Procedures Manual


Introduction
This manual is designed to help members of The Society of Directors of Research in Medical Education (SDRME) and particularly the Executive Committee deal with issues which need not be covered by the by-laws, but which will make SDRME run more smoothly. This procedures manual may be amended by the Executive Committee at their discretion, but it is expected that if the revisions are of direct consequence to the membership, they will be presented to the full membership before changes are made.


 Duties of the President (1-year term as president, 3-year term total from president-elect, president, to past-president)
The President has the overall responsibility for ensuring that SDRME functions effectively and provides leadership for further SDRME development. In the event that the President is unable to perform any of the duties listed below, he/she is expected to delegate the responsibility to the President-elect.

  1. Act as spokesperson for SDRME in interactions in which a representative of SDRME is required, including liaison with National and Regional Associations connected with medical education, appropriate interviews with the media and other similar responsibilities.
  2. Oversee all operations of SDRME including the two membership meetings, Executive Committee meeting, and the work of committees. Decide, in consultation with the Executive Committee, on the location and time of the winter/spring meeting of the Executive Committee.
  3. Prepare agendas for and distribute in advance of the Executive and General SDRME meetings and chair SDRME and Executive Committee meetings.
  4. Facilitate the discussion of position assignment of the members nominated to the executive committee by the membership.
  5. In consultation with the Executive Committee, identify, appoint, and announce at the Fall meeting the chairs of the Membership, Nominating, International Committee, and Communication Committees.
  6. Assume the role of liaison with SDRME committees or appoint members of the Executive Committee to that role. The responsibility of the liaison is to work with the committee chair to ensure that the committee's tasks are accomplished including the appointment of members to each committee and request a report from each chair prior to the fall and summer Society meetings.
  7. Write to new members welcoming them to SDRME.
  8. Schedule time with the incoming president at the summer meeting to review tasks of the president and provide a summary of the ongoing issues. Provide electronic versions of all form letters required to fulfill the duties of the President.

 

Duties of the President-Elect (1-year term as president-elect, 3-year term total from president-elect, president, to past-president)

  1. Assume primary responsibility for all aspects of planning and coordinating the Annual Summer meeting and work closely with the President to oversee the meeting.

  1. Organize a program planning committee comprised of at least 3 additional representatives and the President.

  1. Perform all duties assigned by the President.
  2. Attend monthly Executive Committee Meetings.


Duties of the Past President (1-year term as past-president, 3-year term total from president-elect, president, to past-president)

  1. Perform all duties assigned by the President.
  2. Provide guidance to the President and President-elect.
  3. Attend monthly Executive Committee Meetings.

 

Duties of the Treasurer (3-year term)  

  1. Attend monthly Executive Committee Meetings.
  2. Maintain up-to-date records of SDRME's checking and savings accounts.
  3. Prepare reports of SDRME's financial status and present them SDRME to the membership at the summer and fall meetings and all Executive Committee meetings. Make all check deposits and ensure credit card deposits are accounted for.
  4. Provide reimbursements and make payments for all expenses incurred by SDRME
  5. Ensure that appropriate 501c3 taxes are filed
  6. Assume fiscal responsibility for SDRME funds.
  7. Advise the Executive Committee on the financial health of SDRME, and, if necessary, suggest appropriate changes to dues or procedures.
  8. Oversee the transition of financial records and function to the next treasurer (including all records, SDRME credit card, and ensuring appropriate signatories of the president and treasurer are on the account).
  9. Ensure President and Treasurer have access to log in information to bank account.

10. Use on-line credit card mechanism for setting-up payment for summer meeting registration fees.

 

Duties of the Secretary (3-year term)

  1. Attend monthly Executive Committee Meetings. Keep minutes of all meetings of SDRME and the Executive Committee and upload them into the SDRME online folder.
  2. Prepare any changes to the procedures manual, by-laws or other SDRME documents for submission to the Executive Committee and/or the membership, and to ensure that such changes are approved and distributed.
  3. Act as the liaison with the webmaster to ensure agreed-upon changes are made to the website.
  4. Work with Communications Chair to create and distribute electronic ballots for voting (when needed) to all SDRME members. Inform Executive Committee of the results.

 

Duties of Member-at-Large (2-year term)

  1. Attends monthly Executive Meeting Meetings.
  2. Serves as engagement coordinator for new SDRME members.
  3. Conduct projects that are congruent with the mission of SDRME.
  4. Accept duties as assigned by the President.
  5. Participate in planning the SDRME fall business meeting, summer annual meeting, and summer meeting planning committee.
  6. Represent the interests of the general membership.

 

 Duties of the Chair of the Communications Committee (3-year term)

  1. Provide technical expertise and counsel gained through practical experience in support of different electronic systems used to communicate among members and committees.
  2. Oversee the maintenance and enhancement of resources needed to communicate among SDRME members. These resources include but are not limited to the organizational website, group communications systems and communications archival systems.
  3. Comprise a subcommittee that is responsible for the social media presence of SDRME.
  4. Appoint a member of the committee to review the SDRME website monthly and provide updates to website as needed.
  5. Appoint a member of the committee to maintain a historical record of SDRME activities including meeting locations and dates held and significant changes in the mission of SDRME.
  6. Maintain the listserv and post all documents regarding SDRME's activities to the SDRME website.
  7. Provide a written report of the committee's activities to the President prior to the Summer and Fall meetings and present the report to the members at the summer and fall business meetings.

 

Duties of the Chair of the Membership Committee (3-year term)

  1. Disseminate information about SDRME to prospective members.
  2. Suggest changes to the membership application forms or to the process by which membership is approved, for consideration by the Executive Committee.
  3. Keep the list of Membership Committee members up to date on the SDRME website.
  4. With the other members of the Membership Committee, make recommendations to the Executive Committee concerning new members within a month of making a decision.
  5. Keep track of those eligible for Emeritus Membership and provide a review of the careers of such individuals for consideration by the Executive Committee.
  6. Maintain an up-to-date membership database of Regular, Emeritus, and Ex-officio SDRME members. This directory will be updated, at a minimum, after each meeting of the Executive Committee at which new members are approved. Yearly, the membership will be asked to review the roster as posted on the web and to send any corrections or additions to Communication Committee chair.
  7. Assign a member of the committee the responsibility to:
    1. Establish and/or maintain on-line credit card mechanism for membership payments and provide Treasurer with updates of all payments made using this mechanism (by whom and how much).
    2. Send out membership renewal letter in early fall and follow-up with reminders so that dues are paid by the fall annual meeting.
    3. Update membership database as payments are made.
    4. Provide report prior to the summer and fall meeting to the Membership Committee Chair regarding payment of membership dues including any members whose dues payments are in arrears for three years.
  8. Provide a written report of the committee's activities to the President prior to the Summer and Fall meetings and present the report to the members at the bi-annual business meetings.

 

Duties of the Chair of the Nominating Committee (3-year term)

  1. Develop a list of regular members of SDRME who would be suitable to hold office in SDRME and who have been a member of SDRME for at least two years and do not currently hold office on the Executive Committee.
  2. Contact those individuals to determine whether they would be prepared to stand for election to the Executive Committee.
  3. Submit to the Executive Committee in the spring of each year, the names of nominees who have agreed to stand for election to the Executive Committee. Normally there will be at least one more nominee than the number of vacant positions.
  4. Keep a record of each position and terms and who is rotating on and off. Inform Executive Committee of positions that need to be filled or are on target to be vacant in the next 12 months.
  5. Keep internal SDRME website up to date with positions that are coming open in the next 12 months.
  6. Remind the President when it is time to send out request for nominations.

 

Duties of the Chair of International Membership (3-year term)

  1. Seek membership in SDRME from directors of offices of medical education located outside North America.
  2. Send an annual personalized email to all international members asking them to respond via email and: 
    1. Indicate they are still eligible for membership in SDRME (criteria will be included) and still interested in continuing as a member for the coming year (and, if not, to suggest another member from their institution);
    2. Verify that the web-based directory listing of their contact information is correct and, if necessary, send corrections to the Chair of the Communications Committee.
  3. Process membership applications from International Affiliate members working with the committee to determine who should become an International Affiliate Member and inform the Executive Committee of these decisions.
  4. Update the membership database with any new international affiliate members and delete those whose membership has terminated.
  5. Initiate search to find a replacement person at an institution where a member fails to respond to the yearly update and update contact information in the membership list.
  6. Provide a written report of the committee's activities to the President prior to the Summer and Fall meetings and present the report to the members at the bi-annual business meetings.

 

Duties of the Chair of the Invited Review Committee (5-year term min/10-year term max)

  1. Keep list of Invited Review Committee members up to date on SDRME website.
  2. Distribute the Call for Invited Review Research Review Proposals in accordance with the Invited Review Guidelines.
  3. Receive Invited Research Review Proposal submissions.
  4. Distribute submissions to Invited Review Committee members for their evaluation and ranking.
  5. Collaborate with the Invited Review Committee members on selection of a proposal for funding.
  6. Communicate with persons submitting reviews the outcome of the selection.
  7. Communicate with the Executive Committee the proposal selected for funding and announce the winner(s) at the fall business meeting.

 

Selection and Duties of the SDRME Representatives to the Council of Faculty and Academic Societies: (3-year term min/6-year term max in any combination of Jr. or Sr. CFAS Role)

  1. The Executive Committee shall appoint two members (Jr. and Sr.) of SDRME to act as representatives to the Council of Faculty and Academic Societies (CFAS). It is highly desirable that these representatives serve at least a three-year term and a maximum of a six-year term in any combination of jr./sr.
  2. SDRME will provide registration and travel expenses for the representatives to attend the mid-year meeting of CFAS. In making the selection, the Executive Committee will consider the following criteria: knowledge of SDRME, knowledge of the field of medical education, respect of colleagues in SDRME and medical education, communication skills, likelihood of fulfilling a multi-year term, and membership in SDRME.
  3. The representatives will be responsible for communicating the relevant issues and information from CFAS to the Executive Committee and to the SDRME membership on a regular basis via e-mail, provide a written report of CFAS's activities to the President prior to the Summer and Fall meetings and present the report to the members at the fall and summer business meetings. Additional information can be found here: https://www.aamc.org/professional-development/affinity-groups/cfas

 

 

Election to the Executive Committee
Nominations should be solicited from the membership at large by the Nominating Committee. Self-nominations in general should be allowed. To avoid any conflict of interest, no members of the Nominating Committee can be considered for Executive Committee positions while they are serving on Nominating Committee. The Chair of the Nominating Committee will confer with Executive Committee during the selection of nominees. The Executive Committee will approve the ballot before it is distributed to SDRME members to cast their votes.
When the nominations for office have been supplied to the Executive Committee from the Chair of the nominations committee, the Secretary of SDRME will distribute the ballot electronically to the membership prior to the winter meeting of the Executive Committee. The election will be conducted by ballot, with a period of no less than two weeks in which ballots are to be returned. The Secretary will oversee the election and announce the results to the Executive Committee. In the event of a tie, the President will choose the new committee member. The Secretary will announce to the membership only the names of those elected; no information about margins or the existence of ties will be communicated. The executive committee decides positions for election winners.
General procedures for meetings

  1. All meetings will be chaired by the President of SDRME.
  2. An agenda will be prepared in advance and circulated to those eligible to attend the meeting.
  3. In the absence of any other requirement of the by-laws, all votes shall be determined by a simple majority. In the event of a tied vote, the President, who will not vote in the initial ballot, has the deciding vote.

 

Executive Committee

  1. The Executive Committee will meet monthly by conference call. Face-to-face meetings may occur in conjunction with Fall and Summer meetings.
  2. The President will set the agenda for the meetings.


 Summer Meeting

  1. SDRME shall hold a summer meeting that includes both academic and informal networking opportunities.
  2. The Executive Committee will meet separately before the general meeting begins.
  3. There will be a business meeting of SDRME held on the first afternoon or as early in the meeting.
  4. At the business meeting, new members will be introduced, and invited to give a slightly more extended introduction to their office and its functions.

 

Fall Meeting

  1. A meeting of SDRME shall be held in conjunction with the annual meeting of the Association of American Medical Colleges.
  2. The Executive Committee will meet prior to the general meeting of SDRME, at a place and time convenient to the members of that Committee
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