Version 1.0.1
Change History:
Version 1.0 as of July 9, 2018
Version 1.0.1 as of August 1, 2018
Overall Mission Statement
To foster a safe, inclusive and diverse community of writers of all skill levels that encourages learning, growth, and the achievement of individual and community goals.
1. (Detailed Mission and Purpose)
INK-ubator aspires to be a safe and inclusive home (“home” includes our server(s), website(s) and other INK-ubator-related forums or communities, including the comment section of INK-ubator member Steem blogs) for writers of all skill levels and backgrounds. As a community, we celebrate our diversity and work to help each other improve our skills as both writers and editors and to encourage each other in our efforts.
We believe that growing as writers requires a combination of skill practice and development, editing and review input from others, and mastering the ability to put words on paper. We respect, however, that everyone has their own path and that not every method works for everyone. The goal is to create an environment that encourages creativity, growth, and exploration of methods and styles of growth.
2. (Governance)
To make sure our community remains safe and inclusive with a fair and transparent leadership system, a board of directors will be at the helm.
In the absence of a functioning Board (prior to the Board’s formation or if the Board is unable to function for any reason) the functions of the Board will be managed on a temporary basis by the Admins. In such circumstances the priority of actions to be taken by the Admins will be (a) to secure the server and ensure it is running smoothly and (b) to facilitate the formation of a Board.
2.A (Formation of a Temporary Board)
The Admins are authorized to appoint a temporary Board. The temporary Board’s role will be to assist with the running of the server and to facilitate the formation of an official Board within a reasonable time frame (max three months).
2.B (Temporary Decisions)
All temporary decisions (of the Admins or by a temporary Board) will be recorded in an appropriately marked and visible location on the server so that members can view them.
2.C (Board Composition)
The Board of Directors (the Board) will be comprised of the four Admins and three members from the community to a total of seven Board members.
(i) In addition to the seven Board members, Shane, also known as Swelker101, will sit on the board in an advisory capacity. He will be provided reasonable and appropriate notice so that he can participate in all Board discussions, but does not have a vote. His term is indefinite and termination can only be decided by himself (resignation) or a majority vote of the admins.
(ii) The Board can appoint other advisory members as needed to assist with particular problems, projects, or to provide an input they feel is lacking. Their terms and ranges of attendance will be determined by the Board. Advisory members do not have a vote.
2.D (Selection and election of Board Members)
Non-admin Board members will be elected to the Board as follows:
(i) Nominations for Board membership will be requested by the Board (or in the absence of a functioning Board, by the Admins or a temporary Board if one has been formed) at least seven days prior to an All Hands meeting (All Hands being all members with the right to vote on issues relating to the community as established by this Charter.)
(ii) Nominations for Board positions will be received by the Board no later than 72 hours prior to the date of the All Hands meeting. All voting members (including mods), the Board, and Admins are eligible to nominate candidates.
(iii) Self-nomination is not permitted.
(iv) All nominations must be reviewed by the Board (or in the absence of a functioning Board, by the Admins or a temporary Board if one has been formed). The Board (or its proxy as authorized by section 2 of this Charter) may veto a candidate for Board membership if it believes in good faith that there is good reason to do so. This decision is considered a material decision under section 2.H(ii) of this Charter. Board members must be members in good standing.
(v) Candidates will be given the opportunity to accept or decline their nomination which must be communicated to the Board or its proxy in writing by the candidate.
(vi) Approved candidates for Board membership will be announced to the community by way of a publicly posted notice in a visible and easy-to-find-and-access location on the server or, if on a separate document, with a clear posting on the server to the document location.
(vii) Disagreement by the community of a decision by the Board or its authorized proxy will automatically become an agenda item for discussion at the next scheduled All Hands meeting.
(viii) Voting on approved candidates will take place by community vote at the scheduled All Hands meeting.
2.E (Term, Duties and Obligations of Board Members)
(i) Subject to section 2.F, elected Board members will serve the community for a term of six months. There is no limit on the number of consecutive terms or the number of total terms a Board member can serve.
(ii) Elected Board members are expected to maintain their membership in good standing and participate actively in the community.
(iii) Board members (elected and permanent) are expected to participate in all Board meetings or to arrange for participation in writing, or, by approval of the Board, to arrange for a proxy in advance of any Board meeting.
(iv) Board members are expected to perform their duties as set out in this Charter.
2.F (Removal of Board Members)
Elected Board members may be removed as follows:
(i) by serving out their term and not being renewed for a further term;
(ii) by resigning at any time in writing;
(iii) In the case of misconduct by the elected Board member or loss of trust in the elected Board member, by majority agreement of the remaining Board;
(iv) If a Board member is removed under this s.2.F the Board may appoint a temporary Board member to serve in a temporary capacity until the next election.
2.G (Admins)
(i) Admins serve on the Board with full voting privileges indefinitely and cannot be removed from the Board or any temporary board for any reason except by unanimous agreement of the other Admins or by resignation.
(ii) Admins cannot have their community membership privileges revoked for any reason except by unanimous agreement of the other Admins or by resignation.
(iii) Behavior considered inappropriate, unbecoming, misconduct or loss of trust in an Admin must be dealt with in accordance with this section 2. F.
(iv) If any admin has been removed in accordance with this section 2. F, the Board will advise the remaining Admin(s) regarding a replacement of that admin. However, the selection and appointment of a replacement admin will be at the sole discretion of the remaining admin(s).
(v) Disagreement by the community with the action of an admin will automatically become an agenda item for discussion at the next scheduled All Hands meeting.
(vi) Admins can be censured by way of a notice on the server for actions deemed inappropriate, unbecoming or for misconduct or loss of trust for any reason attributable to them on condition the Board or its properly appointed proxy approves the measure.
2. H ( Board Decision-Making)
(i) For day-to-day operations, such as the confirmation of new members, building basic channels, etc., a majority of four is sufficient, however, at least one of those consenting votes must be cast by a community member.
(ii) Larger decisions, such as vetting potential Board members under s.2D(iii), initiating new projects, spending community funds, appointing or removing a mod, banning members, or modifying the charter, require a majority of five, whereof a minimum of two votes must be cast by community members. These larger decisions are considered material Board decisions.
(iii) All material Board decisions must be announced to the community by way of a publicly posted notice in a visible and easy-to-find-and-access location on the server or, if on a separate document, with a clear posting on the server to the document location.
3. The Role of Mods
(i) Mods are appointed by a material vote of the Board. They serve indefinitely until they are removed by a material vote of the Board or through its designated proxy or until they resign.
(ii) The function of Mods is to enforce the server rules created by the Board. They help make sure members are aware of and follow the rules, answer questions regarding the rules and its enforcement, and work with the Board to keep the server safe and functioning smoothly.
(iii) The Mods additionally serve as an extra conduit and advisory panel to the Board. They can pass on messages from members about various concerns and help ensure the Board is kept abreast of the climate on the server.
(iv) If Mods also serve on the board, they are not permitted to vote in matters relating to themselves being made or removed as mods or in decisions related to their own actions as mods, such as whether a member they muted should be banned.
3. (Membership)
(i) There are two types of membership: associate membership and full membership.
(ii) All new members will enter the server as associate members until approved for full membership by the Board.
(iii) This is an active writing community. Members are expected to be active. If you need to take a longer break, for example, because of work, vacation, or a family situation, please inform a Mod or Board member. If a member has a period of prolonged inactivity, the Board may, at its discretion, review the member’s membership type or remove server privileges from the member. Determination of activity or inactivity and how that is dealt with is currently at the discretion of the Board.
4. (Community Rules)
Members will be expected to abide by the Community Rules, which must be clearly posted in the server at all times.
The rules can be changed at any time at the discretion of the Board. Rule changes will be announced clearly in the announcements channel and take immediate effect. Members are responsible for keeping abreast of any new announcements before participating in channels.
4. A (Community Policing)
Policing of community standards and adherence to the Community Rules will be conducted by the Mods and Admins. Members are expected to respect and comply with reasonable requests and directives from Mods and Admins. Failure to comply with reasonable requests and directives from Mods and Admins may result in disciplinary action up to and including a lifetime ban from the server.
4. B (Disciplinary Action)
(i) If a member is determined by a Mod or Admin to have been acting inappropriately and refuses to comply with the Mod or Admin’s reasonable request or directive, the Mod or Admin is authorized to mute the member by applying the "mute" role and removing other roles until the Board can resolve the issue.
(ii) For the avoidance of doubt, while kicking or banning may be emotionally satisfying, the Admins would like to restrict initial discipline to muting only until the Board or its proxy can review the matter and determine the appropriate action.
(iii) The Board may, at its discretion, form a temporary Disciplinary Board to manage the review of disciplinary cases. The Disciplinary Board members will be chosen by the Board at its discretion but with a view to providing an unbiased and balanced review panel. The Disciplinary Board will be constituted on a case-by-case basis or on a longer-term basis as determined by the Board in its sole discretion.
(iv) Disagreement by any member with the disciplinary process will automatically become an agenda item for discussion at the next scheduled All Hands meeting. However, for the protection of the parties concerned, individual cases cannot be discussed at an All Hands meeting.
(v) If raised at the All Hands, the Board must review the disciplinary process (or convene a Disciplinary Board to do so) to ensure it is working adequately for the benefit of the community and the safety of the server and report back to the community by notification in the server.
Posted from our blog with SteemPress : http://inkubatorcommunity.com/charter-and-bylaws/
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