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

2. 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.

3. 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.

4. 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.

5. Which ones – Roles and Responsibilities
Committees
Which ones – Roles and Responsibilities

6. 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!

7. 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.

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

9. 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

10. 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?

11. 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.

12. 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.

13. 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.

14. 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.

15. 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.

16. 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.

17. 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.

18. 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

19. 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

20. 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

21. Sound Overwhelming?

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

23. 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