Board Member Duties

The following is a guide to help new SCWCA Board members. We recommend as a first step that you read the SCWCA Constitution and By-laws.

SCWCA Archivist/Historian permanent facility/UALR

The Archivist compiles and maintains reports, documents, and memorabilia relevant to the history of SCWCA and its members and protects them. Help the archivist by submitting materials relevant to your duties. These will eventually be accessible for research, so you might someday be in someone’s dissertation.

All the officers listed below attend the annual Executive Board planning meeting.

Past President
2 year term

The Past President supports and guides the President.

President
2 year term

The President’s term starts at the annual conference. The Past President will preside over the meeting, and introduce the new President.

  1. The President helps the conference planners with scheduling the Executive Board meeting, usually held Thursday evening at about 5:30 (often followed by a late dinner). At this meeting, the main order of business is planning the agenda for the Annual Business Meeting (open to all members and usually held on Saturday morning). Before the conference (a week will be about right), use the listserv to call for agenda items for the business meeting. Prepare a preliminary agenda in advance; for help, refer to minutes of previous meetings  to be posted on SCWCA- L a few days prior to the meeting. At the conference, the President will chair both the Executive Board planning meeting and the Business meeting and may only vote in the case of a tie.
  2. At the conference, the President may be asked to say a few words at the banquet. Make sure to thank the host institutions, the conference organizers and their tutors, and the plenary speaker.
  3. Consult with the conference planners at least a month (more if possible) ahead of the conference and notify all Board members (via the listserv) about the Executive Board meeting time.
  4. Stay in touch with conference planners early on to announce the availability of the Conference Scholarships and Outstanding Tutor of the Year Award. Once the conference dates are announced, contact the Conference Scholarships chair (selected at the Business meeting each year) and decide on deadlines. Also contact the Vice President, who will chair the Outstanding Tutor committee, for the same information. Make sure someone lets the web master know to add announcements and dates to the web site, and also make announcements on SCWCA-L.
  5. After the conference, the Secretary will send you the meeting minutes for review. If they meet with your approval, send them to the web master for posting on the web. That way, they will be easily available for the next year’s business meeting, when they have to be approved. If any changes are made, make sure the web master gets the new version.
  6. If anyone leaves an office during the year and it would be inconvenient or unwise to wait for the next business meeting to elect a replacement, you can do so by conducting an election though the listserv. In some cases you can simply appoint a replacement. (See Constitution.)
  7. During the year keep in touch with officers to ensure they are completing their duties in a timely manner. This is crucial with conference planners.
  8. Although the Constitution requires that the President and other officers keep a notebook, we have replaced this with an SCWCA Business section on the web site. The President can ask the web master to make changes to this page and also add pages. The pages pertaining to business can be password protected if necessary.

Vice President
2 year term

  1. The Vice President will preside at Executive Board and Business meetings (at the annual conference) in absence of the President.
  2. Keep memberships lists (with help of state reps). Our current lists for members are compiled by the Treasurer at the conference when members pay dues. However, we have active “members” who do not attend the conference, many of them on the listserv. We can get a list of listserv participants by asking the listserv coordinator. The VP is to coordinate the annual updating of the membership list with the four state representatives, the Secretary, the Treasurer, and the annual conference chairs. The information should be available to the SCWCA Regional Representatives as needed on meeting IWCA requests for regional membership information.
  3. You will coordinate Outstanding Tutor of the Year Award including ordering a plaque and working with the Treasurer on the check. Once the conference dates are announced, work with the President to set deadlines and announce the award through the listserv and web site. At the annual banquet, present the award or make arrangements for someone to do so.
  4. Although the Constitution requires that the Vice President keep a notebook, we have replaced this with the SCWCA Business section on the web site. The VP can ask the web master to make changes to this page and also add pages. The pages pertaining to business can be password protected if necessary.

Secretary
3 year term

  1. The Secretary takes minutes at the annual business meeting and sends them to the President after for review and to be posted on the web site. Examples of minutes can be viewed online.
  2. At the annual business meeting, you will read the minutes from the previous year aloud for correction and approval. Make any changes (as needed) and then send the minutes to the President for final approval and re-posting to the web site. The Secretary should also let the IWCA Representative know when the minutes are posted so that the Representative can include them in the SCWCA regional report. If any resolutions or announcements should be conveyed to members, the Secretary does so via the listserv.
  3. At the Executive Board meeting, you also take minutes. Send them to the web site to be filed in the Archives.
  4. The Secretary assists annual conference chairs with mailings and conference announcements, as requested.
  5. As needed, the Secretary will serve as the official correspondent to other organizations.
  6. At meetings and for online voting, the Secretary tallies and record votes.
  7. Although the Constitution requires that the Secretary keep a notebook, we have replaced this with the SCWCA Business section on the web site. The Secretary can ask the web master to make changes to this page and also add pages relevant to record-keeping. The pages pertaining to business can be password protected if necessary.

Treasurer
3 year term

  1. The Treasurer will work with the conference organizers to collect membership dues paid as part of conference registration and keep a list of current paid memberships.
  2. The Treasurer is in charge of any money taken in an monies gathered from sources other than the conference and makes sure all funds are deposited into WHAT account?
  3. You will present written and oral reports at each annual general business meeting.
  4. Keep detailed records of all financial transactions.
  5. Work with conference hosts to pay bills, provide funds, and do any needed financial transactions.
  6. Keep a full set of financial records, bank documents/spread sheets, etc. to be passed on to the incoming Treasurer. These can be stored in the SCWCA Business section on the web in a password protected area.
  7. Although the Constitution requires that the Treasurer keep a notebook, we have replaced this with the SCWCA Business section on the web site. The Treasurer can ask the web master to make changes to this page and also add pages relevant to record-keeping and archiving. The pages pertaining to business can be password protected if necessary.

IWCA Representative
3 year term

  1. Keep in touch with IWCA news through their web site, and attend the IWCA meetings  whenever possible. If you cannot attend, ask the President to help you find a substitute.  At these meetings, you represent and vote on behalf of the SCWCA. It’s important to stay in touch and communicate with members and the Executive Board through the annual conference and the listserv.
  2. Submit regional electronic reports to the IWCA Executive Board prior to each of the three scheduled meetings (IWCA, NCTE, and CCCC), even if there has been no new business since the last report. Provide copies of all reports to the SCWCA Archive (on the web site, via the web master.) The minutes of the SCWCA annual meeting are on the web site if you want to include them in your report, and you can ask the Secretary and Treasurer for additional information.
  3. Keep the IWCA Secretary informed about regional changes to officers,
  4. Present reports of IWCA activities and business at annual SCWCA regional conferences.
  5. The Constitution requires that the IWCA Representative keep a notebook, which we have replaced this with the SCWCA Business section on the web site. You can ask the web master to make changes to this page and also add pages relevant to record-keeping and archiving. The pages pertaining to business can be password protected if necessary. You are supposed to keep a full set of IWCA and SCWCA reports to be passed on to the incoming SCWCA representative. The contents should include all minutes and reports distributed by IWCA at the 3 yearly IWCA meetings.

State Representatives
3 year terms

  1. As the State Representative, you may be asked to provide information to schools developing writing centers and to administrators seeking assistance in developing or improving existing writing centers.
  2. One of your main duties during the year is to collect information on writing centers in your state. This should be done as early as possible after the annual conference so that the information can be used  by the conference planners. You can start with the lists we have in the SCWCA Business section (Writing Centers in Region) and update the information there. Technically, we have not collected all the information required by the Constitution–call it a work in progress. However, we have a fairly good Excel list of 4-year and community colleges that have writing centers. Our high school list is not good. Anything you can do to improve the lists and the process will be really useful. The database should (and does not yet) include the following information in separate columns:
        • School name
        • Writing center name
        • Writing center mailing address
        • City
        • State
        • Zip code
        • Writing center phone number
        • Web address/Owl site
        • Administrator Name
        • Administrator status F=faculty/S=Staff, G=Grad student
        • Administrator email information
        • Administrator office phone
        • Fax number, if available
        • Current SCWCA membership Y/N
        • Willingness to participate in SCWCA-L Y/N
        • Current enrollment on W-Center Y/N

To get the information, you may have to go on the web, make calls, and use the emails already provided. Personal contact may be necessary. You can get a list of who paid dues (and is thus a member) from the Treasurer. You should keep the lists updated through the SCWCA Vice-President, who will coordinate them and get them to the web master for posting in the Archives.

Conference Hosts
Service Appointment / Non-Voting Member

Most of the information you need in on the web site in the SCWCA Business section under Conference Planning Guide, and you should also get the help of any and all members of the Executive Board.

  1. Prepare a formal proposal to be presented at the conference preceding the proposed conference. Or, submit the formal proposal to the President and the Executive Board as soon as possible after the Business meeting.
  2. Post the call for proposals in a timely manner to the SCWCA web site, W-Center, SCWCA-L, the Writing Lab Newsletter, the Writing Center Journal, and any other appropriate resources to insure a broad call for conference proposals, one of the IWCA requirements for receiving conference funding.
  3. Create a detailed conference program with an appropriate theme and submit it to participants prior to the conference for corrections (via the listserv).
  4. Select a keynote speaker after consulting the Treasurer on available funds for speaker fees. Seek additional local funding when appropriate.
  5. Submit a Conference Financial Report to the SCWCA Secretary.
  6. Submit a complete set of annual conference materials to the SCWCA Archive for the permanent files.
  7. Keep an updated Conference Notebook and a full set of conference materials, including programs, arrangements, financial details, official reports to SCWCA, and other information that might be useful to the next conference chair. If needed, any of these can be added to the SCWCA Business section on the web site, and you can update the Conference Planning Guide to help the next conference host. Send updates to the web master.

Web Master
Service Appointment / Non-Voting Member

The SCWCA web site is a WordPress site. It’s quite easy to use with minimal knowledge of html.

  1. Post and update appropriate materials relating to SCWCA and its business in a timely manner. Check with the Secretary after each annual Business meeting for the minutes and any changes in officers. As soon as new conference dates are announced make changes on the site, and ask the President for deadline dates and contact information for the Conference Scholarships and Outstanding Tutor Award.
  2. Route any forms to the appropriate person, i.e., for Conference Scholarships to the Scholarship chair.
  3. Our site costs $12 annually to host (payable to WordPress). Pay with your own card and present the Treasurer with a receipt for reimbursement. Our domain name (scwca.net) is through namecheap.com. Contact Alice Batt for renewal.

SCWCA-L Coordinator

  1. You should contact list members annually (after the annual conference is a good time)  about list membership and correct as needed.
  2. At each conference, we ask registrants if they want to be added to the list. You will need to get that information from the Treasurer or conference hosts and update the list.
  3. Maintain SCWCAEX-L for the Executive Board so administrative business can be discussed prior to a general discussion on the list. Ask the Secretary to provide an update to this list after every conference.