The National Honor Society for Physician Assistants 

Article I. Purpose, Name, Headquarters, Pin, Seal, Honor Cord, Colors, Motto, Insignia, and Certificate
Section 1 Purpose
a. Pi Alpha National Honor Society is organized for the promotion and recognition of significant academic achievement, leadership, research, community/professional service and related activities, and the encouragement of a high standard of character and conduct among both physician assistant (PA) students and graduates.

Section 2 Name, Headquarters, Pin, Seal, Honor Cord, Colors, Motto, Insignia, and Certificate

a. This organization shall be called Pi Alpha Society (referred to herein as the "Society." The two Greek capital letters for pi and alpha will be the Society's initials.
b. The Society comes under the auspices of the Physician Assistant Education Association (PAEA).
c. The Society headquarters will be located at the offices of the Physician Assistant Education Association.
d. A pin, seal, and honor cord will be developed. The honor cord will be made of two strands of cord, one dark green and one blue.
e. The Society's colors will be dark green and blue.
f. The motto will be developed.
g. The insignia will be the Society's letters, written in Greek capital letters as background and "Pi Alpha" written in script over them.
h. Certificates will be developed and numbered sequentially.

Article II. General Considerations
Section 1. General Considerations
a. Pi Alpha will be under the direction of the PAEA Pi Alpha National Honor Society Advisory Committee, herein referred to as the "Advisory Committee." The function and influence of the Society depends upon the wisdom with which members are inducted. Candidates are selected for membership based on membership criteria outlined below.

b. Individual chapters, through their members, including alumni and faculty, shall establish procedures to apply the national criteria for election of new members. Each candidate shall be voted upon separately at a meeting of members convened for that purpose or by mail. Election for induction shall require a majority vote of those in attendance.

c. No candidate shall be denied election because of race, color, creed, ethnic origin, income, age, gender, sexual orientation, or any other characteristic prohibited by the Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action laws of the state in which the chapter exists.

d. The decision of a physician assistant program to become a Pi Alpha chapter will be voluntary. There will be a one-time of $200 paid by each program that chooses to participate in the national Pi Alpha Society. Individual programs will thereafter pay only a per inductee fee to cover the costs of certificate, cord, pin, and shipping and handling. This fee will be determined by the Advisory Committee in conjunction with the PAEA Finance Committee. Acceptance of application for chapter membership will result in permanent membership. Any chapter wishing to terminate its charter may do so by providing three months advance notice in writing to the Advisory Committee. Chapter membership fees will not be refunded. Reactivation of a terminated member's charter will require reapplication and the repayment of the chapter membership fee.

Article III. Membership
Section 1. PA Student Memberships

a. Physician assistant students who have excelled academically and in research, publishing, community/professional service, or leadership activities are eligible for nomination for membership. Academic excellence is defined as having a minimum cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale at the time of nomination. This GPA is a minimal requirement and is to be based on the GPA earned during the professional phase of the program only. Demonstrated excellence in research, publishing, community/professional service, or leadership activities is to be weighed in addition to GPA. GPA alone is not an indication for induction. Only PA students attending a program accredited by the Accreditation Review Commission on Education for the Physician Assistant (ARC-PA) are eligible for induction.

b. Nominations within chapters shall be limited to those students who are in the last year of the professional phase in their respective PA programs. The deadline for submission of nominations to the Advisory Committee by chapters will be two months prior to the nominee's graduation. The total number of nominees elected shall not exceed fifteen percent of the total number in the class expected to graduate. A student's nomination can be withdrawn by program faculty after submission, should the nominee fail to maintain the nomination requirements between the time of nomination and graduation.

c. The nomination for membership of PA students in programs with non-traditional methods of grading (e.g., pass/fail, satisfactory/unsatisfactory, or programs not able to give an overall GPA or class rank for each student, etc.) will be based on the individual chapter's method of meeting the criteria established in Article III, Section 1, Paragraph a.

d. A candidate shall not be inducted as a member of the Society until the program's fees to the national Pi Alpha office have been paid. There will be no charge to the student inductee. Non-student inductees' costs will be assumed by the chapter or individual inductee.

Section 2. Alumni Memberships

a. The provision for election by each chapter of alumni and faculty members each year provides a means to recognize and honor individuals who have distinguished themselves in their professional careers.

b. Alumni: Chapters may nominate and induct alumni for each year the chapter had a graduating class. The nominating criteria should be the same as those for current graduates.

Section 3. Faculty Memberships

a. Faculty: Full-time physician assistant program faculty who have been with a PA program at least three years and who have fulfilled the criteria of distinguished scholarship, as well as leadership or service to a physician assistant program or the profession are eligible for nomination to the Society.

Section 4. Honorary Membership
a. Individuals (PA or non-PA) who have rendered distinguished scholarship, as well as leadership or professional service to the PA profession, and those who are not eligible for election through other means are eligible for consideration with honorary status. Induction is limited to one honorary member per graduating class.

Section 5. Payment for Induction of Non-students (Alumni, Faculty, and Honorary members)
a. Fees incurred for any inductee other than students will be absorbed by the PA program or individual. Only the cost for student inductees will be included in the fees for individual chapters.

Article IV. ORGANIZATION AND CENTRAL ADMINISTRATION

Section 1. The Structure of the PAEA National Physician Assistant Honor Society Advisory Committee
a. The Advisory Committee will be appointed by the Physician Assistant Education Association Board of Directors.
b. The general management of the Society shall be vested in the Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee shall conduct the business of the national Society of Pi Alpha.

Section 2. Officers
a. The officers shall be the Chair, Secretary/Treasurer, and three council members at large. All officers will have voting privileges.

Section 3. Support Staff
a. The national office shall employ administrative staff and be chosen by PAEA.

Section 4. Chair
a. The Chair shall serve a three-year term and be responsible for overseeing the activities of the Society, appointing all subcommittees, and performing such duties as usually pertain to the office of Chair. The Chair will be responsible for generating and presenting annual reports to the PAEA Board of Directors. The Chair may serve no more than two consecutive terms.

Section 5. Secretary/Treasurer
a. The Secretary/Treasurer shall be appointed by PAEA to serve for a term of two years. The Secretary/Treasurer shall, in conjunction with the PAEA support staff, perform the usual duties of said officer, including but not limited to overseeing a complete record of all members and their addresses and other data that the Advisory Committee may require. This person shall work with national staff to present an annual written report of the financial standing of the Society that includes a detailed statement of all monies received and expended during the preceding year.

Section 6. Installation of Officers
a. The officers will be installed at the time of their appointment.

Section 7. Members at Large
a. There will be three members at large: two PA program graduates and one PA student. The student member will be the current SAAAPA student member at large to PAEA and have voting privileges.

Section 8. Meetings of the Advisory Committee
a. The Advisory Committee will meet at the PAEA Semiannual Meeting. It will also be convened quarterly by the Chair in January, April, July, October, and/or at other times deemed appropriate to vote on applications and other issues as determined by the Advisory Committee. It may conduct business by correspondence, including facsimile transmission, conference calls, teleconference, and electronic mail. Votes taken at these meetings shall be binding. A record shall be kept of the Council's action, and a report thereof shall be made to the next annual meeting of the Advisory Committee.

Section 9. Removal of Officers/Filling of Vacancies
a. The Advisory Committee shall be empowered to remove officers for cause. The PAEA Board of Directors will fill vacancies.

Article V. NEW CHAPTERS

Section 1. Application for Membership
a. A chapter may be chartered at an institution with a physician assistant program accredited by the ARC-PA. An application signed by the program director and by at least two full-time members of the PA program faculty shall be sent to the Advisory Committee. If the application is approved by the Advisory Committee, a charter shall be granted.

Article VI. CHAPTER ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION
Section 1. The individual PA program will decide the extent to which it will develop its chapter and structure. This extent will be determined by the members comprising each program's chapter faculty for each individual program.

Section 2. Structure of Chapter
a. Chapter Council. Each chapter will have a Chapter Council consisting of faculty, program director, and other members appointed at the discretion of the Chapter Council's chair. The Chapter Council will communicate with the Advisory Committee and is the sole responsible governing body at the chapter level. The Chapter Council is responsible for payment of chapter dues, the creation of a list of nominees for membership according to these by-laws, submission of nominees' names to the Advisory Committee in a timely fashion, arranging for induction of new members, and other appropriate business.

b. Future development of Pi Alpha will include national meetings and other organized activities to be determined by the Advisory Committee, in conjunction with PAEA, as Pi Alpha develops. Such meetings would occur concurrently with the PAEA Semiannual Meetings.

Article VII. SUSPENSION AND WITHDRAWAL OF CHARTER

Section 1. Suspension and Withdrawal
a. The charter of any Pi Alpha chapter may be suspended by a majority vote of the Advisory Committee of Pi Alpha. Suspensions are considered for violations of the bylaws. During such suspension the chapter shall not elect or induct new members. The Advisory Committee may reinstate a chapter by the same mechanism.

Section 2. Procedure
a. An investigation convincing the Advisory Committee that such action is desirable and a majority vote of the Advisory Committee to that effect is required.
b. Formal declaration by the Chair of suspension or withdrawal of the charter shall be made upon the recommendation of the Advisory Committee.
c. Any chapter that remains inactive for five years will be so notified and disenfranchised following the expiration of a one-year grace period in which the given chapter may consider and implement reactivation. Further, the charter of a chapter in an institution that loses its ARC- PA accreditation will be invalidated and the chapter cannot elect new members. Inactivity of a chapter will be determined by the Advisory Committee of Pi Alpha.

Article VIII. AMENDMENT TO BYLAWS
Section 1. Procedure
a. Proposals for amendment of the bylaws shall be submitted through the chair to the Advisory Committee at least ninety days before the next annual or other meeting of the Advisory Committee. A majority vote in favor shall be necessary to adopt any amendment to the bylaws.