Handbook of the Society of California Archivists

Handbook, Bylaws, and Policies

  1. SCA Handbook / Part 3 Committees / 3-13 Program Committee

3-13 Program Committee

General Description

The Program Committee plans and presents the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in the spring. Except for joint annual conferences with affiliated organizations, the meetings should alternate between the northern and southern parts of the state. As of 2024, AGMs will alternate between virtual and in-person, as recommended by the AGM Review Task Force. The committee works in coordination with the Local Arrangements Committee (LAC).

Composition of the committee and terms of office are defined in Handbook section 3-1 and governed by the Bylaws. The Program Committee Chair is normally the Vice President, or an individual appointed by the President with the approval of the Board. The Senior Director-at-Large serves as the Vice Chair. The Education Chair or representative serves as an ad hoc member of the Program Committee. The Vice President/Program Chair serves as an ad hoc member of the Education Committee. The Local Arrangements Committee Chair or their designee serves as an ad hoc member of the Program Committee. The Vice President/Program Chair serves as an ad hoc member of the Local Arrangements Committee.

Any precedent-setting decisions to be undertaken by the Program Committee or any subcommittees must be approved by the Board of Directors of SCA.

Responsibilities of the Program Committee

General responsibilities are outlined in Handbook section 3-1.

  1. The chair organizes the Program Committee, using names provided by the Membership Chair and individuals interested in planning programs. Ideally, the committee should be made up of SCA members from different regions of the state and who work in different types of archival repositories.
  2. Submits budget of Program Committee to Board of Directors, which should include honoraria and travel expenses for special speakers (when applicable) and anticipated committee expenses. Note: Local Arrangements prepares budget of AGM.
  3. Places a call for session proposals among the SCA membership and the greater archival community via the SCA Newsletter, the SCA web site, email announcements, and other venues as appropriate.
  4. Convenes meetings of the Program Committee to plan session topics and propose speakers’ names. Determines the theme (if any) of the AGM in consultation with the Program Committee members, with approval of the Board.
  5. Prepares for the Fall Board meeting a preliminary AGM schedule outlining each day of the conference, including the times and length of meals, sessions, the Members Meeting (formerly known as the Business Meeting), and other events.
  6. In consultation with the Local Arrangements Committee Chair, sets AGM registration fees with the approval of the Board of Directors. Registration fees should be set to allow a reserve of $1,000-$2,000 in case registration is lower than anticipated or unforeseen costs arise.
  7. Develops and builds SCA AGM web site in coordination with the Communications and Outreach Committee.
  8. Meets Local Arrangements Committee deadlines for submission of copy for the printed program or other publicity/informational materials. Meets same deadlines for virtual event platform vendors when meetings are held online.
  9. Education Committee Liaison to the Program Committee informs the Program Chair and Committee members of AGM workshops the Education Committee is arranging.
  10. Engages keynote and luncheon speakers, creating Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) when appropriate.
  11. Prepares and submits to Local Arrangement Committee text for AGM printed program, including welcome, final schedule and complete session descriptions. Note: Education Committee Chair plans and provides text for pre-conference workshops, and the Local Arrangements Committee provides text for local logistics.
  12. Coordinates training sessions between virtual event platform vendor and all speakers and presenters when meetings are held online.
  13. Sends publicity to the SCA Newsletter and announcements to the Communications and Outreach Committee for posting on the SCA web site and for forwarding to allied organizations.
  14. The Program Committee Chair or their designee introduces the luncheon speaker, and the SCA President introduces the keynote speaker.
  15. Requests and oversees disbursement of payments of authorized speaker expenses and committee expenses. Oversees that workshop material fees disbursement was requested by the Education Committee.
  16. Writes official letters of thanks to speakers, Program Committee members, and to the Local Arrangements Chair.
  17. Submits a final report to the Board no later than the Board’s next quarterly meeting. This report should include commentary, budget and expenditures, suggestions, copies of official committee correspondence and MOUs, analysis of information gleaned from evaluation forms, etc. Copies of this report should also be sent to the succeeding year’s Local Arrangements Committee Chair and Program Chair.
  18. Ensure the Local Arrangements Committee includes a separate message about the annual business meeting.

Revision history: 5/93 jok, 6/93 bh, 4/94 ppa, 1/06 jlm, 1/10 lo, 3/12 tep, 7/2016 llc, 10/2017 llc, 09/2018 llc, 04/2019 llc, 05/2021 mh, 04/2024 lam

  1. Section 3-13 Program Committee
  2. Part 3 Committees
  3. Handbook of the Society of California Archivists