Board has new name, shorter member term
The House of Delegates approved two amendments to the AVMA Bylaws July 25 during its regular annual session in Denver.
The HOD approved a bylaws amendment changing the name of the AVMA’s board from Executive Board to Board of Directors to be consistent with the terminology used in laws covering not-for-profit organizations in Illinois, where the AVMA is incorporated.
The same amendment reduced the term of board members from six years to four, with the proviso that the change would not affect any board member elected prior to the close of the 2014 regular annual session of the HOD. The board’s Governance Bylaws Working Group crafted the proposal. The working group believes that a shorter term will result in more opportunities for AVMA members to serve on the board. The bylaws already stipulated that board members may not serve consecutive terms.
In addition, the HOD approved a bylaws amendment adding a veterinary student, appointed annually by the Student AVMA, as a nonvoting member of the AVMA Council on Research.