AAHSL Committee and Task Force Manual

The purpose of the AAHSL Committee and Task Force manual is to provide committee and task force chairs with basic information about AAHSL and its policies and procedures in order to support them in a successful leadership role. The manual will be sent to the chairs by the President-Elect when appointments are made. The manual will also be available on the AAHSL Website. Each year the Board of Directors will appoint a board member responsible for reviewing and updating the manual. The full Board will discuss necessary changes at the mid-Winter meeting and the manual will be finalized by August so that it can be distributed to the incoming committee chairs.

Mission & Profile | Strategic Plan | Structure | General Calendar for Committees & TF

 

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Committees and Task Forces Committee and Task Force Composition
Observes at AAHSL Meetings Dissolution of Committees and Task Forces
Disclosures of Conflicts of Interest Communications
Official Statements Meeting Arrangements
Budget Planning Transition Between Chairs: Ensuring Continuity
Program Committee -- Matheson Lecture AAHSL Reception

 


AAHSL Mission and Profile

History

AAHSL Mission and Profile The Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries (AAHSL) was founded in 1977 and was incorporated in 1978 under the name Association of Academic Health Sciences Library Directors (AAHSLD). This new organization’s purpose was “to provide a medium for communication among directors of such libraries in order to foster their common concerns of planning, program and policy development, to extend their contacts nationally and to provide a forum for joint actions.” (MLA News May 1978) The AAMC’s Council of Academic Societies recommended that the name be changed to AAHSL to reflect that it was an association of institutions rather than individuals with the bylaws ensuring that only library directors would be represented. While this suggestion was not implemented at the time, in 1996 the name was adopted when a separate 501(C)(6) organization was formed in order to pursue more lobbying efforts as well as educational, and research projects. The new organization was named AAHSL – the Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries.

A full history of the association can be found in the symposium issue of the Journal of the Medical Library Association 2003 April; 19(2) entitled “The Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries: twenty-five years of excellence.” [http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=153152&blobtype=pdf]

Organizational Identity

Membership in the Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries (AAHSL) is at the Full/Regular or Associate Member level. Libraries of U.S. or Canadian medical schools accredited by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) or the American Association of College and Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) at Full or Provisional status (charter class in year 3 & 4) are eligible for Full/Regular membership. All other libraries or other organizations are eligible for Associate membership.

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AAHSL Strategic Plan

Download the Strategic Plan

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AAHSL Structure

AAHSL is a non-profit corporation, organized in 1995 and incorporated in 1996 under the laws of the District of Columbia. It is a 501c (6) entity under the Internal Revenue Code. Below is a brief overview of the structure of AAHSL. More detailed information is available in the AAHSL By-Laws. (See Appendix A)

AAHSL’s eligible “Full Members” are the academic health sciences libraries of the institutions that are members of the Association of the American Medical Colleges or the American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine. Canadian health sciences libraries may join as a Full member but pay the Associate member fee because they do not benefit from U.S. lobbying. Each Full Member is represented by its director, chief executive officer, or other similar designee and has the right to cast one vote in elections and on other business brought before the membership.

The governance of the AAHSL is vested in the elected officers on the Board of Directors, which is composed of elected and appointed officers. Elected officers include a President, President-elect, Secretary-Treasurer, Immediate Past President, and three (3) directors-at-large. The Directors-at-large serve for staggered three-year terms.

Appointed officers are determined and appointed by the Board.

A list of current elected and appointed officers can be found on the AAHSL Web site, http://www.aahsl.org/board-of-directors.

Terms begin and end at the close of the AAHSL Annual Meeting.

The following standing Committees are defined in the By-Laws [Appendix A] and include:

  • Executive Committee – President, President-elect, Secretary-Treasurer and Immediate Past President – which has full power and authority to act for the Board between Board meetings.
  • Finance Committee of the Board - Immediate Past President, Secretary-Treasurer, and one (1) Board member (one-year term – which prepares the annual budget and is responsible for the annual audit of the association’s accounts.)
  • Nominating Committee – President-Elect and two other members who are not Board members – which prepares a slate of candidates and conducts AAHSL’s elections.

Other standing committees, and task forces are appointed and charged by the Board.

AAHSL is a member of the AAMC’s Council of Faculty and Academic Societies (CFAS) and the Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC)

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General Calendar for AAHSL Committees

New officers and chairs begin and end their terms at the close the annual meeting, which is usually in November and is held in conjunction with the AAMC annual meeting.

The calendar below is presented with the deadlines starting at the time of the annual meeting and moving forward through the association year.

Beginning October 1, 2019, AAHSL’s fiscal year runs from October 1 through September 30. The full version of the association calendar can be found in Appendix B.

In this calendar, the first group of activities under each month applies to all committees and task forces. The second group, which appears in Italics, lists the deadlines for specific committees and task forces.

Codes in Calendar:

HQ: Headquarters
ASE: Annual Statistics Editor
PP: Past-President
P: President
PE: President-Elect
ST: Secretary-Treasurer
FLC: Future Leadership Committee
LTF: Legislative Task Force Chair/Vice-Chair
Chair PC: Program Committee Chair
FC: Finance Committee
CFAS: Council of Faculty and Academic Societies
IPEC: Interprofessional Education Collaborative
All: Involves most Board members and Chairs

November

ALL
Meet at or right before the AAMC Annual Meeting, set objectives for coming year.
  New committee/task force chairs take over at the end of the annual meeting.
  Transfer files from past chair to new chair.
 HQ Send draft calendar to Board and Committee Chairs.
 FLC NLM/AAHSL Leadership Fellows orientation/other events at Annual Meeting

December

 

President solicits agenda items for Board Planning Meeting:

a) Chairs send motions or other discussion items to Board Liaisons
b ) President invites non-Board members to attend when appropriate

  Complete conflict-of-interest disclosure form – Officers, Board Members, Committee/Task Force Chairs -- and return to HQ by December 31
 ASE Annual Statistics salary data distributed electronically
FLC Mentoring/Fellows report due to NLM

January-March

  Board Retreat (January– March)
January
P Invite selected non-board chairs to Board Retreat
  Finance Committee reports at Planning Retreat on investments
IPEC Rep Attend IPEC meeting in Washington DC
February
  MLA Joint Legislative Task Force Chair/Vice-Chair work out details of spring meeting (LTF) and coordinates with AAHSL officers re DC visits
 

Board decides if in-person visits with for AAHSL officers with library and health related associations based in DC is necessary in fall during Capstone (PP to coordinate meetings and HQ for travel/hotel)

  Solicit nominations process for Cornerstone Award (add to agenda of Board Retreat)
March
 HQ Publication of previous year’s President’s Annual Report and Directory
 HQ Notice of availability of updated online directory
 PC Education and Program Committee Chair contacts Board liaison regarding plans for Program
 FLC Fellow scholarship applications due April 1st
  Nominations for Cornerstone Award solicited from Members.
April 
  AAHSL officers visit DC-based associations
CFAS Reps CFAS Spring Meeting
May
 
In advance of the June Virtual Meeting, committee chairs submit mid-year updates to Liaisons and then final version sent to HQ and President – all Committee Chairs, Task Force Chairs, and CFAS representative/alternate to submit
 FLC NLM/AAHSL Leadership Fellows and mentors meeting at MLA
  President appoints members to Nominating Committee
June
  Hold virtual Board Meeting
  HQ asks Board, Committee and Task Force Chairs, Annual Statistics Editor, IPEC reps. and CFAS Representative for budget requirements (due Jul. 15)
PC, HQ
Hold the Date for the Annual meeting prepared and distributed
PE President-Elect contacts Board and Committee Chairs to solicit recommendations for new members and chairs
IPEC Rep Attend IPEC Spring Meeting
July
HQ Educational program posted for Annual Meeting
ASE Annual Statistics questionnaire prepared
PE Call for committee members sent to AAHSL All list
PC, HQ Check on requirements for Annual Meeting (checks, rooms, etc.)
All Budget requirements due
August
  President-Elect makes committee appointments and HQ sends new chairs the committee and task force manual.
PE Send welcome letter to new committee chairs and members (cc: board liaison)
PE Announce committee/task force appointments to membership
FC Finance Committee audits financial reports
September
  Hold Board meeting to review & approve budget for FY that will start October 1st.
 
At the conclusion of the Board Meeting at which the budget is finalized, Board Liaisons inform Committee/Task Force Chairs of their budgets.
  President solicits preliminary annual reports from chairs and officers, due Oct. 15. 
  President solicits Board meeting agenda items
HQ Fellow scholarship final reports due Oct. 1st
October
All Board meeting agenda items are due to President (start of month)
  Solicit changes to planning calendar from Board, committee chairs, etc. (P, HQ) October 15th deadline for preliminary annual reports.
PE Slate from Nominating Committee is posted to membership 30 days prior to meeting (Oct. 1)
  Annual Statistics salary surveys submitted Annual Statistics general surveys submitted

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