American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians

“Each person that pays their dues is an active member of the aavld. There are about 900 members annually. All full members can be nominated to the governing board and are also eligible to be appointed to the house of delegates, that meets at the annual meeting to approve resolutions, change the by-laws, etc.”

“The organization has a nominating committee that meets annually to select an incoming president and regional representatives from a list of current members, meaning they are current on their dues payments. The list is sent to the executive board for approval. Once the nominees are selected, ballots are sent out to the members for voting. The ballots are tallied by the secretary-treasurer's office. Any member except for associate members can hold office.”

“The board has decision making authority for routine operations. Any action of the board that permits a large financial impact to the organization is approved by the house of delegates. The board solicits surveys to the membership with questions on pending or future actions. The survey results are reviewed and taken into account when the board makes decisions.”

“The form 990 is reviewed by the secretary or treasurer prior to submission.”

“The conflict of interest policy pertains to board members, employees, accreditation auditors, and committee seat holders. A signed form is received from the board annually. If a conflict of interest were to arise, the board would discuss the conflict and then consult with the house of delegates for decisions on the transaction.”

“The compensation of the executive director is reviewed annually during budget formation, during which the board discusses salary changes. The board and/or committee reviews data as to comparable compensation for similarly qualified persons in functionally comparable positions at similarly situated organizations, and makes contemporaneous documentation and record keeping with respect to the deliberations and decisions regarding the compensation agreement.”

“Financial and governing documents are available to the public upon reasonable request.”

“The aavld promotes continuous improvement and public awareness of veterinary diagnostic laboratories by providing avenues for education, communication, networking, peer-reviewed publication, collaboration, outreach, and laboratory accreditation.”

“Other programs include the aavld laboratory foundation, which provides student scholarships, residency programs, and research programs in diagnostic medicine.”