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LoginMWA Leadership Opportunities
The MWA is a 100% volunteer organization. To volunteer or nominate someone for a position, please fill out the Online Nomination Form. All nominees must be a MWA member in good standing.
Descriptions of Positions
President
- Minimum term: Elected 2-year term, may be elected to no more than two consecutive terms, voting member of the Board
- The duties of President are to:
- Preside over the Executive Committee, Board and membership meetings
- Direct or supervise all MWA activities, serving as an ex officio member of every Committee
- Appoint all Committee Chairs with the advice and consent of the Board
- Coordinate and schedule all Executive Committee and Board meetings on the MWA event calendar
- Announce the Annual Membership Meeting and publish a Call for Nominations for elected and appointed positions
- Serve on the MWA Nominating Committee unless he/she is up for election
- Publish the President’s Quick Notes and other MWA correspondence to the MWA membership, as needed
- Oversee the review, revision and updates of the MWA Bylaws, as needed
Vice-President
- Minimum term: Elected 2-year term, may be elected to no more than two consecutive terms, voting member of the Board
- The duties of Vice-President are to:
- Assist the President to the extent requested by the President
- Preside in lieu of the President in the event of his or her absence or unavailability
- Serve as a liaison between the Board and the MWA Chapters
- Collect chapter reports and present the Vice-President Report at the monthly Board meeting
- Serve as a mentor and advisor to chapter presidents and committee chairs
- Attend all Board Meetings
Secretary
- Minimum term: Elected 2-year term, may be elected to no more than two consecutive terms, voting member of the Board
- The duties of Secretary are to:
- Take attendance, record, maintain and promulgate the minutes of all
meetings of the Executive Committee, Board and membership - Promulgate the minutes in a timely manner and make the minutes of all meetings available to any member who requests them
- Accept and count proxy votes for inclusion in the Board Elections tally at the Annual Meeting, as appropriate
- Record and publish the names of MWA members who are elected/appointed to the Board as selected at the membership’s Annual Meeting
- Present the Secretary’s Report at the monthly Board meeting
- Review annually and update the Association’s by-laws by bringing needed changes to the attention of the Executive Committee and Board
- Attend all Board Meetings
Treasurer
- Minimum term: Elected 2-year term, may be elected to no more than two consecutive terms, voting member of the Board
- The duties of Treasurer are to:
- Provide the President and Board of Directors the best recommendations on fiscal matters in order to keep the organization on a secure financial footing
- Draft a budget annually and submit it to the President and Board for approval at the July Board meeting
- Provide the Board each month with the Profit and Loss Statement, which shows the monthly income and expenses
- Alert the Board to any unusual activities or signs that the organization is overextending too far beyond the adopted budget
- Responsible for coordinating with each chapter about its account, including having access to the chapters’ budgets and tracking their spending
- Responsible for paying all MWA bills and filing all tax forms, including those required by the State to maintain MWA’s 501(c)(3) status
Member-at-Large (3 positions)
- Minimum term: Elected 2-year term, may be elected to no more than two consecutive terms, voting member of the Board
- The duties of Member-at-Large are to:
- Assist the President as new, unassigned Board tasks arise. (The Member-at-Large does not have a specific role)
- Preside over ad-hoc, temporary committees at the discretion of the President
- Oversee and run a MWA committee for a short period of time if a vacancy unexpectedly occurs and at the discretion of the President and the Board
- Volunteer and work on committees with new committee chairs to bring experience in the operations and goals of the committees and at the discretion of the President and the Board
- Attend all Board Meetings
Program Chair
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, voting member of board
- The duties of the Program Chair are to:
- Develop and manage writing contests, awards, the speakers list, and other programs or events offered by or participated in by MWA. (Note: We have a separate Critique Group Coordinator)
Teen Writing Program Coordinator
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, voting member of the Board
- The duties of Teen Writing Program Coordinator are to:
- Direct and supervise the teen club program including interviewing potential teen leaders.
- Help club leaders communicate with partner libraries, keeping them apprised of MWA opportunities such as the conference.
- Direct teens and parents to clubs in their areas.
- Oversee the editing of the teen anthology.
Communications Chair
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, voting member of the Board
- The duties of the Communications Chair are to:
-
- The Communications Chair is responsible for publicizing MWA activities to members and to the public, for initiating and responding to media requests, using such communications tools as the Board may direct.
- Contacting media outlets with press releases
- Posting and maintaining social presence on all our social media channels
- Attend board meetings
Publication Chair
- Attend board meetings
MWA Tech Chair
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, voting member of the Board
- The duties of MWA Tech Chair are to:
o Chair the Tech Support Committee, consisting of the Virtual Meeting
Coordinator, Webmaster and Graphics Coordinator
o Oversee MWA tech support needs related to MWA website, virtual meetings,
website graphics, annual conference, data gathering, training, manuals, etc.
o Research, propose and oversee implementation of tech support solutions and
advances
o Attend all Board Meetings and communicate with the Board, Executive
Committee and Chapter Officers as needed
o Estimated monthly time commitment: 6 – 12 hours
Webmaster
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, voting member of the Board
- The duties of the Webmaster are to:
-
- Maintain and manage MWA’s website hosted on StarChapter, including content,
user accounts, mass emails, Annual Conference, etc. - Train / support others posting content to the website, as needed, including
chapter officers, newsletter editor, graphics coordinator etc., and update and
distribute website tech manuals as needed - Attend and contribute to Tech Committee Meetings and Ad Hoc projects
- Provide technical training / support for MWA Chapters regarding their chapter
pages and events - Estimated monthly time commitment: 6 – 12 hours
- Maintain and manage MWA’s website hosted on StarChapter, including content,
Virtual Meeting Coordinator
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, non-Board Leadership
position - The duties of the Virtual Meeting Coordinator are to:
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- Manage MWA Zoom account, including scheduling, recordings, and distribution of links or other information to Board, chapters, teen writer coordinators, or webmaster as needed.
- Provide troubleshooting, support, and training regarding virtual meetings as needed, including quarterly webinar tech assistance
- Collaborate on virtual meeting needs and solutions with Tech Chair, Tech Committee, and MWA leadership
- Attend and contribute to Tech Committee Meetings and Ad Hoc projects
- Estimated monthly time commitment: 3 – 6 hours
Graphics Coordinator
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, non-Board Leadership position
- The duties of the Graphics Coordinator are to:
- Maintain MWA Canva account and provide or coordinate training, as needed
- Create and post graphics (or coordinate such), as needed, for website and overall organization
- Attend and contribute to Tech Committee Meetings
- Estimated monthly time commitment: 4 – 8 hours
Critique Group Coordinator
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, non-Board Leadership position
- The duties of the Critique Group Coordinator are to:
- Help connect people who are looking for critique groups
- Keep the MWA critique group list up to date (also making sure it’s posted on the webpage
First Fridays President
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, Voting member of the board
- The duties of the First Fridays President are to:
- Coordinate with the other committee members to find/choose speaker for the meetings
- Coordinate with the other committee members to make sure the speaker's email and payment preferences are sent to our treasurers
- Confirm that the speaker's information has been submitted to the calendar
- Coordinate with the other committee members about wo is hosting the event (On ZOOM)
- Run/host meetings as needed
- Attend Board Meetings
First Fridays Vice President
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, non-Board Leadership position
- The duties of the First Fridays Vice President are to:
- Assist the First Fridays President in running the program
- Help find and schedule keynote speakers
- Submit meeting information for posting to the website
- Take turns hosting the meetings.
- Send speakers contact information and payment preferences to the MWA treasurer
First Fridays Secretary
- Minimum term: Appointed by President with no fixed term, non-Board Leadership position
- The duties of the First Fridays Secretary are to:
- Assist the First Fridays President in running the program
- Help find and schedule keynote speakers
- Submit meeting report
- Take turns hosting the meetings.
- Keep track of how many people attend First Fridays
Chapter President
- Minimum term: Elected by the chapter 1-year term, no term limit; voting member of the Board
- The duties of the Chapter President are to:
- Direct the functions of the Chapter
- Speak on behalf of the Chapter
Chapter Vice President
- The duties of the Chapter Vice President are to:
Chapter Treasurer
Chapter Secretary
- Record Chapter activities, membership, and attendance
Nomination Instructions for Positions
Please fill out the Board and Leadership Nomination Form located on the MWA website at https://marylandwriters.org/form.php?form_id=65 to express your interest in one of the positions. The Nominating Committee will review all submissions and present the proposed slate of nominees as well as any other candidates nominated at least 30 days prior to the Annual Meeting. Nominations will also be taken from the floor during the Annual Meeting. The Nominating Committee may add additional nominees if it is considered by the Committee to be in the best interest of MWA.
Nominations may be submitted by any MWA member in good standing, including the nominee him or herself. A member may be a candidate for only one position. Those making nominations are asked to reflect on the qualifications related to the position for which they are nominating themselves or a candidate. If you have any questions or concerns, please email [email protected]
Qualifications for Open Positions
- A MWA member in good standing
- Tech Savvy (Zoom/Computer literate) or have a willingness to learn
- Have ability and willingness to use Google, Gmail, Google Docs, G Suite and MWA website navigation
Timeline
| Open | Nominations Accepted |
| May 1 | Candidates/Nominations Announced |
| June 1 | Proxy Vote Submission Deadline |
| June (Yearly) | Virtual Annual Meeting - Voice or Show of Hands and Proxy Voting |
The MWA Nominating Committee
The MWA Nominating Committee comprises the president (unless up for election), immediate past president, one chapter president, and one member appointed by the president.
