top of page

BYLAWS OF

Grid for the Reduction of Opioid Vulnerability (GROV)/

NATIONAL COMMUNITY ADVISORY BOARD (N-CAB)

(As approved on May 22, 2020)

 

ARTICLE I. VISION & MISSION STATEMENTS

 

SECTION 1. VISION

 

For rural communities to be healthy, hopeful, resilient, and informed through prevention, harm reduction, and recovery from substance use while ensuring health equity and non-stigmatized access through multi-sector collaboration, evidence-based practices, and inclusive approaches.

 

SECTION 2. MISSION

 

To build healthier communities by conducting research, gathering data, facilitating community events and trauma-informed programs, exchanging ideas and information, considering the use of technology, providing mutual support, solidarity, and sharing one’s professional expertise.

 

ARTICLE II. DESCRIPTION & STRUCTURE

 

SECTION 1. BOARD DESCRIPTION

 

The GROV/NCAB is a collaborative and advisory board of members of participating communities that are part of the Social Action Research Study and other research associated with drug-related vulnerability. All local advisors (i.e., local community leaders and members) are members of the NCAB. In many cases, local boards or coalitions act as local Community Advisory Boards (CABs) that are themselves members of the GROV/NCAB. The NCAB meets online regularly (e.g., twice a year) to support research to build healthier communities through participatory action research and an innovative online intervention. The Social Action Research team is responsible for facilitating the NCAB activities.

 

SECTION 2. COMPENSATION, PUBLIC ACKNOWLEDGMENT 

​

§1. Participation in GROV/NCAB is 100% voluntary. Members may terminate participation at any time.

​

§2. GROV/NCAB members do not receive financial compensation for participation in NCAB meetings and activities.

​

§3. The research team will acknowledge all GROV/NCAB and local members or CABs publicly in our research reports and papers (e.g., thegrov.org). Members may request that your participation in the research be made private and anonymous outside of this group. However, membership information is available to board members.

 

ARTICLE III. MEMBERSHIP, VOTING, & TERMINATION

​

SECTION 1. MEMBERSHIP

 

§1. GROV/NCAB membership is open to members of the local Social Action Research group, local CABs, and interested members of participating communities.

 

§2. Introductory materials for various aspects of the project are available to all GROV/NCAB members in a full or short version. The materials include introduction to Participatory Action Research (PAR), online technology, and protection of human research participants.  

​

§3. GROV/NCAB members may attend meetings and participate in advisory board activities remotely (e.g., via Zoom).   

 

SECTION 2. VOTING

 

Members present during meetings can vote on decisions made during those meetings. Decisions are made by majority vote during the meeting and/or remote ballot. All members will be given at least 1-week notice to review motions they will be voting on (either during the meeting or electronically, such as through email) and may appoint a representative to vote on their behalf in case they are unable to attend the meeting. Members may also vote online. Votes will be known to other board members unless determined otherwise by a majority vote on specific issues.

 

SECTION 3. TERMINATION

 

GROV/NCAB Members may discontinue participation at any time by contacting members of their county and the research team. Members’ decision to participate, decline, or withdraw from the project will not affect your status or relationship with the health departments or affiliated organizations.

​

§1. GROV/NCAB members may be voted off the NCAB in the event a member is deemed to be in violation of Section 3: Conduct of Meetings, or, is in any way found to be impeding the progress of the project goals. If a proposal to vote off a member is presented by any member of the CAB, the chair/s will call a vote on the matter. The NCAB member will be removed if the incoming votes support removal using a simple majority rule.

 

§2. Further, replacement and new members can be nominated by any present CAB members if they believe a prospective member would fit well with the CAB project.

 

ARTICLE IV. RESPONSIBILITIES & CONDUCT OF MEETINGS

 

SECTION 1. INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITIES

​

§1. GROV/NCAB members agree to:           

                                       

  • Adhere to the GROV/NCAB bylaws.

  • Use the GROV/NCAB brand and their affiliation with the GROV/NCAB for professional purposes that advance the vision and mission of the GROV/NCAB.

 

§2. We ask NCAB members to contribute to the project goals by the following required activities not to exceed 4 hours year:

​

  1. Answering structured, survey like questions about the counties in which GROV/NCAB members live.

  2. The GROV/NCAB contributes to research through community meetings, emails, and engagement through the GROV/NCAB website.

  3. Reviewing and evaluating materials developed by the research team, including intervention materials, interviews, and surveys.

  4. Allowing some or all of GROV/NCAB meetings to be recorded for research purposes and data analysis. All data recordings will be kept confidential, and only the members of GROV/NCAB, the research team, and the Institutional Review Board at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will have access to recorded data. All data will be shared among NCAB members upon request.

​​

§3. GROV/NCAB nonmandatory activities include:

​

  1. GROV/NCAB meetings occur on a regular basis (e.g., twice a year). Members are encouraged to add items to the meeting agendas depending on community needs. The research staff will schedule meetings and invite all members.

  2. GROV/NCAB members may choose other activities they want to join and contribute to depending on their availability and community needs. This may involve off-shoot projects, surveys, or community projects.

  3. GROV/NCAB members may request assistance for research and dissemination activities from the research team.

​​

§4. All GROV/NCAB members, including academic researchers agree to keeping data provided by board members about specific counties confidential. That is, publications may not connect specific GROV/NCAB responses to specific counties or to GROV/NCAB/ or local CAB members.

​

SECTION 3. CONDUCT OF MEETINGS

When conducting the full GROV/NCAB meetings, the research team at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign will be responsible for keeping records of board actions, which includes overseeing time management at all board meetings, sending out meeting announcements, distributing meeting agendas to board members, and assuring that corporate records are maintained. As for small meetings held among some of theNCAB members, NCAB members can coordinate and designate a person that will assist with keeping meeting records and outcomes if necessary. GROV/NCAB members agree to be courteous and follow below codes:

 

  • Respect each other’s opinions

  • Disagree without being disagreeable

  • Listen to what others have to say

 

ARTICLE V. FEEDBACK

 

GROV/NCAB members will provide feedback to the research team by participating in biennial online surveys and/or phone/email consultations about their experiences in the board and their perspectives on community issues. De-identified data results will be analyzed by the research team and shared with GROV/NCAB members. The research team will use the data for research purposes, including publications, presentations, and as guidelines to align GROV/NCAB activities with the GROV/NCAB mission statement, to ensure that members are satisfied with staff support, and that PAR principles are being met. This mechanism will provide constructive feedback that can improve the GROV/NCAB activities and important information about the communities.

 

ARTICLE VI. DISSEMINATION

​

Any materials resulting from the work conducted by the GROV/NCAB will be shared among all members for feedback prior to dissemination. Members are encouraged to review and provide feedback on the materials in two weeks or more, depending on their time availability. Community members and leaders at the local levels may be acknowledged as an author in research publications resulting from GROV/NCAB activities. Authorship may only apply to individual members who have made direct and significant contributions to developing the actual materials included in research publications. For any research publications that do not include GROV/NCAB members as authors, the researchers will pay tribute to all GROV/NCAB members under ‘acknolwedgement’ unless members request otherwise.

Members who desire to be authors in research publications should communicate this wish to the research team. Members interested in using any data derived from the GROV/NCAB activities will submit a request to the research team specifying what data are needed, by when, and for what purpose.

​

ARTICLE VII. AMENDMENTS

These bylaws may be amended by majority vote at any regular meeting of the GROV/NCAB in which case the notice of a meeting shall state the substance of the proposed amendments.

bottom of page