Written by Shirley Xia, Tina Sheng, Zhong Zhou
Thanks to Zhong Zhou's efforts, the website of the Chinese American Parent Association of the Baltimore Community (capabc.org) is now linked to a bank account. We can now accept donations from everyone and officially recruit members. Once again, thank you all for your support and patience! All individuals who have made donations in the Founding Member group will automatically become voting members of the association. To become a member, please visit https://www.capabc.org/join-us. If you are not ready to become a member yet, you can make a donation through the donation link on the website instead.
The annual fee for the membership in the association is $50, and there are three types of online payment options for members: 1-Year ($50), 2-Year ($100), and Lifetime ($500) membership (voting member). Since our elections take place every two years, we have set up a two-year membership fee so that you don't have to pay annually. Members who donate $100 during the fundraising campaign can choose the 2-Year voting member option. Members have the right to vote and to be elected, can enjoy discounts and priority for participating in events, and can access the forum for discussions on the website. Children of members can earn volunteer service hours and participate in the future President's Volunteer Service Award selection. For more information about membership, please refer to Article IV in the organization's bylaws.
To welcome more Chinese Americans in Baltimore, we have also established General Membership, which does not require a membership fee. General members cannot participate in association elections but can join some of our activities (free activities have equal access, discounted activities are excluded). Their children can earn volunteer service hours from the association but will not be eligible for the President's Volunteer Service Award selection. For more information about the differences between paid membership and general membership in terms of benefits, please refer to the table on our website.
Currently, we only accept credit card and PayPal payments. If you prefer to use Zelle or checks, please fill out the form for General Membership. Once we receive the membership fee, we will upgrade your membership to a paid or voting member.
Regarding Volunteer Service Hours, as a non-profit organization, once we obtain the 501(c)(3) status, we will apply for eligibility to award the "President's Volunteer Service Award." In the future, we will select award recipients among our members every year. Volunteer service hours are an important criterion for the President's Volunteer Service Award, and this award is available to individuals of all age groups as long as they meet the required number of service hours. To facilitate this, our association has established the "Service Hour Committee" and will introduce a set of rules. Both CAPA-HC and CAPA-MC have this program. You can refer to the article on the CAPA-MC website for more information: https://www.capamc.org/english/scholarship/pvsa/
Lastly, I want to mention that the guiding principles of our association are "efficient democracy and freedom under unity," as I have explained in my previous articles. In addition, internal discussions of our association's affairs will follow Robert's Rules of Order. We also have a committee dedicated to handling conflicts of interest. Furthermore, the operation of the association will adhere to the principles of fairness and transparency. Opportunities for organizing association activities will prioritize paid members and volunteers. The seniority of members and the dedication of volunteers will also be taken into consideration. If it becomes difficult to differentiate, we may resort to a lottery system to allocate opportunities equally among participants. In cases of certain awards that emphasize merit, we will consider using a blind selection method, where the names of candidates are concealed. These rules are outlined in Article XI of our bylaws.
From January of this year until now, the Chinese American Parent Association of Baltimore has made significant progress. Many volunteers have worked tirelessly and contributed their efforts. Organizational and community development is an ongoing process that requires the collective effort of everyone involved. We understand that enthusiasm may have slightly diminished at this point, but your passion and perseverance are the most valuable assets for organizational development. We believe that through our collective effort and unity, the American community in Baltimore, just like Chinese American parents in the neighboring counties in Maryland, Virginia, and Pennsylvania, will join hands and make contributions for the sake of our children, ourselves, and the community!
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