Committee Definitions

Program Committee
Social Activities Committee
Membership Committee
Education Committee
Public Service Committee
Special Events Committee
Publications Committee
Public Relations and Publicity
SARC Net Committee
Technical Assistance Committee
Fund Raising Committee

Program Committee

  1. Oversees and coordinates the scheduling of a speaker, show, presentation, demonstration, or other activity for eachmonthly meeting.
  2. Reserves the use of the VCR and Monitor from the park district as required, and arranges for any other equipment required for that months program.
  3. Reminds the speaker of their engagement the week before the meeting, and confirms their attendance.
  4. Mails the speaker a map of how to get to the club meeting, and provides them with a club contact phone number for any questions they might have before the meeting.
  5. Submits an announcement of the upcoming program in sufficient time for publication in the RHG. This should also include a recap of the last months program.
  6. Announces the upcoming program on the weekly SARC net, and any other nets run in the local area that he/she is able to.
  7. Records the upcoming program announcement to allow playback on the SARC repeater.
  8. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status is published in the following month’s RHG.
  9. Keeps a written record of past programs.
  10. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  11. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  12. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.

Social Activities Committee

  1. Oversees arrangements for:
    • Summer picnic.
    • December holiday party.
    • Field Day Cookout.
    • Other social functions that are added by the board of directors.
  2. Obtains any necessary permits for use of Forest Preserve areas or other areas as may be required.
  3. Oversees the provision of coffee and cookies at the regular meeting.
  4. Submits an announcement of the upcoming social event in sufficient time for publication in the RHG. This should also include a recap of the previous social event.
  5. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status is published in the following month’s RHG.
  6. Keeps a written record of social events and the necessary preparations for it.
  7. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  8. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  9. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.

Membership Committee

  1. Answers any inquiries about membership in SARC with the proper information, and provides follow up assistance and encouragement to join the club. These inquiries may be from the SARC voice mail, E-mail, left on the repeater, by regular mail, by filling out an information card at a SARC event, in person at an information booth set up by the club at a ham radio related event, or any other way created to request this information.
  2. Produces promotional materials, pamphlets, or brochures, as necessary to disseminate information about membership in SARC.
  3. Maintains an accurate membership database.
  4. Greets members at the regular monthly meeting, and offers a personal contact to prospective or new members, and guests, if they have any questions or need any assistance from the club.
  5. Attempts to get new members actively involved in the club, by providing information on existing committees that they can help with, and upcoming public service events that their help is encouraged at. The name and phone number of any member expressing an interest in helping should be forwarded to the appropriate committee chair.
  6. Oversees the renewal and retention process for existing members.
  7. Surveys existing members, and contacts members who choose not to renew their membership, and provides the club, and other committee chairs, with information on how to best retain and increase membership in the club.
  8. Coordinates with the publications committee to see that the correct number of newsletters are printed, and the current membership list is provided for the addressing of the newsletters for mailing.
  9. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status, and a list of new members, is published in the following month’s RHG.
  10. Keeps a written record of the committees activities.
  11. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  12. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  13. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.

Education Committee

  1. Organizes introductory and upgrade Amateur Radio licensing classes, and secures an instructor for each class session held.
  2. Secures a room to hold the licensing classes in.
  3. Attempts to make the classes part of the regularly scheduled curriculum of the park district, or community education district.
  4. Gets information on our intention to hold the class, as well as the class schedule, to the appropriate person publishing the course curriculum flyers sent out to the community. This can be 6-9 months or more in advance of the class start date.
  5. Advertises the upcoming classes by submitting an article to the RHG editor as far in advance as possible.
  6. Coordinates the formation and retention of a pool of “Elmers” who are willing to provide personal instructional help, radio station setup, or operating help, to any local hams or prospective hams that need it. Publication of the list of “Elmers” will be submitted to the RHG editor to make them known to the existing SARC members on a regular basis.
  7. Surveys the existing membership for their needs regarding upgrade classes, and when they should be run, and encourages them to upgrade.
  8. Publish dates and times of upcoming local VE testing sessions in the RHG.
  9. Act as club liaison for local VE testing activities.
  10. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status is published in the following month’s RHG.
  11. Keeps a written record of the committees activities.
  12. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  13. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  14. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.

Public Service Committee

  1. Secures a coordinator for each public service event. This coordinator should be the liaison between the event sponsor, and SARC, and must also appoint one of the vULunteers for the event to be the net control station for the event’s communications.
  2. Oversee, and support the coordinator’s efforts to obtain adequate vULunteer help for the upcoming event.
  3. Survey and analyze SARC’s effectiveness after an event. Develop new plans and methods to address any problems encountered.
  4. Create and maintain a SARC public service manual that documents and describes how to handle different public service events. Lessons learned, and plans made should be available in this manual, to avoid repeating past mistakes.
  5. Insure that SARC maintains a positive and professional public image to the event sponsors we are serving, and the general public.
  6. Coordinates the interface between SARC and any other agency or organization requesting our assistance for public service, or emergency communications.
  7. Work toward including emergency services communication functions into the club, including possible affiliation with RACES or ARES. The existing pool of public service volunteers may serve in both capacities, or this may be a separate group as desired by the membership or as required by the other organizations.
  8. Submits advance notice of planned public service events to the RHG, giving as much notice as possible of an upcoming event.
  9. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status is published in the following month’s RHG.
  10. Keeps a written record of the committees activities.
  11. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  12. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  13. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.

Special Events Committee

  1. Coordinates special events for the club including:
    • Field Day.
    • Fox hunts.
    • Amateur radio demonstration stations.
    • Other events as directed by the board or president.
  2. Insures that any necessary arrangements or permits are obtained in advance for the use of a location for the event, as required.
  3. Submits advance notice of planned events to the RHG, giving as much notice as possible of an upcoming event.
  4. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status is published in the following month’s RHG.
  5. Keeps a written record of the committees activities.
  6. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  7. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  8. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.

Publications Committee

  1. Edits and publishes the monthly newsletter.
  2. Produces the appropriate number of copies of the newsletter for distribution to the club members, and other distribution as directed by the board.
  3. Coordinates with the membership chairman to produce the correct mailing labels for the current membership, and prints additional mailing labels for other copies as directed by the board.
  4. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status is published in the following months RHG.
  5. Keeps a written record of the committees activities.
  6. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  7. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  8. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.

Public Relations and Publicity

  1. Sends advance press releases to the media regarding upcoming SARC events of interest, such as Field Day, public service events, and demonstration station setups.
  2. Sends articles and photographs to the media covering SARC events, if the media does not cover it themselves. This includes both mass media as well as ham radio oriented publications.
  3. Requests and stays current with the latest submission guidelines from the local media.
  4. Requests free media advertisements for SARC events in the “community events” time slots on radio/TV/cable.
  5. Provides a contact point for any media inquiries about SARC.
  6. Provides a contact point for SARC members or committees, to assist them in getting their event publicized.
  7. Prepares an informational bulletin or press release, ready to be given to the media if contacted about ham radio.
  8. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status is published in the following month’s RHG.
  9. Keeps a written record of the committees activities.
  10. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  11. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  12. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.

SARC Net Committee

  1. Ensures that there is a net control station for each weekly net, and that the nets are run regularly, on time, and in an efficient and professional manner.
  2. Coordinates with any other groups that have SARC permission to run their nets on our repeater, to assist them, and prevent any contention between repeater usage.
  3. Secures a volunteer to run a net program, such as “newsline”, every week on the net.
  4. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status is published in the following month’s RHG.
  5. Keeps a written record of the committees activities.
  6. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  7. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  8. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.

Technical Assistance Committee

  1. Coordinates SARC assistance to the repeater organization.
  2. Assists with any TVI or RFI problems encountered.
  3. Provides training and assistance in the areas of electronic construction and troubleshooting, as related to Amateur Radio.
  4. Encourages and coordinates involvement in hands-on projects and kit building, and helps increase the technical level of the membership.
  5. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status is published in the following month’s RHG.
  6. Keeps a written record of the committees activities.
  7. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  8. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  9. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.

Fund Raising Committee

  1. Secures drawing and door prizes for the monthly meeting.
  2. Coordinates any fund raising activity approved by the board.
  3. Develops and plans new fund raising activities.
  4. Keeps accurate documentation of all funds received, and insures that these funds are turned over to the treasurer for deposit in the proper SARC account.
  5. Submits articles to the RHG advertising any fund raising activities.
  6. Provides the club with a status report from the committee each month at the regular meeting, and sees that this status is published in the following month’s RHG.
  7. Keeps a written record of the committees activities.
  8. Obtains approval from the board of directors for any expense to be incurred by this committee.
  9. Appoints other members to the committee as is deemed necessary.
  10. Assumes any other related duties as directed by the board of directors or the president.