Adopted by the Board of Trustees, November 1981
Amended by the Board of Trustees, May 1985
Amended by the Board of Trustees, June 1987
Amended by the Board of Trustees, May 1993
Amended by the Board of Trustees, February 1994
Amended by the Board of Trustees, February 2002
Revised and Amended by the Board of Trustees, April 2003
Revised and Amended by the Board of Trustees, November 2005
Revised and Amended by the Board of Trustees, February 2008
Revised and Amended by the Board of Trustees, May 2008
Revised and Amended by the Board of Trustees, April 2009
Revised and Amended by the Board of Trustees, April 2010
Second Unitarian Church of Omaha is an inclusive and nurturing religious community engaged in thoughtful pursuit of truth and meaning. Our mission is to grow as a beacon of hope – sharing a vision of a world community that embraces diversity, justice and respectful stewardship within the interdependent web of existence.
V. Delegates to General Assembly and District Conferences
The Standing Rules of the Board of Trustees serve as a set of policies for the Board and Committees that describe the processes by which the groups will function and interact.
All statements contained in these Standing Rules shall be considered null and void if they are in conflict with the Articles of Incorporation or the Bylaws, nor should they be interpreted to be in conflict with other documents.
The Standing Rules contained herein shall be adopted
by majority vote of the Board and may be changed or abolished by similar vote.
The Board of Trustees is the governing body of the church. For instructions on the selection, term, removal, vacancy, legal authority, and responsibilities of Board members, consult the Bylaws. The information in this section defines the Board’s mission, startup activities, and board liaison duties. It also defines additional responsibilities that, if they endure, should be considered for future amendment to the Bylaws.
The mission of the Board of Trustees is to provide the leadership to make the church’s mission a reality for our religious community.
Transfer to New Board: The New Board will take office at the first Board meeting after the Annual Meeting.
Election of Officers – Consult the Bylaws, Section 8.1, for a definition of the selection and terms of the Board’s officers. Additionally, the following suggestions and procedures apply.
a) Nominations – Nominations will be accepted from the members present for each position, beginning with nominations for Secretary, followed by nominations for Vice Chairperson, and ending with nominations for Chairperson. Members who wish to make a nomination are strongly encouraged to discuss this with the nominee prior to the meeting. This will enable the nominee to review the responsibilities of officer positions and make an informed decision about his/her willingness to serve in this capacity.
b) Vice Chairperson – Traditionally, at Second Unitarian Church, the previous year’s Vice Chairperson is elected to be Chairperson. While this is not a requirement, it has been an effective means of ensuring that the new Board will quickly become active and effective in its service to the congregation.
c) The members who are not officers are members-at-large.
Retreat – The members of the Board and the Minister should attend a daylong retreat soon after the Annual Meeting to discuss the role of the Board, participate in leadership development, and establish goals for the coming year.
The responsibilities of the Board of Trustees are defined throughout the Bylaws, with special emphasis in Articles 7 and 8. Listed below are additional responsibilities not found in the Bylaws.
Committee Efficacy – Ensure, near the beginning of the church year, that committees have sufficient members to achieve their missions. The Board may call a special meeting of a committee if it is failing to exercise its duties.
Fundraising – Follow the Fundraising Policy. Consider and vote on fundraising activities undertaken by committees or individual members of the church. The exception is the annual Pledge Drive undertaken by the Finance Committee.
Church Name – Follow the Church Name Policy. Consider and vote on all uses of the church name and/or funds to support organizations other than Second Unitarian Church, the Prairie Star District, and the Unitarian Universalist Association.
Planning – Review the church’s Long Range Plan to determine if the organization is on schedule to achieve its goals and if the plan needs to be revised by the Long Range Planning Committee and the Board. Communicate the plans to the membership and obtain membership approval as needed.
Policy and Procedures – Appoint Ad hoc committees as needed to develop church-wide policies and procedures that are consistent with the church mission and Bylaws. Review and vote on the committee’s recommendations. Communicate the approved policies and procedures to committees and members as appropriate.
Specific duties are defined for the Officers of the Board in the Bylaws, Section 8.2. Listed below are additional responsibilities.
Chairperson – In addition to the duties defined in the Bylaws, the Chairperson’s responsibilities include the following:
a) Prepare the agenda for Board and Congregational meetings.
b) Ensure that all members have the opportunity to speak on issues during meetings.
c) Submit a letter to the congregation in the monthly newsletter.
d) Be the legal representative of the church, which includes assuming the authority to sign contracts.
e) Complete the UUA annual membership certification, State of Nebraska Not-for-Profit Certification, and the Douglas County Not-for-Profit Certification.
f) Ensure that training and development opportunities are available to new and existing church leaders.
Vice Chairperson – In addition to the duties defined in the Bylaws, the Vice Chairperson's duties include the following:
a) Organize and chair at least two (2) meetings of the committee chairs, Minister, church staff, and Board during the church year. The meetings will serve as an opportunity to coordinate staff and committee efforts and activities, share the goals of the Board and Minister, and provide leadership training.
b) Ensure that all members of the Board and all committee chairpersons receive copies of the Leadership Handbook that contains governing documents and other pertinent information about the church.
c) Serve, with the Minister, as the final authority for issues regarding reserved use of the church property and facilities.
d) Meet with the Office Administrator at the beginning of the church year to address additions, changes, or corrections to the church calendar. The administrator will work directly with the Vice Chairperson throughout the year on calendar issues that may arise.
Secretary – In addition to the duties defined in the Bylaws, the Secretary’s duties include the following:
a) Provide a copy of the minutes to the Office Administrator.
b) Maintain files that include pertinent information that will be helpful to succeeding members of the Board.
c) Maintain a roster of members and whether each member has met the qualifications to vote at congregation meetings as defined in Section 6.4 of the Bylaws.
d) Maintain a record of contents of the church's safe deposit box and the location of legal documents and important documents such as the bi-annual audit report.
e) Ensure, in conjunction with the Treasurer, that signature cards and officers of record for bank accounts are updated yearly with the election of the new Board.
f) Ensure that the Board and committee leadership information, governing documents, and forms are up-to-date on the church web site.
Each Board member serves as a liaison to two-four committees of his or her choice. Liaison selections will be made at the first regular Board meeting after the Annual Meeting. The liaisons responsibilities are as follows:
Share pertinent information from the Board with the committee.
Summarize
major decisions by the Board and anything you found out that impacts the
general membership and this committee. (Examples are pledge income for
the month and year to date, building improvements, major expenditures.)
Update the committee on items you forwarded to the Board on their
behalf. (Examples are results of Request for Use of Church Name, fund
raising requests, requests for standing rules and bylaws changes.)
During the committee meeting remind members of upcoming events and
deadlines. For meetings that require action, provide the expectation.
(Examples are what they need to do to prepare for Committee on
Committees meeting, content of their annual report, what will be voted on
during the annual meeting.)
Report
committee activities to the Board either prior to or during the monthly
meeting.
During the committee meeting take notes of
anything that needs to be presented to the Board and anything you will write
up on your committee liaison report.
As
appropriate to guide committee actions, focus the committee’s attention
upon the Church’s Mission and the Board’s goals.
Ensure
that the committee records minutes of each meeting and provides those
minutes to the administrator in a timely manner.
Assist
the committee with leadership training and succession.
Early in the church year, call the committee’s attention to the need
for intentional leadership succession.
Encourage discussion of leadership development needs.
Seek leadership development support from the Nominating Committee as
needed. Encourage awareness of
members and friends whose interests are a good fit with the committee’s
mission.
Assist
the committee with the stewardship of their financial resources.
As soon the financial reports are distributed by
the Treasurer, inform the committee chair of the current balance in the
committee's operating budget and changes to any funds controlled by the
committee. Include the beginning and ending monthly balance of any
funds. (It is best to do this by email so the chair has time to review
the balance against check requests submitted during the month to determine
if the balances are correct.)
During the committee meeting, review the operating budget current balance
and how the committee is doing on meeting its spending plan for the year.
Review the opening and ending balances of any funds. Make notes of any
discrepancies to forward to the Treasurer on behalf of the committee.
Make sure the committee understands that any unused operating budget will
disappear on June 30.
Advocate
for your committees in Board Meetings.
Be aware of impacts of Board decisions on your
committees.
Be an advocate for each committee during discussions.
Review Liaison reports from all committees to watch for anything that
impacts your committees. Determine whether anything needs to be
brought to the Board's attention or just back to your committee.
Alert
the Board to potential concerns.
Modified versions of Robert's Rules of Order are used to conduct the business of the Board, committees, and congregation of Second Unitarian Church. While each group may decide on the level of formality for their meeting, business should be transacted according to the spirit of Robert's Rules. Basic tenets (as taken from Robert's Rules in Plain English by Doris P. Zimmerman) of the Rules follow:
The rights of the organization have priority over the rights of individuals.
Meeting Procedures – Members may make motions after being recognized by the Chairperson. A motion must be seconded to go before the meeting for consideration (unless the motion is from a committee). The member who seconds the motion does not need to wait to be recognized by the Chairperson. After a motion is seconded, the Chairperson will repeat the motion and open debate. Debate and discussion will be permitted for all issues. Debate will be directed towards motions and principles. Decisions will be based on democratic processes.
a) The Chairperson will recognize members and grant them the floor during debate. Once a member has the floor, another member may not interrupt.
b) Comments during debate must be confined to the question at hand.
c) Issues will be called to question after debate is complete. The Chairperson will restate the motion prior to the vote. After a vote, the minority must respect and abide by the decision of the majority. When deciding a vote, a majority is defined as the majority of members voting.
d) If there are no objections, a member may withdraw a motion that he/she made. Such motions will not be recorded in the minutes.
Actions which will be ruled out of order: a motion on a question that has already been decided during the current meeting, interruptions or calling out of comments while another member has the floor, motions that are already in committee, motions that appear to be delaying tactics or are rude.
If only one candidate stands for an elected position, the candidate may be elected by acclamation.
In small groups such as the Board and committees, it is appropriate for parliamentary procedure to be more relaxed than that used at meetings of the congregation. For example, at a Board meeting, members may speak without standing, motions do not need to be seconded, and votes may be initiated and taken informally by the Chairperson or Committee Chairperson.
A majority must be present to transact business.
The committees accomplish the work necessary to advance the mission of the church. While some committees provide the infrastructure and means to advance the mission, other committees actively fulfill the mission. This section contains the committee structure, chairpersons’ duties, and the missions and responsibilities of each active committee.
The committees fall into two categories: those that are specified in the Bylaws and those that are created by the Board. The Bylaws specify the Standing Committees, which are considered mandatory and meet throughout the year. The Bylaws also specify several other committees that are either short-term in duration and/or contingent upon the existence of a Minister. The Board is free to create any additional “optional” committees that it deems necessary to advance the church mission.
Standing Committees – The existence of these committees has been specified in the Bylaws as mandatory. They include:
a) Building and Grounds
b) Finance
c) Membership
d) Music and Worship
e) Religious Growth and Learning
f) Social Justice
Other Committees Specified in Bylaws – These committees are also specified in the Bylaws. Unlike the Standing committees, these committees are short-term in duration and/or contingent upon the existence of a Minister.
a) Audit
b) Committee on Ministry
c) Ministerial Salary Review
d) Ministerial Search
e) Nominations
Optional Committees – These committees are formed at the discretion of the Board of Trustees. These committees may be formed to help fulfill the current mission of the church. Or, they may be formed to accomplish tasks that do not regularly occur during the church year and are dissolved once the tasks are complete. The optional committees may include, but are not limited to, the following:
a) Adult Spiritual Education
b) Caring
c) Denominational Connections
d) Fellowship
e) Green Sanctuary
f) Library
g) Long Range Planning
h) Personnel
i) Technology
j) Welcoming Congregation
All committees will be led by a Chairperson or Co-Chairpersons, who may serve no more than two (2) consecutive years in that position, unless the Board of Trustees approves a term extension. The duties of committee Chairpersons include the following:
Plan and call a sufficient number of meetings during the church year to achieve the mission of the committee. Committees generally meet every month and are open to all members and friends of Second Unitarian Church.
Work with the Board liaison and the Board to ensure the committee's mission and activities support the mission of the church.
Conduct business in a friendly and effective manner, encouraging participation of all committee members.
Recruit members to serve on the committee, and provide a list of committee members to the Board of Trustees during the first quarter of the church year.
Mentor committee members to ensure effective future leadership of the committee.
Ensure that minutes of committee meetings are recorded and provided to the Office Administrator to be included in the committee folder.
Submit a detailed budget request to the Finance Committee prior to the annual pledge drive.
Submit a spending plan to the Board of Trustees after approval of the annual budget but no later than October 1.
Submit an annual report of activities to the Board of Trustees prior to the annual congregational meeting. The annual report shall include a list of committee members.
Submit a folder to the incoming chairperson at the close of the church year, which should outline the committee’s activity for the past year, contain all pertinent records, correspondence, etc., and include recommendations and advice for the following year’s committee.
Adult Spiritual Education Committee
(ASEC) – The committee is responsible for coordinating programs
that address adult spiritual growth and religious education. This includes
programs for First Hour, short-term classes, ongoing groups, and retreats.
The committee works in coordination with the Minister and other church
committees. ASEC solicits input and feedback from the congregation at large
on a regular basis to inform program development. Specific duties include:
a)
Surveying the congregation for adult spirituality topics of interest
and for potential facilitators/speakers.
b)
Coordinating First Hour programs.
c)
Offering evening classes and workshop series, such as “Ethics”
and “Our Whole Lives.”
d)
Planning and facilitating retreats for the congregation.
e)
Helping to facilitate ongoing groups, such as Women’s Group.
f) Coordinating classes and ongoing groups led by the minister such as “Building Your Own Theology” and monthly meditation sessions.
g) Serving as the contact group for members and friends who would like to offer a class or hold meetings at the church.
Audit Committee – Consult the Bylaws, Section 12.4, for a description of the committee’s responsibilities and the selection of committee members.
Building and Grounds Committee – The committee is responsible for the operation and maintenance of all interior and exterior physical property of the church. Specific duties include:
a) Maintaining a current inventory of church equipment and property.
b) Advising the Board of necessary repairs to church facilities.
c) Anticipating future maintenance requirements, and that budget requests account for operating expenses for the physical plant.
d) Aesthetics of the church is a joint responsibility of Music & Worship and the Building and Grounds Committee.
e) Taking a leadership role in planning and implementing facility expansion and improvement projects.
Caring Committee – The committee’s mission is to build a caring community that will help and support each of our members as we experience the events, stages and transitions of life.
The committee, in cooperation with the Minister, is responsible for ensuring that the following functions are carried out. The Caring Committee assumes full responsibility for these functions when a Minister is not present:
a) Sending cards for births, deaths, illnesses and announcing that information in church.
b) Visiting hospitalized and homebound church members and sending flowers when appropriate.
c) Coordinating transportation for members in need to and from church for services and special events. The committee reserves the right to restrict whom it assists based on the committee’s Transportation Guidelines.
d) Assisting with memorial and funeral services and the receptions that follow.
e) Providing and soliciting assistance for members in need.
f) Sponsoring programs to address pastoral care needs.
g) Maintaining a list of volunteers.
Committee on Ministry - Consult the Bylaws, Section 10.5, for a description of the committee’s responsibilities and the selection of committee members. The Mission of the Committee on Ministry is to monitor, support, and strengthen the work of shared ministry within the congregation in pursuit of our common vision and congregational mission. Specific duties include: