ACerS Sections should elect/select a Section Chairperson or two Co-Chairs, Vice Chairperson (optional), Treasurer and Secretary. Terms for each officer position should be defined in the Bylaws established by the Section.
The Section Chairperson
The Section Chairperson has the overall responsibility for developing Section programs, for ensuring that plans and assignments are carried out, and for seeing that the Section fulfills its obligations to the Society. The Chairperson should be familiar with the policies and procedures of ACerS and with the duties of all the other Section officers and committee chairpersons.
The Chairperson should schedule an executive committee meeting which includes the Treasurer, Secretary, and Immediate Past Chair (for Sections over two years old) and together they should plan the budget for the upcoming year. When a program or event has been scheduled, it is the Chairperson’s responsibility to communicate activities of the Section to the local membership and to the ACerS Outreach Manager.
The Chairperson is responsible for finding enthusiastic and qualified members to serve as committee chairpersons. The Chairperson should strive to bring new people into the committee structure to provide training for future Section leaders. The job of the Section Chairperson will be much more enjoyable and (much less tiring) once responsible and reliable volunteers are found to take on various duties. It is strongly recommended that the Section Chairperson take the time at general meetings to acknowledge those Section volunteers whose help has been valuable. This positive feedback and public recognition of good works is often just the encouragement an active volunteer needs to commit to a longer-term leadership position in the Section in future years.
The Section Treasurer
The Treasurer is responsible for keeping complete and accurate records of all funds received and disbursed by the Section. As the financial officer, the treasurer must be prepared to report on the financial condition of the Section at all times. The responsibilities of the treasurer include:
• Prepare the annual Section budget and submit the approved budget to ACerS by September 1
• Retain financial records including all receipts; maintain accurate historical financial records
• Prepare and present a financial report to the chair and Section membership annually
• Make sure appropriate signature card is available for new Treasurer at the end of current Treasurer’s
term in office
• Prepare and submit the Section’s End of Year and Financial Report to ACerS by March 1
• Maintain accurate historical financial records for the Section
The Section Secretary
The ongoing responsibilities of the Section Secretary include:
1. Informing the ACerS Outreach Manager of the names and contact information of new officers.
2. Sending the agenda to executive council members for meetings; recording the minutes of meetings.
3. Handling all Section correspondence on a timely basis.
4. Maintaining Section files for historical purposes.
Section Committees (optional but encouraged)
A Section Committee is a group of persons who are appointed by the Section Chairperson to carry out an assignment and report back to Section officers and members. Each committee has a chairperson chosen by the Section Chairperson, who will assure the assignment is carried out properly, and who will make the report or recommendation to the Section. A committee may work with various Section officers or other committees to assure its duties are fulfilled.
Some basic standing committees within a Section might be:
• Membership Committee
• Educational Committee
• Finance Committee
• Publicity and Communication Committee