the Division shall be Nominations and Elections, Membership, Program, Communications, Fellows, Financial, Bylaws, Awards, Developmental Disabilities and Criminal Justice System Committee, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity Committee, and Sponsorship Committee, Student Committee, and Early Career Professionals Committee. The Chairpersons of Standing Committees and Subcommittees shall serve for a term of three years and may be reappointed for one additional term by the President.
SEC. 2 The Nominations and Elections Committee shall be composed of the immediate Past-President (Chairperson), the Membership Chairperson, and two other members chosen by the Chairperson. The committees shall develop a slate of nominees providing two or more candidates for each office. The Committee shall distribute a nominating ballot to all Fellows, Members and Associates, with spaces for writing in names for the office of the President-Elect-Designate, Member-at-Large and any other vacancy to be filled by election that year. The elections shall be conducted in accordance with the rules and regulations of the APA.
SEC. 3 The Membership Committee shall be composed of a Chairperson chosen by the President and other members as deemed necessary, appointed by the Chairperson.
SEC. 4 The Program Committee shall be composed of the President-Elect (Chairperson), the President-Elect Designate, (Vice Chair) and other members deemed necessary and appointed by the Chairperson. The Committee shall establish procedures for the Division participation in the annual meeting of the APA, including the search for participants, review and selection of contributions, invitation of special speakers and all other related activities.
SEC. 5 The Communications Committee shall be composed of a Senior Communications Officer (Chairperson) and an Associate Communications Officer to be chosen by the President, a Communications Consultant to be appointed by the Chairperson, the APA Division Communities Representative, and additional members appointed by the Chairperson. The Communications Committee shall include five Standing Sub-Committees, each of which shall include a Chairperson and additional members as appropriate, appointed by the Subcommittee Chairperson. The Newsletter Subcommittee shall oversee the publication of the Division Newsletter, which serves as the major news organ of the Division, although the Executive Council may authorize other publications as are deemed necessary. The Website Subcommittee is responsible for maintaining and updating the Division website. The Listserv Subcommittee is responsible for approving posts to the Division listserv. The Podcast Subcommittee is responsible for planning and production of the Division 33 Podcast. The Social Media Subcommittee is responsible for managing Division 33 accounts across various
social media platforms.
SEC. 6 The Committee on Fellows shall be composed of a Chairperson and four other members all chosen by the President. All members of the Fellows Committee shall be Fellows of the Division. The Committee shall review all applications for Fellowship in accordance with APA regulations.
SEC. 7 The Finance Committee, with the Secretary-Treasurer as Ex-Officio Member, shall be composed of a Chairperson and additional members as appropriate, appointed by the Chairperson. The committee shall present an annual budget, review the income and expenses of the Division, and make recommendations for the acquisition and management of the Division funds. The committee will also work closely with the Sponsorship Committee to seek financial support for division activities as relevant.
SEC. 8 The Bylaws Committee shall be composed of a Chairperson appointed by the President and additional members as appropriate, appointed by the Chairperson. The committee shall draft needed revisions to the Bylaws.
SEC. 9 The Awards Committee shall be composed of the three most recent Past-Presidents: the Past-President, Past-Past-President, and Past-Past-Past-President, with the Past-Past-Past-President serving as Chair. If a Past President cannot serve, the President will appoint an Executive Council member to take his/her place.
SEC. 10 The Developmental Disabilities and Criminal Justice System Committee shall be composed of a Chairperson chosen by the President and other members as deemed necessary, appointed by the Chairperson. The Committee shall present its work to the Executive Council annually at EC meetings.
SEC. 11. The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity Committee shall be composed of a Chairperson chosen by the President and other members as deemed necessary, appointed by the Chairperson.
SEC. 12. The Sponsorship Committee shall be composed of a Chairperson chosen by the President and other members as deemed necessary, appointed by the Chairperson. The committee shall lead efforts to seek and maintain sponsorship for Division 33 activities, awards, and initiatives.
SEC. 13. The Student Committee shall be composed of the two Student Representatives to the Executive Council, who will serve as Co-Chairs, and other members as deemed necessary, appointed by the Co-Chairs.
SEC. 14. The Early Career Professionals Committee shall be composed of a Chairperson chosen by the President and other members as deemed necessary, appointed by the Chairperson.
SEC. 15 The President, with majority consensus approval from the Executive Council, may appoint other ad hoc committees as needed to conduct the affairs of the Division. Unless other specified, ad hoc committees have a 1 year term. Any proposed expenditures of ad hoc committees, or other committees, must be approved by the President. All Committee Chairpersons shall report on the committees’ activities at the annual meeting of the Division.
ARTICLE V - Meetings
SEC. 1 The Division shall hold an annual business meeting at the time and place of the annual convention of the APA and shall there sponsor or conduct such other scientific and professional events as the Executive Council may deem appropriate.
ARTICLE VI - Dues and Finance
SEC. 1 By a majority vote on a mail or electronic ballot, the Division may decide to collect dues from its membership.
SEC. 2 The Finance Committee with the Secretary-Treasurer shall prepare and submit for approval by the Executive Council at its annual meeting a budget of anticipated income and expenditures of the Division for the upcoming year.
SEC. 3 The Secretary-Treasurer is hereby authorized to sign checks on behalf of the Division for the disbursement of funds duly authorized in the approved budget. In the event of the incapacity of the Secretary Treasurer, the President is hereby authorized to sign checks on behalf of the Division under the same provisions. All financial contracts that commit Division funds, other than checks, shall be signed by the President, President Elect and the Secretary-Treasurer.
SEC. 4 In the event of the dissolution of the Division, all unencumbered funds in the treasury at the time shall be turned over to the APA.
ARTICLE VII - Amendments
SEC. 1 These Bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the membership present and voting at an annual meeting held not less than one month after the mailing, electronic transmission or publication of the proposed amendment, or by a majority vote of the members eligible to vote responding to a mail or electronic ballot which shall close not less than one month after the mailing, electronic transmission or publication of the proposed amendment.
