| HILTON HEAD ISLAND |
| Website: www.iwn-hhi.org www.facebook.com/Island-Writers-Network 501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization Founding Member of the ACCHH Arts and Cultural Council of Hilton Head www.hiltonheadartsdaily.org |
| ASSOCIATION GUIDELINES Adopted: April 4, 2016 |
Island Writers’ Network
501(c)(3) Non-Profit Organization
Founding Member of the ACCHH – Arts and Cultural Council of Hilton Head
| ASSOCIATION GUIDELINES |
Contents
3.2 Functions and Committees 4
3.4 Modifications to the Guidelines 5
Preamble
Though not as formal as bylaws, these guidelines serve the same purpose as bylaws by providing a framework for the operation and management of IWN. They represent an agreement among the members as to how IWN will make important decisions such as: confirming officers, selecting activities, and spending money.
1. Who We Are
1.1 Name and Purpose
The name of this association is Island Writers’ Network, herein referred to as IWN.
IWN encourages, inspires, and mentors writers in the craft of writing and business of publishing.
1.2 Membership
Membership is open to anyone interested in the craft of writing.
Our members include beginning and published writers working in many genres including, but not limited to: fiction, nonfiction, memoir, children’s literature, humor and poetry.
Annual membership dues are established by the Board and payable to the Treasurer.
2. What We Do
IWN functions year-round, with diminished activity during the summer months.
2.1 Events
Two recurring events aim to support the needs of the members but are open to guests as well:
A General Meeting is held once a month except during July and August. These meetings typically include an informational or educational program and an agenda of IWN business items.
An Open Mic of readings and supportive feedback is also held once a month.
Apart from these regularly scheduled events, IWN members offer local readings, participate in book fairs, and are active in community outreach programs advancing educational opportunities related to writing.
2.2 Products
Publications – IWN periodically publishes anthologies featuring members’ works.
Promotional Materials – To promote its activities and anthologies, IWN has:
· a Website, www.iwn-hhi.org,
· a Facebook page, www.facebook.com/Island-Writers-Network,
· banners, posters and bookmarks.
3. How We Operate
3.1 The Board
The Board consists of 5 member-approved, volunteer officers.
| Title of Officer | Basic Responsibilities |
| Moderator | Presides over all General Meetings and Board Meetings. Enforces the Guidelines and Policies. Serves as liaison to the ACCHH. |
| Events Coordinator | Develops the Annual Calendar of events together with the Moderator. Ensures that all events are adequately chaired and staffed. |
| Distribution Coordinator | Manages the distribution and sale of IWN publications. |
| Secretary | Keeps and disseminates minutes of all meetings. Disseminates writing and organizational information to the membership. |
| Treasurer | Collects and disburses all funds. Complies with all governmental reporting requirements. |
Terms of Office
The term of office is two years for all officers. A term begins January 1 of even-numbered years. An officer may serve an unlimited number of terms.
An election will take place in November of odd-numbered years.
Six months prior to the end of a term, the Election Committee will ask each current officer whether they wish to continue in their position. If so, that officer becomes the incumbent and is placed on the ballot for the following term, together with any other candidate that may be nominated for that position.
Vacancies
Vacancies on the Board may occur due to resignation, life events, or other, unforeseen causes.
When a temporary vacancy occurs, the Moderator and/or Board will appoint an interim replacement.
When a permanent vacancy occurs, the Moderator will entertain volunteer replacements for the remainder of the term and offer a motion for membership approval at the current or next-scheduled General Meeting.
Removal
Any member may request the removal of an officer from the Board. The request must be in writing and delivered to one of the non-affected board members. The balance of the Board will consider the request and, if in agreement, will bring the request to the membership at the next General Meeting for consideration.
3.2 Functions and Committees
A number of functions are necessary for the organization to run smoothly. Some functions are performed by an individual; others may require a committee.
The functions listed below are performed by a single individual on an ongoing basis.
| Function | Basic Responsibilities |
| Open Mic Facilitator | Chairs Open Mic events. |
| Webmaster & Facebook Administrator | Maintains the IWN Website and Facebook Page. |
| Member Directory Editor | Maintains and distributes the Member Directory. |
| Guidelines Administrator | Maintains the Guidelines document. |
| Historian | Maintains a timeline of IWN milestones and a scrapbook of IWN member achievements. |
The committees listed below are created on an as needed basis at the discretion of the Moderator. Committee members are selected from IWN members in good standing and approved by the Board. Each committee exists for the time necessary to complete the task at hand and is then disbanded.
| Committee | Basic Responsibilities |
| Editorial | Has purview over the acceptance and editing of any IWN publication. |
| Title and Branding | Has purview over the presentation of any publication. |
| Election Committee | Has purview over the election process. |
3.3 Election Process
An election of officers of the Board will take place in November of odd-numbered years.
The Election Committee will be established a few months prior to the end of a term (May/June of odd-numbered years). It will:
- Create a ballot of candidates for the 5 board positions from a number of sources:
- Incumbents from the current board
- Volunteers from the membership
- Nominations from the membership
- Nominations that the committee itself has sought out
The ballot will list at least one, but no more than two, candidates for each position.
- Post the proposed ballot to the membership one month prior to the November General Meeting
- the ballots are disseminated electronically
- the deadline for returning a ballot is the November General Meeting
- a ballot may be returned electronically, by regular mail, or brought to the meeting
- The committee will tally the ballots the following day, and post the results to the membership as soon as possible thereafter.
An election is valid if: 40% of the membership returns their ballots.
If a candidate is running unopposed, s/he will be confirmed if the majority of the 40% is in favor.
If two candidates are running for one position, the candidate with the most votes will be confirmed
for that position.
The new Board will take over on January 1 of the following year.
3.4 Modifications to the Guidelines
Modifications to the guidelines may be proposed by any member and submitted, in writing, to the Board for consideration. If the Board considers the proposal worthy, the proposed change is posted to the membership prior to the next General Meeting and placed on the agenda for consideration at that meeting.
The modification will be approved if: 20% of the membership is present, and if the majority of that 20% is in favor.
4. Policies
Copyright
If a member’s work is included in an IWN publication, the author of that work has agreed to grant IWN first North American serial rights at no cost. All other rights revert to the author at publication. However, whenever an author reprints work that first appeared in an IWN publication, IWN should be given acknowledgement for the specific work involved.
Intellectual Property
Any information or intellectual property presented to the IWN by a member, or non-member, is freely given. The IWN Board and membership may not be held liable for any misuse of such property, and no legal recourse may be taken by the presenter.
Personal Information
Any personal contact information provided to the IWN, by a member, may be included in the IWN Member Directory. The Directory is for exclusive use of the IWN Board and members and IWN will not knowingly provide the distribution list to any outside entity.
The IWN Board and membership may not be held liable if any of this information is misused by unknown entities.
Member contact information is used for internal communications pertaining to writing events, contests, festivals, publishing news, member book appearances and other appropriate IWN interests. IWN members may not use the distribution list for personal solicitations.
Fiscal Policies
Disbursements
An IWN expenditure may be authorized by 2 fully informed and consenting Board members prior to the expenditure.
The Treasurer does not vote on proposed disbursements and only issues checks when directed by the Moderator or the Secretary.
Contributions
An annual contribution is made to the Heritage Library in gratitude for the use of their space and equipment.
Robert’s Rules of Order
“Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised,” will be the parliamentary authority of this association in all matters not specifically governed by the Guidelines.
—————–END OF THE IWN ASSOCIATION GUIDELINES—————–
A set of Appendices complements the Guidelines. Each Appendix corresponds to a particular section of the Guidelines, providing implementation details for that section. The Guidelines, together with the Appendices, form the IWN Association Handbook.
Island Writers' Network 