Green-Rainbow Party of Massachusetts

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AdCom size change
Sunday March 30, @12:11AM, by merelice et al
Subject : reduce number of Adcom members
Summary :
Formerly, AdCom met twice a month and conducted almost daily business between meetings. This was a time-consuming commitment that made it difficult especially for the Membership, Communications, and Fundraising Directors to carry out their committee responsibilities as well as other needed Party activities. As a result, much (if not most) of AdCom time was spent on endorsements, position statements, Party strategy, and other policy-related activities that are actually StateCom responsibilities. Consequently, these activities would
(1) draw time and attention away from the administrative functions that need more support to keep the party healthy,
(2) put such decisions in fewer hands than should be the case, given our Key Value of Decentralization,
(3) seriously overburden the AdCom members and/or pull them away from participating in and building local chapters and working committees.

The current AdCom has worked to delegate implementation of party business to appropriate working committees. One result has been the gradual reactivation of working committees, with more to come. Local chapters and working committees most often include StateCom members. By referring policy-related party business to these groups rather than expecting AdCom to handle everything, StateCom members actually have a more active hand in decisions between StateCom's own meetings. If the committees and locals are not capable of handling activities, the burden should not be borne by AdCom.

For a few months after the last state convention, there were only five or six active members of AdCom. Meetings accomplished more in less time. It seemed to be an example of what had been proposed at previous StateCom meetings when it was stated that: A smaller AdCom would result in (1) enabling AdCom to focus on its administrative functions with less distraction and pressure, (2) giving the Membership, Communications, and Fundraising Directors more flexibility to carry out their critically important committee work, (3) drawing fewer members away from being active in local chapters and on working committees, and (4) giving StateCom members more say and participation in policy-related work between meetings through their local chapters and/or working committees.

Text :
The State Committee asks that the Procedures and Meetings Committee and/or the AdCom take the needed steps to effect a change in the makeup and to clarify the function of the AdCom as follows:

The AdCom shall consist of the four officers -- male and female Co-Chairs, Secretary, and Treasurer -- and three diversity representatives, for a total of seven members. Election of diversity representatives is meant to help ensure that this committee reflects some level of the diversity of our society.

The purpose of the AdCom as a whole is to assure the GRP meets its legal requirements and attends to its personnel, administrative, and infrastructural needs to function effectively. When possible, AdCom will refer all other matters to the working committees and local chapters for action and implementation between meetings of the State Committee. Adcom will take the first step by evaluating and recommending which of its various activities might be assigned to which working committees or other appropriate GRP bodies.

Reply

Re: AdCom size change
Saturday April 05, @08:35PM, by gary hicks
1. the reason that we have an adcom in the first place is that the members of the statecom did not wish to take on the day-to-day responsibilities of running a party. i see no explanation of what has changed since 2001 convention that would make a significant difference.

2. since adcom more often than not functions in place of a network of working committees, should we not be concerned with getting the committees up and running with clear missions, regular transparent and inclusive meetings, accountability trails, etc. before we tinker with the adcom?
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Re: AdCom size change
Saturday April 12, @01:33AM, by merelice, Jill Stein, et al
> 1. I don't follow this reasoning; the proposal is not eliminating Adcom.
>
> 2. If AdCom focused on the administrative and infrastructure needs, and freed up the three directors who chair important committees so they could focus on their committee work, that would help strengthen the committees. Also, there would be more incentive to do committee work if adcom didn't step in and try to be all things to all people. It is not appropriate for AdCom to set the kinds of policies that belong in more decentralized and more representative bodies.
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