As you form your private health association, pay attention to the types of members you want to belong to your association. Most of you will want two classifications for professionals and clients. Some of you will want more levels of membership.
You may have as many membership levels as you want and you may give each level any name or title you want. Here are some suggestions for your consideration:
Founding Member - professional members who pay an extra premium to become a member. For this extra fee they receive certain benefits that you decide upon prior to accepting their money. These benefits may include:
1. The right to create their own sub-association under your parent organization. This sub-association adopts your association bylaws and remains a part of your group. The fee for forming such a sub-association is a fraction of the cost for the parent association.
2. Any other benefits you want to confer to Founding Members.
Fellows - are professional members with certain rights which you decide and include in the association bylaws. They may have the same or similar rights as Founding or Charter Members. Fellows can also be divided into Senior Fellows, Fellows and Junior Fellows depending upon how many levels of membership you want to have in your organization and what benefits you want to bestow upon each level.
Charter Members - professional members who meet some criteria you define and obtain such benefits as you define in your membership papers. If you decide to charge an annual membership fee for all professionals, the Charter Member could be a lifetime membership fee. It can be anything you want to define.
Executive Members - members who meet criteria determined by the board can be given certain benefits as recognition for volunteer services they provide the organization
Administrative Members members who volunteer in administrative positions can be given certain benefits in recognition of their services.
Instructor Members - professional members who are certified or licensed as an instructor and meet certain other criteria determined by you to receive such benefits as you determine.
Facilitator Members - professional members who are accredited by accepted education organizations and meet your criteria may be so designated and receive such benefits as you assign to this membership classification.
Professional Members - must be certified and/or licensed according to your guidelines and established in your bylaws. This is for the protection of the association, all association members and the public. If a professional member allows his or her certification and/or license to expire, they immediately lose their professional membership status and become an Associate Member. You have the option to give Professional Members the right to form their own individual, regional, area, state or provincial associations under the umbrella of the parent association.
Senior Menbers - are professional members that meet certain standards you determine for this classification of membersip. For example, you could use this designation for licensed professional members. You could also use it for professional members holding an advanced degree, or for members who have published.
Junior Members - are professional members who may lack certain standards you determine for Regular Professional Members and Senior Members. For example, a professional may be certified as a technician -- which requires supervision -- and this designation could be used to alert the officers this individual has requirements to meet before he or she can practice independently.
Associate Members - can be any person who signs the membership agreement and pays the required fees. Associate members may be members of any sub-association.
Provisional Members - can be any member of the public who signs the agreement and agrees to pay the necessary fees. Provisional members should have a specified amount of time to pay their dues.
Non-Member Guests - have the right to investigate the option of joining your association. Since they are guests and not members they do not have any rights of membership. They have the right to ask questions and learn the answers.
Membership classifications are important, so take your time and discuss our options with other people you know and trust. Decide what benefits you want to bestow upon which levels of membership. But always remember that you and your group of loyal supporters may change the association bylaws at any time to better serve your members.
You always have the option to amend your Bylaws to add new membership positions at any time.
