How to Develop a New
Interest Group
NASP members who are interested in an
area not addressed through existing Interest Groups may initiate the process for a new Interest Group (IG) by
contacting the IG chair.
Upon receiving an inquiry about developing
an Interest Group, the IG chair will
- Make
formal contact with the individual making the request to discuss the
application process,
- Provide
that individual with the appendix from the Operations Handbook addressing
Interest Group procedures, and
- Provide
any additional appropriate assistance to facilitate the IG application.
A formal IG application will consist of a
written charter minimally including the following:
- Name
and purpose of the IG,
- Goals
of the IG,
- Name
of the proposed IG coordinator,
- Names
and addresses of at least 50 NASP members who agree to become IG participants,
- Proposed
structure of the IG,
- Written
plan for recruitment (e.g., Listserv, Communiqué article, etc.),
- Process
for leadership transition (e.g. Listserv election, selection from participants,
etc.),
- Tentative
one-year plan of objectives and activities.
Technical assistance from the IG chair
will be available for this process. NASP
staff will verify membership of all charter participants.
Once the IG application is received, the
IG chair and possibly other NASP members/staff will review it. Feedback will be provided to the proposed IG coordinator. The IG chair will then submit it to the
Executive Council for approval.
Formal acceptance of an IG application,
initiating all rights and benefits of full IG status, will occur with a
positive vote by a simple majority of the Executive Council and final approval
by simple majority of the Delegate Assembly. Such deliberations will be based upon the information in the IG
application and a determination that the IG purposes are consistent with those
of NASP and do not duplicate the purposes of functions of any existing NASP
committee, task force, or other IG.