Standing Rules

Society of American Archivists
Native American Archives Section

STANDING RULES 

I.   NAME.

The name of the section shall be the Native American Archives Section. 

II. MISSION. 

The mission of the section is to serve as a forum to educate archivists on the complexities and beauty of Native American archives of the western hemisphere and as a source of communication and inspiration for archivists working with Native American collections.

III.  MEMBERS. 

Membership in the secton shall be determined according to the guidelines established in Section IX. of the SAA Governance Manual.

IV.  GOVERNANCE.   

A.     Officers. The officers of the section shall be a Chair, Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect, and Secretary. The Vice-Chair shall be elected annually for a two-year term, serving in year one as Vice-Chair and in year two as Chair. The outgoing Chair also serves a third year on the Steering Committee as the Immediate Past Chair and Chair of the Nominating Committee. The Secretary shall be elected biennially for a two-year term.

In addition, a Steering Committee of six members shall be elected, each for a two-year term, with half elected in each year. Additional members may be elected if so desired by the Officers. 

B. Duties of Officers. Officers shall fulfill those responsibilities specified in Section IX. of the SAA Governance Manual.

C. Nominations. The Chair shall issue a call for nominations, including self-nominations, for the positions of Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect and Steering Committee members every May to all section members via the roundtable’s official email discussion list and website. A slate of candidates shall be established by the officer[s] and announced to section members no later than June 15.

D. Elections. Elections shall be conducted online with the assistance of the SAA staff and in accordance with guidelines for section elections as specified in Section IX. Sections of the SAA Governance Manual. Availability of the online ballot and deadline for voting shall be announced by the Chair to all section members via the section’s official email discussion list and website. 

E. Appointments. Section members may be appointed to additional leadership roles (e.g., Newsletter Editor, Web Liaison, etc.) by majority vote of the membership; or in extenuating circumstances, by a majority vote of the steering committee. 

V.  MEETINGS. 

The section shall hold a meeting in conjunction with the SAA Annual Meeting and may meet at other times as deemed appropriate by the officer[s]. The time and agenda shall be communicated in advance via the section’s official email discussion list and website.

VI. AMENDMENTS. 

To ensure alignment with SAA’s governance documents, any amendments to the section’s standing rules should be reviewed by the executive director (or her/his designee) and the section’s Council liaison by May 1, before they are put forward in a referendum for vote by the section membership. Proposed amendments to the section’s standing rules will appear on the section’s annual election ballot for a final approval by a simple majority of the section’s membership. Any adopted amendments should be posted promptly to the section’s official microsite and be noted in the section’s next annual report to the Council. Any revisions to the section’s name or mission/description must be submitted to the Council for final approval. For more information on amendment procedures, see Section IX. Sections of the SAA Governance Manual.

Updated per the steering committee approved by the Council, November 2023.