Section VII: Affiliates of Special Interest Councils

In accordance with Association policy, Special Interest Councils may establish affiliates wherever possible, to a maximum of ten. Such affiliates may be formed either on a regional or subject-area basis.

A. General Guidelines for the Establishment and Operation of Affiliates

1. A group of teachers may request the establishment of an affiliate by contacting the provincial executive of a Special Interest Council.
2. Affiliate councils should be considered in light of geographic conditions, the number of teachers in the area, educational needs of the region and the ability of the provincial council to sustain an affiliate.
3. Affiliate councils function under the direction of the particular council of which they are a part.
4. Core funding for affiliates will be provided by the provincial Special Interest Council. Budgets for affiliates must be submitted to the provincial council and grants will then be allocated on the basis of affiliate need and the provincial council’s ability to pay.
5. Affiliate councils shall maintain accurate and complete financial records, based upon accepted accounting procedures, and shall report such information to the provincial council executive on an annual basis using the Annual Provincial Registration and Budget Request form.
6. When hosting a provincial conference or forum on behalf of the provincial Special Interest Council, the affiliate conference committee must complete a financial report according to accepted accounting practices which must be submitted to the provincial treasurer within 30 days of the conference or forum.
7. In order to maintain status, affiliate councils must submit an annual report of affiliate activities, a viability profile and a membership list.
8. Whenever an affiliate dissolves, the affiliate executive must close out all bank accounts and forward any remaining funds to the appropriate provincial Special Interest Council.

B. Responsibilities of Special Interest Councils with Respect to Their Affiliates

The Special Interest Councils of the NLTA must communicate with their affiliates on a continuing basis. To help effect this liaison with the affiliate councils, the following directions are suggested. Provincial councils should:

1. Develop a means for systematically communicating with their Affiliates.
   This can be through a telephone call after a provincial council executive meeting, an exchange of minutes after meetings are conducted or a letter or email from the provincial council president that provides a synopsis of the main items discussed at SIC executive meetings. The communications officer of the provincial council executive should be directly responsible for seeing that affiliate presidents are informed of provincial council activities.
2. Inform affiliate presidents as to how their budgets are approved and allocated.
   Affiliate councils are provided a budget by the provincial Special Interest Council for the operation of each council. Some affiliate councils may need more than this amount to implement their programs, others may need less. It is desirable to fund the operation of councils on submitted programs; therefore, affiliates must submit an Annual Provincial Registration and Budget Request form.
3. Institute a reporting system for affiliates to keep the Special Interest Council executive informed.
   The provincial council may request copies of minutes of meetings or written monthly reports on activities or both. A regional round-up conference call may be sufficient. Provincial executives should be informed as to what their affiliate councils are doing. By October 15 of each year, each affiliate must submit a Viability Profile.
4. Provide a calendar of events to keep the affiliates apprised of the program activities of the provincial Special Interest Council.
   Affiliate executives should not be left guessing as to the activities engaged in by its provincial Special Interest Council. There may be occasions when the affiliates are able to support and broaden the work of the provincial executives.
5. Provide training for affiliate executives.
   The affiliate presidents should be knowledgeable of the NLTA’s policies for Special Interest Councils. Such training could follow the guidelines and procedures contained in this handbook.

C. Affiliate Council Responsibilities to Special Interest Council Executives

Two-way communication is critical. Affiliate councils function under the direction of the provincial council of which they are a part. As such, affiliates must:

1. Provide contact information of affiliate executive members to the provincial Special Interest Council as soon as possible after the executive has been formed and, annually, complete a Viability Profile.
2. Design an annual program of activities. The program should indicate how the affiliate is intending to inservice its membership and what its goals and objectives are for the year.
3. Complete an Annual Provincial Registration and Budget Request form.
4. Ensure effective communication by:

1. Ensuring minutes of meetings are regularly sent to the provincial council.
2. Providing information on professional learning activities for teachers and other activities of a professional nature to the provincial council well in advance of the activity.
3. Ensuring evaluation reports of professional learning activities are provided to the provincial council.
4. Ensuring copies of communications are sent to the provincial council.
5. Ensuring copies of all education projects, reports, submissions, etc.are sent to the provincial council.