Nominating Committee

Procedures | Election Schedule

Type: Standing

Authorization: Bylaws, Article VIII, Section 1 and Article IX, Sections 1 and 2

Date of Establishment: 1957

Date of Completion: Continuing

Membership: 5 members, including the non-immediate past president and one member from a preceding term

Qualifications: YALSA personal members who must be able to attend both the Midwinter Meeting and Annual Conference of ALA.  Wide knowledge of personal members of YALSA; an understanding of the Association's structure and its place within the overall ALA structure and prior experience in one or more of YALSA’s elected positions.

Term of Office: 16 months, commencing January 1, and ending after election results are announced in May.

Function: To recruit, vet and select candidates for the slate for the election of YALSA Officers, Directors and certain award committee members.  When building the slate, strive to provide for broad representation, including but not limited to representation of the membership by: diverse background, type of library, special interest, and geographic location.  To assist candidates in preparing for the election, including but not limited to planning and implementing a Candidates' Forum. 

Procedures

Committee Overview

• The members of the Nominating Committee are selected each spring by the President-Elect, who contacts potential members to determine their willingness to serve.  All committee members are appointed by June each year; however, their term doesn’t begin until January 1st.  The purpose of the early appointment is to allow time for committee members to plan for attending the Midwinter Meeting.
• The Nominating Committee annually presents the names of at least two candidates for President-Elect, four candidates for two Board members-at-large, six candidates for the Margaret A. Edwards Award Committee, eight candidates for the Michael L. Printz Award Committee, eight candidates for the YALSA Excellence in Nonfiction Award; and at least two candidates each for YALSA Division Councilor, Fiscal Officer, and Secretary every three years.

Outline of Committee Work

• The work of the Committee begins officially on January 1.
•  The Committee Chair contacts the prior Chair to obtain the previous Committee’s list of potential candidates and any relevant information regarding their interest level or status.
• The Committee meets face-to-face for the first time at the Midwinter Meeting.
• The Committee conducts an evaluation of the current Board of Directors in order to develop a plan for recruiting new Board members.  Information about the current Board can be collected from the President and Executive Director.
• The Committee takes into careful consideration the stated responsibilities of the elected positions when seeking potential candidates. (link to responsibilities in Handbook here)
• The Chair works with the Committee to develop a work plan and assigns committee members specific tasks and areas of focus.
• At the Midwinter Meeting the Committee will attend appropriate YALSA events to seek out potential candidates for the election and to inform the membership about the nomination and election process.
• In between Midwinter and Annual, the Committee will continue to actively seek input from YALSA leaders and the membership when considering potential candidates.  The Committee will use appropriate YALSA communication channels, such as the blog, listservs and YAttitudes, to put out a call for candidates and to inform the membership about the nomination process.  Potential candidates will be asked to complete the Nominating Committee Information Form (link to the online form here).  Self-nominations are encouraged.
• At the Annual Conference, a closed meeting is held by the Committee to examine and discuss potential candidates. A short list of candidates for each office is compiled in priority order.  Priority candidates should be approached personally during the Annual Conference, if possible, to confirm their interest in running on the slate.
• After the Annual Conference the Committee continues to refine its list of candidates and communicate with potential candidates to determine their level of commitment.
• In August (by no later than Aug. 31st) the Chair will send a complete and final list of candidates to the YALSA Executive Director.  The YALSA Membership Coordinator will check the membership status of prospective candidates and notify the Chair of the eligibility of the candidates as quickly as possible, but no more than one week after receipt of the list.
• In September the YALSA Executive Director will send an official message to the candidates on behalf of the Chair inviting them to run.  The purpose is to obtain written consent from the candidates that they have agreed to run, as per YALSA bylaws.
• For any candidates that turn down the invitation, the Committee will submit a replacement name to the Executive Director as soon as possible.
• Once all candidates have confirmed their commitment to running on the slate and all spots on the ballot are filled, the Chair contacts any potential candidates who were not ultimately placed on the ballot and informs them of the opportunity to run as a petition candidate.  Nominations by petition will be accepted until the ALA deadline (4 months prior to Midwinter).
• The YALSA Executive Director sends election information and ballot instructions to all candidates.
• Throughout the fall, the Nominating Committee takes charge of planning the Candidates’ Forum which will be held at the Midwinter Meeting.
• The final slate is submitted to the YALSA Board for their Midwinter Meeting. Board members have the right and obligation to examine the report.  
• In January/February, the YALSA Office is responsible for preparing the ballot; the Executive Director is responsible for its accuracy.
• Voting begins in March.
• The YALSA Executive Director will notify all candidates as well as members of the Nominating Committee of election results as soon as the information is made available by ALA.  Depending on the election schedule, this is late April or early May.  After candidates have been contacted election results will be posted on YALSA’s web site.
• The only Nominating Committee records to be retained are suggested lists of candidates, previous slates and previous Nominating Committee rosters.  These records will be forwarded to the next Nominating Committee Chair.  A copy of the official ALA ballot and the election results will also be retained for the records in the YALSA office, along with the previous slates and previous Nominating Committee rosters.

Election Schedule