ByLaws

MICHIGAN COUNCIL FOR PSYCHOANALYSIS AND PSYCHOTHERAPY

BY-LAWS (Approved 2023)

Article I - Name and Objectives

Section 1. The name of this organization shall be the Michigan Council for Psychoanalysis and

Psychotherapy (or the Council).

Section 2. The objectives of the Council shall be:

A) The study of psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic therapy.                                                                                  

          

B) The enhancement of public and scientific interest in psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic therapy.          

                                     

C) The support of educational and research programs in psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic therapy.        

                                       

D) The establishment of standards and the certification of qualified individuals in psychoanalysis and

psychoanalytic psychotherapy.

E) The establishment of educational programs to train qualified individuals in psychoanalysis and

psychoanalytic psychotherapy, and to award them a certificate upon graduation.

F) The establishment of collaborative relations with other organizations with similar interest.

G) Commitment to broad values of inclusiveness across disciplinary, gender, geographic, ethnic, and

racial categories.

H) Any additional objectives the Council may pursue.

Article II - Membership

Section 1. Members shall be anyone with an interest in participating in the study and advancement of

psychoanalytic theory, practice and education.

Section 2. There shall be a Membership Chair who shall review all applications of those wishing to join

the Council and make recommendations or dispositions to the Board of Directors.

Section 3. All members have the right to vote.

Article III - Officers and Board of Directors

Section 1. The Board of Directors shall consist of eight officers and six members-at-large. It is the

Council's highest authority.

Section 2.  The officers of the Board shall consist of a President, President-Elect, Past President, Vice President for Certification, Vice President for Education and Training, Vice President for Programs, Vice President for Membership, Secretary, and Treasurer. At the discretion of the Board of Directors, an additional person can be added as a Co-Vice President for each position that has a Vice President currently.  The additional person in each role will share the title with the existing person such that both become Co-Vice Presidents.  The Board also has the discretion and responsibility to temporarily fill any elected position that is vacated.  These Board appointments end with the next MCPP election, at which time membership votes to fill vacant positions. The President, President-Elect, Past President, Secretary, and each of the Vice-Presidents and C0-Vice Presidents will hold two-year terms of office; the Treasurer will hold a three-year term of office. The President shall assume office after two years as President-Elect and shall be the Chief Executive Officer of the Council; the President-Elect or Past President may serve in place of the President in the event of the President's unavailability.

Section 3. There shall be six members-at-large who are elected for three-year terms. Their terms shall be

staggered to provide continuity to the Board of Directors.

Section 4. The Board may replace, by simple majority, any member other than President-Elect who

resigns from the Board, or who misses two consecutive Board meetings without reasonable cause.

Replacement members shall serve out the terms of those they are replacing. In the event of a vacancy in

the office of President-Elect, the Board will arrange a new election to fill the vacancy in the manner

most consistent with the timing of the vacancy, and in a manner consistent with regular MCPP election

procedure.

Section 5. An individual may hold only one seat on the Board of Directors.

Section 6. The Board of Directors of MCPP is the final authority on the meaning of MCPP bylaws.

Article IV - Committees

Section 1. The Committees of the Council shall consist of such standing Committees as may be provided

by these By-Laws and such special committees as may be established by the President, Executive

Committee, or the Board of Directors. The President shall appoint committee chairpersons, unless

otherwise specified in these By-Laws. The President shall serve ex-officio on all committees.

Section 2. The Executive Committee is comprised of all the Officers of the Board (President, President-

Elect, Past President, Vice Presidents for Certification, Education and Training, and Programs, Vice

President for Membership, Secretary, and Treasurer).  The Executive committee shall have general

supervision over the affairs of the Council, including hiring of adjunctive personnel and performing

duties and delegating responsibilities toward that end, in accordance with limitations specified in the

Council By-Laws. Decisions of the Executive Committee shall not modify any action taken by

the full Board of Directors.

Section 3. The Vice President for Education and Training shall appoint the following as members of the

Training and Certification Committee: the Chair of each training program, the Registrar, a Candidate

Representative and two additional members. The Vice President for Certification also shall be a standing

member of the Committee.   The chair of each Training Program may develop a subcommittee of

MCPP members who have been certified in that program. These subcommittees serve to make

recommendations regarding admission standards, courses, curricula, supervision, and teaching.   The

members of the subcommittees are not voting members of the Training Committee but serve an

advisory function.

Section 4. The Program Committee shall consist of the Vice President for Programs and three members

appointed by the Vice President for Programs. The Program Committee shall be responsible for regular

and special programs, and for advertising these programs to the community. The Publicity Chairperson

shall be a standing member of the Committee.

Section 5. The Finance Committee shall consist of the Treasurer, as Chair, and at least two other

members. The Finance Committee shall present an annual budget to the Board of Directors and shall

regularly monitor and review the Council's financial situation.

Section 6. The Nominations and Elections Committee shall be appointed by the President and shall

consist of a Chair and two members. Members of the committee who are nominated for office shall not

participate when the slate for that position is developed.

Section 7. There shall be a Webmaster to be appointed by the Board.

 

Article V - Training and Certification

 

Section 1. The Training and Certification Committee shall make recommendations for the Council's training programs in psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic psychotherapy; shall develop and administer the Council's training program; shall evaluate and admit applicants to the training programs; shall monitor the progress of candidates; and shall graduate candidates upon completion of the programs. Admission to and graduation from MCPP programs shall be based on recommendations of the Training and Certification Committee and approval of the Board of Directors. The Training and Certification Committee shall also develop, administer, and/or oversee other formal educational psychoanalytic coursework as approved by the Board of Directors.

Section 2. The Vice President for Certification, the Vice President for Education and Training, the Chairs of all training programs leading to certification in psychoanalysis, and at least one other member of the Training and Certification committee shall themselves be certified analysts.

Section 3. All MCPP psychoanalysts are qualified as supervising analysts and teaching analysts in their area of specialization. Only MCPP psychoanalysts who have been certified in the analysis of adults are qualified to psychoanalyze MCPP candidates.

Section 4. The Vice President for Certification, in consultation with the committee, shall make recommendations regarding standards for qualification in psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic psychotherapy; shall devise appropriate application forms and procedures for evaluating applicants; shall evaluate the credentials of applicants; and shall make recommendations to the Board of Directors regarding the disposition of these applications.

Section 5. The Vice President for Certification may also accept applications for certification in psychoanalysis from MCPP members who have not graduated from its training program. The Training and Certification Committee shall then evaluate each application in terms of the strength of the applicant and the priorities and policies of the Council, and will make recommendations for disposition to the Board of Directors.

Section 6. All MCPP candidates who apply for certification, and who meet the Council's standards for certification in psychoanalysis or psychoanalytic psychotherapy, shall be awarded a certificate of completion in psychoanalysis or psychoanalytic psychotherapy. The Council shall deem them a psychoanalyst or psychoanalytic psychotherapist.

Section 7. The Council defines itself as an interdisciplinary society for the accreditation and training in psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic psychotherapy, and to this end will strive for broad disciplinary, gender, geographic, and affirmative action for minorities.

 

Article VI - Meetings

 

Section 1. The Board of Directors shall meet at least two times a year. The Secretary shall record minutes of the meetings, and the results of any electronic voting. Meetings shall be conducted in accord with parliamentary procedure.

Section 2. Issues of an emergent nature as determined by the President, requiring a vote of the Board, may be voted on electronically.

Section 3. Board and committee meetings shall meet in executive session when individuals are evaluated and when their personal information is discussed, or with regard to other issues that the Board deems to be confidential.

Section 4. All meetings of the MCPP Board and Committees, other than those in executive session, shall be open to the membership. Members may contact Committee Chairs or Board members to request that items be placed on the agenda. Members may appeal a Committee decision to the Board.

 

Article VII - Assessments

 

Dues, assessments, and fees shall be determined by the Board of Directors.

 

Article VIII - Elections

 

Terms of office shall begin on July 1 and end on June 30. The Nominations and Elections Committee shall conduct elections by issuing a call for nominations, by postal and/or electronic mail, by the Fall prior to an impending vacancy. The membership then shall be given 30 days to reply. The committee shall send election ballots, by postal and/or electronic mail, in January of the year of the impending vacancy, with the membership given 30 days to reply.

 

Article IX - Revocation of Membership

 

Section 1. Unless waived by the Executive Committee or the Board of Directors, membership shall be automatically revoked for failure to pay dues, assessments, and/or fees within 60 days of the due date.

Section 2. The Council shall generally revoke the membership of members whose professional licenses have been suspended or revoked by their State, who are found guilty of a felony, or who are found to be unethical by their national or state disciplinary associations, or who have given false information in completing Council forms. Members of the Council shall be bound by the ethics of their national disciplinary organizations, such as the American Psychiatric Association, the American Psychological Association, and the National Association of Social Workers.

 

Article X - Amendments

 

Section 1. These By-Laws may be amended by majority vote of the membership who reply by postal and/or electronic mail ballot, within 30 days after the date of mailing. The Nominations and Elections Committee shall receive the ballots, count the votes and certify the results.

Section 2. The By-Laws committee shall consist of a Chair, appointed by the President, and at least one additional member. The Chair shall issue a call by mail to the membership for proposed amendments to the By-Laws, shall receive proposed amendment changes by mail or e-mail, process them with committee and mail ballots to the membership for vote with board approval.

Section 3. These By-Laws shall be reviewed every three years. Amendments proposed by the Board of Directors or 10% of the membership shall be processed by the By-Laws Chair within 60 days of issuing a call for review. Amendments proposed by less than 10% of the membership shall be handled at the discretion of the Board of Directors.

 

Article XI - Self-Study

 

The Council shall conduct a thorough self-study at least every three years, beginning in 1992.

 

Article XII - Dissolution of the Council

 

In the event of the dissolution of the Michigan Council for Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy, the net assets will be equally distributed between the American Academy of Psychoanalysis, Division 39 (Division of Psychoanalysis) of the American Psychological Association, and the American Association for Psychoanalysis in Clinical Social Work.