Central Section

Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan,
Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin, and southern and western Ontario

Duties & Responsibilities of Officers of the Central Section NAGT

President (1-year term):

• NC-GSA Meeting
  • Oversee NAGT Exhibit for NC-GSA (fall or winter)
    • Contact NAGT Executive Director to:
      • Reserve exhibit materials
      • Request fliers and copies of JGE
    • Sign up for booth with exhibit chair of Sectional GSA Planning Committee
    • Ask treasurer to send a check paying for exhibit space
    • Receive and transport to meeting the exhibit materials or assign other to do this
    • Organize officers and members to staff the exhibit booth
    • Oversee or appoint someone to set up and take down exhibit
    • Mail exhibit materials to next user as per Executive Director's instructions
  • Remind 1st VP and 2nd VP to meet deadlines and solicit abstracts
  • Conduct business meeting (at NC-GSA Meeting in spring)
• Fall Field Conferences
  • Contact coordinators of the Tri-State and GLS-SEPM fall field conferences to offer to co-sponsor field conference by advertising to our members via our newsletter (after each fall field conference)
  • Request a vote on financial support for these field trips provided they offer lower student and K-12 teacher registration rates (at NC-GSA Meeting in spring)
• Newsletter
  • Write President's message for both newsletters (early August and early March)
  • Review newsletter before it is mailed
• Submit an annual report to NAGT upon request from NAGT (early October)
• Represent or designate a representative for our Section at the annual NAGT business meeting held at the annual GSA meeting

1st Vice President (1-year term):

• Organize theme session for NC-GSA
• Submit theme session topic to NC-GSA general chair by their deadline (late summer)
• Recruit participants for theme sessions
• Review abstracts, organize talks for session, submit this to GSA (may solicit President's or other's assistance) (early January)
• Convene theme session at NC-GSA (solicit President or other as co-convener) (spring)
• Assist President as requested

2nd Vice President (1-year term):

• Coordinate NAGT Central Section program in consultation with Central Section's 1st VP and with Sectional GSA Planning Committee for subsequent year
  • Forward deadlines to Central Section officers for submission of announcements for first and subsequent GSA Today announcements (May)
  • Organize details for business luncheon with general chair
    • Reserve a room for a catered lunch for about 20 people on the last day of the meeting from noon to 1pm
    • Pick the menu
    • Request that tables are arranged in a horseshoe or square pattern
  • Theme session(s) - responsibility of 1st VP
  • Organize field trip and/or workshop targeting local K-12 teachers
    • Work with someone who knows and works with local teachers
  • Solicit topics for the next year's NC-GSA theme session (prior to NC-GSA)

Treasurer (3-year term):

• Prepare budget for subsequent fiscal year and present it at the annual business meeting
• Submit financial report to National NAGT for their annual report
• Maintain NAGT Central Section's checking and other accounts
• Write checks for expenses (awards, newsletter expenses, misc.)
• Receive membership fees from National NAGT

Secretary and Newsletter Editor (3-year term):

• Record minutes of business meetings
• Post minutes on the website
• Edit and email two newsletters per year
  • August (before classes resume)
    • Advertise fall field conferences (Tri-State [WI-IA-IL] and GLS-SEPM)
    • Solicit abstracts for NC-GSA (deadline usually in December)
    • Include minutes from spring business meeting
  • February (~1 month before NC-GSA)
    • Feature NAGT functions at NC-GSA
      • Theme session
      • Additional K-16 workshop or field trip
      • Business meeting and luncheon on 2nd day of conference
      • Solicit members to help staff NAGT booth
  • Solicit articles and announcements for each newsletter four weeks in advance of mailing
  • Submit newsletter to the president for review one week prior emailing it to members
  • Request updated membership list (Excel file) from Victoria Gentile (vgentile@aip.org) of The American Institute of Physics that handles our membership data base
  • Post newsletter on website
• Guidelines for Use of Membership Distribution List
  • Membership distribution list should be used only to send NAGT-related business and notices
  • In emailing materials to list, insert the membership email addresses for Blind Copy to prevent including the addresses in the email; send the email to yourself
• Work with Website Coordinator to keep website up-to-date

Past President:

• Support president as much as is necessary or desired
• Audit treasurer's books
• Serve as Geoscience Education Representative for NC-GSA

OEST Chair (position description (Acrobat (PDF) 10kB Dec18 07) and checklist (Acrobat (PDF) 10kB Dec18 07)

• OEST award
  • Solicit state nominations from state representatives
  • Organize selection of state and section awardees

Website Coordinator:

• Keep the website up-to-date by working with the Secretary
• Regular updates
  • Add newsletters (semi-annual)
  • Add minutes of business meetings (annual)
  • Add special activities beyond symposia at GSA meetings (field trips, workshops)
  • Update list of officers (annual)
  • Insert photos from activities; update those on home page
• New ideas
  • Feel free to think of new ideas - send them to the Secretary who will run them past the other officers if it seems appropriate

State Representatives (indefinite term length; two per state):

• Solicit OEST nominations for their state
• Submit news and announcements of geoscience education activities in their state to the Newsletter Editor
• Help staff NAGT booth at NC-GSA meetings
• Provide continuity to the Central Section
  • Be familiar with past and current activities and procedures
• Suggest names for future officers of NAGT Central Section

Communication between officers

• The president and secretary should copy the other officers, including past president and state representatives, on key aspects of section business
  • This helps inform and educate others (including upcoming officers) of our activities
• All officers should copy the president and secretary when conducting key aspects of section business
  • This helps inform the president of progress
• E-mail protocol
  • It is not appropriate to forward to others someone's email messages without their permission, especially if there is anything of a sensitive nature in it.