Coordinating Committee Operating Guidelines

I. Committee Composition
II. Responsibilities of Standing Members
III. Removal of Standing Members
IV. Meetings
V. Newsletter
VI. Mailing List
VII. Admission Fees
VIII. Event Proceeds
IX. Special Events
X. Drugs/Alcohol
XI. Sound Equipment
XII. Procedure for Amending Coordinating Committee Operating Guidelines

Colorado Friends Of Old Time Music And Dance
Coordinating Committee Operating Guidelines
Adopted April 2001

These Operating Guidelines describe the functions of the Coordinating Committee of the Colorado Friends of Old Time Music and Dance (CFOOTMAD) and are supplemented by a Policy Section which is included as an appendix.

I. Committee Composition

The Coordinating Committee will consist of the following persons who must be CFOOTMAD members in good standing:

A. Standing Members

  1. Chair: The Coordinating Committee will appoint a Chair. The appointment will occur following the annual appointment of coordinators by the Board of Directors.
  2. Recording Secretary
  3. Dance Coordinators: Coordinators of all regularly scheduled dance series which occur at least eight times each year are appointed by the Board of Directors at its annual meeting in consultation with the Coordinating Committee.
  4. Membership Secretary
  5. Newsletter Editor
  6. Callers’ Representative
  7. Musicians’ Representative
  8. Treasurer: The treasurer is appointed by the Board of Directors. The treasurer is an ex officio member of the Coordinating Committee unless s/he is also a member of the Board of Directors. If the treasurer is a member of the Board of Directors s/he will not have a vote at Coordinating Committee meetings, but will meet with the Coordinating Committee regularly to keep the committee informed of the organization’s financial situation.

Standing Members volunteer for one-year terms and may serve more than one term.

B. Members-at-Large
The Standing Members of the Coordinating Committee may vote to add Members-at-Large to the Coordinating Committee based on their interest and participation in CFOOTMAD. Members-at-Large will serve until the next appointment of Coordinators at which time they must be re-elected by the committee. They may be dismissed at the discretion of the Standing Members of the Coordinating Committee.
 
C. Board of Directors Liaison
The Coordinating Committee will select one of its members to serve as the “Appointed Director” on the Board of Directors and will serve as liaison between the two groups.

II. Responsibilities of Standing Members

A. Chair
The Chair is responsible for ensuring that Coordinating Committee meetings occur as described in Section IV, including responsibility for notifying all committee members of meeting time and place. The Chair is also responsible for compiling business items and preparing an agenda, providing for facilitation of the meetings, and following-up on committee decisions and action items.
 
B. Recording Secretary
The Recording Secretary is responsible for preparing minutes of meetings and mailing them to all committee members and to the web-designer for inclusion on the website.
 
C. Dance Coordinators
The Dance Coordinators are responsible for planning and implementing regular dances and special events. Dance Coordinators work closely with the Coordinating Committee. Duties include:
  1. Scheduling bands and callers
  2. Arranging hall rental
  3. Arranging for sound system and sound technician
  4. Arranging for lessons prior to dances
  5. Arranging for and overseeing volunteers to take money at the door, prepare refreshments, set-up and clean-up
  6. Displaying newsletters and fliers for other CFOOTMAD events
  7. Ensuring smooth functioning of dances
  8. Bringing cash box and change to dances
  9. Completing report of event proceeds and expenses and giving report to treasurer in a timely manner
  10. Paying hall rent, performers, and other expenses
  11. Making deposits
  12. Publicizing events, including giving information to the newsletter editor
  13. Finding/training substitute if necessary
  14. Attending Coordinating Committee meetings
 
D. Membership Secretary
The Membership Secretary is responsible for keeping accurate, current lists of all members, current and expired, and their expiation dates and for notifying members when their membership is expiring. S/he prints labels for each newsletter mailing and for other projects as needed and is responsible for delivering the labels by the requested deadline to the appropriate person. The membership secretary will provide a backup copy of the database to the Board of Directors and Coordinating Committee a minimum of six times per year. The membership secretary will provide the Coordinating Committee with a membership statistics report after each mailing of the newsletter.
 
E. Newsletter Editor
The Newsletter Editor is responsible for all aspects of publishing the newsletter: receiving or writing articles, collecting announcements, dance schedules and other information, layout, printing and mailing.
 
F. Callers’ Representative
The Callers’ Representative acts as a liaison between callers and the Coordinating Committee. S/he can assist the Dance Coordinators in arranging for callers to perform at dances, planning callers’ workshops, and other caller development projects.
 
G. Musicians’ Representative
The Musicians’ Representative acts as a liaison between musicians and the Coordinating Committee. S/he can assist the Dance Coordinators in arranging for bands to play for dances, planning musicians’ workshops, and other musician development projects.

III. Removal of Standing Members

Standing Members may be dismissed at the discretion of the Coordinating Committee.

IV. Meetings

  1. Meetings of the Coordinating Committee will be held at least quarterly.
  2. Meetings of the Coordinating Committee will be conducted in a spirit of cooperation.
  3. The Coordinating Committee will meet jointly with the Board of Directors at least once annually.
  4. Only members of the Coordinating Committee (Standing Members and Members-at-Large) may vote at Coordinating Committee meetings.
  5. Business may be conducted and voted on at a publicized meeting (see F below) at which a quorum is present. A quorum will consist of fifty percent of the Standing Members of the Coordinating Committee, including at least fifty percent of the Dance Coordinators.
  6. A publicized meeting is defined as:
    1. A meeting determined by the attendees at the previous meeting which has been included in the minutes of that meeting and mailed to all Coordinating Committee members.
    2. An interim meeting called by phone of which each member of the Coordinating Committee has been personally notified.
  7. Minutes will be taken at all meetings by the Recording Secretary and mailed to all Coordinating Committee members. The minutes will be posted on the web site.

V. Newsletter

  1. A newsletter including a calendar of all CFOOTMAD events will be published at a minimum of once every two months and will contain all available information about scheduled dances: location, time, caller, band, prices and any other special information. The newsletter will be mailed to the entire mailing list (see Section VI).
  2. Non-CFOOTMAD events may be mentioned in the newsletter according to the following guidelines:
    1. All items will be considered on a space-permitting basis as determined by the editor.
    2. Events must be related to traditional dance/music.
    3. Inclusion of a flier will be charged a fee.
  3. All available information about time and location of Coordinating Committee meetings will be published in each newsletter.

VI. Mailing List

  1. The mailing list will consist of:
    1. Members in good standing as established by the Board of Directors.
    2. Honorary members as established by the Board of Directors.
    3. Non-members designated to receive free issues of the newsletter.
    4. Organizations and businesses related to CFOOTMAD’s purpose and goals.
  2. The Membership Secretary will be responsible for ensuring that the list is current and accurate.
  3. The mailing list, excluding those persons who have requested not to have their name shared with others, may be given to other organizations for a special, one time use with the approval of the Coordinating Committee.

VII. Admission Fees

Admission fees are determined by the event Coordinator in consultation with the Coordinating Committee. CFOOTMAD members may receive a discount at the discretion of the Coordinator.

VIII. Event Proceeds

  1. Direct expenses for each event (performer pay, rent, refreshments, etc) are taken from the proceeds of that event. Excess amounts are retained by the organization for general use.
  2. CFOOTMAD guarantees minimum payments to performers as determined by the Coordinating Committee. If the event proceeds exceed the direct expenses, the excess may be split between the performers and the organization according to a formula determined by the Coordinating Committee.
  3. The Dance Coordinator is responsible for recording proceeds, determining and disbursing the proper amounts, depositing organizational funds to the bank account, and providing the Treasurer with an accounting of the event, including the amounts paid to individuals by name as required for tax purposes.
  4. CFOOTMAD encourages that all funds be deposited within three banking days of their receipt and requires that they be deposited within five days. If funds are not deposited within five banking days of their receipt, the organization will not indemnify (i.e. cover loss for) the person responsible for making the deposit. The dance coordinator is responsible for the deposit even if s/he asks someone else to take it to the bank.

IX. Special Events

  1. Special events are those which feature callers or musicians who, because of reputation, are expected to be of special interest to the membership of the community. Such performers may be paid higher amounts and higher admission may be charged. For such events, the amounts paid to the regular performers who also appear will be calculated as if the special performer(s) were paid at the regular rates. This ensures that the regular performers are not financially penalized because of the special performer(s)’ presence at the event.
  2. Coordinators are required to obtain the approval of the Coordinating Committee for special events.

X. Drugs/Alcohol

Use of illegal drugs is not allowed at any CFOOTMAD event. Smoking and use of alcohol is governed by the policies of the facility where the event is held and coordinator discretion. Performers who violate this policy will not be paid for their performance, and attendees who violate this policy will be required to leave the event.

XI. Sound Equipment

CFOOTMAD’s sound equipment is primarily for use by CFOOTMAD for its music and dance functions. Other groups or persons may rent the sound system for a pre-arranged fee at the discretion of the Coordinating Committee member responsible for the sound system. The Sound System Usage Guidelines and Contract must be read and signed before the equipment is rented. The contract will be filed with the Recording Secretary.

XII. Procedure for Amending Coordinating Committee Operating Guidelines

The Coordinating Committee Operating Guidelines may be amended by a 2/3 vote of voting members present at a valid Coordinating Committee meeting (see Section IV).