Historic change in New York

Albany, N.Y.—New York State Dental Association will begin a new chapter in its history in June, as its newly formed house of delegates meets for the first time in Chicago.

NYSDA members overwhelmingly approved the governance change in May 2009, with 92 percent in favor of establishing a house of delegates and board of trustees to replace the board of governors system.

“I am proud to announce that our membership has overwhelmingly approved a new constitution and bylaws that will expand representation as we move from a board of governors to a house of delegates and a board of trustees,” said NYSDA President Michael Breault, a periodontist in Schenectady. “I look forward to the increased input this will give to our volunteer leadership as we chart the course of our profession in the years ahead.”

The 101-member house, the new governing body of the state association, comprises two delegates from each of New York’s 13 component societies, one American Student Dental Association representative and 74 additional delegates allocated to components in proportion to their member populations.

The NYSDA’s board is its new administrative body, composed of the trustees from each of the component societies plus the president, president-elect, vice president and immediate past president. The treasurer, executive director and ADA 2nd District Trustee are non-voting members of the Board.

Until now, New York was the only single constituent society trustee district of the ADA that did not have a house of delegates and board of trustees. (A house and board govern the California, Florida, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Texas dental associations.) The NYSDA has some 14,000 members.

Dr. Robert M. Peskin, a general dentist in Garden City, is the speaker of the new NYSDA house of delegates and author of the association’s new constitution and bylaws.

“This is a major change,” said Dr. Peskin. “I’m excited about it and about having played an integral part in bringing it to fruition. It’s a new era for New York that will help encourage people at the grassroots level to become involved and play a part.”

Dr. Peskin said he used the ADA’s Constitution and Bylaws as a template for the new governance documents.

“We are going from a 35-member board of governors to a house and board which will give our components a better chance to be heard,” he said. “It will also give the average member a much greater opportunity to participate as a leader at the state level鈥攎ore than three times the number of people will be involved than in the past.”

Board members will have term limits, he added, which will offer more members the opportunity to serve in the years to come.

The association has also changed the timing of its annual session to late spring to give the New York house of delegates more time to consider issues that could be brought to the ADA House of Delegates in the fall.
The upcoming meeting in Chicago, scheduled for June 9-12, will give officers and delegates an opportunity to tour ADA Headquarters during their stay.

“Holding our first meeting in Chicago is a show of support for the importance of our tripartite structure and its emphasis on collaboration at all levels of organized dentistry,” said NYSDA Executive Director Mark J. Feldman. “Our new structure allows us to expand our communication to and receive input from our members. This increased participation will allow us to move forward unified as we face the critical issues impacting our profession today.”