ACDA State Chapter Leader Resources

It’s time for most states to conduct their elections for the President-elect position! According to our Bylaws, this must be done before February 1, 2025.

 We’ve created a guide to make this process easy! CLICK HERE to view the Elections Guide.

Here are a few things to help you get started:

• November 1, 2025: Your slate of 2 candidates is due to the National office. In addition to names, we need more info to start your election. It’s in the guide!
• To get started, the Bylaws require that the immediate Past President appoints a committee that has no limit on size but MUST have no fewer than two Past Presidents on the committee.
• Please see the Guide for additional eligibility requirements and the information the National Office needs to host your election.
• DON’T FORGET! We are here to help! Are you running into challenges filling your slate? Do you have questions or concerns about the process? Don’t sit on those items. Give our team a shout so that we can support you in this process!

The State Leadership List report in your ACDA State Membership Reports folder asks you to let us know who is in leadership and if they need access to the monthly membership reports. Depending on your email address, the reports can be found in one of two places on Google Drive. If you have an ACDA domain email address, you will find the folder in your [Shared drives.] All other email addresses will see the folder in [Shared with me].

• Add any additional positions you have that are not listed. 
• Confirm yes (or no) in the first column and add the change date in the second column. 
• If you do not have someone in a position, including R&R, indicate none or empty.

All Leaders must maintain a current membership. Those marked in red on the report may have a lapsed membership. Please reach out and encourage your team to renew and keep their membership current. Remember, ACDA recently launched auto-renewal, which may be the easiest way to keep memberships current. 

Please update the form by September 2nd. Once you have done so, could you let Trina Kopacka know when you have finished filling it out by sending a quick “Done” message? Email Trina at

State leaders decide who best to give complimentary membership to with this in mind:

• should be used with Active or potential Active members
• are for new members or members who have had lapsed membership for at least three years
• can be used effectively to help current students who are graduating and headed into teaching classrooms to continue their relationship with ACDA
• can be used for hardship cases when a current member doesn’t have the funds to pay dues for one year

If your state has additional people who qualify and a plan for special outreach and retention efforts for them, contact Trina Kopacka (Membership Experience Manager, , 405.232.8161, ext 110) about the possibility of authorizing additional comp memberships.

These memberships are designed to attract new members for a trial year, with the hope that they will experience firsthand the benefits of ACDA membership and renew on their own next year.

Submit your engagement and retention plan by completing this Google Form before October 31, 2024.

Considerations for states

• Awardees should qualify for Active membership.
• Your state needs an Engagement and Retention Plan. Only about 20% of complimentary memberships are renewed the following year. We can improve that by making a special effort with these members! Submit your retention plan by Oct. 31, 2024.
• No refunds can be given to people who have joined or renewed as Active ACDA members but later receive a complimentary certificate. Check with the national office to ensure that the people you are considering are not already members.
• Complimentary membership applications must be submitted by June 15, 2025.
• You must report your results.

Once your engagement and retention plan has been approved, a Google Form link will be sent to share with potential members. Please allow up to five days for processing. When approved, the new member will receive all the benefits of an Active member.

Did you know the national office provides monthly membership reports to every state and region? The folder names have changed to ACDA <State> Reports (example: ACDA Oklahoma Reports), but the content remains unchanged.

Depending on your email address, the reports can be found in one of two places on Google Drive. If you have an ACDA domain email address, you will find the folder in your [Shared drives.] All other email addresses will find the folder in [Shared with me].

Contact Trina Kopacka, , if you need any assistance with accessing reports.

LIFE MEMBERS OUTREACH

We need your help. The national office recently reached out to every Life member and Paying Life member in our database with a mailing address. We had a great response, but there are a few who we’ve not heard from in a while.

Can you review this list and make any notes regarding whether they’ve changed addresses or are deceased? Do you have an email address? A family member’s contact? Or do you have any other information on them?

We’ve tried multiple times to reach out, and this will be our last effort before those without any contact information are removed from our membership roles. Your work here matters. Please help!

Please request any required insurance needs at least 30 days in advance to ensure we can assist with your event needs. If you need help or have any questions, please contact Kelly Pearson at . We’re here to support you!

Please include the following items in your request for event insurance for your state:

• Name of event
• Date(s) of event
• Location of event (school, church auditorium, etc.)
• Address of that location
• Include anything else outlined by the venue. An example would be alcohol being served or an additional rider.
• Optional: attach a copy of the contract

New information to come. Please check back soon.
In the meantime, check out the information for 2023.