sTART A cHAPTER.We are very excited about your commitment to the development of counseling as social justice activism and your interest in forming a CSJ chapter. CSJ and the Membership Committee are committed to building an efficient and quality application process. This page describes the steps and how to get started.
Looking for an existing CSJ chapter? See our Connect: Chapters page for a directory. |
CHECK OUT WHAT CSJ CHAPTERS DID IN 2024!
Download the CSJ Membership Committee Year-End Report for 2024 here.
Questions about the Membership Committee - or, are you a CSJ member looking to get more involved? Reach out to us at [email protected].
Questions about the Membership Committee - or, are you a CSJ member looking to get more involved? Reach out to us at [email protected].
Starting A CSJ Chapter
Interested in starting a CSJ Chapter in your state, or a student chapter at your college or university?
Download our CSJ Chapter Toolkit for everything you need to start and maintain a chapter!
Download our CSJ Chapter Toolkit for everything you need to start and maintain a chapter!
Here is the process for forming a Counselors for Social Justice chapter:
So you want to start a CSJ Chapter?
Building a CSJ Chapter
Any successful movement has to be organized. Thus the questions; how do to pull like minds together to form an organization? We would like to invite the ACA community to help in creating a list of suggestions for activist organizational development. Here are a few suggestions to get started:
Constitution Guidelines
Every chapter needs a document that captures organizing principles. Please use the following outline as a guide to complete your constitution and bylaws. (The terms "Constitution" and "Bylaws" are used interchangeably; you need have only one founding document and may call it either or both terms.) Your chapter constitution and bylaws must be in accordance with the National Counselors for Social Justice constitution and bylaws, policy statements, and mission statement, which can be found on the About page of this website.
The below outline is only suggested, and is meant to highlight some key points that will be required to be included. Please also refer to the Chapter Toolkit linked from the top of this page for more detailed guidance on what needs to go into your bylaws.
Commitment
To maintain an active chapter status and be eligible for University Student Chapter membership rebates, the chapter will:
In addition, starting in 2025, CSJ is requesting that at least one of the officers of the CSJ chapter be active on a CSJ National committee. This is meant to facilitate engagement between chapters and National, to support communication, and to open up further activities in collaboration. This is optional, however we believe it will allow for some exciting new opportunities across all of CSJ and we look forward to our chapter leaders participating more with the National team. |
Complete the CSJ Chapter Application Form online, and download the Chapter Agreement
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Email the following documents to [email protected] with “CHAPTER APPLICATION” in the subject line:
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maintaining a Chapter
In order to maintain the affiliation as a CSJ Chapter:
We also request that you promptly inform us of updated contact information so that we can always be in touch with your chapter.
- Membership in the CSJ National organization must be maintained by the chapter's members
- The chapter must complete an Annual Report by May 31 to provide updated information about your chapter, your accomplishments, and your goals
- Any changes to the chapter's bylaws must be submitted to the Membership Committee at [email protected] as soon as they are finalized by the chapter. The CSJ Board must vote and approve the changes before they can go info effect for the chapter
- Starting in 2025, CSJ is requesting that at least one officer of your chapter participate on a committee at the National level, in order to increase engagement and communication between National and your chapter
We also request that you promptly inform us of updated contact information so that we can always be in touch with your chapter.
Featured Tips & Updates
From Frannie Neal, University of arizona
Find local organizations interested in similar social justice issues, and collaborate with them. Create effective marketing strategies (via social media, newsletters, email listserv, and other methods) to disseminate important information to membership. Find engaged university advisers who are willing to help. Create sustainability practices to ensure smooth leadership transitions. From Rachel White, Wright State
My biggest tip for new chapters is to expect to do a TON of work the first year and to have very engaged faculty advisors. Another tip is to make sure you immediately become a university/college organization. There are so many university resources that we couldn't touch until we were officially recognized. I think another good tip is to get really involved with any local counseling groups to begin networking in the field before you graduate. I've already been tapped to be President Elect of our local Counseling Association because of being involved with the Chapter and the group. I went to them as a student to say "how can we help you all in the field?" and it's just blossomed into opportunities I never would have imagined. FROM BOISE STATE UNIVERSITY
Collaborate with other organizations on campus with similar interests and hold officer meetings monthly or at least check in by email monthly. This is a student chapter of CSJ involved in bullying reduction trainings at middle schools, therapeutic boarding program, LGBTQ safe zone training, recruiting counseling students to attend film screenings related to social justice issues, working with the homeless population in Boise, participated in the NAMI walk, helping with the “dreamers” campaign (supporting children of undocumented residents in Idaho who have to pay out of state tuition even though they have resided in Idaho their entire lives), and are beginning to meet with Idaho Legislators through the Idaho Counseling Association. |
connect with csj
Join CSJ on social media @CSJNational and join our community on ACA Connect!
Still got questions? Email [email protected]