Denton County Master Gardener Association Membership Handbook Revised March 2018
Contents I. MISSION STATEMENT...3 II. MEMBERSHIP... 3 III. MASTER GARDENER CERTIFICATION FROM OTHER TEXAS COUNTIES OR OUT OF STATE... 3 IV. BOARD OF DIRECTORS...4 V. GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS... 4 VI. ADVANCED TRAINING:...4 VII. VOLUNTEER SERVICE... 5 VIII. MASTER GARDENER PROJECTS... 6 IX. RECORD RETENTION... 6 X. RECOGNITION OF SERVICE... 7 XI. ADVANCED TRAINING SPECIALIST SCHOLARSHIP... 7 XII. ADMINISTRATIVE FUNCTIONS... 7 A. HOSPITALITY... 7 B. RESOURCE ROOM... 7 C. STATE & INTERNATIONAL AWARD SUBMISSIONS... 8 D. NOMINATIONS... 8 E. AUDIT... 8 F. RETENTION & ENGAGEMENT... 8 G. SCHOLARSHIP... 8 H. GRANTS... 9 I. SUNSHINE GARDENERS... 9 ATTACHMENT 1 Treasurer s duties:... 10 2
I. MISSION STATEMENT The Denton County Master Gardener Association (DCMGA) is a volunteer program under the guidance of Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service. As Master Gardeners, our mission is to educate and engage county residents in the implementation of research-based horticultural and environmental practices that create sustainable gardens, landscapes, and communities. II. MEMBERSHIP A. Certified members are members who have completed the Texas Certified Master Gardener program, completed the Texas Master Gardener Volunteer Service Agreement and paid annual dues. Certified members are required to fulfill 12 hours of training and 12 hours of volunteer service annually. To be certified, DCMGA Members are also required to accept a DCMGA release for pictures taken at DCMGA events. Certified members are voting members. B. Interns are those members who are enrolled or have completed the Master Gardener Training Program in the current calendar year. Interns must fulfill the required 70 hours of training and 70 hours of volunteer service. Interns are non-voting members. C. Life members are certified members in good standing, and are designated life members at the discretion of the CEA-Hort. Life members dues are paid by DCMGA. The CEA-Hort approves training and service hour requirements. Life members are voting members. D. Inactive members are certified members who have not completed their required 12 hours of training and 12 hours of volunteer service in a calendar year. For an inactive member to become a certified member, they must complete training and service requirements as directed by the CEA-Hort. An Inactive member is a non-voting member. E. No DCMGA members shall gain financially from volunteer service without prior DCMGA BoD approval. Members must inform the DCMGA BoD of any potential conflicts of interest. III. MASTER GARDENER CERTIFICATION FROM OTHER TEXAS COUNTIES OR OUT OF STATE Due to the uniqueness of each county s soil, climate, and plant material, full reciprocity of Master Gardener certifications is not available. The County Extension Agent-Horticulture (CEA-Hort) determines 3
the required Training Hours for transfers. Volunteer Service Hours are the same as those required for Certified Members. IV. DCMGA BOARD OF DIRECTORS (DCMGA BoD) A. DCMGA By-Laws define the DCMGA BoD, members, and their responsibilities. B. DCMGA BoD meetings are usually held the first Wednesday of every month. Any DCMGA member may attend. Please refer to DCMGA calendar, available on the DCMGA website at https://dcmga.com/members-calendar/. C. DCMGA By-Laws define DCMGA BoD terms and Texas Master Gardener Association (TMGA) delegate requirements. D. DCMGA is supported by various administrative groups, which report to the DCMGA BoD. Unless otherwise specified, the President, with assistance from the Volunteer Coordinator, appoints group chairpersons. Group chairpersons will submit annual budget needs and, as needed, solicit volunteers from the general membership. Group administrative functions are detailed in Section XII. V. GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS A. The general membership meeting will usually be held on the second Wednesday of every month from February to November. Reference DCMGA calendar for time and place. All members and the general public are invited to attend. Members receive 1 hour of Advanced Training (AT) for attending the training portion of the meeting. B. The DCMGA Graduation/Awards Banquet occurs in January, and includes the certification of the current Intern Class members who have completed all requirements, and the recognition of individual member achievements. (Not an AT event.) C. The annual Christmas Party occurs in December. (Not an AT event.) VI. ADVANCED TRAINING (AT) The purpose of AT is to help Master Gardeners maintain and enhance their knowledge of researchbased horticultural practices that advance our mission statement. A. Certified members are annually required to complete at least 12 hours of AT. B. AT guidelines and opportunities include: 4
DCMGA monthly general meeting programs (1 hour unless otherwise specified). Horticultural Education classes, lectures, field trips, specialist training, and/or workshops conducted/sponsored by DCMGA, other county Master Gardener Associations (MGA), TMGA, and/or Texas A&M AgriLife Extension. Research for articles, lectures, and presentations conducted/sponsored by DCMGA; Help Desk assistance. Texas Forest Service presentations. On-line classes offered by state extension offices located in plant hardiness zones 7 or 8. (Includes topics for which zones are irrelevant, such as indoor plants or propagation techniques.) Citizen Forester Certification Classes. Native Plant Society of Texas (NPSoT): Native Landscape Certification Program (NLCP). Discretionary: Horticultural education classes, lectures, field trips, and/or workshops. (Maximum: 3 of the required 12 annual hours; 6 hours annually for veteran members of 10 or more years.) No prior approval needed. DCMGA members may take up to two annual classes at intern training classes. Pre-registration is required; fees may apply. Some classes (including but not limited to first day, last day, and field trips) will not be eligible for AT. Credit for AT from educational opportunities not included or pre-approved in this list must be submitted to the CEA-Hort via online forms (https://dcmga.com/member-forms/) at least one week prior to the training event. C. Interns are required to complete at least 70 hours of initial training provided by the DCMGA intern program. D. Travel time is not included in calculating AT hours. E. Members must record their AT hours on the DCMGA website via the Volunteer Management System (VMS). Hours should be entered on a timely basis (at least monthly) to best benefit the organization and the office we represent; the hard deadline is December 31st of the current year. VII. VOLUNTEER SERVICE A. Certified members are annually required to complete at least 12 hours of volunteer service. 5
B. Interns must complete at least 70 hours of volunteer service before the end of their intern year. C. Volunteer Service hours include time worked on approved DCMGA projects, as well as travel time. D. Members must record their volunteer service hours on the DCMGA website via VMS. Hours should be entered on a timely basis (at least monthly) to best benefit the organization and the office we represent; the hard deadline is December 31st of the current year. E. Discretionary: Non-DCMGA, community, and horticultural-related volunteer service. (Maximum: 3 of the required annual 12 hours; 6 hours annually for veteran members of 10 or more years.) No prior approval needed. VIII. MASTER GARDENER PROJECTS A. All non-administrative DCMGA activities that use DCMGA resources are considered projects. Ongoing DCMGA projects are listed on the DCMGA website at https://dcmga.com/projects-2/. B. Members complete a Project Initiation form, available on the DCMGA website at https://dcmga.com/member-forms/, to obtain approval for a new project. DCMGA BoD approval must be obtained prior to making external commitments or expending resources. C. Project Managers must annually submit a Project Continuation form for ongoing projects. D. If a project's budget, leadership, and/or scope changes, Project Managers must submit a Project Change form and receive DCMGA BoD approval to proceed under new parameters. E. Project Managers must submit a Project Termination form upon project completion and cessation. F. Project Managers will: notify the membership of project workdays and activities via the DCMGA calendar maintain sign-in sheets at project workdays and activities submit completed sign-in sheets to the CEA-Hort Administrative Assistant. IX. RECORD RETENTION DCMGA will maintain appropriate administrative records, including Secretary's meeting minutes and Treasurer's reports, available on the DCMGA website at https://dcmga.com/members-info/meetings/. 6
X. RECOGNITION OF SERVICE A. Interns will receive certified DCMGA badges at January's Graduation/Awards Banquet. B. To honor length of service, the following badges will be presented to qualifying DCMGA members at January's Graduation/Awards Banquet: Bronze (5 years of service) Silver (10 years of service) Gold (15 years of service) Special (20 years of service). C. Additional awards will be presented at January's Graduation/Awards Banquet. D. Other awards may be presented throughout the year at the DCMGA BoD's discretion. XI. ADVANCED TRAINING SPECIALIST SCHOLARSHIP A. TMGA offers several Advanced Training Specialist programs. With CEA-Hort approval, a certified member may enroll. B. DCMGA offers a scholarship (not to exceed $200) to DCMGA members. The President and CEA-Hort will review applications and make recommendations to the DCMGA BoD for a final decision. The Scholarship Application for Specialist Training is available on the DCMGA website at https://dcmga.com/member-forms/. C. Specialist scholarship recipients will complete all state training and volunteer requirements as well as the 8-hour DCMGA Help Desk requirement, or scholarship funds must be repaid. XII. ADMINISTRATIVE FUNCTIONS A. Hospitality The group will coordinate general meeting refreshments. Additional hospitality assistance for special events may be provided upon a Project Manager's request. B. Resource Room The group will oversee the Resource Room maintenance for DCMGA membership use. 7
C. State & International Award Submissions The group will create and submit award nominations (with oversight from the Immediate Past President). All award packages will be reviewed by CEA-Hort. D. Nominations The group will generate a slate of DCMGA BoD candidates and present in the following order: 1 - CEA-Hort 2 - DCMGA BoD 3 - General membership A slate of candidates will be presented to the membership through the DCMGA website or email at least one month prior to election at the November DCMGA meeting. E. Audit The Audit Committee shall consist of at least three DCMGA members, who are not currently serving on the DCMGA BoD. The Treasurer shall provide all financial records and be available to answer any committee inquiries. The group will: conduct an annual financial record audit in January. provide a written report of the audit results to the DCMGA BoD for review. report the audit results to the DCMGA general membership at the subsequent general meeting. review the first-quarter financial records of a newly elected Treasurer's first term to ensure appropriate accounting practices and report results to DCMGA BoD. The DCMGA Treasurer will retain a copy of every audit report with the DCMGA financial records. F. Retention & Engagement The retention committee addresses membership retention as needed and directed by the President. G. Scholarship The group will administer the DCMGA Scholarship Program, which provides financial assistance for collegiate horticultural studies. Scholarships may be funded by: 8
DCMGA General Fund (including but not limited to the annual $1000 Tom Harpool Horticulture Scholarship*). member donations. external sources. *In honor of DCMGA's founder and first president. H. Grants The group will: identify grant-based funding sources. facilitate application for member-identified funding sources. assist in the application process. notify DCMGA BoD and CEA-Hort of applications. I. Sunshine Gardeners The group will: be notified when members experience serious illness/hospitalization or death of an immediate family member contact affected members to determine needs and privacy preferences ensure a card is sent on behalf of DCMGA communicate member requests for additional support to the group and/or the general membership In the event of the death of a member, or their immediate family, the Chairman will notify the President, who will send a plant (not to exceed $50) and a card to the family on behalf of DCMGA *Note: The Chairman will receive Volunteer service hours, but the remainder of the group is ineligible for Service Hours. 9
ATTACHMENT 1 Treasurer s duties: 1. Quicken Home & Business software is the vehicle of choice to maintain the corporation s financial records. 2. The newly elected Treasurer and President must secure current signature cards with the banking and financial institutions for all financial accounts no later than the day of the first Board meeting of the new fiscal year. Note: A signed copy of the approved Minutes of the Board which lists the elected officers must be presented to complete the paperwork. Additionally, change passwords for on-line access to financial accounts. (January) 3. Checks must be signed by the Treasurer or the President to be negotiable documents. (Ongoing) 4. Request for funds and/or reimbursement of expenses must be made in writing (i.e., email, letter, expense reimbursement form) clearly stating the reason for the request as well as providing the budget category from which the expenses are to be charged. As appropriate, further documentation may be required, i.e., paid receipts, vendor invoices, etc. All documentation must be maintained in an organized, audit ready fashion. (Ongoing) 5. The monthly financial (cash) reports must have the beginning and ending monthly balances with details of all receipts and disbursements during that period and must be supported by bank statements. (Monthly) 6. Membership Dues: Collect membership dues. Status of dues payments will be reported to the Member at Large. If dues are not received in a timely manner the Member at Large will follow-up individual members. (February) Pay yearly dues to TMGA, based upon the number of members, in time to be received no later than 03/01. 7. The year-end annual report to the membership are available on the website. 8. File, any annual reports as required by Federal, State or Local Governments, these include State Sales Tax no later than 01/20 990-N IRS Form no later than 05/15. 9. Renew the state issued floral certificate to license the corporation s fund raising plant sales. (September) 10. Renew the Liability Insurance policy for the association. (May) 11. As required, prepare the necessary reports/paperwork for the Board designated C.P.A. to be provided to them no later than 02/15 for the tax return to be prepared/submitted no later than 05/15. Work with the C.P.A. as required meeting this deadline. 10
12. As required, update the Expense and State Tax Exempt forms and provide to the Web Master for uploading to the website. 11