The North Dakota / Manitoba Chapter of ACRL met Friday, June 5, 1998 at 9:00 a.m. in the UND School of Medicine & Health Sciences building.

Chair Tom Bremer called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. Introductions were made with the following persons in attendance: Carolynne Presser - U. Manitoba, Cynthia Shabb - UND, Asako Yoshida - UND, Shelby E. Harken - UND, Susan Suart - U. Manitoba, Betty Gard - UND, Sally Dockter - UND, Mary Hegle Drewes - UND, Sheila Andrich - U. Manitoba, Lila Pedersen - UND Health, Patricia Bozyk - Red River College, Nicole Michaud-Oystryk - U. Manitoba, Hugh Larimer - U. Manitoba, Phyllis N. Hustoft - UND Health, Clarice Hackman - NDSU, Kaaren Pupino - UND Law, Char Myhre - NDSU, Dorrene Devos - UND Law, Pat Berntsen - UND, Margaret Blue - NDSU, Karen Chobot - NDSCS, Ann Marie Melvie - Assiniboine Community College, Karen Hunt - Red River College, Barbara Knight - UND Health, Judy Rieke - UND Health, Karen Anderson - UND Health (Fargo Library), Joanne Evanoff - UND, Eileen Kopren - DSU, Jean Anderson - UND,  Tom Bremer – NDSU, and Ryan Schultz - U. Manitoba.

• Welcomes were extended by Tom Bremer and a special thank you was given to Chair-elect Judy Rieke for her work in developing the meeting’s programming.

Reports:

Secretary’s Report
Minutes from the 1996 meeting were distributed. Betty Gard moved to approve the minutes, seconded by Cynthia Shabb.  The motion was passed.

Treasurer’s Report
Treasurer Eileen Kopren reported a previous balance of $569.75, June 14, 1996.  The current balance as of May 26, 1998, is $1465.52.  Eileen Kopren moved to accept the Treasurer’s report.  The motion was seconded by Shelby Harken and approved.

Chapter Council Concern
Chair Tom Bremer addressed the concerns of the ACRL Chapter Council. Specifically, there is a  concern about the possible liability of the ACRL national organization for the activities of the individual chapters.  Many chapters are not incorporated nor are they related to their incorporated state library association. 

Bremer quoted from the Report of the ACRL Chapters Relations Task Force:
 

3. Issues and Concerns 
In reviewing the relationship between chapters and ACRL the task force has identified and considered several issues and concerns:
 
a. Degree of independence. The fact that chapters have been largely autonomous has caused concern among some members of ACRL that chapters may not be sufficiently accountable to ACRL and that their activities may not always be in harmony with the association's goals. Chapters, on the other hand, greatly value their independence and their ability to chart their own direction. Given these differences in viewpoint, it is important to clarify the degree of independence chapters have, since it is a fundamental aspect of their relationship with ACRL.

b. Liability. Several of ACRL's independent chapters are not incorporated. Legal advice has made it clear that ACRL could be held liable for the actions of a chapter that is not incorporated or not a part of a state association that is incorporated. Related to the question of liability, there is also concern that chapter publications and program announcements may need to make clear that chapters are separate entities from ACRL and that the national association is not responsible for chapter programs and other activities. Similarly, ACRL's website, which has the capacity to link seamlessly to chapter websites, may need to make clear that chapters are separate from ACRL.

6. Incorporation
Recommendation:
The task force recommends to the ACRL Board:
 
a) that new chapters either incorporate or belong to a state association that is incorporated within one year of their recognition by ACRL, 
 
b) that existing chapters incorporate or become a part of an incorporated state association by the end of the year 2000, and 
 
c) that ACRL working through the Chapters Council, provide guidance and advice to chapters on the process of incorporation. 

Rationale:
Legal advice has made it clear that ACRL could be held liable for the actions of a chapter that is not incorporated. In order to insure their independent status and also resolve concerns about liability for ACRL, it is essential that chapters incorporate or be a division of an incorporated state library association. 

(The full text of the Report of the ACRL Chapters Relations Task Force can be found at: http://www.ala.org/acrl/chapttf.html )

In preparation for this discussion, Bremer spoke with  NDSU counsel.  Two specific details will need to be addressed:
     1) where will the incorporation occur – ND or Manitoba?; and 
     2) the establishment of a permanent mailing address and corporate contact.

An open discussion followed.  Barbara Knight, Chair-elect of  NDLA, stated that this ND state association is reviewing its bylaws with an eye to making the association more amenable to welcoming affiliation with other groups. And, the association will have an executive secretary that may assist with this goal.  A suggestion was made by Carolynne Presser, U. of Manitoba, to contact the Ontario / Western New York Chapter to see how they have handled this situation.  Further discussion revolved around permanent address choices and costs. Carolynne Presser suggested using the address of the legal firm hired to file the incorporating papers.

Action: Chair Bremer will have a representative attend the Chapter Council meeting at the ALA conference and report back to the Chapter.  The executive board will explore options with the help of Susan Suart, U. of Manitoba and possibly James Carlson, UND.
 

Membership Renewal
Treasurer Eileen Kopren stated the present renewal process: Members are sent a renewal form in the month they originally joined.  Kopren would like to simplify this procedure and have a once a year membership renewal period. A discussion followed.  It was decided to mirror the ACRL membership policy.  Kopren will devise a system of pro-rated payments as necessary until the new membership calendar is established.

Communication Concerns
Print versus electronic was an issue of this discussion.  It was decided to establish a listserv for ease and expediency of communication between members.  Bremer will contact  NDSU computer services for the listserv.  Bremer is establishing a Chapter Web Site.

Final Thoughts
The membership discussed dates for future meetings.  Conflicts do arise with vacations, possible floods, and other conferences.  Holding meetings in the first half of May was the consensus of the group.

• Chair-elect Judy Rieke was again thanked for her fine efforts for developing the day’s program.
• Chair Bremer adjourned the meeting.