Office of President
The office of President is filled by the Vice President/President-Elect,
who is elected the preceding year by the MSERA members in attendance at the
Business Session of the Annual Meeting of the Association. The President
is installed at the Business Session but assumes office on January 1 and
serves through December 31 of the same year. In accordance with the Bylaws
of the Association, Article II, Section 1.a-3, the President has the following
responsibilities:
In addition, the President is given the responsibility in the Bylaws, Article V, Section 3.a., for appointing the representatives of the Association to serve on the Boards of any affiliated state research Associations.
The duties and others delegated by the Board are expanded briefly below.
Coordinates activities. This requires the President to maintain contact with all other Officers, Board members, committee chairs, and editors in the Association. The President does this by letter, phone, personal contact, and electronic mail. Many of the activities are coordinated through the Board meetings called by the President.
The Constitution of the Association requires at least two Board meetings to be held each year (Article V). It is customary to hold the first one at a convenient location in late March or early April to plan the Annual Meeting, approve the budget, approve changes in the Constitution or Bylaws, and address other business matters. The second meeting is usually held on the evening preceding the Annual Meeting in the host hotel. This meeting includes finalizing meeting plans, acting on Constitution or Bylaw changes, and conducting other business brought before the Board.
During the Annual Meeting, the full membership of the Association meets to elect the next year's Officers, consider Constitutional or Bylaw changes, and act on any other business brought before it. The President calls and conducts the meeting, and sets the agenda for it. As the representative and speaker for the Association, the President is the official liaison of MSERA to various constituencies.
Prepares a budget. The President has the responsibility to propose an annual budget to the Board, generally done in collaboration with the Secretary-Treasurer of the Association. In the area of financial responsibility, the President also appoints an MSERA member to audit the financial records for the preceding year and reports the results to the Board.
Appoints the chair of the Budget Analysis Committee. The President appoints a member to present to the Board an analysis of the Association's income and expenditures over a designated time period.
Appoints committees. The President appoints standing and special committees. The standing committee and their duties are included in this Manual. Special committees are appointed at the discretion of the President to fulfill specific needs of the Association.
Appoints affiliate representatives. The President appoints a representative of MSERA to serve on the Board of each affiliated state research organization. At the present time, only the Louisiana Educational Research Association is affiliated with MSERA.
Appoints editors. The President appoints the editors of the MSERA Researcher, Research in the Schools, Proceedings, and MSERA Web Page. It is important that this is done early to facilitate the tasks being accomplished.
Other responsibilities of the President. Since its organization in 1992, the Mid-South Educational Research Foundation has included the President of MSERA as an ex-officio member of its Board of Directors.
The President has the responsibility for the selection of an individual to receive the Bowman Service Award, which was instituted in 1992. The procedure may include an invitation to the membership (through the Researcher) to nominate individuals for the award, which is presented at the Business Session of the Annual Meeting. The selection has been made by the Executive Committee. The award consists of a plaque. At the discretion of the President, the responsibility for obtaining the plaque may be delegated to the Chairman of the Awards Committee, who obtains other plaques for the organization.
The President has the responsibility for the selection of individuals to receive the Walter Mathews Historical Contributions Award. The procedure may involve consulting with past presidents to determine individuals worthy of receiving the award, which consists of a certificate or plaque.
The President has assumed responsibility for coordinating the Joint Universities Reception at the Annual Meeting. This involves initial contact with institutions to solicit commitments for sponsorship, working with the chair of the Program Committee and the chair of the Local Arrangements Committee to make arrangements for the reception, recognizing the sponsoring institutions (through listing their organizations in the program and Proceedings, and/or other means such as certificates), and sending invoices for payment after the conclusion of the Annual Meeting
The President recognizes those who serve MSERA as elected representatives or who are appointed to positions of responsibility. Certificates of other types of recognition are usually obtained by the President and presented at the Business Session.
The President has the opportunity of preparing a written statement to be included in the Proceedings of the Annual Meeting. The President may also write materials for inclusion in the Researcher throughout the year.
At the conclusion of the term of once, the President writes a brief history of the events of the year that is incorporated into the history of the Association found in the Manual.
The following chart summarizes the duties of the President and the time schedule for their performance.