Officer Elections
The process of electing GSCA Officers is chaired by the Immediate Past President. There is an open call for nominations. The deadline for submitting nominations is the Friday after Labor Day, September 6, 2024.
Voting is conducted by online ballot. The election becomes available at the close of Opening Session during the Annual Conference (November 6 - 8, 2024), and closes the first Thursday in December at 5 pm.
Nominees are expected to review all policies below.
Suspected violations of campaign policy should be reported immediately in writing to the Nominations and Elections Chair (Immediate Past President). Candidates suspected of violating campaign policies shall be investigated by the Executive Board. Any violation of the campaign policies as determined by the Executive Board shall result in a candidate being disqualified from the election
Positions that are now accepting nominations for the 2025-2026 fiscal year*:
* Terms begin July 2025
President-Elect
Secretary (Term ends June 2027)
Elementary Director (Term ends June 2027)
Secondary Director (Term ends June 2027)
Metro Director (Term ends June 2027)
Central Director (Term ends June 2027)
Finance Committee (Past President) (Term ends June 2026)
Finance Committee (General Member) (Term ends June 2026)
2025-2026 Nomination Form
Candidates nominated in 2024 will be elected in December 2024 and take office July 1, 2025. The deadline for nominations is Friday after Labor Day, September 6, 2024.
Policies
To maintain a healthy professional environment, campaigning shall be kept to a minimum and in accord with the following policy:
- The goal of the campaign policies is to:
- generate member interest in running for an office
- ensure a fair election for all candidates, and
- increase membership votes in the election.
- GSCA involvement in campaigns shall be limited to the following:
- Written candidacy information shall be published in the conference issue of Beacon and/or included with conference materials, on the website and shall accompany the online ballot.
- The Executive Board shall review and approve candidate videos to ensure adherence to stated parameters (below)
- Post approved videos to the GSCA , distribute via email with conference and election promotional materials, post to GSCA social media and make accessible by or distributed via the conference app (if applicable)
- The Executive Board may choose to have videos played at the if there an appropriate venue and time as determined by the Conference Team
- Provide the following at the annual conference:
- Clearly visible identification for all candidates (i.e. a candidate button)
- All President-Elect candidates will give a speech at Opening Session. Candidates for other positions who are in an opposed race will give a speech at Membership Assembly. Candidates other than President-Elect who are running unopposed shall not give a speech at the conference.
- A Candidate Meet and Greet to be held during the Spotlight on Exhibits in a specifically designated area which shall be well-traveled. Announcements (both verbally and through the app) should be made calling attention to Meet and Greet location, and signage should be used to make the Meet and Greet location clearly identifiable. The Content Vice-Chair shall avoid scheduling candidate presentations immediately before or after these times.
- Promote voting via email, GSCA social media and the conference app (if applicable)
- Candidate involvement in campaigns shall be limited to the following:
- Candidates shall not accept campaign funds or other campaign support, including in-kind support, from associations, regions, schools, commercial firms, corporations or foundations.
- Candidates shall not use GSCA resources such as website or supplies to solicit votes or support.
- Candidates may not solicit others to campaign on their behalf.
- All candidates shall refrain from using any GSCA social media, forums, blogs, listservs, email address of members and message boards to the campaign. Candidates may campaign using personal social media only. Candidates must refrain from negative messages or statements about other candidates. Candidates found to be making such negative statements are subject to disqualification as a candidate
- All candidates, whether running in an opposed or unopposed position and including those whom the Nominations and Elections committee solicits for positions for which no nominee is received, must submit a video to the Nominations and Elections Chair (Immediate Past President) with his/her nomination materials by end of the day on the Friday after Labor Day. Parameters for the video:
- Should be 2-3 minutes in length
- Should be self-produced (should not be produced via school or district video production team)
- Should highlight candidate qualities and should not focus on an opponent (if applicable)
- Should cover qualifications for the position, current/previous positions held in GSCA and vision for GSCA
- All candidates, whether running in an opposed or unopposed position, and including those whom the Nominations and Elections committee solicits for positions for which no nominee is received, must submit a photo and introductory paragraph that will be made available on the GSCA web site. The paragraph may include such information as name, the position for which you are running, number of years as GSCA member, number of years as ASCA member, other professional memberships, education, certification/licensures, employment background, additional professional/leadership experience, awards/honors
- All President-Elect candidates shall give a speech at Opening Session
- Candidates for other positions who are opposed shall give a speech at Membership Assembly; candidates for other positions who are unopposed shall not give a speech
- Candidates shall conduct a Meet and Greet session during designated times and locations
Criteria for Officers and Directors
- All candidates shall have held membership (professional or retired) in GSCA for a minimum of the three (3) consecutive years preceding the year of election and must be a current member at the time of both nomination and election. Honorary members may be eligible to run for elected office if they waive their honorary status for the period of time in which they are running and would hold office.
- With the exception of retired members, candidates for elective offices must be employed at the time of the election as professional school counselors, counseling supervisors or counselor educators. Additionally, candidates for Director positions must work in or be retired from the region or work setting of the position at the time of both nomination and election. A candidate may be elected and serve if he or she was qualified for the position at the time elected, even if a job change occurs later during their time of service.
- All candidates for Executive Board positions shall have current ASCA membership.
- With the exception of the President-Elect, each candidate for an Officer position shall have served on the Executive Board, Executive Committee, Finance Committee, or Governing Board for a minimum of one (1) year prior to taking office.
- Each candidate for a Director position shall be anticipated to have served in a leadership position in GSCA (committee chair, Region Chair, etc.) for a minimum of one (1) year prior to taking office.
- The candidate for the office shall be able to fulfill the Duties and Responsibilities of the specific office as stated in the bylaws and job descriptions.
- Each candidate shall make a commitment to attend all Executive Board meetings, the Leadership Development Institute (LDI), the annual conference, and other meetings listed in the job descriptions.
- The candidates for office shall be nominated by members or may be self-nominated.
Additional Nomination Criteria For President-Elect
- Have served in a leadership position in GSCA for three (3) years, with at least one of those years on the Executive Board, prior to taking office as President-Elect. (All of these experiences must have occurred within the past six (6) years.)
- Commit to attending the ASCA State Leaders Meeting for up to two (2) consecutive years.
- Secure written approval from appropriate school system representatives for sufficient professional leave time to meet the responsibilities and needs of office for at least four (4) years as President-Elect Elect, President-Elect, President, and Immediate Past President.
- Consent to Serve Form for President-Elect
Position Descriptions
A document that outlines all position descriptions can be found here:
2025-2026 Nomination Form
Candidates nominated in 2024 will be elected in December 2024 and take office July 1, 2025. The deadline for nominations is Friday after Labor Day, September 6, 2024.