Standing Rules

Society of American Archivists
Students and New Archives Professionals Section

STANDING RULES

ARTICLE ONE: MISSION 

The Students and New Archives Professionals (SNAP) Section exists to focus attention on and give voice to the needs and concerns of its members--and, in particular, students, interns, new professionals, early-career archivists, and individuals seeking professional employment--within the Society of American Archivists (SAA) and the field in general.

ARTICLE TWO: STATEMENT OF GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

SNAP will:

1. Advocate on behalf of students and new archives professionals (new archivists) by raising their visibility within SAA, promoting their unique skills and areas of expertise, and providing a formal channel to voice their needs and concerns in regard to relevant issues.
2. Provide a forum for new archivists to share their concerns and learn from each other.
3. Bridge the gap between participation in SAA student chapters and participation in SAA.
4. Encourage new archivists to become members of and pursue leadership positions within SAA.
5. Facilitate and encourage remote participation through social media and other online resources and thereby provide a model to other SAA groups for engaging members online.
6. Support new archivists as they begin their careers as well as when they move from entry-level positions to mid-career or managerial positions.

ARTICLE THREE: MEMBERSHIP

Any member or nonmember of SAA, including new and more experienced archives professionals, may participate in SNAP in accordance with the most current Guidelines for Sections as set forth by the SAA Council.

ARTICLE FOUR: GOVERNANCE

A. Bylaws and Standing Rules

These standing rules of the SNAP Section shall serve as a supplement to the SAA Section Bylaws, which govern all SAA sections. Please refer to Section IX. Sections of the SAA Governance Manual for information on membership, section election procedures, reporting requirements, and more. 

B. Steering Committee

The SNAP Steering Committee will be composed of six members, three of whom will be elected officers (chair, vice chair/chair elect, and secretary), with the others elected at large.

Steering committee members (with the exception of the vice chair/chair-elect) will serve a term of one year. At least one member of the steering committee must be present at the annual meeting.

The steering committee will:

1. Provide leadership to and share information with section members.

2. Identify and appoint ex officio members to the steering committee

3. Solicit input from members.

4. Organize section elections and voting.

5. Appoint temporary and/or permanent committees as needed.

C. Officers

The chair, vice chair/chair-elect, and secretary will serve as officers of the section. Only members of SAA and the SNAP Section may hold these positions. The term for each office is one year, beginning at the close of the SAA Annual Meeting.

1. The chair directs and reports the activities of the section, organizes and runs the annual meeting, leads the steering committee, and handles administrative duties, including, but not limited to submitting the section’s annual report and serving as the section’s liaison to SAA and its Council. The chair, in consultation with the other members of the steering committee, may solicit and appoint section volunteers to serve as the web liaison, newsletter coordinator, student chapter coordinator, and/or social media coordinator.
2. The vice chair/chair-elect assists the chair in the operation of the section, serves as acting chair in the absence of the chair, and participates as a member of the steering committee. The vice chair/chair-elect also takes over the position of chair in the event that the chair resigns or becomes unable to serve.
3. The secretary serves as the official record keeper of the section, is responsible for compiling and sharing minutes from steering committee and annual meetings, and coordinates the work of the communications subcommittee, when and if such a committee is deemed necessary.

D. Ex Officio Steering Committee Members

Ex officio members of the steering committee will be non-voting and will consist of SAA’s appointed Council Liaison and positions duly appointed by the SNAP Section Steering Committee, which may include:

1. Web coordinator: Maintain the SNAP website with current news and information and update as necessary.
2. Social media coordinator: Manage the social media presence of the roundtable, distribute news and information, and promote interaction of SNAP members on various social media platforms.
3. Student chapter coordinator: Serve as a liaison between SNAP and SAA student chapters.
4. Blog coordinator: Manage the blog presence of the roundtable, distribute news and information, and promote interaction of SNAP members on the blog.

The steering committee may appoint additional coordinators/ex officio members as needed.

E. Meetings

1. SNAP will meet once per year at the time of the SAA Annual Meeting. The time and agenda will be announced on the SNAP blog, social media account(s), and listserv prior to the meeting.
2. The Steering Committee will convene remotely (virtually or by phone) on a regular basis and as needed, as determined by the committee members.
3. SNAP members are encouraged to gather and meet outside of the annual meeting, including at regional conferences, informally, or virtually.

F. Elections and Voting                             

1. 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. To ensure adequate student representation in the section leadership, at least two candidates on the slate must be students at the time of the election.

1.  The steering committee may recruit volunteers from the section membership to assist with the nominating and election process, if it so chooses. The committee will be responsible for ensuring adequate student representation among the candidate slate. The committee will solicit candidates for the next year’s officers and steering committee using notices on the listserv, blog, website, social media, etc., and prepare an appropriate slate of candidates.
2. All nominations must be collected by the steering committee by June 1. The committee, in coordination with the communications subcommittee, will be responsible for publicizing the slate of candidates and ensuring that ballot information will be made available to section members no later than June 15 and be accessible for at least two weeks. Election results will be announced around the time of the annual meeting and section officers and steering committee members will assume office at the close of the annual meeting.

2. Voting. 

 All section voting, including non-election voting, will take place electronically. Section election and business votes will be determined by a plurality of the voting members; amendments to section standing rules require a two-thirds (2/3) majority for passage.

3. Resignations. 

 Should any elected officer or steering committee member resign, a special election will be held to fill the vacancy.

ARTICLE FIVE: COMMUNICATIONS

SNAP will distribute information to SAA members and the general archival community via the section’s blog, SAA’s member communications, the SNAP listserv, the section’s website, and via social media. Section communications will be coordinated by a communications subcommittee that will consist of the section secretary, web coordinator, outreach/newsletter coordinator, and social media coordinator.

A. Blog

1. The section will publish blog posts periodically, at least two (2) times per month, detailing the activities, projects, and initiatives of the section and its members, as well as sharing resources for students and new professionals.

B. Listserv: 

1. The listserv is maintained for the benefit of the section as a forum for students and new and/or emerging archives professionals to discuss topics and concerns, make inquiries to other listserv members, and make announcements.
2. In accordance with SAA’s Guidelines, the listerv is open to all, and anyone with an email account may subscribe to the listserv.

C. Website:

1. The section will maintain a current website detailing its leadership, membership, activities, and resources for the membership.
2. The SNAP website serves as the public interface between the section and its members, the larger SAA community, and the general public.
3. The website will be maintained and modified in accordance with the most current Guidelines for Section Websites of the SAA, and will adhere to accessibility best practices.

D. Social Media

Information regarding the section will be distributed to the section’s members and general archival community via social media sites. 

VI. Amendments 

1. These standing rules may be amended by a two-thirds (2/3) majority of the members voting in an electronic ballot.
2. Amendments to these standing rules may be proposed by any section member. Such proposed standing rules amendments must be submitted to the section chair sixty (60) days prior to the annual section election and must then be publicized on the section’s website, listserv, social media, etc. at least one month prior to the annual section election. 
3. 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 final approval by a simple majority of voters. 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.
4. When the SAA Council amends the Guidelines for Roundtables that affect specific provisions of these Bylaws then those provisions will be considered amended and shall take effect immediately, and not require a vote of the roundtable membership.

Adopted by the Students and New Archives Professionals Roundtable membership on 07/29/13; approved by the SAA Council on 9/30/13. Updated per the member affinity group transition approved by the Council, August 2016. Revisions adopted July 2018.