SSAR committees conduct many of the vital activities of the Society. They provide many services for our members and in so doing contribute to the discipline of herpetology and to the herpetological education of the public at large. Historically, some of the most innovative and important contributions to the Society, including development of publication series and the Annual Meeting, have had their genesis in our committee system. We encourage all interested members to become involved.

Current Listing of SSAR Committees and Chairs
     A listing of the current SSAR committees and their current acting chairs.

1. Terms of Appointment
   All committees and Coordinators are appointed by the President. In practice, many committees remain unchanged for several years or change gradually in composition over time. Committee work is facilitated by having continuity from year to year.

2. Duties of Committee Chairs and Coordinators
   During the annual cycle, the committee chairs should carry out the following duties:

   Submission of Annual Report
   

   A report of the committee's activities is due two months prior to the date of the Annual Meeting. The report, which should be brief, i.e., not more than three pages, should summarize the committee's activities since the last Annual Report. It should be sent electronically to the Secretary. Approximately one month prior to the Annual Meeting, the Secretary will compile the reports and send them electronically to the Officers, Editors, and Board members.
   

   If necessary, additional materials can be submitted to the Secretary as an appendix to be brought to the Board meeting.

   Attendance at the Annual Board of Directors Meeting

   Committee Chairs and Coordinators are requested to attend the Board of Directors' Meeting to discuss their Annual Reports and answer questions. This meeting is typically held one day prior to the beginning of the Annual Meeting. In order to avoid repetition of information already submitted to the Board in Annual Reports, presentations by committee chairs at the Board meeting will be restricted to brief highlights of submitted material and to material that was not available until after preparation of the Annual Report.
   

   Submission of Material to Herpetological Review

   Committee Chairs and Coordinators are responsible for preparing brief write-ups for Herpetological Review when appropriate. The timeliness of this write-up is especially important for those committees that give awards on a yearly cycle. To save space in Herpetological Review, the write-ups should be brief and generally refer readers to the SSAR website for additional information.

   To help with planning, here is the submission schedule for Herpetological Review:
   For March issue, material is needed by HR Editor by December 1;
   For June issue, material is needed by March 1;
   For September issue, material is needed by June 1;
   For December issue, material is needed by September 1.
   

   Updating of Committee's Information on the SSAR Website
   

   Each Committee Chair is responsible for updating the committee's information on the SSAR website in a timely fashion. While important for all committees, it is especially important in the case of those committees that give annual awards to be certain that deadlines are current.
   

   Details of updating the website will be handled through a Web Oversight Committee and the SSAR Webmaster, Zack Walker. Committee chairs and coordinators will only need to prepare Word files; they will not need to prepare html files.
   

   Presentation of Awards, If Applicable

   Certain committees (e.g., Grants-in-Herpetology, Seibert Awards, Kennedy Award, and others) are responsible for presentation of awards. These committees should complete their charges in time for results to be included in the Annual Report sent to the Secretary. (Note: Committees responsible for awards need not make any award in a particular category if no worthy recipients are identified.)

   Although variable, the committee chairs frequently make the award presentations at the Annual Meeting. Some awards are presented at the Annual Meeting banquet, and some are presented at the annual SSAR Business meeting. If you cannot present the award given by your committee, please contact the Secretary prior to the Annual Meeting. If notification of award winners occurs before the Annual Meeting, it is the committee chair's responsibility to outline the procedure for notifying the winner and to make certain the winner(s) receives a check (if appropriate) and a congratulatory letter from the President.

3. Society Letterhead
   Society letterhead is available for official business correspondence. The Secretary has letterhead with the SSAR logo that will be sent to you upon request. Each year, the Secretary composes and keeps an updated electronic template for use with the letterhead that has the current society Officers, Editors, and Board Members in a column. Contact the Secretary for the most recent version of the template. You will be mailed the template and can print it out on letterhead as needed. Please return or pass on any unused letterhead once your term is completed.

4. Committee Charges and Membership
   General charges are given to each committee by the current SSAR President; however, each committee has the additional responsibility of defining other issues relevant to its work. This activity is essential because members of the committee are typically more informed on important issues specifically relevant to the committee than the President can be. If, however, a committee wishes to take on matters not charged specifically to it by the President, please contact the President in advance. Likewise, if committee chairs wish to add individuals to their committees, they should contact the President and Secretary.

5. Future Development and Involvement of Members
   An active committee system is dependent on highly motivated individuals who have a strong interest in the society and its goals. If you are interested in being involved or know someone who is, please contact the President or Secretary with this information. We welcome and encourage the involvement of all SSAR members, including student members.

   Serving on SSAR committees is an excellent way for members to become involved with and to learn about the Society. Members interested in other Society responsibilities, such as editorships or in running for elective office, have often served on committees initially.

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   Note: These Guidelines originally were prepared in 1982 by Kraig Adler and were modified subsequently by James S. Jacob, Secretary, in 1988. The guidelines were updated by Janalee P. Caldwell, President, and Marion Preest, Secretary, in 2004.