Revised June, 2014
The name of this Council is the Master’s in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council
(MPCAC).
Section 1
MPCAC is an integrated accrediting body that combines the Masters in Psychology
Accreditation Committee (MPAC) and the Masters in Counseling Accreditation Committee
(MCAC).The purpose of this Council is to accredit academic programs in psychology and counseling, which promote training in the scientific practice of professional psychology and counseling at the master’s level. Also, of utmost importance, is the goal of providing services that are culturally responsive and have a social justice orientation to the people who receive professional services and to the public at large.
Section 2
The Council shall be responsible for adhering to the purpose and functions enumerated in Article II and III of the Bylaws of the Master’s in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Council.
Section 1 Council
Membership: The Council consists of seven voting members, all of whom have equal voting privileges and one member who serves as Executive Director. Members of the Council include three members from the Psychology Committee (MPAC), three members from the Counseling
Committee (MCAC), and one public member to ensure egalitarian representation. The Executive
Director (ex officio without vote, except in the case of a tie vote) is nominated and appointed by the
Council, in consultation with MPAC and MCAC.
Each Committee (MPAC and MCAC) provides representatives to the Council as described above.
The Chair of the Committee is one representative and at least one representative from each
Committee should be a master’s practitioner.
MPCAC Bylaws
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Terms: Council members (except the public member and the Executive Director) are representatives of the MPAC and MCAC committees. As such, they serve their Council terms concurrently with their Committee terms First year Committee members are not expected to serve as representatives to the Council, except in extraordinary circumstances. Each Committee shall select its Council representatives according to the procedures in the Masters in Psychology and Counseling Accreditation Manual (hereafter, Manual ) and may serve as many terms as are concurrent with their terms on the respective Committees.
Executive Director: The Executive Director (ED) is responsible for the implementation of the work of the Council, including developing and managing the budget, monitoring and tracking the work of MPAC and MCAC, and facilitating communication among the Council, MPAC and
MCAC, as specified in the Manual . The ED reports to the Council and is supervised by the Chair of the Council.
Officers: The Council elects three officers: chair, secretary and treasurer, each of whom serves two-year terms, for a maximum of four terms. The Chair has all the powers and performs all duties commonly incident to, and vested in, the office of a president of a corporation. The Chair serves as Chief Executive Officer and has the responsibility for the supervision of all the business of the Council. The Chair convenes the annual meeting (and other meetings, as necessary), prepares the agenda for all Council meetings and has one vote in all matters decided by vote, appoints standing or special committees, subcommittees, and divisions as may be required for the work of the Council.
The Secretary of the Council performs all duties commonly incident and vested in an office of the secretary of a corporation, including but not limited to the taking and distributing of true minutes of the proceedings of all meetings.
The Treasurer performs all duties commonly incident and vested in an office of the treasurer of a corporation, including but not limited to budget preparation and monitoring of income and expenditures.
Function: The Council provides overall supervision of the work of the MPCAC, including facilitating communication between the separate Psychology and Counseling Committees
(described below), ensuring implementation of general principles and operations in both
Committees, and developing overall policies and procedures as needed. The Council is responsible for monitoring the application of standards for accreditation and for approving any changes in standards suggested by either of the Committees (MPAC and/or MCAC; see below).
The Council has responsibility for all financial aspects of MPCAC, including collecting funds, developing a budget, establishing fees.
MPCAC Bylaws
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Section 2 Committees: 1. Master’s in Psychology Accreditation Committee (MPAC)
2. Master’s in Counseling Accreditation Committee (MCAC)
Two Committees, Masters in Psychology Accreditation Committee (MPAC) and Masters in
Counseling Accreditation Committee (MCAC), working under the supervision of the Council, review programs seeking accreditation and make appropriate recommendations regarding the accreditation of psychology and counseling programs, respectively.
Membership: Each Committee (MPAC and MCAC) shall have seven members, including at least four representatives from appropriate masters programs in academic institutions
(psychology or counseling, as appropriate), and at least two representatives with a terminal master degree or a masters level license (psychology or counseling, as appropriate). The
Executive Director shall serve ex officio on each committee. Current members select potential new members from the available nominations; each potential member is recommended to the
Council who approves the selection and offers the position to the new member. If the Council has concerns about the nominated individual, those concerns are reviewed with the Committee (through the Executive Director) and an agreement is reached (the nominee is selected or another nominee is proposed). If the Council and the Committee are unable to agree, another nominee is selected.
Terms: All members serve a maximum of three (3) three-year terms. Individuals may serve again after a lapse of one full three-year term.
Officers: Each Committee selects its own officers: Chair and secretary, each of whom serves a two-year term and may be reappointed.
The Chair of the Committee has the responsibility for the supervision of all the business of the
Committee. The Chair convenes all meetings, prepares the agenda for all Committee meetings and has one vote in all matters decided by vote, appoints standing or special committees, subcommittees, and divisions as may be required for the work of the Council. The Chair monitors the work of each Accreditation Review Committee (described in the MPCAC Accreditation
Manual), ensures the timely implementation of the review process, and conveys the decision of the
Committee to the program under review and to the Council. The Chair participates as a member of the Council.
The Secretary of the Committee performs all duties commonly incident and vested in an office of the secretary, including but not limited to taking and distributing true minutes of the proceedings of all meetings.
Function: The two separate Committees, MPAC and MCAC, are responsible for reviewing applicant programs to consider their eligibility for accreditation, either as psychology or as counseling programs. Both Committees are to follow agreed-upon accreditation policies and procedures, as documented in the Manual . Programs seeking accreditation must follow published standards for accreditation for either MPAC or MCAC, as appropriate.
MPCAC Bylaws
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Section 1 Review of Standards
To ensure the public interest is being served, each Committee will conduct a systematic, comprehensive review of its Standards every seven years, at a minimum. This will involve consultation with accredited programs, appropriately-focused national organizations (e.g., Council of Applied Masters Programs in Psychology (CAMPP) and Council of Counseling Psychology
Training Programs (CCPTP)), and review of feedback from visitation teams.
Section 2 Revision of Standards
New or revised statements related to the Standards will include a statement of rationale and apparent need for the changes, research support of such statements if available, input from consumer groups, programs, related specialty groups, etc., and information concerning how the new statements will be applied in practice in training programs.
Each Committee will submit proposed changes to the Council for approval and implement such changes only after said approval. A reasonable timetable will be provided for programs under review to respond and/or make program changes to meet any alteration in the Accreditation
Standards.
The Council is responsible for monitoring the application of standards for accreditation and for approving any changes in standards suggested by either of the Committees (MPAC and/or
MCAC). Approval will require 5 supporting votes (71%) from the seven-member Council.
Article V – Accreditation Process
Section 1 Development of Program Review Process
The development of policies, procedures, and criteria for accreditation is the responsibility of the members of each Committee. It is a continuing process, guided by each Committee's desire to keep pace with changing conditions and needs of the field of psychology and counseling. All policies, procedures, and criteria involved in seeking, obtaining, and maintaining accreditation shall be published in the Manual and should be made available to the public.
Section 2 Application of Accreditation Policies, Procedures, and Criteria
The application of all policies, procedures, and criteria involved in seeking, obtaining, and maintaining accreditation is the responsibility of the members of each Committee as described in the Manual .
MPCAC Bylaws
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Section 1 Committee (MPAC and MCAC) Meetings
Each committee shall conduct separate meetings at least quarterly (every three months), and special or more frequent meetings may be called at the discretion of the respective Committee
Chair.
Section 2 Council Meetings
The Council shall conduct meetings at least quarterly (every three months) and special or more frequent meetings may be called at the discretion of the Council Chair.
Section 3
Master’s in Psychology and Counseling (MPCAC) Joint Meeting
There will be one jointly organized meeting of the Council and both of the Committees each year.
Article VII - Amendments
These Bylaws may be amended by a majority five supporting votes (71%) of the Council, provided that the proposed amendments shall have been read at a previous meeting of the
Council, or provided that they have been mailed to each member at least thirty [30] days before action is taken.
MPCAC Bylaws
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