Iowa Reading Association – Membership Procedures

Posted: September 21, 2025

Iowa Reading Association: A council of the International Reading Association

State and Local Council Membership Fees

  1. State membership fees for a regular active membership are $50.00 ($40 state, $10 local).
  2. Full-time student membership fees are $25.00, ($15 state, $10 local).
  3. Retired educator membership fees are $25.00, ($15 state, $10 local) A retired educator is one who has formally terminated active employment as an educator.
  4. First year teachers can join free. It must be their first year as a teacher and they can only do this once.
  5. Members can be considered “Sustaining Members” if they add an additional $10.00 to their membership fee. Funds obtained from sustaining members are used to support special projects designated by the past president.
  6. Members join the Iowa Reading Association only once. If, for some reason, a person wishes to join a second local council in the state, that person should only pay local dues. That person will not be counted as a state member for the second council. That person’s name will appear only once on the state printout for state membership with the first council the person joined.

Fall Membership Drive

  1. All new and renewing members fill in the information on the membership form. Check to see that all information is complete, accurate, and legible. Please write “Retired”, “Student”, “First Year Teacher” or “Sustaining” at the top of the form if this applies and alphabetize those forms separately. Collect their membership fees, making checks payable to your local council. Make a copy of the membership forms for your local files. Alphabetize the original forms before mailing them to the Membership Director.
  2. Complete the information on the Iowa Reading Association Membership and Dues Report. (This can be found on the iowareading.org website under “Resources”, then “Forms and Grants”).  Attach the alphabetized membership copies with a check made out to the Iowa Reading Association for the total amount due.
  3. Local Council Grants will not be paid until the first fall memberships have been sent to the Iowa Reading Association office by October 1. Send in all membership forms and check by October 1 to receive the “On Time Award” at the Leadership Conference.
  4. State members who do not renew during the local council’s fall membership drive will be reminded by mail of their need to renew their membership. This notice will be sent from the Iowa Reading Association office after local membership directors have sent a reminder email and after fall memberships have been received by the state.

Memberships During the Year

  1. Memberships should be sent in soon after they are received. Members need to be added to the state computer list so that they receive mailings.
  2. Memberships are not added until the dues payment is received. Local council Membership Directors and treasurers are to develop a system so that memberships and checks are mailed together.
  3. Each local council is encouraged to set up a spreadsheet containing local member’s information. An updated printout can be requested from Iowa Reading by contacting Julie Anderson at juliepanderson58@gmail.com.

International Memberships

International memberships received by the local council should be sent directly to the International Literacy Association, www.literacyworldwide.org.

Membership Questions or Suggestions

For membership issues or membership forms:

Julie Anderson, Membership Director
621 Railroad St. Hull, Iowa 51239
juliepanderson58@gmail.com

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