Guidelines for Board and Chairs

GUIDELINES FOR BOARD MEMBERS AND COMMITTEE CHAIRS

MISSION: To further public interest on the Heard Museum, and to support and aid the work of the

Board of Trustees and the Staff of the Museum through:

  • Strong emphasis on educational services for both the Guild and the general public.
  • Continuing emphasis on volunteer commitment to the Museum and the Guild; and
  • Fund raising for the benefit of the Museum.

BOARD MEETINGS

  • Board meetings are held .at the Museum on the second Wednesday of each month, September through May, at 9:30 am.
  • All elected and appointed Board members are expected to attend Board meetings. Each Board member, with the exception of the Parliamentarian, is allowed one vote on any motion.
  • Committee chairs will be welcome to attend Board meetings during the year.

COMMITTEE MEETINGS AND EVENTS

Committee chairs should keep the President and Board member who serves as Coordinator of that Committee informed of all meetings, plans, progress, problems, etc

  • Include the Treasurer/Assistant Treasurer in your meetings if a large sum of money is involved.
  • Make an effort to include new Guild members.
  • Notify the Museum Activities Coordinator, as far in advance as possible, of space and equipment requirements. Notify promptly if an event is canceled.

EXPENSES

  • Submit your proposed budget to the Treasurer by the designated date. Itemize your budget carefully.
  • Any departure from policy, or expenditure of money on other than budgeted items, requires Board approval.
  • The Guild does not pay for committee food.
  • Be thrifty with Guild money.
  • Only the President, President-Elect or Treasurer may sign contracts. The Fair Chair may sign contracts related to the Fair.
  • The Treasurer will send out checks only after receiving a completed Finance Voucher with the appropriate sales slips/invoices attached.
  • Finance Vouchers are available in the Guild Room.
  • Keep a record of your expenditures for your annual report.

GENERAL GUIDELINES

  • Be familiar with the Guild Bylaws, polices and Code of Ethics.
  • Consult the President, Coordinator or any Board member if you need assistance.
  • All publicity is to be coordinated with the Museum Communications Coordinator, who is ultimately responsible for all media coverage.
  • The Guild Room Committee Chair is in charge of all stationary supplies. Please notify the Chair before using any large amounts of stationery.
  • Everyone likes to be appreciated. A note or a call to those who helped is a Guild tradition.
  • Maintain currency and accuracy of the Guild websites with frequent reviews. Contact the Guild Webmaster with changes and corrections.

5/10/11

The Heard Museum Guild

GUIDELINES FOR WRITING COMMITTEE REPORTS

All Board members and Chairs of Standing and Special committees are asked to submit three or four copies of their annual reports. For those reporting to a Coordinator, the distribution is as follows:

  • The succeeding Committee Chair
  • The Coordinator
  • The President’s permanent file
  • The Library and Archives file

Board members need to submit just three copies, to be distributed to their successor, the President and the Library and

Archives file. All copies are given to the President-Elect, or incoming Secretary who makes the proper distribution according to the above guidelines.

An electronic copy should also be sent to webmaster@heardguild.org for posting on the Guild Website.

Reports should be thorough, but concise. The main purposes of writing reports are to provide a working background for the succeeding chair and to provide continuity for the Guild.

SAMPLE COMMITTEE REPORT FORMAT

Report for ____________________________ Committee

Purpose: A statement explaining the Committee’s overall purpose and specific objectives it had planned to achieve during the year.

Budget: A summary of the year’s budgeted income and expenses.

  1. Supplies and equipment needed a. Sources

b. Staff/Guild/Vendor contacts

  1. Income and Expenditures

a. Major income and expenditure categories b. Compared to budget and/or previous year

Activities

  1. List of tasks under each activity
  2. Timeline or key dates for each task

Results/Observations

  1. Brief paragraph on the most successful activities and the principal Reason for their success
  2. A second brief paragraph stating the biggest problems or difficulties faced by the committee

Conclusions and Suggestions

  1. List of recommendations of what worked and what didn’t, how to improve what needs to be done, what needs to be change or discontinued.
  2. What is the information you did not receive that you felt you needed?

Committee

  1. Who was the Chair, Co-Chair, Assistant Chairs (those who supervised principal activities?
  2. List of people (and contact information) who worked on the committee as a guide to experienced people for next year.

3/2010