Rotary Policies

What are the Club's Membership Guidelines?

ROTARY CLUB OF CEDAR RAPIDS MEMBERSHIP QUALIFICATION GUIDELINES

The Cedar Rapids Rotary Club has established the following guidelines with regard to qualification for membership in the Club:

Applicants. Our club is seeking leaders of all walks who adhere to and model the Rotary Four-Way Test and Rotary Objectives to join as members. Community leaders, business leaders, emerging leaders, entrepreneurs and thought leaders are all welcome to apply for membership.
Residency. Applicants are ideally a resident of Linn County, Iowa or have his or her principal business address located in Linn County, Iowa. Exceptions will be approved by the Board of Directors based on the applicants community leadership and involvement.
Available Classification. To ensure our club is representative of our business community, we categorize members into business classifications. Although we are bound by Rotary International in the percentage of members in any one business classification, we make every reasonable effort to create classifications for applicants as they are proposed.
Meeting Attendance. Members are strongly encouraged to invite prospective members to three club meetings prior to submitting an application for membership, however an application may be submitted at any time.

We are a dues paying, member organization with regular attendance permitted through an application / approval process. Visiting non-Rotarians should limit their visits to three within twelve months. After three visits, we request the guest either apply for club membership or refrain from attending.
Community Leadership and Involvement. An applicant should generally be actively involved in professional and community affairs. The application form should include a complete and detailed summary of the applicant's involvement in all organizations which satisfy this criteria.
Qualification of Business Organization. The business organization employing the applicant should be in existence at least two years. However, this may be waived by the Board as to any business organization new to the community which otherwise has a national or regional presence. The Membership Committee and Board will consider all reasonable attribution rules (e.g., mergers, successor owners, etc.) in applying this criteria.
Full Membership. Applicants for membership are approved initially as provisional members. To qualify as a full member, the applicant must (i) satisfy a six month probationary period and (ii) attend a new membership orientation session conducted by the Club within fifteen months of joining the club. The six month probationary period is waived for past Rotarians, however they are still asked to attend the club orientation.