FOR ALL POSITIONS

• Attend fall and spring national conventions, unless excused by the President.
• Reports are due Oct. 15 and March 15 from all elected and appointed board members and committee chairs. All reports must be submitted to the Vice President, in the format the Vice President requires. State directors will submit their reports to their Regional director, who will compile all state reports and submit them to the Vice President. The Vice President will send a reminder, along with all requirements, through JEATALK, approximately 30 days prior to the reports being due.
• All elected and appointed board members need to achieve CJE certification within their first three years on the Board, and must achieve MJE status in any following term of office. If a board member has already achieved CJE certification at the time of becoming a board member, he/she must achieve MJE certification within their first three years on the Board. Testing fees will be waived for all elected and appointed board members and state directors.
• Participate on JEATALK. Participation on JEAHELP is encouraged.
• Submit member names (commissions or committees) to the President and the Executive Director not later than 30 days after each national convention, if there are any changes to the commission or committee.
• Monitor censorship cases and adviser removal cases and report to the Scholastic Press Rights Commission Chair as needed.
• Compile minutes of all formal meetings, and submit to Headquarters for posting to jea.org within 30 days of each such meeting.
• Convention obligations: Board meeting (if required by the President – state directors normally do not attend), Thursday night reception, Meet, greet and eat, General Membership meeting, Commission/Committee meeting (if applicable), teach one session, judge a Write-Off contest or JOY, or substitute a contribution pre-approved by the President.
• All members in elected positions are required to let the nominating chair know by Oct. 1 of the third year of their term if they intend to run again. They should provide the chair with names of likely candidates from their regions if they do not intend to run. All those in appointed positions should notify the President by Oct. 1 of the third year of their term if they would like to continue to serve in that position again.
• Email messages with questions, discussion items or assignments will include a response deadline to be included by the sender. Members will meet deadlines and be transparent.
• Review/create/update job descriptions yearly, as directed by the President.

President
Bylaw 3.07. THE PRESIDENT shall have general and active management of the affairs and property of the organization and shall see that all orders and resolutions of the Board of Directors are put into effect. The president shall preside at general membership meetings and Board of Directors meetings. The president will work with Headquarters in the preparation of the Annual Report.

On a more pragmatic level this means:

• Appoint Committee Chairs and Liaisons, and appoint and guide special committees;
• Communicate with all elected and appointed board members on a regular basis; suggest new commission and committee members, ways to eliminate problems and meet JEA goals;
• Coordinate with Headquarters to communicate with members reminders of upcoming deadlines and with news about organization business
• Oversee JEA finances, chairing the Executive Committee meeting to produce the annual budget before each spring convention, with input from board members and Headquarters;
• Chair the Publications Committee meeting to coordinate with any editors the direction of any editorial publication produced by the association;
• Sign necessary documents (Write-off certificates [automated signature], CJE/MJE certificates, other awards, some contracts);
• Consult with the Executive Director on the agenda before each Board meeting, after asking for input from the membership;
• Serve as spokesperson for JEA both in written and oral form.
• Attend relating organization meetings (i.e. NCTE, AEJMC, Council of Presidents of National Journalism Organizations, plus AEJMC Scholastic Journalism Division), if schedule permits.
• Attend commission meetings at conventions, as schedule allows.
• Lead negotiations with sponsoring institution.

Vice President
Bylaw 3.08. THE VICE PRESIDENT shall have such powers and perform such duties as may be assigned by the Board of Directors or the president. In the absence or disability of the president, the vice president shall perform the duties and exercise the powers of the president until action is taken by the Board of Directors. The vice president shall assist the regional directors in selecting state directors and shall confirm state directors selected by the regional directors.

Additionally, the vice president shall:

• Appoint state directors if the regional directors fail to do so;
• Work with regional and state directors to promote JEA and its programs;
• Finalize and format information received from Board members for the two reports and send a copy to Headquarters to duplicate for general membership meeting;
• Meet with state and regional directors at each convention to discuss ways to better serve JEA;
• Work with Headquarters to prepare state director packet mailing;
• Work to welcome and train new state directors.
• Perform all other duties the president requests.

Secretary
Bylaw 3.09. THE SECRETARY shall keep an accurate record of all regular general membership and Board meetings and shall perform such additional duties as are incident to the office and any other duties which the Board of Directors may assign. In the absence or disability of both the president and vice president, the secretary shall perform the duties and exercise the powers of the president until action is taken by the Board.

To do this, the secretary must:

• Take minutes during the Board, general membership and special meetings;
• Send copies of the minutes of each meeting to all Board members, committee chairs and Headquarters within 30 days following the meeting;
• Post the minutes of each meeting to JEATALK within 30 days following the meeting;
• Provide copies of the minutes of each meeting for posting to jea.org within 30 days following the meeting.
• Update the document entitled “Motions by Category” and provide this document to Board members via e-mail when directed to do so;
• Provide accurate information to Headquarters to assist in writing the annual report of the organization;
• Answer questions received from members, or, if unable to answer, forward questions to appropriate Board members for response.
• Provide oversight for Endorsement Committee.

Immediate Past President
Bylaw 3.10. THE IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT shall serve as convention consultant to the executive director. Additionally, the immediate past president assumes other duties as assigned by the president.

• Conduct a review of the organization bylaws annually, proposing changes/updates when appropriate;
• Serve as Nominations Committee chair.
• Serve as board parliamentarian.
• Travel with the executive director and NSPA personnel for site visits for future conventions.
• Meet with local committees, JEA executive director and NSPA personnel one year before conventions to decide theme, explain responsibilities and discuss other convention details;
• Work with executive director on convention details;
• Travel at JEA expense to state or regional conventions to promote JEA services and resources. In the event the immediate past president is unable to undertake this amount of travel, another designee from the board may take his/her place.

Editor
Bylaw 8.06. Editors of the JEA editorial publications shall be directly responsible to the president. Editor are selected by the president and confirmed by the Board of Directors. Each appointment shall terminate on June 30, following the JEA elections. The editors, upon the discretion of the president, may serve more than one term. The editors may be removed from the publication by the president pending approval of the Board of Directors.

• The editor of Communication: Journalism Education Today is responsible for the publishing of four journals each school year. Coordinate with the Publications Committee the direction and content of the journal. The editor will encourage Board members to coordinate various issues, taking responsibility for securing articles for that particular issue.
• Receive content submissions for publication to edit, plan article “lineup” in the magazine and design the publication.
• Send material to Headquarters for proofing prior to publication.
• Work with Executive Committee to develop a budget for the publications.
• Send copies of the publication and notes of appreciation to authors after each issue. Maintain C:JET issues. Exchange copies with other editors of professional journalism and communication publications.
• Provide copies of all digital files of all issues to Headquarters for our electronic archives, possible online publication, etc.

Regional Directors
Bylaw 5.02. REGIONAL DIRECTORS shall notify the vice president of the appointment of a state director for each of the states in his or her region to represent JEA members and to promote and coordinate JEA activities within said state. Bylaw 5.03. Regional directors shall assist state directors in organizing regional meetings, workshops and conferences when deemed appropriate or necessary. Bylaw 5.04. Regional directors shall report regularly to the vice president and prepare a written report of the region’s activities to be submitted to the Vice President March 15 and Oct. 15.

• Perform duties designated by the president and/or executive director to further organizational goals, including chairing a committee or commission.
• Work closely with all board members to carry out policies and philosophy of JEA.
• Help develop budget, policies, procedures, programs, contests, proposals and recommendations to meet organizational and member needs.
• Select and appoint state directors (who are active JEA members) with approval of the vice president.
• Replace state directors for lack of activities or reports in support of JEA and its standards.
• Communicate duties to each state director; encourage state organizations or scholastic press association liaisons to serve as state directors with the understanding they serve at the pleasure of the board.
• When a state director vacancy occurs and a state organization does not appoint a successor, recruit a qualified person to fill the job.
• Assist state directors in carrying out their responsibilities in a timely way and serve as a liaison between these directors and the JEA board.
• Notify state directors of upcoming deadlines.
• Accept state director reports by a deadline the regional director determines with the vice president.
• Compile reports on each state’s JEA activities and forward to the vice president for inclusion in the annual report.
• Assist state directors with state workshops, conventions, meetings, conferences and activities by:
  • Providing access to JEA membership and information materials.
  • Endorse JEA’s First Amendment and educational philosophy and policy.
  • Promoting the efforts of JEA’s various commissions.
  • Promoting the JEA High School Journalist of the Year contest in each state.
  • Working with the state director to retain and increase membership in JEA in each state in his or her region.
  • Offering to participate in some capacity at state conventions.
  • Seeking out the concerns, needs and desires of journalism teachers and advisers in the region with a goal of increasing the outreach of JEA commissions, committees and programs.
• Contact new advisers each fall, from list supplied by state directors, informing them about JEA’s services and resources to aid them in their job.
• Communicate with schools of journalism and mass communication in the region to further journalism education growth and a strong understanding of the need for free and robust student media.
• Send updated email addresses of region’s members to JEA headquarters.

State Directors

• State directors assist regional directors in state workshops, conventions, meetings, conferences and activities by:
  • Providing members with access to JEA membership and information materials.
  • Endorse JEA’s First Amendment and educational philosophy and policy.
  • Promoting the efforts of JEA’s various commission.
  • Promoting the JEA High School Journalist of the Year contest in each state.
  • Seeking out concerns, needs and desires of journalism teachers and advisers in the region with a goal of increasing the outreach of JEA commissions, committees and programs.
• State directors promote JEA certification.
• State directors make every effort to learn the names of new advisers in the state each fall and report these names to the regional director.
• State directors communicate with each JEA member in the state at least once per year, welcoming new members and encouraging retention of current members.
• State directors offer a “What JEA Can Do for You” session at state or area workshops so advisers not already involved in JEA can become knowledgeable about the organization.
• State directors send updated e-mail addresses of members to JEA headquarters.
• In order to receive a national convention stipend, the state director must:
  • Attend the general membership and state directors meetings at each convention.
  • Teach at least one session, and moderate or judge Write-offs or Journalist of the Year selection at each convention.

Click here for the State Directors Guide.

Commission Chairs – duties for all
Bylaw 7.03. It is the duty of the commission chairs to carry out the programs and projects of the organization under the direction of the president. Bylaw 7.04. Commission chairs shall report regularly to the president.

• Support and actively carry out all policies and missions of JEA.
• Serve as a JEA spokesperson and expert for the commission’s mission and philosophy, as well as that of JEA.
• Introduce matters of significance at each board meeting, and as occur between conventions, to keep JEA in the forefront of each commission’s specific goals.
• Promote and oversee JEA’s specific commission program.
• Seek new outlets for promoting the program and JEA, and write articles and/or make public appearances to help those who request/need assistance.
• Conduct a session at each national convention about the commission and/or any outgrowth or issue of the commission’s work.
• Update the commission’s Web presence and literature, as needed.
• Create and maintain a blog to update members and others about commission activities, positions and related information
• Conduct a commission meeting at each of the national conventions.
• Seek and appoint new members of the commission with an effort to obtain gender, ethnic and geographic representation. All commission members must be members of JEA and must be listed with contact information on jea.org and the commission’s web/blog.
• Participate in and complete such projects and activities as needed as directed by the president and Executive Committee to assure the smooth functioning of JEA.

Certification Commission Chair
The Certification Commission chair must perform duties as outlined in Commissions section above. In addition he or she must:

• Promote and oversee JEA’s Certification Program with two levels of certification available — Certified Journalism Educator and Master Journalism Educator — in the following ways:
• Seek new outlets for promoting the program and write articles or make public appearances to help those inside and outside the JEA membership learn about the program.
• Write articles for Extra, as requested. These are usually a report after each convention listing those who received first-time or renewal Certification recognition at the convention.
• Work with the C:JET editor as needed to promote the program and showcase MJE projects to members.
• Review promotional and study guide materials with the Certification Commission members and JEA staff at least annually and arrange for modifications if necessary.
• Receive from Headquarters and review all CJE and MJE applications.
• Contact individuals who have a deficiency in qualifying for CJE under Option A and offer solutions to earn certification.
• Inform Headquarters of the status of each application. The Chair should keep his/her own detailed records as a double-check.
• Process all waivers from certificate requirements, and present to the commission as necessary. Add the outcome and explanation to the computerized file kept by Certification Chair.
• Review all MJE project abstracts and projects, supporting candidates until completion. Inform Headquarters of the status of each. A $25 stipend is awarded to the Certification Chair for reviewing each MJE project completed by the candidate.
• Administer the CJE and MJE exams at each national convention from 3:30-6 p.m. on Firday. Headquarters will prepare and code the tests. Deliver finished tests to JEA executive director for Headquarters to copy and send to reviewers.
• Arrange for two commission members to review each exam. Reviewers are chosen from current (and sometimes former) Commission members. Keep a list of who reviews so that responsibility can be rotated. Reviewers will return tests to Headquarters for processing. Headquarters will notify the Certification Chair of the outcome of the tests.
• Notify anyone who failed the test and indicate areas of weakness. These individuals are invited to retest for a $25 fee.
• With the approval of the Executive Director, travel to administer the exam in a location other than a national convention if there are five or more candidates, or arrange for other designated Commission members or the JEA president or past president, and past Commission members, provided these individuals are MJEs, to do so.
• Attend the Saturday luncheon of each JEA/NSPA national convention to publicly recognize new and renewal CJEs and MJEs.
• Conduct a Certification Commission meeting at each JEA/NSPA national convention.
• Oversee the question bank for both CJE and MJE tests. When necessary (typically every two years) call special meetings of the Commission to write new questions.
• Update the list of MJE projects on the Certification part of JEA’s Web site.
• When necessary, seek and appoint new members of the Certification Commission through an application process. The Commission consists of eight members, plus the elected chair. All must be MJEs. Commission members are appointed initially for a four-year term and may serve a second consecutive four-year term. The exception to this is when an appointee fills out a term of a member who resigns before his/her term is over. The new appointee first serves the remainder of the original term and then may serve an additional four years.
• Oversee the National PLC Committee and Awards Committee.
• Work with fellow Commission chairs to explore areas for collaboration.
• Maintain detailed records of commission meetings, work and candidate applications and work produced.
• Communicate with Commission members and Executive Director on issues of importance related to the Commission.

Development/Curriculum Commission Chair
The Development/Curriculum chair must perform duties as outlined in Commissions section above. In addition he or she must:

• Select individuals to serve on commission panels, groups and projects. The number shall be determined by individual case needs;
• Survey members to identify curriculum areas that need to be addressed; (This can be done by a formal survey mailed or e-mailed to all JEA members, ongoing conversations with officers, through inspection of convention exit surveys and through conversations with members. Additional ways to gather information would be through a commission meeting at national conventions, and through online surveys, hosted by the JEA Web site.)
• Develop materials of member interest or need in all areas of scholastic journalism, with the prime means of dissemination the curriculum guide library through the JEA Bookstore.
• Work with JEA Headquarters to maintain bibliographies of journalism materials, workshop listings and journalism career information;
• Participate on JEAHELP to monitor curriculum requests, concerns and needs.
• Update and create curriculum guides;
• Serve as liaison to the bookstore manager for the selection of titles to be included in the bookstore catalog;
• Present a session at each convention highlighting selected titles in the bookstore and getting member input on what types of publications they would like to see included in the bookstore.
• Oversee the Digital Media Committee and Write-off Committee.
• Work with fellow Commission chairs to explore areas for collaboration.

Junior High/Middle School Commission Chair
The Junior High/Middle School Commission chair must perform duties as outlined in Commissions section above. In addition he or she must:

• Select no fewer than two nor more than eight interested individuals to serve on the commission; these members and the chair will all do the following:
  • Maintain a strong and visible position concerning the place of journalism in junior high/middle school;
  • Seek more junior high/middle school advisers, administrators and students;
  • Recommend policies, positions and actions to JEA and its members on junior high/middle school;
  • Initiate and maintain channels of information and communication with all educational groups related to junior high/middle school teachers;
  • Help Headquarters develop a junior high/middle school strand for each convention and present a session at conventions.
• Coordinate the semiannual mail-in contest for junior high/middle school students and assist with the Write-off contests for junior high/middle school students at the national conventions.
• Help select and honor recipients of the Aspiring Young Journalist Award.

Multicultural Commission Chair
The Multicultural Commission chair must perform duties as outlined in Commissions section above. In addition he or she must:

• Recommend budget items for the commission including brochures, outreach program, special projects;
• Set the agenda for and conduct the Multicultural Commission meetings at each convention;
• Work with the local committee chair to develop and staff a Multicultural Issues Seminar at each national convention;
• Supervise, train and advise ad hoc board members
  • Create a list of possible ad hoc candidates and submit to Nominations chair by Nov. 1 of election years. Encourage ad hoc members to run for elected board positions each election;
  • Make recommendations of possible ad hoc members to the JEA president;
  • Serve as liaison to ad hoc members to inform them of their duties including attending JEA Board of Directors meeting, commission meeting, Saturday’s luncheon, Thursday’s reception, Meet, Eat and Greet session and the general membership meeting.
• Serve as a liaison, along with the Professional Media Liaison, to professional minority journalism organizations, including:
  • National Association of Black Journalists
  • Asian American Journalists Association
  • National Association of Hispanic Journalists
  • Native American Journalists Association
• Serve as liaison, along with the Professional Media Liaison, to the diversity divisions of other journalism organizations
  • American Society of Newspaper Editors
  • The Freedom Forum
  • Dow Jones News Fund
• Contact Outreach Academy chair for each convention, who will work with the ORA teaching cadre and the local convention chair in facilitating the Outreach Academy.
• Write a column for Dow Jones Newspaper Fund’s Adviser Update on diversity every quarter.
• Provide “favor” bags for participants of the Outreach Academy.
• Oversee the Diverity Award applications, appoint judges, and send out press releases.
• Work with the JEA President to appoint members of the Outreach Academy Teaching Cadre./li>

Scholastic Press Rights Commission Chair
The Scholastic Press Rights Commission chair must perform duties as outlined in Commissions section above. In addition he or she must:

• Prepare materials and comments for commission blog and website on a regular basis.
• Serve as chair of the First Amendment Press Freedom Award recognition committee.
• Participate in sessions at conventions, seminars and workshops locally and nationally, keeping students and advisers up to date on current legal situations, opinions and trends;
• Support, through actions and words, the free expression rights and responsibilities of all groups;
• Work with committee chairs and committees of Administrative Leadership, Legal Outreach, JMC Outreach, 45Words and Constitution Week committees to carry out their obligations
• Assist with JEA production of or creation of statements in the production of legal and ethical materials on the accuracy and effect of information in those materials
• Work with commission chairs to ensure collaboration.
• Select interested individuals to serve on the commission; these members will all do the following:
  • Maintain a strong and vocal position opposing censorship and prior review of scholastic media.
  • Assist advisers, students, administrators and communities with First Amendment issues as needed or requested.
  • Prepare materials and comments for commission blog and website on a regular basis and/or as required by the commission chair.
  • Keep in close contact with the Student Press Law Center and other organizations concerned with student and adviser freedom of expression;
  • Gather information on press rights for national distribution;
  • Monitor scholastic media legal and ethical issues, cases and incidents across the country and in their regions;
  • Offer advice and support to advisers, administrators and students through regular submissions to a commission blog, website or other media as requested by the commission chair.
  • Recommend policies, positions and actions to JEA and its members on scholastic law and ethics;
  • Submit articles to professional journals on JEA’s position on the rights and responsibilities of scholastic media;

Committees

Awards Committee Chair

• Provide president and executive director with a list of committee members and addresses. This should be done immediately following the spring convention. The Awards Committee consists of one representative from each of JEA’s seven regions. This may be either the Regional Director or someone selected by the Regional Director to represent the region. In addition, the committee has at-large members. These include the current Rising Stars and other JEA members expressing an interest in serving on the committee. The committee’s term coincides with the organization’s fiscal year: July 1-June 30. So far, it has been the practice for Rising Stars to rotate off the committee when new Rising Stars become members of the committee. The committee does not have a fixed number of members. Historically, the committee’s job is to select recipients of JEA’s Medal of Merit, Lifetime Achievement, Carl Towley, Friend of Scholastic Journalism and Administrator of the Year awards. These recipients are selected in the summer and honored in November. More recently the committee has also selected the Teacher Inspiration and Rising Star award recipients. Discussion of these candidates begins at the Awards Committee meeting during the fall convention. Recipients are finalized in the month following the fall convention and honored in April.
• Coordinate or appoint subcommittee chairs to coordinate the receipt of nominations and selection for all JEA awards programs including Medal of Merit, Lifetime Achievement, Carl Towley, Friend of Scholastic Journalism, Administrator of the Year, Future Journalism Teacher Scholarships, Student Investigative Reporting, Teacher Inspiration, Rising Star, Yearbook Adviser of the Year, Cornerstone, Diversity, Ryan White, Aspiring Young Journalist, High School Journalist of the Year and First Amendment Press Freedom awards.
• Communicate with award recipients as soon as possible after selections have been made. This is the responsibility of a subcommittee chair when one exists.
• Write and distribute press releases for award winners, including sending copies of releases to the C:JET editor. This is the responsibility of a subcommittee chair when one exists.
• Prepare written comments about each award winner to be read at the awards presentation. This is the responsibility of a subcommittee chair when one exists.
• Assist in the presentation of awards at the awards luncheon at both the spring and fall national conventions.
• Conduct an Awards Committee meeting at each spring and fall convention, avoiding conflicts with other required meetings committee members may need to attend. (11 a.m. Saturday has been the meeting time for the past several years.)
• Work with JEA Headquarters and JEA’s webmaster to keep awards information up to date at jea.org.
• Work with JEA Headquarters to revise the “Contests, Awards, Scholarships” booklet as needed.

National PLC Committee Chair

• Provide president and executive director with a list of committee members and addresses.
• Work with the Certification Commission Chair and the Development/Curriculum Chair to identify goals and report updates of the committee.
• Develop programs for members that support members involved with PLCs.

Digital Media Committee Chair
The Digital Media Chair must:

• Develop programs supporting the membership in all forms of digital media, including coordination of convention sessions on digital media techniques and issues.
• Coordinate maintenance of www.jeadigitalmedia.org as a digital media resource for JEA.
• Work with the Development/Curriculum Commission chair to identify goals and report updates of the committee.

 

Nominations Committee Chair
Nominations are announced at the general membership meeting at the fall convention and in compliance with the bylaws.

Regional Directors and Commission Chairs are required to let the nominating chair know by Oct. 1 at the latest if they intend to run again. They should provide the chair with names of likely candidates from their regions if they do not intend to run. An early indication of their intent would help the committee.

A complete membership list will be provided to the chair to facilitate contacting prospective candidates.

• Candidates must be regular members in good standing. The committee is charged with evaluating interest and willingness on the part of candidates to serve the organization as an elected officer.
• All nomination materials from candidates will be sent directly to the committee chair. The chair will assemble the nomination materials, contact the final candidates for their willingness to serve, and make the presentation at the fall Board and membership meetings. The nominating committee chair has the final responsibility for the content of the report. The chair shall communicate requirements for each office to committee members and potential candidates. The most recent JEA Job Descriptions document will function as the basis for these requirements.
• The committee should provide all candidates with the bylaws and a description of the responsibilities of the office. This information will be posted on the JEA Web site.
• The committee should include a person of color, seek nominees who represent gender and cultural diversity with assistance from the Multicultural Commission and prepare a slate to present to the membership that includes such diversity.
• The chair will be responsible for compiling the candidates’ bio’s and goal statements to be included in an informational piece sent to all voting members before the election. It is strongly recommended that the nomination form state specifically total number of words each candidate may include, not only in his or her statement of goals, but in the entire content of the statement.
• The chair will provide the bios and goal statements with photos of the candidates for inclusion in the election materials and post these on the JEA Web site.
• The Nominations Committee is not required to meet or be in attendance at either a Board or membership meeting. Contacts can be made through the mail, e-mail and/or by phone. The chair will keep track of any expenses incurred by the chair or committee members in preparation of the final slate of officers. These will be properly reimbursed.
• The chair will contact all candidates who lose elections and encourage them to continue to find ways to support JEA.
• The chair will take advantage of all opportunities to contact and encourage possible office holders throughout the two-year term, not just prior to the presentation of election slates, and should encourage candidates to get involved at all levels of JEA, but particularly as committee members.
• Provide president and executive director with names, addresses and e-mail addresses of committee members soon after being appointed.

Publications Chair

To be determined

Journalist of the Year Chair
The Journalist of the Year chair must:

• Oversee the National Journalist of the Year contest, including scheduling information to state directors and Extra announcements;
• Organize the judging of the contest by contacting judges and reviewing standards with judges at the spring convention;
• Deliver a speech at the Sunday morning awards ceremony about the top seven winners;
• After spring convention, notify and send certificates to all the participants in the contest and their journalism advisers;
• Notify seven top winners with a letter and correct forms as to how to collect their money;
• Return by mail all portfolios requested by the participant. Headquarters will take remaining portfolios;
• Coordinate with Headquarters all press releases and subsequent articles of Extra regarding JOY contest;
• Present a workshop at national conventions on how to put together a portfolio;
• Talk with state directors and help to coordinate efforts regarding this contest.

Scholastic Journalism Week Chair

• Plan activities and develop materials for the Annual Scholastic Journalism Week the last full week of February each year.
• Coordinate with JEA Headquarters to produce publicity, marketing materials, curriculum materials for SJW each year.
• Work with the Multicultural Commission chair to identify goals and report updates of the committee.

Write-off Contest Co-Chairs

Currently, this position is covered by three people, who are assisted by the broadcast, photography, and technology specialists, and the director and staff of JEA. The co-chairs share development and printing of the contest materials and booklets with the JEA headquarters staff, prepare all the computer-generated lists, tickets and labels, and assist the local contest chair in procuring and assigning the moderators and judges, obtaining supplies, and preparing the rooms and materials prior to the contests. The co-chairs assist with registration, troubleshooting when necessary, direct and assist moderators and judges during contests, assemble and print awards ceremony materials, and repackage all contest materials to return to schools. After the awards ceremony, they work with staff and the local chairs to mail remaining materials to schools.

The contest chairperson(s) must:

• Plan and coordinate all aspects of the national contests;
• Revise and edit the contest booklet, adding or deleting contests when needed with the Board’s approval, and updating the rules and regulations when necessary;
• Work with JEA and NSPA to be sure the registration booklet is complete and accurate for the contests being offered at that particular convention;
• Oversee the development of material for the contest and send it to JEA Headquarters for reproduction for each convention. Develop, refine, and edit actual contests for improvement and updating. Refine and update any other forms for contests. Write-off chair(s) also must send to JEA prior to each convention any other material essential to the smooth running of the contests (i.e. judging forms, etc.);
• In communication with the JEA headquarters staff, ensure that contest materials are shipped to the hotel in time to be prepared for the contest;
• Several weeks before the convention, guide local contest chair in obtaining moderators and lead judges, judges and speakers for the contests as needed;
• Develop and print a Write-off schedule, with room assignments and all activities, for each convention;
• Attend Board meeting at each convention to receive feedback and to make recommendations for the Board to consider;
• From a computer-generated database provided by JEA Headquarters, produce the necessary tickets and contest lists for each contest for transportation to the convention;
• Update these lists as substitutions and corrections are brought to the Write-off desk;
• Reproduce any local materials needed for the contest. Organize materials needed for each contest into boxes to be taken to the contest room by the moderators just prior to the contest;
• Provide coverage during registration, along with JEA headquarters staff, for the Write-off tickets to be picked up and substitutes and corrections made to the contestant list during the published hours of registration;
• Be available to answer questions from those entered in the contests;
• Just prior to the contests, hold a moderator’s meeting to give instructions and material to those moderating each contest;
• During the contest, circulate among contest rooms and be available in the moderator’s meeting room to provide support if needed;
• Immediately following the contests, assist the local chair with checking in judges for the dinner, and preside over the judges’ dinner prior to judging;
• Welcome the judges and guide them into respective seating groups and give any instructions deemed necessary;
• As judging is being done, be available for questions from groups; resolve differences in evaluation and interpret rules;
• After the contests are judged, ensure that lead judges have organized the entries, recorded the winning numbers, and made comments to be read during the awards ceremony;
• Enter results into the database as judging is concluded per category and print report for proofing;
• On Saturday morning, sort and place all entries in packets to be returned to the schools after the awards ceremony on Sunday;
• Pull the names of contest winners from the computer lists and generate certificates and winners’ lists for the awards ceremony. Assist technology and photography specialists in creating the visual program for the Sunday awards. A hard copy and disk copy of the winners for all contests with their school, cities and states should then be provided to JEA Headquarters and to the editor of Web site for publication;
• Edit and produce convention notebook for next local chair;
• Box up and prepare all contest materials for shipping to Headquarters or to the next local chairman’s home for storage until the next convention;
• Take inventory to see what supplies need to be purchased for the next convention and see that those supplies are purchased by the local Write-off committee chair and brought to the next convention hotel;
• Assist the local chair in mailing any material not picked up by the schools during the awards ceremony to those schools; and
• Work with the local contest chair for the next convention to prepare to repeat this whole process.
• Work with the Development/Curriculum Commission chair to identify goals and report updates of the committee.

Outreach Academy Teaching Cadre
The Outreach Academy Committee Teaching Cadre must:

• Develop an application brochure to recruit Outreach Academy participants;
• Place the application brochure online. Contact organizaions to promote Outreach Academy
  • Scholastic press associations,
  • JEA member
  • Past Outreach participants to distribute
  • Other organizations such as NABJ and NAHJ
• Survey former Outreach Academy participants
  • Evaluation of Outreach program;
  • Suggestions to strengthen Outreach program;
  • Suggestion of names of other teachers who have five years or fewer advising experience, teach in schools traditionally under-represented in JEA membership, especially low-inome, urban and rural schools, teach in middle school or junior high schools, and advisers of color to participate in Outreach program.
• Work with the local Outreach Academy chair, who is charged with the following responsibilities:
  • Coordinate a student panel which will present during the Academy;
  • Schedule an inspiring luncheon speaker for the Academy;
  • Coordinate recruiting of attendees within 40 miles (or reasonable travel distance) of the convention;
  • Contact appropriate central office personnel of local school districts, to enlist their support in publicizing and encouraging local advisers to attend.

Mentor Committee Chairs
The committee chairs are responsible for the following:

• Administrative responsibilities
  • Create and update program description, policies, grants, scholarships.
  • Update, review and accept applications to the program and to the scholarship stipend fund.
  • Hold three committee meetings each year, at summer training, fall convention and spring convention; create agendas, maintain minutes.
  • Collect, file and analyze mentors’ monthly reports and end-of-year reports.
  • Collect principal agreements, mentor contracts with JEA, mentee profiles and mentee photos.
  • Maintain list of mentors with their bios and contact information.
  • Maintain list of funders and state oversight people with their contact information
• Financial responsibilities
  • Develop and monitor the yearly budget, including approval and reimbursement of expenses for mentors and committee members.
  • Monitor mentors’ completion of responsibilities and request payment of their stipends twice yearly.
  • Pursue increased funding as possible.
  • Monitor funders’ payment of stipend funds to JEA.
  • Create financial reports for JEA Board and program funder(s).
• Communication/PR responsibilities
  • Maintain regular contact with the committee members, the mentors and the JEA executive director and officers.
  • Create semi-annual reports for the JEA board for each convention and share those reports with state and national funders.
  • Meet twice a year with national and state funders who attend each convention and maintain regular communication.
  • Write articles about the program for C:JET, C:JET wrap or the JEA Web site as often as possible.
  • Monitor and participate in the Mentor listserv; troubleshoot problems and provide advice when appropriate.
  • Provide information about the program through the JEAHelp listserv.
  • Publicize the program at each convention at the state directors’ meeting and/or a scheduled session.
  • Communicate with those interested in learning more about the program.
  • Help facilitate coordination between JEA committees and programs and the JEA Mentoring Committee.
• Program Development responsibilities
  • Actively recruit new states/mentors to join the program.
  • Continue to develop ways to assist new or nearly new advisers, e.g., a bank of podcast lessons, mentors presenting convention sessions for new or nearly new advisers, etc.
• Training responsibilities (Summer Training and Mentor Forums)
  • Find location for summer training and plan for hotel, food and training room accommodations and coordinate with JEA Executive Director.
  • Develop housing lists for mentors and committee members attending summer training and the Mentor Forum(s) and communicate this to the JEA Executive Director.
  • Coordinate with the JEA Executive Director the training room arrangements and food for the Mentor Forum.
  • Work with other members of the committee and with current mentors to develop the training program, including materials, and present parts of the training.
• Based on the amount of work involved in the oversight of this committee, the current co-chairs strongly recommend that the JEA Mentoring Committee continue to have co-chairs. This is too much work for one person.

Technology Committee Chair

Executive Committee
The Executive Committee, consisting of the President, Vice President, Secretary, Past President, with the Executive Director as a consultant to the committee must:

• Create the budget;
• Contact board members about issues of non-performance;
• Conduct performance review of executive director once every two years;
• Review the semiannual financial report from the executive director;
• See that all job descriptions are reviewed annually;

Scholastic Press Association Liaison
The Scholastic Press Association liaison must:

• Plan and conduct or moderate sessions at the JEA convention for scholastic press association directors and advisers active in state and regional scholastic press associations;
• Promote communication and information distribution among association directors;
• Assist new scholastic journalism association directors in meeting other directors;
• Send the president and the executive director copies of all newsletters or memos sent to SPA directors.
• Maintain e-mail file of scholastic press association directors.

NCTE Liaison
The NCTE liaison must:

• Chair the National Council of Teachers of English Assembly for Advisers of Student Publications/JEA, with the JEA president and vice president listed as board members on the assembly roster;
• Organize the assembly programs for the fall NCTE convention;
• Conduct the annual assembly meeting at the NCTE fall convention;
• Attend JEA Board meetings, general informational meetings, Meet, Eat and Greet meetings and Thursday night’s reception;
• Submit semi-annual reports to the JEA vice president March 15 and Oct. 15;
• Write periodic articles for JEA and NCTE documents each year, including the annual report and assembly program;
• Develop strong journalism program proposals with qualified speakers and submit these to NCTE for its conventions;
• Seek other ways to help NCTE and JEA achieve their mutual scholastic journalism goals;
• Complete the commission/committee evaluation form annually;
• Maintain and provide a copy to headquarters of the roster of those who are members of the assembly;
• Present at least one instructional session at each JEA/NSPA convention.

LISTSERV Liaison

• Manage the e-mail distribution lists, including but not limited to JEAHELP, JEATALK and JEA-SPRC.
• Offer suggestions for smoother communication and maintaining technical support on a daily basis.
• Coordinate with headquarters on adding new members and deleting inactive members as needed.

Endorsement Committee Chair

• Solicit membership for seat on committee.
• Field and reply to all requests for endorsement by JEA.
• Notify committee members of any requests and ask for input.
• Notify president and headquarters of all such requests within 10 days of receipt.
• Investigate the requesting organization/person/company through materials submitted and outside research to vet against standards for such set forth in the bylaws.
• Report findings and make recommendation to board for vote.

Executive Director

This is a 12-month faculty member at Kansas State University whose duties as Executive Director are considered one-quarter of the person’s assigned duties.

1. Office management
   • Oversee JEA employees and student help.
   • Maintain archives and legal documents
   • Coordinate preparation/printing/mailings of publications and other materials
   • Maintain inventory of membership materials, including directories and databases
2. Fiscal responsibilities
   • Coordinate the preparation of income tax and insurance coverage reports;
   • Review and analyze financial reports and send to appropriate JEA personnel;
   • Aid Executive Committee in preparing budget;
   • Oversee organization’s funds and pay bills.
3. Convention organization
   • Slot convention speakers and schedules, convention activities
   • Oversee production of program
   • Participate with NSPA personnel and immediate past president in site selection
   • Assist Write-off Committee with production of contest materials
   • Organize housing arrangements for board members and others whose attendance is mandated by the Board
4. Work with commission/committee chairs to oversee all JEA-sanctioned awards programs
5. Serve as spokesperson for the organization when needed
   • Provide assistance to members as needed
   • Handle media requests
   • Prepare responses to issues related to scholastic journalism
6. Organize and carry out elections electronically
   • Work with nominations committee to provide candidate statements for website.
   • Arrange for tabulation of results and notify all candidates
7. Other
   • Advisers Insitute
   • Web site
   • Other activities as designated by the president or vote of the Board.