ZRA News
Call for committee volunteers
October 23, 2015 Attention all ZRA Members!Committees are where the REAL action of the Association happens. We are looking for members to take an active interest in their Association, and to put their knowledge, experiences, and passion to good use! Become more involved in ZRA and help us to develop into a better, more professional, more resourceful organization. Remember that all members in good standing may serve on a Committee (or Committees!)
If you are interested in serving in a Committee(s) as a member or as a leader, please contact Stephanie Eller (eller.stephanie@phillyzoo.org) to sign up. Please do this even if you signed up for a Committee at this year’s conference. If you were previously a member of a Committee, please contact your Chairman if you want to remain on the Committee.
Please respond by Friday, 6 Nov 2015.
A full explanation of all ZRA Committees can be found in Article IX of the current Bylaws, which can be found on the Governance page of the ZRA website. A “snapshot” of the Committees is provided below to help members select which Committee (or Committees) he or she is interested in. The Committees are:
• Strategic Planning – are you good at seeing the big picture? Would you like to help steer the Association into the future?
• Ethics – this important committee is charged with upholding the ZRA Code of Professional Ethics. It reviews any proposals or amendments to the Code. Only Professional members who are not officers, Chairmen, or Vice-Chairmen may be on this committee.
• Bylaws – this committee reviews all proposals for amendments to the bylaws and presents them to the voting members. It is currently working on streamlining the Association’s Bylaws for added flexibility as the Association grows, so it will be VERY active this year.
• History – this committee coordinates and documents historical events and the professional evolution of ZRA and manages its archives. They are currently working on finalizing an agreement with the Milwaukee County Zoo Library to store our records. The committee is capped at 8 members.
• Nominations & Elections – this practical committee works to find nominees for each position up for election and assists nominees through the process to prepare for voting. The committee also oversees the election itself.
• Membership Services – this committee processes membership renewals, approves new members, and maintains membership records for all ZRA members (past and present). It also coordinates the activity of its subcommittees, External Relations and Marketing and PR. This committee is capped at 10 members.
• External Relations – this subcommittee collaborates with Marketing and PR to serve as ZRA’s “outreach.” External Relations acts as a liaison between ZRA and related organizations operating in the zoological industry.
• Marketing and PR – this subcommittee collaborates with External Relations to serve as ZRA’s “outreach.” It works to coordinate advertising and other PR activities, such as developing strategies for informing the zoo community about the importance of registrars, and identifying ways to increase membership.
• Annual Conference – the committee is responsible for planning and executing the annual conference. There are only 5 members and each person has a distinct and important role. This committee is filled for 2016, but please let us knows if you are interested in planning future conferences!
• Professional Development – this committee looks for ways to help members develop professionally in this career: for example, it supports members who are pursuing their Certified Records Manager (CRM) certification.
• Standards – this committee evaluates the need for industry standards and provides for their development, sometimes working in concert with AZA’s IDMAG. Some things the committee is considering currently are collecting links to governmental websites, creating a list of software programs that are of use to registrars, and surveying members for their use of keywords in their records.
• Training – this committee works to increase institutional awareness of the importance of animal record keeping in zoos and aquariums. It manages the yearly scholarship to AZA’s Institutional Records Keeping course and oversees the ZRA Mentorship Program.
• Website Management – this team is responsible for keeping the website up to date and easy to navigate. They will be working this year on improving the organization and user-friendliness of the site.
If you have any questions about a Committee or Subcommittee, you may ask the relevant Chairman. This information can be found on Leadership page of the website by clicking the Committee links on the right side.
Sincerely,
ZRA Board of Directors
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