SECTION 8: COORDINATORS 8.1 STRUCTURE: Coordinator positions are established and appointments are made by the NFPA Board. Each Coordinator may establish his/her own committee to carry out the charges to the Coordinator. Ad hoc or special committees may be established by the voting members or by the NFPA Board. 8.2 AD HOC COMMITTEES: Ad Hoc committees are established for a particular purpose and will have a lifespan of no longer than one year unless otherwise specified in the resolution creating such committee or upon the NFPA Board s approval of an extension of them. 8.3 REPORTING: Coordinators submit informal reports to their Supervising Board Member throughout the year. The method of delivery, whether oral or via email, shall be established by the Coordinators and Supervising Board Members. Coordinators submit written reports to their Supervising Board Member prior to all regularly scheduled NFPA Board meetings at a time set by the NFPA Board. Coordinators are required to prepare their reports to address each charge given them by the delegates pursuant to resolution, if applicable, and as set forth in the Procedures Manual. Coordinators report which of their charges have been met, whether any work remains outstanding, and future goals. The Supervising Board member submits the Coordinator s Report to the Management Company for inclusion in INSIDE NFPA. 8.4 TERM AND APPOINTMENT: Two positions are elected, ABA Approval Commission Representative and the Education Coordinator. See Section 9 for terms and election procedures. All other Coordinators are appointed by the NFPA Board by the following procedures. Coordinator Interest Forms (including a resume) shall be submitted to the Nominations Coordinator at or prior to the Annual meeting, but no later than 7 days after the conclusion of the Annual meeting for the Certification Ambassador Coordinator; Regulation Review Coordinator, and Association Leadership Training Coordinator positions. The Nominations Coordinator shall immediately forward all Interest Forms to the NFPA Board. The supervising Board member will have a personal or telephone conversation with each person who has completed a Coordinator Interest Form no later than 14 days prior to the NFPA Board Meeting to appoint Coordinators following the Annual Meeting..No later than 45 days following the Annual meeting, the NFPA Board will appoint the Certification Ambassador Coordinator; Regulation Review Coordinator, and Association Leadership Training Coordinator. All other Coordinator appointments will be made at the Winter Board meeting. The Nominations coordinator will continue to solicit letters of interest for all remaining Coordinator positions until 45 days prior to the Winter Board meeting. The Coordinators will take office immediately upon appointments. It should be noted that additional procedures are in place for the and the ABA Approval Commission Representative, and the Education Coordinator. See Section 9.1 and 9.2 respectively for procedures relating to election
Appointments of Coordinators are contingent upon their agreement to support NFPA and its goals, to act as an ambassador of NFPA and the paralegal profession, to promote good will, and to work with the NFPA Board of Directors. Any Coordinator who resigns from their position must notify their Supervising Board Member and the President of such resignation in writing by US mail or e-mail. Unless otherwise mutually agreed upon by the applicable Coordinator and the Supervising Board Member, the resignation is effective immediately upon receipt. Unless otherwise directed, the resigning Coordinator must send all of his/her files to the Supervising Board Member or Supervising Coordinator, or NFPA's Management Company within 7 days of the receipt of resignation, as directed. 8.5 COMMUNICATIONS: All Coordinator correspondence should be on NFPA letterhead and copies sent to the appropriate Supervising Board Member, the President and the Managing Director. Requests for information and assistance should be directed to the appropriate Supervising Board Member. The Supervising Board Member must be notified in advance of contemplated contact with other national organizations such as the ABA, ALA, AAfPE, NALA, etc. or with state legislatures and bar associations to assist in determining the most appropriate method of contact. Coordinators are encouraged to communicate with each other, especially if there is potential for overlapping activities. Contact with Advisory Council Members is facilitated by the Board Advisor. Coordinators shall identify themselves by name and position when communicating in their coordinator capacity. 8.6 BUDGET: Each Coordinator submits a proposed budget for the new fiscal year to the Supervising Board Member. After reviewing the proposed budget, the Supervising Board Member will submit the agreed-upon proposed budget to the Treasurer per the timeline set that year by the Treasurer. The budget should take into consideration postage, photocopying, telephone expenses, and approved travel as well as special project expenses anticipated by the Coordinator or his/her committee. Generally, special projects must be approved by the membership or the NFPA Board. See the forms section for the budget submission form. Funds will be budgeted for Coordinators according to the goals and needs of each position and the best interests of NFPA. The new Coordinator will be expected to operate under the budget previously set. If this is not possible due to new direction given at the Annual Meeting, or for other reasons, the new Coordinator s Supervising Board Member must communicate the same to the Treasurer as soon as possible after the Coordinator and the Supervising Board Member discover the desired change. Any extraordinary expenses, such as travel, telephone conference calls, etc., must be approved in advance by the Treasurer with input from the Supervising Board Member If not approved in advance, the Treasurer retains the sole authority to determine whether such expenses will be reimbursed based on budget allowances. All expenses which result in a significant change in the budget allowance will be conveyed to the NFPA Board by the Treasurer for feedback. 8.7 FINANCIAL AND REIMBURSEMENT: Requests for reimbursement must be submitted within 30 days of the date the expense was incurred, but no later than 45 days after the date the expense was incurred, using the
Reimbursement Form in the Forms section of the Procedures Manual. Copies of the completed forms and itemized receipts should be sent to the Treasurer via email. The Treasurer will review, make necessary changes, and then forward to the Supervising Board Member for approval. After receiving final approval from the Supervising Board Member, the Treasurer will submit the copy of the Form with approvals to the Management Company for payment. Generally, only postage, photocopy and telephone expenses will be reimbursed if included in the budget. The Treasurer will notify the Supervising Board Member if it appears expenses are exceeding the approved budget. Requests for additional funding should be made through the Supervising Board Member. Expenses in excess of the approved budget will not be reimbursed without prior NFPA Board approval. 8.8 PUBLICATIONS: From time to time, Coordinators may prepare pamphlets, brochures or other publications as part of his/her assignment. Such matters must be standard in appearance according to adopted colors and format. The NFPA Management Company will prepare the cover page. Any publication prepared in conjunction with a Coordinator s assignment becomes the property of NFPA. NFPA will retain all rights to publish, distribute, market and sell any publication including all expenses and profits associated therewith. All pamphlets, brochures or other publications must be reviewed by the President prior to publication. 8.9 FILES: Each Coordinator maintains a file or files of his/her activities. These files will be transferred (some may need to be archived with the approval of the Supervising Board Member) to the individual(s) assuming the Coordinator responsibility within two weeks after notice by the Supervising Board Member together with all quarterly and annual reports generated by the Coordinator during the year. If the transfer is not completed within this two-week time period, reimbursement for final expenses will not be made. With good cause, additional time for the transfer of files may be granted by the Supervising Board member. 8.10 PLANNING: A plan of action is due to the Supervising Board Member within 30 days of receiving the files from his/her predecessor. In planning Coordinator activities, consideration should be given to setting one or two goals for the year and concentrating energies on accomplishing only those goals. Recommendations from the previous Coordinators, the Board, and resolutions adopted at the Meetings determine the Coordinator's activities. 8.11 CONFIDENTIALITY: Coordinators, by virtue of their appointed positions, may well be privy at times to confidential and/or privileged NFPA information or documents. Consequently, all coordinators shall sign a confidentiality agreement upon their appointment. The Confidentiality Agreement must be signed and returned to the Supervising Board Member prior to receiving the coordinator files from his/her predecessor and/or prior to receipt of any confidential NFPA information or documents. Failure to
sign and return the confidentiality agreement within fourteen (14) days of demand by the Supervising Board member will result in removal of the Coordinator. 8.12 GUIDELINES FOR REMOVAL OF COORDINATOR: A. Open communication between a Coordinator and his/her Supervising Board Member is key. Communications should be at least monthly, more often as needed, via written communications, fax and e-mail. B. Concerns which fall under this section include but are not limited to: failure to communicate with the Supervising Board Member; failure to provide information and/or articles for inclusion in INSIDE NFPA or the National Paralegal Reporter; failure to fulfill the charges set forth in the Procedures Manual; actions that are detrimental to NFPA, local member associations, individual members, the NFPA Board or the delegates (such actions must be documented); and unwillingness to work with the Supervising Board Member or the NFPA Board. If a Supervising Board Member or the Board of Directors encounters concerns with a Coordinator, the following steps should be implemented: 1. First communicate with the Coordinator and ask the President or the Board Advisor to help facilitate discussion of the problem(s). 2. A course of action to correct the problem will be discussed and then put in writing. This should include deadlines for the accomplishment of certain goals or objectives. 3. After a month, an evaluation will be made of the situation. If the problem appears to be corrected, then no further action may be necessary. 4. If the problem has not been corrected, then the Supervising Board Member will put the Coordinator on notice that he or she will be asking the NFPA Board for removal. The Coordinator should be given the opportunity to resign, if appropriate. 5. If the problem is not corrected, then the Supervising Board Member will notify the Coordinator in writing (which may be done via e-mail), with a copy to the Board. The notification will include the following information: a. the cause for removal b. ask for the resignation of the Coordinator c. give notice of a Board meeting to discuss the removal d. if the matter is scheduled for board action, the Coordinator will be asked to respond in writing as to whether he or she will attend the meeting and will submit written comments regarding the recommendation. 6. If a motion is made at the Board Meeting recommending the removal of the Coordinator: a. a discussion will take place b. the Coordinator may address the Board c. a vote is taken 7. Written notification will be given to the Coordinator of the final decision.
8. If the decision is for removal, the Coordinator will be directed where to send the appropriate files. 9. If a decision is made to retain the Coordinator, specific directions with deadlines need to be included in the correspondence. 10. The spirit of this Section B is to provide guidelines for communication between the Supervising Board Member/Board and the Coordinator. Removal of a Coordinator by the Board Member will not be prevented simply because a single guideline under Section 8.12 was not carried out, provided the spirit of these guidelines is followed. 11. Emergency situations may arise, in which case, the Supervising Board Member may immediately remove a Coordinator based on the best interest of the organization and/or profession. This action must be ratified thereafter by the Board at their next Board meeting or by unanimous consent. 12. In emergency situations the Board may immediately remove a Coordinator based on the best interest of the organization and/or profession. C. If a Supervising Board Member or the Board of Directors encounters a Coordinator's violation of NFPA Section 4.7 Conflict of Interest procedure, the following steps should be implemented: 1. First communicate with the Coordinator and ask the President or the Board Advisor to help facilitate discussion of the problem(s). 2. A course of action to correct the problem should be discussed and then put in writing. This should include immediate deadlines for correction of the Conflict. 3. If the problem has not been corrected by the deadline, then the Supervising Board Member shall put the Coordinator on notice that he/she will be asking the NFPA Board for removal. The Coordinator shall be given the opportunity to resign, if appropriate. The Supervising Board Member shall notify the Coordinator in writing (which may be done via email), with a copy to the NFPA Board. The notification will include the following information: a. the cause for removal b. ask for the resignation of the Coordinator c. give notice of a Board meeting to discuss the removal d. if the matter is scheduled for Board action, the Coordinator will be asked to respond in writing as to whether he/she will attend the meeting and will submit written comments regarding the recommendation e. whether the Coordinator's duties have been suspended prior to the meeting of the NFPA Board 4. If a motion is made at the NFPA Board Meeting recommending the removal of the Coordinator: a. a discussion will take place b. the Coordinator may address the NFPA Board c. a vote is taken
5. Written notification shall be given to the Coordinator of the final decision. 6. If the decision is for removal, the Coordinator shall be directed where to send the appropriate files. 7. The spirit of this Section C is to provide guidelines for communication between the Supervising Board Member/NFPA Board and the Coordinator. Removal of a Coordinator by the NFPA Board Member will not be prevented because a single guideline under Section 8.12 was not carried out, provided the spirit of these guidelines is followed. 8. Emergency situations may arise, in which case, the Supervising Board Member may immediately remove a Coordinator based on the best interest of the organization and/or profession. This action must be ratified thereafter by the NFPA Board at their next Board meeting or by unanimous consent. 9. In emergency situations the NFPA Board may immediately remove a Coordinator based on the best interest of the organization and/or profession. 8.13 ASSISTANT COORDINATORS For purposes of expenses, administration, rules of order and other matters relating to Assistant Coordinators, all Assistant Coordinators will have the same rights, privileges and duties as committee members in addition to the specific charges given to their position.