Middletown Senior Center- Part 2
Continuation of a 3 part series. See Part 1 for a copy of the Middletown Senior Center's By-Laws.
16. Prohibition of Compensation. Directors may not be paid for performance of their duties as Directors of officers of the Board, except that Directors or officers may be reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses spent in the performance of their duties as Directors or officers.
Bringing coffee & doughnuts? Use your own vehicle to get there? Make copies of something? Yup, you're entitled to reimbursement. I've served on many boards & commissions & never seen any of this junk. So are there are reimbursements made?
17. The board may spend any monies... Contracts of a value in excess of $2000 shall be entered into upon the approval of the Town Council.
The Board has never actually voted on anything so I guess that it hasn't actually spent any monies. It also has its own source of private funds which it has raised itself. No Town Council approval needed here. This whole area needs a re-assessment. Having a private checkbook signed only the Director is not only dangerous & foolish for the Center, but for the Director. The amounts spent here are never voted on- remember- no motions made, blah, blah.
2. Election and terms of office. The Officers of the Board shall be elected annually by the members of the Board at the annual meeting. To be eligible as a candidate for Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, or Secretary of the Board, a candidate, if unable to attend the annual meeting in April, should submit his or her acceptance in writing prior to the 2 pm meeting on the prededing [sic] Friday. If the election of the officers shall not be held at the annual meeting of the Board, such election shall be held as soon thereafter as is practicable.
Let's recap here. If you're not there, you can't be an officer unless you submitted your name a week before. But all this is fol-de-rol anyway. While I do see election on the April agenda, the last one held was in May of 06. One officer elected this month asked how long the actual term is for? Well she might ask. Her last one was for 3 years!
2. Executive Director. Among the duties to be performed by the Director will be:
a. to administer Senior Center operating budget and prepare monthly financial reports for the Board of Directors.
Well, knock me over with a feather here. This does NOT state that the Director should develop a budget. This contradicts what is in the Charter which states that the Director is responsible for preparing a budget. The Charter takes precedence but what was the Council thinking when they voted on this? This may also explain why the presenter of the budget to the Council is listed as the Board when the reality is that it's the Director.
i. To prepare a long-range plan for the Center to be presented to the Board of Directors at the annual meeting.
LOL! Ever hear of one? Since they don't actually hold annual meetings, though... At the last meeting the Director did present a few capital items re-circulated from other years. Not much of a plan here. Of course, how long is long? I should think 5-7 years.
3. Refers to what the Director needs to report to the Board each month- to include membership numbers.
An interesting exercise in fiction. The only way to find out the actual membership # is to ask the Town Admin.
15. Presumption of Assent. Any member of the Board who is present at a meeting of the Board at which action on any matter is taken, shall be presumed to have assented to the action taken unless his or her assent shall be entered in the minutes of the meeting. Such right to dissent shall not apply to a member who voted in favor of such action.
What??? You don't actually have to vote, we just assume you voted with the majority? And you can't recuse yourself? Who heck made these things up? And why would any Council vote to accept them?16. Prohibition of Compensation. Directors may not be paid for performance of their duties as Directors of officers of the Board, except that Directors or officers may be reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses spent in the performance of their duties as Directors or officers.
Bringing coffee & doughnuts? Use your own vehicle to get there? Make copies of something? Yup, you're entitled to reimbursement. I've served on many boards & commissions & never seen any of this junk. So are there are reimbursements made?
17. The board may spend any monies... Contracts of a value in excess of $2000 shall be entered into upon the approval of the Town Council.
The Board has never actually voted on anything so I guess that it hasn't actually spent any monies. It also has its own source of private funds which it has raised itself. No Town Council approval needed here. This whole area needs a re-assessment. Having a private checkbook signed only the Director is not only dangerous & foolish for the Center, but for the Director. The amounts spent here are never voted on- remember- no motions made, blah, blah.
2. Election and terms of office. The Officers of the Board shall be elected annually by the members of the Board at the annual meeting. To be eligible as a candidate for Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, or Secretary of the Board, a candidate, if unable to attend the annual meeting in April, should submit his or her acceptance in writing prior to the 2 pm meeting on the prededing [sic] Friday. If the election of the officers shall not be held at the annual meeting of the Board, such election shall be held as soon thereafter as is practicable.
Let's recap here. If you're not there, you can't be an officer unless you submitted your name a week before. But all this is fol-de-rol anyway. While I do see election on the April agenda, the last one held was in May of 06. One officer elected this month asked how long the actual term is for? Well she might ask. Her last one was for 3 years!
2. Executive Director. Among the duties to be performed by the Director will be:
a. to administer Senior Center operating budget and prepare monthly financial reports for the Board of Directors.
Well, knock me over with a feather here. This does NOT state that the Director should develop a budget. This contradicts what is in the Charter which states that the Director is responsible for preparing a budget. The Charter takes precedence but what was the Council thinking when they voted on this? This may also explain why the presenter of the budget to the Council is listed as the Board when the reality is that it's the Director.
i. To prepare a long-range plan for the Center to be presented to the Board of Directors at the annual meeting.
LOL! Ever hear of one? Since they don't actually hold annual meetings, though... At the last meeting the Director did present a few capital items re-circulated from other years. Not much of a plan here. Of course, how long is long? I should think 5-7 years.
3. Refers to what the Director needs to report to the Board each month- to include membership numbers.
An interesting exercise in fiction. The only way to find out the actual membership # is to ask the Town Admin.
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