Coalition SWAA Chapter Toolkit
Mission statement
Our objectives & goals:
What is A Chapter?
Most of our members are members of the coalition linked to a chapter near them: registered as part of our coalition, with access to all Coalition SWAA resources and leadership support. The majority of our chapters are founded explicitly as a “Coalition SWAA Chapter,”.
Our model allows chapters to strike a balance between participating in Coalition SWAA’s initiatives and operating independently. We expect chapters to promote Coalition SWAA mission, vision, initiatives and support the organisation’s upcoming work, but chapters are also encouraged to suggest initiatives, tell us about your projects, share your strategies, and help guide the course of the larger Coalition SWAA organization. We are very receptive to input from our chapters and we would love to hear your ideas!
How to Create a Chapter
- Familiarize yourself with Coalition SWAA’s mission, vision and objectives
- Start a new chapter in your country – Get together a group of 5+ professionals who have the time or interested in spa or wellness. Identify 2-3 leaders of the group. Fill out the Chapter Registration Form here. You can call it “Coalition [Your Country]” SWAA.
- Schedule a Call with one of our Executive Directors- After you fill out the registration form and are able to set up a working chapter, a Coalition SWAA Executive Director will schedule a call with you via Email. They will run you through starting your chapter, and can answer any questions you may have.
- Register with the Coalition SWAA network through your membership – Once your chapter is established, check back in with us. We’ll provide you with a page on our website, and add you to our network team. Please accept the invitation to join our network team you’ll receive an email so you can connect with chapters throughout the country, and give you access to our communal resources.
- Advertise your chapter at your company or school – If yourcompany or school has a club fair, make sure to get a table for your Coalition SWAA chapter. If not, advertise your chapter online and put up posters to make sure as many students know about it as possible.
- Start an email list for your chapter – Make sure you have a way to keep your members in the loop and active. An email list is also a must for being part of the wider Coalition SWAA network, as it will help us connect your chapter to national actions and initiatives. All chapters and heads have a unique email.
- Begin meeting! – We will send out weekly action items and make sure you stay updated on wider Coalition SWAA events, so there will always be something to talk about! Weekly/Bi-weekly/Monthly meetings are really up to your discretion.
Coalition SWAA’s Platform
Our work focuses on …………………………………..
Chapter Responsibilities
- Hosting Chapter Meetings – We will provide an agenda for you to use in your meetings every two weeks. These will include talking points and weekly actions, which can range from membership information, and letter writing to discussing and researching ministries to help your chapter, and even occasional arts and crafts. They are suggestions, the actions we feel are important for the given week given our platform.
If you have your own plans, toss our suggestions aside. Otherwise these agendas are goodjumping points. Meetings should also be the time where you brainstorm and plan events.
- Hosting Events at Your Company/School – We expect each of our chapters to host one event per semester atyour company/school or region (two per year). Some examples of events are Networking, Therapist Forum, Directors Symposium,or inviting a speaker to your company/school. See the Chapter Volunteer Resources Handbook Guidelines folder shared on your email and the Network Channel for all resources and guides for hosting various kinds of events. Your Committee members will check in throughout the year and provide support in the process.
- Taking part in Coalition SWAA actions – Throughout the year, we’ll be sending actions that align with our policy goals to our chapters. Chapters should work on these actions during weekly chapter meetings.
- Attending Coalition SWAA events – Throughout the year, Coalition SWAA will be hosting frequent events. Chapter involvement in events is incredibly important as it helps foster a community and shows that our industry has power in numbers, so we expect our chapters to attend many of our events.
- Publicising Coalition SWAA events to your community – Coalition SWAA chapters should spread the word about public Coalition SWAA events to their company/school community.
Communication and accountability is what holds us together as a community and MAKE CHANGE POSSIBLE! Reach out to the Executive Directors for a call at any point in your journey as a chapter – we are here to help and provide any resources you may need.