PART II How to Run Effective Meetings & Build an Effective Committee Structure

Effective Meetings Planning is the Key: Planned in advance (yearly) to assure attendance. All necessary documents sent in ADVANCE: agenda, minutes of the previous meeting, financial reports, committee reports.

Effective Meetings cont. 3. Use a consent agenda to conserve time & energy – discuss only agenda items that some one wants to discuss and not necessarily every report. 4. No COMMITTEE BUSINESS at Full Board Meetings. Full Board meetings are for GOVERNANCE.

Effective Meetings cont. 5. Use some form of Meeting management tool, such as Roberts Rules of Order, or write your own meeting protocol. Include the need for a basic understanding of the accepted meeting protocol in the job description of the Board President, Vice-President and Secretary, if not for each board member.

Which ones – Roles and Responsibilities Committees Which ones – Roles and Responsibilities

Who serves on committees? Both Board members and non-Board members should serve on committees. Committees should be chaired by Board members who serve as liaisons to the full Board. Including non-Board members on committees is a great way to evaluate potential Board candidates!

Committee Roles & Responsibilies All committees should have a job description that includes a time-line for getting the job done. Each committee should prepare a job description for committee members. Committee job descriptions may be written by the committee itself. Committees and job descriptions should be understood and circulated to the full Board.

Essential Committees Finance & Audit Nominating (Which is often called “Governance” or “Board Development” Can find examples on the Internet: Board Café: www.compasspoint.org/boardcafe

Recommended Committees: Investment Membership Development/fund raising Collections/Museum Facilities (Buildings and Grounds) Other Possible Committees: Information Tech. (IT) Public programs/Education/Interpretation/Exhibitions Marketing Communications/Publicity Hospitality

Museum Collections & The Board Museums and Historical Societies are different from other nonprofits because of their duty of collections stewardship. Where do the Board and the Collections Overlap?

Stewardship of Collections Standards From AASLH Steps Program The institution owns, exhibits, or uses collections that are appropriate to its mission. The institution legally, ethically, and effectively manages, documents, cares for, and uses the collections. The institution’s collections-related research is conducted according to appropriate scholarly standards.

Collections Stewardship cont. The institution plans for the use and development of its collections. Guided by its mission, the institution provides public access to its collections while ensuring their preservation.

Collections No-no’s for Board, Staff & Volunteer Staff Personal use of artifacts and archival items by an individual for any reason is prohibited. Performing irreversible cleaning, restoration, or other procedures on a collection item, such as applying an accession number in a permanently damaging manner, or mechanical or chemical cleaning, unless performed by or under the supervision of, a professionally trained conservator.

More no-no’s… Institutional sale of collections materials for short term museum needs. Use of funds from deaccessioning for anything other than acquisition of new collections or direct care or conservation of existing collections. Individual use of, or dealing in collections by staff or volunteers by gift, purchase, or loan for personal gain.

And more no-no’s… Failure to establish clear ownership of a potential artifact or archives donation prior to acceptance into the collection. Inattention to national and international regulations with regard to collections items including, but not limited to, antiquities, Nazi-era loot, and Native American remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, or objects of cultural patrimony.

And even more no-no’s Providing appraisals to outside parties on items for any reason. Misrepresentation of a collection item’s origin, history or condition. Use of collections (beyond reasonable handling as part of collections processing and exhibition) in a manner that threatens their preservation unless designated as part of the hands-on or teaching collection.

All of these “No-no’s” Should be Written Policy The Collections Policy Should include a “Collections Ethics” statement that covers all of the topics listed below. VERY important to include this in the Board Handbook and make it known to new Board members.

Collections Policy Some Things to Include: Relation between the mission and the collections Plan for collecting – and method of declining donated items Collecting priorities articulated Schedule for review of the policy Compliance with local and Federal laws Code of ethics

Collections Policy cont. Written procedures for identifying and resolving conflicts of interest Person or committee delegated as responsible for maintaining, reviewing and disseminating the policy to board, volunteers and staff Job descriptions for people who work with the collections Guidelines for handling collections items Procedures for access to collections storage

Collections Policy cont. All appropriate collections forms: Deed of gift, Loan forms, Temporary Deposit Forms, deaccession, etc. Rules for disposing of artifacts Written procedures for accessioning and cataloging items Emergency/Disaster Plan Conservation plan Housekeeping methods and schedules Public access guidelines

Sound Overwhelming?

The Key to Success is to take One Step at a Time & Celebrate Each Success

Checklist of Written Documents to develop, review or revise Mission statement Bylaws Code of Ethics (AAM) Job descriptions for Board members, including officers Job descriptions for paid staff Job descriptions for unpaid staff (are unpaid staff roles identified?) Strategic plan Board manual Personnel manual Job performance/ annual review schedule for paid and unpaid staff Policy for onsite and offsite storage and safekeeping of copies of governing documents