ACSUS Executive Council
2009 Call for Nominations
Membership Form / Consent Form / Past Councilors & Officers / Current Council
Nominations are accepted by the ACSUS Committee on Nominations and Elections for the positions of Vice President, and Councilor (three openings) according to Article VII of the Association’s by laws. Article V, Section 5.02 was amended at the annual ACSUS Executive Council meeting on
The President and Vice President each will serve a two-year term lasting from November 2009 through November 2011; after the term expires, the President will continue to serve on the Executive Council through November 2013 in the position of Past President. Each elected Councillor will serve a four-year term lasting from November 2009 through November 2013.
Nominations may be made by any member in good standing and endorsed by three (3) additional members in good standing. The nominee, who must be a member of ACSUS in good standing, must consent in writing on the proper form, available above, or by contacting info@acsus.org.
All nominees for the position of Vice President must be resident in the
Send nominations and endorsements electronically to info@acsus.org or postmarked by
Committee on Nominations & Elections
ACSUS
2030 M St NW, Ste 350
Washington, DC 20036
Fax: 202-775-0061
Note: Voting in the ACSUS election will be limited to members having paid 2009 dues. Forms are available here.
Background on the Executive Council
The Executive Council acts as and is known to outsiders as the Association’s Board of Directors. Thus, officers and councilors are legally the “corporation’s” officers and directors. The “board’s” single most important legal duty is prudently managing the affairs of the organization. This does not mean personally overseeing day-to-day affairs; that is the job of the organization’s paid professional staff. The ultimate responsibility for actions or inactions of the nonprofit as a legal entity rests with the board—for ACSUS, the Executive Council.
As a volunteer board member, the Councilor (Director) and paid staff have a “fiduciary duty” to the organization which includes duties of care, loyalty, and obedience. In simple terms, this means that they are required to act reasonably, prudently, and in the best interests of the organization, to avoid negligence or fraud, and to avoid conflicts of interest. The Duty of Care requires board members (1) to be reasonably informed; (2) to participate in decisions; and (3) to do so in good faith and with the care of an ordinarily prudent person in similar circumstances.
Specific Responsibilities of the ACSUS Executive Council
The responsibilities for the ACSUS Executive Council are spelled out in Article 4.01 of the ACSUS by laws and list some of the kinds of activities the Council is involved in:
“The responsibility for the general conduct of the affairs of the Association shall be vested in a board, known as the Executive Council, which shall have the full power and authority to do all acts and perform all functions which the Association might do or perform, including setting dues, approving budgets, allocating funds, determining formation and location of the secretariat, appointing the executive director, determining the nature of the biennial conference, and appointing the editors of the journal, except it shall not have the power to modify the substance of official action taken by the membership or to amend the Articles of Incorporation. Members of the Executive Council must be members in good standing of the Association.”
One of the major responsibilities of serving on the Council is attending and actively participating in the annual Executive Council meeting. Ideally, the meeting serves as a forum to discuss strategic questions of mission, direction, values, and financing. In an odd-numbered year, the meeting takes place immediately preceding and at the same place selected for the biennial meeting of the Association (san Diego ‘09); In the even-numbered year the Executive Council meeting takes place at the call of the President in the fall either exactly one year in advance of the next biennial in that location, or in conjunction with a Canadian Studies conference, or in Washington DC at ACSUS HQ.
The date and location for the even-numbered year Executive Council meeting shall be determined at the predending odd-numbered year meeting of the executive Council Members of the Council are expected to use all available resources to get themselves to the annual meeting, using any monies available from their university for travel expenses, then any personal funds.
Due to the increasing necessity for fund raising, as members of the board of directors, Councilors will be asked to be actively involved in ACSUS’ fund raising efforts and to make what financial contribution they can to the Association..
Councilors also are asked to serve on at least one committee. For descriptions of current committees, please contact the ACSUS Secretariat.
Please feel free to contact the ACSUS secretariat or a current Councilor or Officer for more information about roles and responsibilities: info@acsus.org .
