21 December 2021
Dear MATC Membership:
Over the last two years, the imbalance of labor in the Executive Committee has become increasingly clear and untenable. MATC’s EC recognizes that this labor imbalance has harmed some members more than others, and we steadfastly believe that we cannot continue to ask our members to serve in uncompensated leadership positions that require 10+ years of service nor in positions that lack specific job duties in the by-laws. We believe that we must address these issues prior to our annual meeting so that we can elect individuals into a clearly defined and more equitable system this March.
We propose immediate amendments to our by-laws, including:
- Adjusting the sequential leadership structure to create two shorter and defined tracks: 1) leadership (president, president-elect, and immediate-past president) and 2) conference planning (conference coordinator and associate conference coordinator),
- Clarifying the definition of membership within MATC to extend beyond conference attendance,
- Redefining the organization’s mission and vision statements to better reflect the current goals and values of MATC, and
- Modernizing the official medium of voting to allow digital ballots to be cast for those who are not able to attend the Annual Business Meeting at the conference.
To discuss these changes,we will hold aspecial meeting on Saturday, January 29, 2022 at 1:00pm EST/10:00am PST via Zoom (link). The meeting will last approximately ninety minutes, with an optional social meeting following the by-laws discussion. Members will be able to vote on by-laws changes whether or not they are able to attend the meeting. A digital ballot to vote on these changes will be distributed to the membership immediately following the meeting (via the MATC listserv and on Mighty Networks) and will be available for a 48-hour period following the meeting. All ballots will be due by Monday, January 31, 2022 at 3:00pm EST/12:00pm PST. All those who are currently members of MATC or who have been a member at any point over the last three years are invited to vote in the election.**
We will distribute a copy of the proposed changes to the by-laws, a document that outlines the rationale for these changes, and a feedback form by December 31, 2021. We ask that members use the feedback form to share questions or concerns regarding these changes so that we can plan for and better anticipate the discussion at our January meeting.
We thank you for your dedication to
the organization and to the field,
Chris Woodworth, President
Beth Osborne, Immediate-Past President
Shannon Walsh, Conference Planner
Jen Plants, Associate Conference Planner
Jeanmarie Higgins, Associate Conference Planner
Tony Gunn, Treasurer
Travis Stern, Webmaster & By-laws Committee Member
Sarah Campbell, Secretary & By-laws Committee Co-Chair
Dan Cullen, Graduate Liaison
Mackenzie Bounds, Graduate Liaison and By-laws Committee Member
Shelby Lunderman, By-laws Committee Co-Chair
Cason
Murphy, By-laws Committee Member
**If you are not currently a member of the organization, you can still take advantage of the free 2021 membership—which will expire February 28, 2022—to be able to vote in the election. Please visit http://matc.us/2021/virtual-special-meeting-on-march-6-2021-registration/2432 to join.
Proposed Changes to the By-Laws may be found here as a Google Doc and here on website.
Rationale for each proposed change may be found here as a Google Doc and here on the website.
FAQ for the By-Laws and rationale may be found here as a Google Doc and here on the website.
Feedback for these changes before the January Meeting may be provided here via Google Form. *Please submit feedback by January 14th, 2022 at 12:00pm PST*