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Section III.  Administration, Projects and Interest Groups of the Action Committees

A.            Action Committee Administration.  Each Action Committee shall be administered by a board consisting of the Action Committee Chair and up to five Committee Coordinators. This board will oversee projects and activities pertaining to the Action Committee, as mandated by a consensus of the board. (2007)

B.            Selection of Committee Coordinators and Projects.

1.             Applications for the Action Committee Coordinator positions will be solicited as part of the Official Call, with the selection process occurring at the Annual Meeting during each Action Committee’s organizational time, facilitated by the Action Committee Chair; (2004)

2.             The coordinator selection process will be consistent with the process outlined in Article VIII of the Constitution & Bylaws. (2004)

3.             The focus area and responsibilities of each coordinator position will be determined by the board of each committee, will be reviewed and approved by the Action Committee Chair and Coordinators, and will be delineated and advertised prior to the Annual Meeting; (2004)

4.             In the event that a coordinator cannot be found for a particular focus group, the chair will be responsible for appointing a coordinator and, until then, continuing any projects that the focus coordinator oversees. (2004) 

C.            Responsibilities of Action Committee Coordinators.

1.             Communicate with the members active in the Action Committee; (2004)

2.             Communicate with the Director of Student Programming, other Coordinators, Action Committee Chairs and National Officers in a timely fashion regarding AMSA projects, policy and related matters; (2004)

3.             Promote Action Committee policies, themes, programs and projects to the AMSA membership; (2004)

4.             Attend two (2) general meetings of the Action Committee leadership in conjunction with the meetings of the Board of Trustees and National Convention; (2004)

5.             Coordinate Action Committee activities at the Regional Conferences and the Annual Meeting; (2004)

6.             Publish Action Committee resources and information via the Internet and in AMSA newsletters/publications. (2004)

7.             In conjunction with the Action Committee Chair, submit a section of an annual report to the House of Delegates for consideration on a “For Information Only” basis. (2004)

8.             Develop a plan and budget for their project within thirty (30) days of the Annual Meeting that will be approved and modified by the Action Committee Chair as deemed appropriate. (2004)

D.            Action Committee Coordinator Replacement (2006)

1.             In the event of a resignation by an Action Committee Coordinator, the Chair shall notify the members of the AC Executive Board of the vacancy in a timely manner. (2006)

2.             With input from the Vice President for Programming and the remaining members of the Action Committee, the Chair shall determine, depending on the time at which the resignation occurred in the year, whether the Committee should replace the vacancy or leave it unfilled. (2006)

3.             If replacing the coordinator, the Chair shall publicize the vacancy on the appropriate listserves and additionally have the option of personally contacting one or more possible candidates: (2006)

a.             The candidate’s interest and experience in the coordinator topic as well as the overall committee topic. (2006)

b.             The candidate’s experience in AMSA and commitment to AMSA’s values. (2006)

c.             The candidate’s leadership skills. (2006)

4.             The Action Committee in question shall review the Chair’s nominations and, using Instant Run-off Voting (IRV), elect a replacement. (2006)

5.             The Chair, along with the Vice President for Programming, shall assist in orienting the new AC Coordinator with the duties and responsibilities of the position. (2006)

E.             Interest Groups.  Since there are many situations in AMSA where a small group of students requiring limited resources come to the Association, asking for help, the House of Delegates may create at its discretion Interest Groups through resolutions.

1.             Each Interest Group shall be authorized by the House for a period of no more than two years. During the interim period between meetings of the House of Delegates, Interest Groups may be formed by a 2/3 vote of the Executive Board of the Action Committees. Any Interest Group formed in this manner must submit a resolution for authorization to the House of Delegates at the next Annual Meeting. Approval of this resolution is necessary to continue as an Interest Group. (1998)

2.             Interest Groups shall be provided these resources:

a.             Access to AMSA Web resources (Web pages, list serves) as necessary for communication;

b.             Dissemination of information through AMSA publications

c.             One hour of organizational time at the Annual Meeting and may apply to fund otherwise unfunded programming. (2008)

3.             The Specialty Forum serves as the home for all relevant Specialty Interest Groups, which shall be sub-groups of this Forum.  Specialty Interest Groups shall have the same access to Web space and a listserve as other interest groups and may apply to fund otherwise unfunded programming. (2008) The Director of Student Programming oversees the Specialty Forum, and each of the Specialty Interest Groups that make up the Forum shall have one coordinator. The Executive Board of the Action Committees shall be charged with the responsibility of determining whether an interest groups falls into the category of a Specialty Interest Group. Each Specialty Interest Groups must be reauthorized every two years in the same manner as other interest groups. (2002)

4.             Lists of interest groups shall be advertised through AMSA publications to the membership. (2002)

5.             All Interest Groups must have a designated coordinator. Specifically:

a.             Interest Group Coordinators will be elected by a majority during organizational time at the Annual Meeting.  Each active or affiliate member of AMSA present at the meeting shall have one vote.  If an Interest Group does not select a coordinator in this manner, the Director of Student Programming (DSP) will appoint one. If the DSP cannot find a member willing to serve as the Interest Group Coordinator, the Interest Group will be considered defunct. (2003)

b.             The duties of the Interest Group Coordinator include, but are not limited to, periodically updating the AMSA Web page, organizing group elections at the Annual Meeting, making any necessary announcements within the AMSA listserves and publications, and reporting to the DSP. (2008)

c.             Interest Group Coordinators shall report directly to the DSP through email monthly reports and written year-end summary. (2002)

6.             The Executive Board of the Action Committees will evaluate the activity of each Interest Group quarterly. Upon submission of reauthorization of a particular Interest Group, this Board will issue recommendation to the House of Delegates based on their evaluation.  (2002)

7.             Interest Groups of the Association: the Interest Groups of the Association shall be  Death & Dying, Direct Action, Child & Adolescent Health, Geriatrics, Neurology, Osteopathy, Primary Care, Surgery, Military Medicine, Naturopathic Medicine, Preventive Medicine, Mental Health and Business in Medicine. Interest groups are reauthorized every two years, with  Child & Adolescent Health, Direct Action, Osteopathic Medicine, Military Medicine, Naturopathic Medicine and Preventive Medicine up for reauthorization on odd years and Death & Dying, Geriatrics, Neurology, Primary Care, Surgery, Mental Health and Business in Medicine on even years. (2005) (2007) (2008)

8.             Naturopathic students from CNME accredited schools, along with full AMSA members, be allowed to participate in organizing and coordinating a Naturopathic Medicine Interest Group. (2007)

F.             Funding to Attend Leadership Meetings

1.             The action committees reserve the right to invite non-elected or unfunded elected leaders to participate in AC leadership meetings. Non-invited individuals may not participate in such meetings. However no invitees should utilize personal funds to attend such a meeting. Instead AC funds or grants must be guaranteed in order to provide equitable access to opportunities. Creative funding options may be explored as well. Potential invitees will also be encouraged to participate in scheduled conference calls as deemed appropriate to AC chairs. (2008)

2.             Meeting attendance cannot be required unless supported by appropriate budget allocations. (2008)