Committees

Firefly Arts Collective has created a set of organizational committees to let Fireflies step up and shine. These committees have extensive responsibility for major parts of Firefly Arts Collective, so if you’re looking for an opportunity to be more involved year-round, these are great opportunities to volunteer! If you’re interested in joining a Committee, please contact the Firefly Board of Directors at board@fireflyartscollective.org.

What is a Committee?

A Committee is a volunteer group within Firefly Arts Collective responsible for a component of the corporation’s business. A Committee may be created or dissolved through the normal decision-making processes followed by the Board. A Committee must have a defined Mission. Committees should typically consist of between four and seven members, as approved by the Board, and at least one Board Member must sit on each Committee.

Each Committee has a Chair as selected by the Board, and the Committee Chair should preferably not be a member of the Board of Directors. The Committee Chair is responsible for organization and scheduling of meetings necessary for conducting the business of the Committee, and ensuring that minutes are recorded and distributed either by the Chair or an appointed Committee Member. Each Committee is expected to meet at least once a month or reach consensus each month that a meeting is not necessary as no new business is to be conducted. Each Committee must report to the Board on a monthly basis as to the status of its activities; this can be done via a written report from the Committee Chair or a written or oral report from the Board Member or Members serving on the Committee.

The responsibilities of Committee Members are similar to those of Board Members, as outlined in our Bylaws. Those who agree to become members of a Committee commit to make all reasonable efforts to do the following:

Participate in all decisions before the Committee.
Attend all Committee meetings (in person or by teleconferencing).
Read and respond to emails regarding Committee decisions within 72 hours.
Take on challenging volunteer roles necessary to the feasibility of the Committee’s activities.
Bring positive effort to Committee discussions whenever possible.
Represent the Committee in a way consistent with its Mission.
Avoid exercising control over the Committee in a way inconsistent with its Mission.
Strive to maintain positive working relationships with all other Committee members and volunteers.
Refrain from encouraging behavior within the community that could endanger the safety or legality of FAC activities.
Resign from the Committee if unable or unwilling to fulfill these responsibilities.
Enable continuity by documenting procedures and mentoring future leaders.

A Committee must follow the same decision making processes as the Board, as outlined in our Bylaws. Specifically, consensus-building will be the primary and preferred method for making all decisions before the Committee.

A Committee has broad autonomy within the domain of its Mission, however certain decisions require the approval or action of the Board of Directors. Activities requiring approval of the Board are:

Approval of a budget, or financial expenditures in absence of a budget.
Entering into or changing a legally-binding agreement with an outside party.
Establishment of organization-wide policies.
Official representation of an individual, action or event as part of Firefly Arts Collective’s business.
Any other action that would normally require a formal confirmation vote of the Board as per our Bylaws.

A Committee with significant financial expenditures is expected to establish a budget on a yearly basis for approval by the Board.