COUNTY VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Volunteers who can contribute their time to do research at libraries, to do lookups, or to transcribe documents, are always welcome, as well as persons desiring to become County Coordinators or Assistant County Coordinators. Please contact the State Coordinator if you would like to volunteer.
NEW MEXICO VOLUNTEER GUIDELINES
CODE OF CONDUCT
July 2007 We, the NMGenWeb Project volunteers, adhere to a strict code of conduct in our dealings with the public and with each other. We refrain from using any profanity on our web pages, in our emails, or on any list we may be on. We promote positive interaction with our researchers, leaders, and fellow coordinators. We do not use derogatory statements at any time. If we have a problem with anyone, we try to be as polite as possible, whether dealing with the public or with another volunteer. Whenever we have problems that cannot be resolved, we go to the SC or ASC for assistance. This is who we are, and who we intend to keep being!
COUNTY SITES
2002 All County Coordinators will abide by the USGenWeb Bylaws (see below). These By-laws also explain the USGenWeb's request for inclusion of certain links and logos on all county and state sites. It is the responsibility of the SC and each CC to place these links and logos on their state and county sites. Only two logos are allowed on New Mexico Counties. They are the USGenWeb logo and the NMGenWeb logo.
2006 All County Coordinators are asked to check in on the State List at the beginning of each month. If a County Coordinator does not check in over a period of three (3) months the County will be placed for adoption.
2006 All County Coordinators are required to display at least a first name and an email address on their pages so that researchers may contact them.
ELECTIONS
2003 It is the responsibility of the NMGenWeb State Coordinator to call an election for any reason concerning issues that need to be resolved by the NMGenWeb organization of CCs. No one except the NM SC or their appointed representative can call an election for the NMGenWeb Project State organization. It is in the best interest of the NMGenWeb Project to handle all elections concerning NMGenWeb business within the state organization of NM CCs.
In the event there is no NMGenWeb SC or Assistant State Coordinator to call an election a temporary acting NM SC can be appointed from the ranks of the NMGenWeb CCs to handle an election by a majority approval of the NM CCs.
The NM SC will: call the election, place a call for volunteers for committees and candidates or propositions, establish fair deadlines to answer the call, and voting periods.
The NM Election Committee will: post voting instructions when needed.
The NM SC will: announce the election results in a timely manner.
NMGenWeb Election Committee Instructions
NMGenWeb county coordinators (CC), Assistant State Coordinators (ASC) and the State Coordinator (SC) are reminded that there are By-laws in place on the National site.
The USGenWeb By-laws also provide guidelines governing state elections. The following election instructions are approved by the NMGenWeb Election Committee for this first NMGenWeb election for the position of State Coordinator. These election committee instructions will be posted on the state site for future elections. The next committee will revise as necessary.
(1) The NM SC shall be elected to a two-year term.
(2) A majority of those NM CCs voting shall elect. "Majority" will be determined by the number of CCs voting in the election during the specified voting period (e.g., if 15 votes are received, then 8 will be considered majority). In the event of a tie, the Acting State Coordinator will vote and select the new SC.
(3) All NM CCs currently listed on the NMGenWeb list of county sites shall be eligible to vote. Look-up volunteers and transcribers are not eligible to vote in this election.
(4) A plurality vote is the largest number of votes to be given any candidate or proposition when three or more choices are possible; the candidate or proposition receiving the highest number of votes has a plurality. A plurality that is not a majority never chooses a proposition or elects anyone to office. If there is a plurality vote without a majority vote there will be a runoff between the candidates receiving the two highest vote counts. Run off elections should be completed in 72 hours after polls close.
USGenWeb Bylaws
ARTICLE II. PURPOSE
Section 1. The USGenWeb Project is an organized group of volunteers working to create an online center for genealogical research by linking every county in the United States. The purpose of this organization shall be to gather genealogical and historical information for free online access by researchers
Section 2. This purpose shall be accomplished by presenting websites which shall be central repositories of historical and genealogical research data, donated either by the website coordinator or other contributors. In presenting this information, the foundation of the organization shall be at the local websites (county, township, parish, town, etc.) which shall be linked to the state websites which shall be linked to the national website. The USGenWeb Project shall also provide a "digital library" called The USGenWeb Project Archives.
ARTICLE IV. MEMBERSHIP
Section 1. The only requirement for membership in The USGenWeb Project is a desire to assist in gathering and disseminating genealogical and historical information for free online access by researchers.
ARTICLE IX. GUIDELINES/STANDARDS FOR WEBSITES/MEMBERS
Section 1. All websites shall include prominent display of The USGenWeb Project logo on the home page. (You may find them here: USGenWeb logos ) A state project logo may be required depending on the guidelines/standards in effect for that state. (The NM Official logo can be found on the NM State page).
Solicitation of funds for personal gain is inappropriate. This is defined as the direct appeal on the home page of any of the websites comprising The USGenWeb Project for funding to do research, to pay for server space, to do look-ups, etc. A website may, however, acknowledge any entities who may host their website (i.e., provide server space at no cost) or may include a link to a coordinator's personal page on which they offer research services for reimbursement. The acknowledgement may include a link to the hosting entity's website. A website may list research materials and/or services which may be for sale/hire, either by the coordinator, a genealogy society, or others. Such a listing shall not be on the main web page for the site, but may be linked from the main web page. It may be appropriate to include a disclaimer that the coordinator and The USGenWeb Project do not guarantee the contents of such research materials and/or the expertise of any professional researchers.
ARTICLE X. COPYRIGHT
Section 1. In The USGenWeb Project, copyright of websites resides solely with the creator of the web page(s). Their inclusion as part of The USGenWeb Project does not give any irrevocable right, implied or otherwise, to The USGenWeb Project to permanently use the material.
ARTICLE XI. LOCAL PROJECTS
Section 1. Each state organization shall provide local websites which reflect whatever divisional structure is appropriate for that state.
Section 2. Each local project shall have a Local Coordinator who is appointed according to whatever rules/guidelines are appropriate for their state. All Local Coordinators shall be subscribed to the state mailing list.
Section 3. The local website shall also include a direct link to the state project, an easily accessible area devoted to researcher's queries, and any additional requirements specified by the state organization.
Section 4. If a Local Coordinator can no longer perform their duties for any reason, those sections of the website submitted or donated by contributors other than the website coordinator, shall remain with the website, unless the submitter(s)/contributor(s) indicates otherwise.
ARTICLE XII. STATE PROJECTS
Section 1. Each state shall have a State Coordinator who manages the state website and oversees the state project. In addition, each state shall have an Assistant State Coordinator or other support team in place that can take charge in case the State Coordinator becomes unavailable for a period of 30 days, unless there are extenuating circumstances.
Section 2. The state website shall include direct links to the county pages, The USGenWeb Project national website, The USGenWeb Project Archives (Digital Library) at both their own state and the national levels, The USGenWeb Project's Guidelines/Standards for county websites (which includes a link to the Official Project Name/Logo page), The USGenWeb Project Copyright Information page, and the WorldGenWeb Project.
Section 3. It shall be the responsibility of each state organization to ensure that the state project is in compliance with the stated bylaws of The USGenWeb Project.
Section 4. State Coordinators shall remain subscribed to the State Coordinators mailing list and maintain a current mailing list of all local-level coordinators. State Coordinators shall provide their name, postal address, and phone number to the National Coordinator to be held in strictest confidence and only used in the case of an emergency.
Section 5. State projects are empowered to develop/adopt any additional rules/bylaws and guidelines, as appropriate, for their state so long as they do not conflict with these bylaws. State projects shall be highly encouraged to develop and adopt rules/bylaws that cover grievance procedures within the state
Section 6. It shall be the responsibility of each state project to periodically review local-level project websites to ensure compliance with The USGenWeb Project/XXGenWeb Project established guidelines/standards.
Section 7. The state project shall have the responsibility to remove any links to websites which fail to meet The USGenWeb Project/XXGenWeb Project established guidelines/standards.
Section 8. State Coordinators shall be elected to those positions by the local-level coordinators within the state. Those State Coordinators and Assistant State Coordinators in place at the time these bylaws are adopted shall be exempt from election procedures, unless he/she/they are removed, resign, or are unable to perform their duties.
Section 9. State Coordinators and Assistant State Coordinators are subject to possible removal by a 2/3 vote of the Advisory Board and a 2/3 vote of the Local Coordinators within the state. A quorum of 75% of the Local Coordinators shall participate in order for the vote to be binding.
Section 10. If a State Coordinator is unable to perform his/her duties, the Assistant State Coordinator, or other support team, shall serve until an election can take place within the state. In the case of state projects with more than one Assistant State Coordinator, they shall choose one among themselves to serve in the interim.
XV. PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY
The USGenWeb Project shall be governed by accepted parliamentary procedure, except in those cases where such procedure conflicts with the existing bylaws of The USGenWeb Project.
