Chair
The chair is appointed for one year renewable at the discretion of the appointing officer, providing the total service on the committee does not exceed four consecutive years.
Duties of a Chair
- Plans and coordinates the committee's work for the year in accordance with the goals of ALA and ALCTS.
- Contributes to and maintains the committee's tactical planning process
- Communicates fully with committee members; compiles an agenda and ensures that minutes are filed after the meeting with the office.
- Schedules and informs committee members of meeting times and location at the ALA Midwinter Meeting and the Annual Conference.
- Replies promptly to all inquiries concerning the committee's work
- Sends a report to the editor of the ALCTS Newsletter Online and the office within 14 days after the Midwinter Meeting and the Annual Conference.
- Recommends reappointment of effective committee members to the ALCTS President-elect or the Chair-elect of the section and CRG. Suggests names of potential committee members.
- Asks the ALCTS President or the Chair of the section or CRG to remove committee members who are not fulfilling their obligations (See the ALA Policy on Committee and Board Service).
- Keeps abreast of the actions of the ALCTS Board and attends Board meetings, if possible. Appears before the ALCTS Board as needed or requested to report on committee activities, request Board action, or inform a discussion.
- Informs the President of ALCTS or the Chair of the section or CRG, as appropriate, and the ALCTS office of changes in committee membership.
- Sends the records of the committee to the new chair when a new chair is appointed.
- Sends archival records to the ALCTS office.
Member
Regular members are appointed for two-year terms that may be renewed, provided the total service on the committee does not exceed four consecutive years. Terms of regular members should be staggered so that no more than half the membership is appointed at any one time.
Members are expected to attend all meeting of the committee. Committee chairs must be notified if the member cannot fulfill this responsibility in advance of the meeting stating the reason for not attending.
Representative and At-Large members of committees are types of regular members so designated by the nature of the committee composition.
--Representative Member
Several ALCTS Division committees have designated representatives from the sections and the Council of Regional Groups. These committee members are appointed by the ALCTS President-elect as division appointing officer upon the recommendation of the section or CRG chair-elect. Representative committee members serve a two-year term.
--At-Large Member
At-Large committee members are designated so on ALCTS Division committees, which have Representative Members. The At-Large member represents the interests of the entire ALCTS membership. The President-elect appoints the At-Large members. At-Large members serve a two-year term.
Ex-Officio Member
An Ex-Officio committee member serves by virtue of holding another position in ALCTS or in another organization. Ex-officio members may or may not vote according to the appointment criteria for the committee. Non-voting ex-officio members are not counted in determining a quorum. When an ex-officio member of a committee ceases to hold the position that entitles him/her to such membership, membership on the committee ends.
Interns
Any ALCTS member, who is new to the profession, to formal responsibilities within ALCTS, or wants to get involved in an area they haven't been before, may serve as an intern on a division, section, or CRG committee. An intern appointment is for one year, renewable for one additional year, and may lead to service as a regular committee member. The President-elect or the Chair-elect of the sections or CRG may appoint an intern(s) to a committee, in consultation with the chair of that committee.
A member accepting an intern appointment cannot accept another appointment as a regular committee member on the same level or in the same section or CRG as the intern appointment. The intern appointment is the only appointment a member can accept on the division level or for the individual section and CRG.
Examples: 1. A member accepts an intern position on the ALCTS Planning Committee. That member is then not eligible for any other division committee appointment. That member however may serve on a section committee as a regular member. 2. A member accepts an intern position on a CMDS committee. That member is not eligible to serve as a regular member of another CMDS committee but could serve on a committee of PARS or Serials or even a division level committee.
If the intern has another ALCTS appointment, no matter the type or position, it is the intern's responsibility to inform the appropriate appointing officer.
No more than three interns may be appointed to any one committee, and the number of interns appointed cannot exceed the number of committee members whose terms expire within two years.
Interns are non-voting members of committees.
Interns are appointed to a committee to learn the work of the committee. An intern should be assigned work appropriate to their background and interests based on the work the committee must undertake. Interns are responsible for completing assigned tasks within the allotted time period.
Interns are expected to attend both the Midwinter Meeting and the Annual Conference.
Liaisons
A Liaison is an ALCTS member who is appointed by a unit or committee within ALCTS to another ALA unit or outside organization for communication purposes only. The liaison does not have an active role in the governance or affairs of the other group's activities. Liaison appointments are listed in the ALA Handbook of Organization. Liaisons appointed by ALCTS have two-year terms that are renewable for one additional two-year term.
Representatives from ALCTS to non-ALCTS groups
ALCTS members appointed to represent ALCTS to other organizations must have the corresponding knowledge and experience which qualifies them for such representation. The appointment of members to international organizations or who will represent ALCTS at a meeting outside the United States shall comply with guidelines established by the ALCTS International Relations Committee and approved by the ALCTS Board. The need for representation may be identified by an ALCTS unit(s) and presented to the ALCTS Board. The Board will then consider the request for representation; if the request is approved, the president-elect will make an appointment. The ALCTS Board may also identify the need for representation. Any funding for the representative is at the discretion of the ALCTS Board, in consultation with the Budget & Finance Committee.
--Responsibilities of ALCTS Representatives
ALCTS Members who agree to serve as representatives of the Association:
- Represent and are accountable for the interests of ALCTS by expressing the viewpoint of the Association in discussion related to matters of concern to ALCTS;
- Inform the appropriate ALCTS group about the work being done by the group to which representative appointment is made;
- Insure that the appropriate group within ALCTS is provided adequate opportunity to review and to respond to documents from the group to which appointment is made;
- Submit a written report, including decisions made and actions taken, to the ALCTS Board or appropriate section executive committee as required.
Representatives to ALCTS from non-ALCTS groups
Some committees have non-voting representatives from ALA and/or non-ALA groups. The appointing officer invites these groups to appoint members to the appropriate committee. The committee chair should notify the appointing officer of anticipated vacancies among the representatives from ALA or non-ALA groups. If such a vacancy occurs during the committee year, the appointing officer must be notified. In most circumstances, an identified need must exist for the ALA or non-ALA group to have the representative sit on an ALCTS committee. Board or section or CRG executive committee approval is required.
For policy relating to non-ALA liaisons to CCDA.
Consultants
Consultants are appointed to a committee because of their expertise. This expertise might pertain to a specific project, either continuing or new, or as an advisor for a specified situation.
The appointing officer appoints the consultant upon recommendation and in consultation with the committee chair. The number of consultants appointed to any committee may vary according to the assignment or task but should be strictly limited. If more than one consultant is deemed necessary, then an alternative, such as a task force or working group, should be considered. Consultants should be limited to a specific project on which their input is absolutely critical, for a specific length of time, and working under the guidance of the chair and the committee with the understanding that their work will supplement the work of the committee. Initial appointments are for no more than two years and renewable based on the completion date of the project or task. A one-year initial appointment has been found to be sufficient for many consultants to complete their assignment. Consultants do not have the right to vote on committee matters. Consultants seeking publication resulting from their work must follow the established publishing procedures of ALCTS.
Virtual Members
ALCTS does not have a separate policy for virtual committee membership, but follows the ALA policy. The ALA Policy that governs such appointments is 6.16 (Virtual Members). Virtual Members may not exceed one-third of a committee's membership.
Virtual committee members are members who want to be involved in the association but cannot attend the ALA Midwinter Meeting and Annual Conference. Virtual members are expected to fully participate in the committee's activities in between conferences, either through e-mail, conference calls, or via a discussion list. ALCTS will provide no accommodation for virtual committee members to participate in committee meetings held at Midwinter or Annual Conference.
In ALCTS, the decision to appoint virtual members to a committee is made by the appointing officer and the committee chair of that committee. It is recommended that the number of virtual members be kept to a minimum. Using the one-third rule of ALA, most ALCTS committees would be limited to two virtual members. ALCTS does grant voting status to virtual committee members.
Regular appointment procedures apply to virtual committee members.