YMCA of Greater New Orleans Membership Policy January 1, 2015 Purpose and Scope: The purpose of this policy is to establish a standard set of membership operating practices for use at branches operated by the YMCA of Greater New Orleans. The association has defined the following goals of the Membership Policy:
YMCA membership is available and affordable to everyone living in the Greater New Orleans area. Membership services are safe, of high quality, and accessible to all. Association membership allows members to access membership services and programs at any branch operated by the YMCA of Greater New Orleans. Membership pricing is consistent at all full-service YMCA locations. Membership revenue is allocated to branches in a fair manner.
Member Recruitment: Potential members learn about the YMCA of Greater New Orleans from a variety of sources (advertising, word of mouth, sales promotion activities, former members, etc…). The Member Inquiry Log is used to track calls and visits. A tallied copy of the Member Inquiry Log is forwarded to the Metro Office at the end of each month. When prospective members call or visit the branch, the association has a number of goals to be accomplished. Phone Calls: When someone calls a branch to inquire about membership, the primary goal is to encourage the person to visit the facility. Issues to be covered in the initial phone call include:
Invite to visit the facility Obtain contact information Ask how the caller learned about the YMCA Inform the caller about rate options (senior memberships, youth memberships, financial assistance, etc.) Amenities of the facility
Visits: When someone visits the branch, the primary goal is to have the person become a member of the YMCA. Items to cover during the visit include:
A tour of the facility A schedule of activities and programs offered Hours of operation Find out the reasons for the prospective member’s interest in the YMCA, and attempt to match those with YMCA programs
Association Membership: Members who pay full monthly membership dues (or Open Doors rates, for those eligible) are eligible to use any YMCA branch operated by the YMCA of Greater New Orleans. Rates are evaluated at least once per year and may be raised, provided members are given a minimum of 30 days prior notice. Members whose membership lapses may re-join within 90 days without incurring an additional joining fee. Current membership categories, full monthly rates, and joining fees are shown in the table below: Membership
Regular Rate
Joining Fee
$55/month $79/month $30/month $20/month
Summer Rate*** $66/month $99/month $30/month $20/month
Single Adult Family* Add-on Adult** Youth (12 to 17 yrs old) Senior (60+ yrs old) College Student**** (enrolled full-time)
$50/month $25/month
$50/month $25/month
$100 $25
$100 $100 $25
*Family consists of up to two adults, living under the same roof and all children claimed as dependents **A third adult living at the same residence may be added to a family membership, with acceptable proof of residence ***Summer membership pricing is in effect for memberships with a first draft of April 15th or later. Summer rates remain in effect through the September 15th draft. Members who already have active memberships when summer pricing takes effect do not experience an increase in monthly rates. Monthly dues are reduced to current rates for summer members who continue their memberships beyond the September 15th draft. ***College students must verify their full-time student (12 hours/semester or quarterly equivalent) status by providing a class schedule or other documentation at least once per year. Open Doors: In order to make membership affordable to all members of the community, the YMCA of Greater New Orleans also offers income-based membership rates (known as Open Doors). Members participating in the Open Doors program must show proof of income for everyone receiving earnings in the household and update income on an annual basis. Income includes all types of earnings (including wages, dividends, investment income, etc.). Documentation must include a federal tax return. If the federal tax return no longer accurately represents current income, check stubs (at least two consecutive stubs), child support orders or documentation showing eligibility for public assistance (food stamps, Medicaid, etc.) may be used. Investment losses and business expenses may not be used to establish eligibility. Open Doors rates for regular and summer memberships are shown below.
Regular Open Doors Membership Annual Household Income $30,000 $39,999 $20,000 $29,999 Less than $20,000
Youth/Joining Fee
Single Adult
Family
Senior
Joining Fee
$20/$25
$44/month
$64/month
$40/month
$90
$20/$25
$33/month
$54/month
$30/month
$80
$20/$25
$28/month
$46/month
$25/month
$70
Summer Open Doors Membership Annual Household Income $30,000 $39,999 $20,000 $29,999 Less than $20,000
Youth/Joining Fee
Single Adult
Family
Senior
Joining Fee
$20/$25
$53/month
$81/month
$40/month
$90
$20/$25
$40/month
$63/month
$30/month
$80
$20/$25
$33/month
$54/month
$25/month
$70
Community Center Membership: The YMCA of Greater New Orleans operates three community centers in Plaquemines Parish. Since membership at the community centers is subsidized by parish government, community center members are not allowed full access to all facilities. However, community center members may purchase an association membership by paying the additional fees required of an association member. Community center members are eligible to participate in programs at any YMCA facility by paying the member program rate. Tracking Member Visits: For security and usage tracking purposes, the YMCA of Greater New Orleans records the date and time of all facility visits by members. All members (including children) must scan in at the front desk or child care area each time they visit the facility. Temporary Assistance: Need for assistance is not always adequately addressed with the income guidelines used for the Open Doors program. Branch Executives may grant temporary assistance to members who do not qualify for assistance or who are in need of additional assistance. Temporary assistance is
typically granted for up to six months and may include a waiver of fees. Some common examples of member situations which may require temporary assistance are shown below:
Significant medical expenses Loss due to catastrophe (fire, flood, etc…) Death in the family Loss of income Member becomes homeless
Terminating a Membership: Voluntary Termination Members may terminate a membership by completing and submitting a termination form with a minimum of 30 days prior notice (a five day grace period is used for this notice requirement). The termination form must be submitted in person. If the member has moved out of the area or has some incapacity which prohibits a visit to the facility, the membership director may send the form to the member via e-mail or mail. It is the responsibility of the member to verify that the YMCA has received the termination form. Notification of the termination procedure shall be included on all membership application materials. A waiver of the termination notice requirement and/or refund of membership dues may only be granted in extreme circumstances. Examples of such circumstances include:
Death of the member Illness or injury which results in the member’s inability to utilize services Military deployment Member joins, but never actually uses the facility
Termination for Cause Persons using YMCA programs and facilities are expected to behave in a mature and responsible way and to respect the rights and dignity of others. The YMCA of Greater New Orleans does not allow behavior that falls below a generally accepted standard of conduct. Such behavior may result in termination of membership and exclusion from the facility. The decision to terminate a membership is made by the Branch Executive. Examples of behavior which would likely warrant termination are shown below:
Angry, abusive or vulgar language, including swearing, name-calling or shouting. Physical contact with another person in an angry or threatening way. Any demonstration of sexual activity or sexual contact with another person. Harassment of employees or other members/visitors. Theft or destruction of property. Refusal to follow rules regarding safety, sanitation or health. Criminal conduct. Consumption of illegal drugs while on YMCA property.
Being under the influence of illegal drugs or alcohol while on YMCA property. Criminal convictions which may undermine the safety of other members (example: sex offender registry).
Special Senior Group Memberships (Humana - Healthways & People’s Health) Some senior citizens participate in special group memberships (Humana - Healthways & People’s Health). Their membership is included and paid for as a benefit under their Medicare insurance plan. When Humana and People’s Health members do not use the facility for 6 months, branch staff shall change their membership status to inactive. Termination for Non-payment Branch membership staff shall make attempts to contact members for payment issues after each draft (using the returns report). Payment issues include NSF returns, expired credit cards, account number errors, credit limit declines, etc. Members are not allowed to use the facility if a non-payment is still not resolved after 30 days. After a second draft is returned, the unit is terminated. Member Records Security: Member privacy is very important, and the personal information contained in membership records must be protected. Membership records must be stored in a locked or supervised cabinet at all times. Allocation of Membership Revenue: Membership revenue is typically allocated to the branch the member joins. Members are allowed to use other facilities (cross-utilization) on an infrequent basis with no allocation of membership revenue to the other branches being used. However, when a member establishes a pattern of cross-utilization which results in more than 50% of visits to a different facility, the member’s membership revenue shall be allocated to the branch visited most often by the member. Membership directors shall periodically evaluate cross-utilization to determine if reallocation of membership revenue is warranted. The pattern of cross-utilization shall be determined by examining a minimum of 3 months of facility usage. If a member relocates to a branch in another location, he/she may transfer his/her membership to the new location without establishing a pattern of cross-utilization. In such a situation, membership revenue shall be allocated to the new branch beginning with the next regular draft. Seasonal variations in membership amenities may require membership revenue to be split between two or more branches, when there is a substantial imbalance of cross-utilization visits. In such cases, metro staff will evaluate cross-utilization patterns on a monthly basis and work with affected branch executives to establish an acceptable process for splitting revenue.
Special Promotions: Special promotions, such as discounts/waivers of joining fees or membership dues shall be coordinated among all branches in order to avoid confusion of members. Branches may establish standard group discounts for any group, which shall be honored by other branches. Standard group discounts include a 10% reduction in regular rates and a waiver of the joining fee. Non-standard group discounts shall be discussed and evaluated by all branch executives prior to adoption. Single day event promotions are allowed at individual branches. Program Membership: Association and community center members may participate in programs at any facility by paying the appropriate program fee. Members of the community who do not wish to purchase an association membership may participate in programs as program members. This program membership may be used to participate in programs at any facility operated by the YMCA of Greater New Orleans. There is no fee associated with becoming a program member; however, program members must complete and sign a member application form and appropriate waiver form. Program members are entered into the membership database. Program membership expires after one year, and has to be renewed for subsequent years. AWAY Program: The YMCA of Greater New Orleans participates in the AWAY program, which allows our members to use facilities operated by other associations and allows members of other associations to use our facilities. Members of other associations may use our facilities up to 12 times per year without charge. Our association requires membership staff to make a copy of the visiting member’s photo ID and YMCA membership card. The visiting member must sign a general waiver during his/her initial visit and sign in each time he/she uses one of our facilities.