Information for Chairs of Committees, Task Forces, and Discussion Groups
Congratulations on your appointment as the chair of a committee, task force, or discussion group in RBMS. (For the sake of convenience, the phrase "committee chair" will be used below to refer to chairs of committees, task forces, or discussion groups, and the word "committee" will be used to stand for all three kinds of groups, unless otherwise specified.) As chair, you will have some extra responsibilities, but you will also have a first-rate opportunity to participate actively in the work of the Section, and to learn more about your profession in the process. Below is a sketch of your responsibilities and the resources available to help you:
Responsibilities
Committee chairs should attend the New Member Orientation held at the beginning of the RBMS Preconference each year (usually on the first afternoon, just before the opening reception). The orientation session provides an important opportunity to introduce the scope and the work of your group to new members or first-time attendees, and to encourage them to get involved. Remember to mention any openings your group may have for new members. If you cannot attend, appoint a substitute to speak on your behalf, and send that person "talking points" to mention about the committee.
As chair, you should attend all meetings of your committee, come prepared, and urge committee members to do the same. Post an agenda for your group's meeting three weeks before it is held, whether at the ALA Midwinter Meeting or at the ALA Annual Conference. If your committee will be holding a closed meeting -- to be attended only by the members of the committee -- send the agenda only to those members. Agendas for all other meetings should be sent to the RBMS Secretary to batch together and pass on to ACRL, and also posted to the RBMS electronic discussion list.
As chair, you are responsible for making sure that the recorder prepares minutes promptly after your group's meeting (this is true of task forces and discussion groups as well as committees). Ask the recorder to send you the draft minutes for your review before distributing them. You should send the minutes to the RBMS Secretary within one month after the meeting. The Secretary will batch all the groups' minutes together and forward them to ACRL. (This batching by section is necessary because ACRL has 17 sections consisting of innumerable committees and other groups, some of which have similar names but belong to different sections.) Also, be sure to post the minutes on the RBMS discussion list.
The RBMS Newsletter editor will ask you to supply a brief summary of your group's activities for each issue of the Newsletter. Normally there are two issues per year, one in the spring, the other in the fall; the editor will announce the deadlines for submissions.
As chair, you are expected to give a report at Information Exchange or, if unable to attend, to appoint someone to represent your group and report on its behalf. Information Exchange normally takes place late on the Sunday afternoon of ALA, both at the Annual Conference and at the Midwinter Meeting; it is usually listed in the conference program. Your report at Information Exchange should be brief (no more than two minutes), and should focus on your group's activities or decisions that will be of interest to RBMS as a whole.
You are also expected to attend the meetings of the RBMS Executive Committee. The Executive Committee normally meets on the Monday morning of ALA, both at the Annual and at the Midwinter convention. Although every committee, task force, and discussion group is listed on the Executive Committee meeting agenda, you should not give a report if you already did so at Information Exchange and have no action items (issues requiring a decision by the Executive Committee). Nonetheless, you should be present to answer questions if they arise, and to find out what is going on in the Section that might concern your group. Frequently issues come up at the Executive Committee meeting that no one anticipated.
Some committee chairs also serve as liaisons to their corresponding committees in ACRL (the Association of College & Research Libraries), RBMS's parent body. Check your committee's charge in the RBMS Manual to find out whether your position as chair includes liaison responsibilities.
Print out and keep files and documents created during your tenure as chair, and pass them on to your successor. Incoming committee chairs should receive and keep these files. All earlier files should be weeded and sent to the RBMS Archivist/Records Manager for review and transfer to the ALA Archives. Guidelines for weeding can be found on the Web at http://www.library.uiuc.edu/ahx/professional.htm.
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Committee Appointments
RBMS has several types of committees: standing committees, recurring ad hoc committees, task forces, and discussion groups. It also has individual members who serve as liaisons to other organizations.
Most committee, task force, and discussion group appointments are made early in the spring by the RBMS Vice Chair/Chair-Elect. The chair and members of each standing committee are appointed for a term of two years. Some recurring ad hoc committees, such as the Nominating Committee, serve for one year only. Interns are appointed for terms of one year and may then be appointed as regular committee members. Task force members are appointed for one year; their appointment may be renewed if the task force needs to continue its work for a second year. For discussion groups, only the chair is appointed.
In order to serve for a second term, a member or chair must be formally reappointed by the Vice Chair/Chair-Elect.
Committee chairs and members may be appointed to a maximum of two consecutive terms. An appointive year begins with the adjournment of the ALA Annual Conference and ends with the adjournment of the next Annual Conference. Appointees must be members of ACRL and RBMS at the time of appointment. It is an ALA rule that no one can serve simultaneously on more than three committees unless their committee membership is ex officio.
The decision on who will succeed you as chair rests with the RBMS Vice Chair/Chair-Elect. While you are most welcome to suggest someone as your successor, you may not appoint your successor and should not promise the appointment to anyone.
The RBMS Manual is a valuable source of information about the Section's mission, structure, procedures, and activities. If you see something in the Manual that needs updating, alert the RBMS Past Chair, who is responsible for maintaining it.
Each Member at Large on the RBMS Executive Committee serves as a liaison to several of the Section's committees, task forces, and/or discussion groups. The Member at Large for your group can be a valuable source of advice on how to proceed with initiatives, how to bring an action item to the Executive Committee for a decision, and other matters. Other members of the Executive Committee can also help, if your own designated Member at Large is not available at the moment.
The RBMS Vice Chair/Chair-Elect makes committee appointments, and is a good person to ask if you have questions about the membership of your committee.
Besides being required for committee chairs, Information Exchange is also an excellent resource for information on the activities of other RBMS committees and related groups. The same is true of the Executive Committee's meetings. Both offer a valuable perspective on the work of the Section as a whole.