4.01  New Chairperson Training

The Church Business Administrator will schedule a training session for all Committee Chairpersons in December each year, as soon as leadership assignments are completed.   Its purpose will be to present general information about committee recruiting, organization, planning, project implementation, evaluation and reporting expectations.

Specific suggestions will be offered on when and where to meet, how and when to elect committee leadership (i.e. Vice Chair, Recording, Secretary, etc.) and how to go about planning the coming year's work.  The training will include a review of the budgeting process, requests for expenditures and re-imbursements.  Guidelines for agendas, minutes and other record keeping will be covered along with a refresher on Roberts Rules of Order.

4.02  Budgeting

Committees receive funding through the annual budget adopted by the Session in December of each year for the following year.  In August, each Committee Chairperson will receive a budget request form from the Business Administrator which will include historical and year-to-date figures on expenditures made by that committee.  The Chairperson is asked to review and evaluate current projects, estimate funding needs for the rest of the year and add projected costs for any new ministries to arrive at an Asking Budget request.

Budget requests from all committees are compiled, reviewed by the Finance Committee and submitted to the Session for consideration.  If approved, the Asking Budget becomes the goal for the annual Stewardship Campaign, held in November.  If the campaign reaches its goal, the budget is approved by the Session at its December meeting.  In the event pledge projections fall short, the Finance Committee will determine how the budget is to be adjusted before re-submission to the Session.   Chairpersons and Committees are encouraged to be realistic about costs and results when evaluating existing projects or new ministry objectives. 

4.03  Office Procedures

Bulletin Announcements

Submit announcements for the bulletin to the Media Secretary.  Please clearly mark that the announcement is for the bulletin, how long you would like it to run (# of weeks) and include a contact name and phone number.  The deadline is Wednesday at noon preceding each Sunday.

Bulletin Inserts

The Worship Committee must first approve any insert your committee would like put in the bulletin.   Contact the Worship Committee Chair well in advance. 

Calendar

ALL events, programs, and meetings held at the Church need to be put on the Church calendar.  Contact the Administrative Assistant to the Head of Staff to see what rooms are available to schedule your events.   Outside groups must be approved by the Building Use Committee.  This includes members who want to use the Church for a non-Church event.  Allow time for paperwork to flow through the proper channels.

Committee Member Changes

Please notify the Program Secretary of any additions or deletions to the members of your committee so that a current list can be kept. 

Event Fliers

Contact the Media Secretary about creating any fliers needed to publicize Church events.  Make sure to include contact information, dates, times, and locations.

Monthly Reports

Monthly reports for your committee to be included in the Joint Officers' Meeting packet must be submitted to the Administrative Assistant to the Head of Staff one week prior to the scheduled Session Meeting.  (Session meets the 3^rd Monday of each month.)  These reports are to be typed and ready for inclusion in the session packet.

Reminder Cards

Reminder cards for committee meetings can be requested from the Program Secretary.  Please notify the Program Secretary as soon as possible when your committee changes meeting times or places to allow sufficient time to prepare and distribute the reminder cards.  The cards are mailed two weeks before scheduled meetings.

Requisitions

Committee Chairs, please check your box WEEKLY for requisitions from your committee that need your signature.  Blank requisitions can be obtained from the Staff box in the Officers' Mail Room and should be submitted to the Administrative Assistant to the CBA.  All receipts must be attached to the requisition and turned in by WEDNESDAY to be processed and distributed or mailed the following Monday.

Saints Alive Announcements

Submit articles for the newsletter to the Media Secretary.  Please clearly mark that the announcement is for Saints Alive, which committee it is for (if committee specific) and include a contact name and phone number.  The deadline is the 15^th of each month for the next month's newsletter.

Bus Use

Contact the Administrative Assistant to the Head of Staff to record bus use on the Church calendar.   Complete a bus use form and obtain keys from Administrative Assistant to CBA before departure.

Web Site

Please submit information you would like published on the Church Web Site to the Media Secretary.

Events Checklist

Contact Pat to Reserve a room or bus / Place event on the church calendar

Contact Dorothy for the following publicity:

• bulletin announcements
• newsletter announcements
• church fliers
• web site
• invitations
• programs
• etc.

Contact Lori about sending out reminder cards if needed

Turn any requisitions into Bonnie

Contact Len or Robert about room set-up

PLEASE MAKE SURE TO CONTACT PAT WITH ANY CALENDAR CHANGES!

Contact Information

4.04  Annual Report

Each Committee Chair is responsible for writing a summary of the work of their committee during the year of their leadership.  These reports are due the first week of January to the Media Secretary.   Copies of the previous year's Annual Report are available in the office of the Media Secretary if you would like to see an example.

See Appendix for suggested Annual Report Form.

4.05  Record Keeping And Archives

Each committee must recognize its role, examine its role in light of what has already been done and integrate this knowledge with specific tasks identified during the planning cycle into the development of action plans.  If changes take place, each committee will want to react in a positive way.  To insure continuity, a standard set of records for each committee should be kept current and should be passed on upon a change in committee leadership. These records should include:

a.       A statement of purpose and responsibility.

b.       Minutes from previous meetings.

c.       Schedule of specific, regular events (i.e. Worship, Training, etc.)

d.       Checklists related to specific events.

e.       Committee plans and actions related to long range plans.

f.       List of other groups with which coordination is needed and what that coordination entails.

g.       Budget requests and actions taken.  

Archives

A permanent and chronological file of all committee records will be maintained in the office of the Administrative Assistant to the Head of Staff for future reference.