Committees

Committees

Committees are voluntary groups, formed in order to operate and maintain aspects of MakeICT, subject to the oversight of the Board of Directors.  Areas are committees with physical space.

The two types of committees are

• Standing Committees, which are formed by the board and are ongoing
• Ad Hoc Committees, which are formed by the board to do a specific task and serve for a defined amount of time

Committees are formed as described below. The board may approve, modify and approve, or deny the request to form a committee. If approved, the board may assign resources to the newly formed committee which may include:

• Physical space, in which case it becomes an area
• Inventory
• Budget

Committee Formation

• At least 5 members are required to submit a request to form a committee by adding the request to the next monthly board agenda. This request includes:
  • name of the committee
  • description of what it does
  • names of all committee members
  • recommended lead
• Committees may also be formed directly by the board of directors.
• Ad-hoc committees for events can be formed for specific events, either by the Events committee or board of directors.
• There is no limit to the number of committees a member can be in/on.

Committee Leadership

• Each committee shall select by vote a recommended lead and shall vote for a lead prior to the September board meeting each year, so that the recommendation may be presented to the board. The board shall appoint the lead for each committee, taking into consideration the recommendation of the committee.
• The lead, once appointed by the board, shall appoint an Assistant Lead.
• Duties of the lead:
  • Recruiting committee members, and organizing volunteer activities needed to operate and maintain the assigned resources
  • Taking responsibility for operations of the area/committee, providing reports on the status and activities of the committee at the monthly board of directors meeting, and managing the finances of the committee. This will include reviewing financial transactions attributed to their committee and working with the treasurer or accountant to correct any errors
  • Maintaining the safety of the committee area, including ensuring the safe operation of all tooling
  • Maintaining good order of committee area and/or resources, ensuring adequate supplies of consumable items are maintained.
  • Enforcing the rules established by the committee, and of MakeICT within their area.
  • Maintain an accurate inventory of all tools and equipment, in the format provided by the board.

• Duties of the assistant lead:
  • Assist the lead, as determined by the lead or by the committee at large.
  • Provide oversight and supervision of the resources when the lead is not present.
  • Serve as interim lead when:
    • The Lead is not available due to vacation or illness
    • Has resigned or been removed by the board

Area/Committee Responsibilities and Rules

• Areas/Committees shall either A) hold regular meetings which must be on the public calendar each month, and may be online and/or in person, or B) communicate in the forum in a way accessible to members.
  • Exceptions to the communication accessible to members shall be the security and IT committees, if considered needed. Otherwise discussion shall be accessible.
  • Any committee taking reports of misconduct shall keep that report confidential as per policy, but may be shared as appropriate to policy. (Examples: To the board, security or IT as required.)
• Members shall be considered:
  • Those people who have attended a meeting (if held) within the past 3 months, unless otherwise requested to not be so considered.
  • Those who have participated in an open forum and requested to be considered part of the committee, unless the lead and assistant lead both object, in which case the person can request the board review it.
  • Committees must maintain 5 members.
• Purchasing
  • See Purchases and Reimbursement Policy
• Contracts or other agreements
  • Any contracts or other agreements must be presented to the board of directors for approval and approved prior to any agreement.
• Committees are responsible for establishing the rules of the committee’s responsibility.
• The lead/vice-lead shall be empowered to enforce the rules of the committee, and of MakeICT within the committee area/resources, and may limit access to the committee area for a time not to exceed the last day of the subsequent month. The lead may petition the security lead or board of directors to enforce a longer or more stringent consequence.
• Committee meetings must be posted on the calendar and announced on the forums. Meetings to select a lead recommendation shall be published a minimum of 5 days in advance.
• The lead may hold an emergency meeting with 5 days’ notice on the forums of MakeICT, and on signs conspicuously posted in the committee area, provided a good faith effort to notify all current committee members is performed, and that the time of the meeting is not unreasonably restrictive on the members.
• Ad hoc positions with spending authority, or administrative access to MakeICT resources, require the approval of the board.
• Each committee will need to maintain a page on the wiki with at least the following information:
  • The name of the committee lead
  • The name of the committee assistant lead
  • Meeting notes
  • A list of all active members
  • A brief statement listing the goals or tasks assigned to the committee
  • Links to any available owner’s manuals or technical information for all committee equipment
  • If an area, area and equipment access policies will be approved by the board of directors. Access policies and reasons for said policies will be submitted to the membership for review 7 days prior to taking effect.
  • Any new rules made by the committee for specific committee resources

Dissolution

• Failure to follow the rules and responsibilities will trigger a review at the next board meeting. If the issues are not rectified at or before the board meeting 2 months following that one, the committee will be brought up at the board meeting to be dissolved or changes made. The board can specifically make exceptions.
• When a committee is dissolved by a vote of the board, all monetary assets will return to the general fund of the makerspace. Any physical assets of the committee can be requested by another committee in writing prior to the next month’s board meeting, any physical assets not requested by the next month’s board meeting by another committee can be disposed of with the written approval of at least 3 board members,

Approved by the board on October 17, 2019 updated on May 19, 2022 and December 15, 2022