Rules and Procedures

This document outlines rules and procedures for the general operation of the Vermont Modern Quilters Guild, hereafter “VTMQG” or the “Guild”. It supplements the Guild Bylaws, but does not supersede them. It can be modified or amended by vote of the Board of Directors. This document was last updated on June 12, 2022.

VTMQG Membership Benefits

Members are eligible for membership benefits upon payment of dues. Membership benefits include, but are not limited to:

Admission to monthly meetings plus access to any discounts provided to Guild members (such as at local quilt shops and other retail outlets),
Ability to vote in Guild business transactions (budget, office elections and bylaw changes) Guild polls, and Guild challenges,
Free or discounted admission to Sew Ins and discounted rates for Guild activities including classes, workshops, and retreats,
Priority registration for Guild sponsored classes/workshops that are open to the public,
Participation in Guild swaps, exchanges, bees, field trips and special guest speakers,
The opportunity to advertise member’s business in the Guild newsletter (for a fee determined by the Board of Directors) as well as to offer items for sale in the Classified section of the newsletter free of charge. The Board of Directors reserves the right to refuse support of a business or sale of an item if deemed inappropriate and detrimental to the Guild.
Participation in sponsored giveaways and challenges or community events,
Full access to VTMQG website and Guild resources.

VTMQG Guest Policy

A Guest of the Vermont Modern Quilters Guild is defined as any person attending a meeting or other event (sew-in, retreat, workshop, etc.) that is not a paid Member.

Guests may attend two (2) general meetings free of charge before being asked to consider full membership.
Special events open to friends and family, such as quilt shows or other events specified by the Board of Directors, will not count against this limit.
Guests are not eligible for special Guild benefits (i.e. sponsored gifts, store discounts, participation in Guild activities unless otherwise specified) until they become a paid Member.
Guests are expected to follow the same rules and procedures as all Members of the VTMQG.

VTMQG Personal Conduct

Membership may be revoked if any member acts in a way that jeopardizes the Guild’s non-profit or tax-exempt status. Guests are also expected to follow personal conduct guidelines, and may be asked to leave otherwise. Unacceptable behavior includes, but is not limited to:

violating the policies of host locations for Guild events and meetings
soliciting money or goods from outside organizations on behalf of the Guild in any manner without explicit permission.
use of tax exemption status for personal gain.
altering documents in a dishonest manner.
fraud.
theft of any kind.
misuse or distribution of confidential information, including use of Guild members’ contact information for solicitation.
harassment or sexual misconduct of any manner.
any action that impacts the physical safety of guild members either intentionally or through negligence.

Failure to act according to these guidelines may result in:

First Offense: warning
Second Offense: termination of membership benefits with no refund of dues

Any activity that is blatantly criminal will result in automatic removal from the Guild and any offices or positions held therein, and may result in charges and/or legal action.

Officer Roles and Responsibilities

Office of President

Subject to the rights and powers of the Board of Directors, the President will:

run monthly membership meetings
draft an agenda before each general and board meeting, gather input from board members and committee chairs and distribute to the other Board Members prior to the meetings.
be the primary user of the info@vtmqg.com account. The President then either attends to the email themselves or forwards the email to the appropriate person.
focus on big picture, future planning and assist and guide committees and members as needed to work towards these plans, assures jobs are delegated and followed through
be authorized to sign checks and handle financial matters if/when Treasurer is unavailable.
be a representative of the Guild to external organizations and businesses.

At the end of their fully-served term, the President may choose to continue serving as an ex-officio member of the Board of Directors, known as the Immediate Past President (IPP), for one year. The President is also eligible to sit on the Past Presidents Council, regardless of whether they serve a term as the IPP.

Office of Vice President

The Vice President will:

stand in for President to run monthly meeting when needed and is able to
focus primarily on membership
send a timely email to any visitors that come to our monthly meeting, welcoming them and providing website info etc… (get information from sign in at meeting. If unable to attend, ask the President to forward you the info)
send a timely email welcoming new members to our guild.
add new member address to the VTMQG “members” group email list in VTMQG’s email
invite each new member to access the member page of vtmqg.com
go to the Facebook group and send an invite to new members to the VTMQG private Facebook page
email each new member info to the Newsletter Coordinator at newsletter@vtmqg.com so they can be added to the list when a new member joins
update the “current membership” file in the VTMQG Google Drive with name/email etc… and then check off that each item above has been completed
provide the President an updated roster when needed
provide new members with membership card when dues are paid
will be the primary user of the membership@vtmqg.com email account.

Office of Treasurer

The Treasurer will:

collect and deposit all membership dues and other money (retreat payments, event fees, merchandise sales) into the guild’s bank account. In the event they are unable to attend, a Board Member or their designee will collect necessary funds.
monitor the guild’s PayPal account, and be responsible for delegating card reader possession and usage.
maintain accounts at institutions approved by the Board of Directors and pay all accounts owed by the Guild.
reimburse guild members for approved guild expenditures (see Reimbursement Policy)
perform all accounting functions for the guild
present quarterly financial reports at general meetings or via electronic means
create the annual budget
file all appropriate tax forms to maintain the Guild’s non-profit status
will be the primary user of the business@vtmqg.com email account

Office of Secretary

The Secretary will:

take minutes at each monthly membership meeting
save meeting minutes to the VTMQG Google Drive for archival purposes
post meeting minutes in a timely manner to the private Guild Facebook group and send out to the members via email
take minutes for Board of Directors meetings and send out to board members
will be the primary user of the secretary@vtmqg.com email account

Programming Director

The Programming Director will:

create big picture vision of where programming is headed
run programming portion of the agenda with the support of the Programming Committee
create a Programming Committee and act as its chair, delegating duties to committee members as the Director sees fit
send the President agenda items for monthly meetings
work with the Treasurer to maintain a budget for programming activities
will be the primary user of the programming@vtmqg.com email account.

Standing Committee Responsibilities

The following committees will establish each year, concurrent with the Guild fiscal year, unless the Board of Directors determines otherwise:

Note: Members are eligible to participate in all Committees; however, to ensure proper attention is paid to each Committee’s responsibilities to the Guild, Members will fill the role of Chairperson for no more than two (2) Committees at a time.

A. Community Outreach Committee

The Community Outreach Committee will:

create and maintain a list of local non-profits interested in receiving quilts,
propose donation opportunities at VTMQG meetings.
organize the delivery of any quilts or other items made to various local non-profits.
organize a minimum of one (1) group community effort per year, such as a group community quilt or other specific donation drive.
work with the Treasurer to maintain a budget for community outreach programs and events.

b. Nominating Committee

The Nominating Committee will:

form within five (5) days after the April general meeting, and will consist of three (3) General Members.
not currently hold office on the Board of Directors and will not seek office with the Board of Directors in the next election, as well as attend the Annual Meeting in June
assist in calling for Members interested in the Board of Directors offices.
send notice to Members to solicit for absentee ballots, and send an electronic ballot to each Member who requests one from the Chair (Chair).
collect absentee ballot results to be included in official counting at the June Annual Meeting (Chair).
ensure that quorum for voting has been met by counting eligible voting Members and absentee ballots.
administer the vote for all eligible voters in attendance and mark their name on a master Member list (Chair).
tabulate all votes including absentee ballots in private (Chair) and verify the count by a designated member of the Nominating Committee.
announce the final results (Chair).
vote on the removal of a Board Member if necessary (Chair).

: In the event that the Committee does not have the appropriate number of Committee Members, the Board will fill in as necessary, starting with any Board Members not seeking office in the upcoming election, followed by the Vice President, then the Treasurer, then the Secretary, then the Programming Director until there are no fewer than three (3) Committee Members.Note

Current Ad-Hoc Committee and Coordinator Responsibilities

Ad-hoc committees and coordinator positions may be formed as needed by the President with approval of the Board of Directors. Once established, ad hoc committees will operate with the same responsibilities as standing committees, and have specific responsibilities as outlined below. All coordinators and ad hoc committees report directly to the President unless otherwise noted.

Newsletter Coordinator

The Newsletter coordinator will:

publish a monthly newsletter on the first day of each month.
update the newsletter mailing list with new member email addresses as they are provided by the Vice President. The list is currently maintained in VTMQG’s MailChimp account.
solicit the Board of Directors and committee chairpersons for relevant newsletter content each month.
submit the newsletter prior to publication to designated members of the Board of Directors for review.
will be the primary user of the newsletter@vtmqg.com email account.

Library and Librarian

The Librarian is responsible for managing the library inventory and is the custodian of all library materials.

The Librarian:

is responsible for curating the library materials with the aim of creating a collection of resources on Modern Quilting.
has the right to reject donations that don’t fit with the mission of VTMQG or are otherwise unsuitable for inclusion due to condition or redundancy. Rejected donations can either be returned to the donor, sold at a guild event to the benefit of the Guild, or placed on the free table at a guild event.
is responsible for transporting library materials to and from general meetings, or notifying the Guild membership if they are unable to attend.

Dissolution: If the role of Librarian cannot be filled or the Board votes to do so, the Library will be dissolved. In the event of dissolution, the Board will choose how to disperse the current Library holdings, either by selling them for the benefit of the Guild to the public or Guild members, or by donating them to another mission-aligned non-profit group.

Library Policies

Materials may be checked out at Guild meetings and shall be due at the following Guild meeting.
Members are responsible for filling out the Library Checkout Sheet with their name, the title or description of the material(s) borrowed, and the date borrowed. They are also responsible for updating the sheet upon return.

Retreat Coordinator

The Retreat Coordinator is responsible for planning and overseeing all retreats for VTMQG.

The Retreat Coordinator will:

be the primary contact between the Guild and the retreat venue staff for planning purposes.
is responsible for signing the Letter of Agreement (LOA) with the retreat venue but only after the Board reviews the LOA and indicates they should sign.
plan two annual retreats per calendar year, one in the spring and one in the fall
provide the Board with the proposed retreat fee(s) for each retreat along with detailed information as to how the fee(s) was determined. Only once the Board approves the fee(s) can they be shared with the guild membership.
price retreats so that they are self-funded and not subsidized by the Guild.
coordinate the sign up process for each retreat, providing confirmation to each member that signs up to attend.
communicate with the Treasurer regarding deposits and all payments the need to be made for the retreat so that they are paid on time.
maintain documentation and receipts for any expenditures made for the retreat and will submit them to the Treasurer for review and reimbursement.
be in charge of planning any specific activities (if any) during the retreat.
solicit donations from businesses to use as prizes for attendee, .solicit feedback, either through a survey or informally, from retreat attendees with the goal of improving each retreat experience.
will be the primary user of the retreat@vtmqg.com email account.

Website Coordinator

The Website coordinator will:

be responsible for updating the website with new information or documents provided to the Website Coordinator from the Guild.
maintain website domain and keep registrations current.
keep imagery and architecture of website current.

Photographer

The Photographer will:

be responsible for taking pictures at VTMQG meetings and events and uploading these photos to online platforms in a timely fashion.

Social Media Coordinator

The Social Media Coordinator will:

be responsible for maintaining the Guild’s online presence on various social media platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest).
Coordinate Takeovers by other Guild members.
be responsible for sharing information about meetings and events thru social media outlets.

Last updated October 13, 2024