Quinte Educational Museum & Archives
Policy - Governance
Board Governance
Preamble Quinte Educational Museum and Archives (QEMA) is an independent,
non-sectarian, incorporated, not-for-profit organization governed by a
Board of no less than ten members. The Board is responsible for the
conduct of QEMA and its affairs. The Board is vested with the powers
by the Quinte Educational Museum and Archives Constitution (rev.
Nov. 9, 2003) and is subject to the provision of the Corporations Act and
the Directors Act.
The Board of Directors, as the governing authority for QEMA, is
responsible for the institution, its policies, its operational continuity and
well-being, and the various assets which it holds in trust for the people
of Ontario to whom it is ultimately accountable.
Governance policies will guide directors, employees, volunteers and
others affiliated with QEMA who are responsible for any aspect of
museum operation, management, or governance.
Museums and their employees and volunteers have duties,
responsibilities, and opportunities; from time to time, they encounter
ethical dilemmas and conflicts which must be resolved, considering both
the needs of the institution and the broader public interest. In this regard,
QEMA will be guided by the Canadian Museums Association's Ethics
Guidelines (1999).
Policy
Principles of
Governance The Board will:
Provide strategic leadership.
Set future goals.
Emphasize outward vision.
Encourage diversity of viewpoints.
Be proactive.
Provide links between QEMA and its stakeholders.
The Board recognizes the Canadian Museums Association's Ethics
Guidelines (1999) as the basis for QEMA's own ethics and other
operational policies.
Board
Responsibilities In this spirit the Board will:
Exercise the powers and duties vested in it by the Quinte Educational
Museum and Archives Constitution.
Set strategic priorities including broad curatorial and operational
priorities while focusing on intended long term impacts (i.e. Ends),
not on administrative or programming means of attaining these ends.
Ensure there are in place appropriate policies funding management's
practices and procedures in all areas of QEMA's operations.
Adopt annual and long-term business plans for QEMA, which cover all
QEMA collections, programs, and services.
Assure the ongoing viability of QEMA through ensuring the financial
support and resources necessary for QEMA to fulfill its mandate and
objectives.
Monitor QEMA's vision, mission, and corporate strategy and its
performance against policies and approved plans on a regular basis.
Evaluate the Director's performance in accomplishing the proper
conduct of QEMA's affairs.
Maintain an awareness of social and economic factors affecting the
communities served by QEMA.
Conduct active and enthusiastic advocacy of QEMA's behalf.
Assess its own effectiveness in striving to govern with excellence and
continually improve as a Board.
Conduct of
Board of Directors
Directors have fiduciary responsibilities in law. They must always prefer
QEMA's best interests to any other interests that a director may also have
or represent. Directors will observer the following Code of Conduct.
They will:
Demonstrate a genuine interest in QEMA and maintain high ethical
standards.
Distinguish clearly between Board and employee and/or volunteer roles
and refrain from any appearance or interference with institutional
operations.
Be willing to suppress differences of temperament and opinion in the
broader interests of effective governance.
Support Board decisions and policies outside of the boardroom.
Avoid, wherever possible, conflicts of interest and perceptions of
conflicts of interest.
Declare immediately any conflict of interest, either business or personal,
to the Chair, or designate, and have it officially recorded and
thereafter to refrain from participating in further discussion of the
matter.
Refrain from divulging any confidential information obtained as a
trustee unless legally required to do so.
Abstain from using information obtained as a trustee for the advantage
of other than QEMA.
Avoid any conduct of private or personal services with QEMA;
and not use their position to obtain for themselves, family members
or close associates, employment or preferment within QEMA and
resign from the Board prior to making application for an employee
position at QEMA.
Direct any request requiring a material amount of employee time to the
Director, who may reasonably refuse a request with a rationale for so
doing.
Chair's Role The Chair will:
Ensure that the Board operates in a manner consistent with its policies.
Represent the Board to outside parties.
Be the only official spokesperson for the Board, other than in
specifically authorized instances.
Mandate The mandate of QEMA includes:
The collection and exhibition of objects, documents, and books of any
kind to illustrate and make known to the public the natural history
of Quinte, Ontario, Canada, and the World.
The collection and exhibition of objects, documents, and books of any
kind to illustrate and make known to the public the history of
education; and
The promotion of education, teaching, research, and publication in any
or all fields referred to above.
Vision QEMA will inspire wonder and build understanding of the history and
evolution of education within early Canada.
Mission QEMA is dedicated to researching, archiving, and exhibiting written,
recorded, printed, and pictorial materials or any artifacts which help to
illustrate the development of education in the Quinte Area, the
province of Ontario and Canada.
QEMA exists to:
Preserve and understand the history of Education in Prince Edward
County and, by doing so, promote the understanding of the evolution
of education in the Province of Ontario.
Collect and preserve archival materials which illustrate the growth and
development of education in the County of Prince Edward and
related material from the Province of Ontario, with a focus from the
earliest days to the transition from the one room school to the central
schools.
Arrange and describe these materials to archival principles and
make them accessible to the general public on a regular basis,
unless access is restricted by legal requirements.
Provide adequate and appropriate conditions for the storage, protection,
and preservation of archival material.
Provide regular reference services to individuals, organizations, the
municipal government, or other groups interested in the activities
and holdings of the Archives.
Provide educational and outreach programming whenever possible to
increase public awareness and appreciation of the history and
development of education.
Values QEMA's values its key assets including its collections, its people, and its
interaction within the community.
QEMA's core values are:
Life-long discovery and learning using its research, collections,
and programs.
Respect for people, visitors, employees, volunteers, and partners.
Effective communication, innovation, and action.
To exceed the reach of QEMA's research, collections and education
programs to a diverse audience.
To use the highest ethical standards in all aspects of museum operations,
including human resource management, and to have policies which
are understandable, meaningful, and consistently and fairly applied.
To produce surpluses to fund operations and aspirations as defined in
business plans, while increasing the proportion of self-generated
revenues each year.
To raise the resources need, together with QEMA's Board of Directors,
to fulfill its strategic objectives.
Work
Environment
Principles QEMA embraces a working environment that recognizes individual
integrity, commitment, reliability, initiative, and co-operation. QEMA
values teamwork in the achievement of its Mandate and will strive for
excellence in its endeavors.
In furtherance of creating such an environment, employees and
volunteers (including Directors) will:
Treat others with respect, tact, and courtesy, both within QEMA and
when representing QEMA.
Use their skills and experiences for the benefit of QEMA.
Keep confidential QEMA information, which involves a matter of trust.
Respect and protect QEMA property and facilities, including records,
and refrain from using them in a manner or for a purpose that may be
contrary to QEMA's interests.
In addition to these behaviours expected of all employees and volunteers,
managers have additional responsibilities that are implicit in the
organizational authority vested in them. Managers will adhere to the
Work Environment Principles set out for employees and volunteers and
in addition:
Use their knowledge, experience, abilities, and expertise to the best
advantage of QEMA in fulfilling its Mission and achieving its
objectives.
Strive to unite management, employees, and volunteers in a sense of
shared purpose.
Respect and foster the professionalism of employees and volunteers.
Acknowledge achievements, and provide guidance and encouragement
in a productive work environment.
Exercise reasonable and non-discriminatory human resource practices.
Ensure that all applicable policies are communicated effectively, and
adhered to in daily operations.
Ensure that QEMA's individual employees and volunteers grow and
develop professionally in a manger consistent with states Values and
Work Environment Principles.
Use resources effectively and make decisions that are financially and
ethically responsible in furtherance of QEMA's Mission and Objectives.
Strive to produce and foster the production of outstanding and
innovative programs, which exceed visitor expectations.
Date August 17, 2008
Approved
Amended August 18, 2008
Policy Review
Method Internal Report
Responsibility QEMA's Board of Directors
Minimum Frequency Annually
Last Updated on Sunday, 23 August 2009 02:5
© 2012 Quinte Educational Museum and Archives, Inc.