1

MEC JOB DESCRIPTIONS

and operations guide

Table of Contents

Accountant...... 2

Computer Technician...... 4

Door Canvasser...... 5

Door Canvasser, Lead...... 6

Editor...... 7

Email Operator...... 8

Membership Coordinator...... 10

Office Coordinator...... 12

Publicist...... Not written

Public Outreach Coordinator...... 17

Receptionist...... 20

Spokesperson...... 21

Web Page Coordinator...... Not written

Volunteer Coordinator...... Not written

Recent Changes by the board...... 22

1

Accountant

1

General responsibilities:

1.Deposits

2.Accounts Payable

3.Reporting

4.Payroll

5.Credit card deposits

6.EDD Reporting

7.Reconcile Statements

Requirements:

Qualifications:

Compensation:

$200/ month

Specific responsibilities:

Deposits

Fill out deposit slip. Keep yellow copy in book – take white copy to bank – attach yellow bank copy to white and file back at the MEC. Make deposits of all incoming cash and checks to Mendo Lake Credit Union checking account. The MEC also has two savings accounts with Mendo Lake Credit Union. Sub account 1 is periodically used to set aside funds for particular purposes. Sub account 2 is the Jackson State Forest Money Market Acct. The MEC is the fiscal sponsor for the Friends of Jackson State Forest. So far their only expenses have been a subscription to an online action alert called GetActive Software. We receive an invoice monthly which we pay from the MEC checking acct. The exact amount of the invoice is transferred from the JSF money market account into the MEC checking (be sure to post this deposit into the MEC checkbook.) A copy of the invoice is then filed in the JSF file folder.

The Savings Bank of Mendocino Checking acct is for the purpose of monthly payroll tax deposits. It is also the acct into which any credit card contributions are funneled.

Cloud Forest Institute (CFI) Requirements:

Grants and Tax deductible contributions are funneled through CFI the 501 (c) 3 Fiscal Sponsor. These funds should be used for any expenditures made by the MECEEF (Mendocino Environmental Center Environmental Education Fund). A copy of the receipt should be filed in the CFI file or given to the CFI.

Accounts Payable

Bills are usually paid in date sequence, meaning the oldest bills should be paid first. Two signatures are required for both checking accounts. File paid bills in file cabinet after listing date and check # on invoice.

Reporting

The previous months Profit and Loss Statements should be printed for each Board of Directors meeting. The Quick Books Pro 99 accounting software prints one out for you after you have entered all deposits and checks paid out.

The MEC’s Fiscal Year begins on April 1 and ends on March 31. Form 990 (Fed Non-profit Corp Income Tax Return) and Form I99 (State Non-profit Corp Income Tax Return) are due by August 15. (4 months and 15 days from the end of the fiscal year) Viewing previous years returns is helpful to understanding these forms.

Payroll

Use Quickbooks Pro, handwrite checks, print payroll stub. One copy for employee, one for office records. Payroll tax is due on the 15th of each month when there is payroll going on.

Credit card deposits

Two business days after transaction recorded, money should be available to transfer from SAU bank to MLCU checking for general office expenses (bills).

EDD Reporting

Form comes quarterly for completion by end of month following the quarter (end of)

Reconcile Statements

Monthly use Quickbooks Pro and enter bank service fees etc.

Computer Tech

1

General responsibilities:

  1. Fix computer related problems requested by the Office Coordinator
  2. Upgrade systems as requested by office Coordinator and Coordination Council if funding is required
  3. Assist in periodic backup of digital information from hard drives, external disks etc.

Requirements:

  1. Working relationship with Office Coordinator and sensitivity to impact on the work environment.

Qualifications:

  1. Skill and experience with Macs
  2. Ability to work well with others

Compensation:

This is a volunteer position. Stipends may be offered depending on availability of funds.

Specific responsibilities:

Meeting or exceeding the fundraising quota of $33/ hour in donations.

Refer to the MEC Guide for Canvassers

Door canvasser

1

General responsibilities:

  1. Participate in door to door outreach.
  2. Represent our organization in a professional and courteous manner.
  3. Organize our communities by building our membership and volunteer base.
  4. Collecting letters or creating community involvement on campaigns.
  5. Attendance and participation in scheduled training sessions

Requirements:

Must canvass a minimum of four hours within a two-week pay period.

Qualifications:

  • Must have either completed a door canvass training program or be able to demonstrate both canvassing ability and knowledge of the campaign issues.
  • Must have a background in the environmental movement or an active interest in learning.

Compensation:

40% of funds raised by the canvasser are kept in a fund that pays them $8.50/ hour. Door Canvassers work for 2.2 - 4.4 hours a day as they choose which includes 10 minutes of record keeping per 1 hour of canvassing; a paid hour extra per regular canvass day may be added by the PO Coordinator for travel time when canvassing distant areas.

Activist Hours

When the fund is over $100, the amount over is called Activist Hours. Activist Hours pay the Canvasser at $8.50/ hour for a variety of MEC work that is determined by the Canvasser with approval from the PO Coordinator and the Coordination Council. This work could be canvassing poor areas where it would not be normally possible to make quota, or it could be used for MEC work other than canvassing. A door canvasser’s buffer is available to the canvasser as Activist Hours upon notice of voluntary termination of employment or at the end of a door canvass project.

Specific responsibilities:

  • Meeting or exceeding the fundraising quota of $33/ hour.
  • Refer to the MEC Guide for Canvassers

Lead Door Canvasser

General responsibilities:

  1. Drawing turfs, coordinating canvassers and record keeping.
  2. Train Canvassers

Requirements:

  1. Must be available from 3:00 PM to 9:00 PM on scheduled days.
  2. Must be meeting or exceeding the fundraising quota of $100.00/ day.
  3. Must be punctual and dependable.

Qualifications:

  1. Experience as a political canvasser.
  2. Must have completed the field coordinator training or be able to demonstrate an ability to draw turfs and use the record keeping system.

Specific responsibilities:

Refer to the MEC Canvasser Trainer Guide

Newsletter Editor

The Newsletter editor coordinates and oversees the writing, editing, design and layout of the quarterly MEC Newsletter. Approximately two months before publication, the editor calls a meeting of the Newsletter collective to decide on a theme for the issue, to develop a list of articles and writers, and to set a production schedule. This information subsequently is summarized in a memo to all collective members, as well as anyone else involved.

The editor confirms articles and informs contributors of deadlines, as well as guidelines for submitting articles. The editor maintains contact with writers to make sure deadlines are met.

The editor develops a rough mock-up of the issue, to assign space and ascertain length.

The editor arranges another collective meeting immediately following the deadline for articles. At this meeting, collective members read and edit submitted articles. Illustration ideas are discussed (including cover), and the collective graphics person (Alana) is informed of needs. If necessary, a further meeting is scheduled, and/or the editor passes copies of late articles on to individual collective members.

The editor does the final editing and proofreading of all articles.

Approximately two weeks before printing, the editor contacts the printer to schedule a print date.

The Newsletter works with the graphic designer (Bob) for graphics production approximately two weeks before printing.

In the final week before printing, the editor schedules another collective meeting to review the Newsletter layout, read final content, and finalize the cover.

The editor finishes final corrections.

The editor arranges delivery of camera-ready copy to the printer, and arranges for the pickup of the printed Newsletters.

Email Operator

Computer Tech

1

General responsibilities:

  1. Sorting and transferring the emails
  2. Printing some email
  3. Send form letters
  4. Archive outdated email folders

Requirements:

  1. Two hours of work per week
  2. Basic knowledge of the Mac computer

Qualifications:

  1. Trusted by the staff or board

Compensation:

This is a volunteer position. Stipends may be offered depending on availability of funds.

Specific responsibilities:

To begin

  1. Turn on the computer called Buddha
  2. Double click “Check Email” button on Launcher
  3. Double Click “Check MEC Mail” icon
  4. Go to the file menu and choose “check mail”
  5. If you have downloaded new mail, a window will prompt you that you have new mail. When you click “OK” then the new mail window will appear listing all the new mail.
  6. While holding down the command key, click on each piece of bulk junk mail (sex site ads, loans, vacations etc.) When all junk mail is highlighted, choose “trash under the “transfer” menu to delete these items. (Do not delete any email sent specifically to the MEC such as hate mail, scams, or mail from lonely or crazy people, they have their own file.)
  7. Starting at the top of the new mail window start sorting the new mail into folders.

I.Sorting and transferring the emails

  1. First identify the subject of the first piece of email. Match its subject to the existing subjects in the MEC’s Eudora email filing system. You can find out the subject either from the subject heading on the email (ex. Subject heading is “nukes – radiation exposure standards” would be the “nuclear” folder inside of the “environment” folder) or by opening the email and scanning its contents.
  2. Transfer the email to its appropriate folder: click on the piece of mail and it will be highlighted. Choose the “transfer” menu and keep your finger on the mouse button. Without letting go choose the appropriate folder in the transfer menu, then choose the appropriate subfolder, if there is further subfolder, continue to choose the most applicable option. When the final destination folder is chosen let go of the mouse button. Now you have transferred that email from the new mail window to the MEC’s email filing system.
  3. To create a new folder during transfers, choose “new” under the “transfer menu” or under any of the subfolder menus. Name the folder when prompted and click “OK.” Now you have transferred the email a new folder or subfolder.

II.When and how to print an email

  • If the email is for a specific campaign and requires an action (a sign-on or request etc.) or seems important, print it and put it in the MEC spokesperson’s box. A list of current spokespersons is kept on a dry erase board next to Buddha.
  • If an email meets the criteria above yet a spokesperson is not available for that subject, print it (command P) and put it on the Coordinators Council agenda in the copy room. Write the subject on the agenda along with “see attach” and put the print on the clipboard behind the agenda.

III.When to how send a form letter

  1. If the email is an information request, send a form letter to them stating that the MEC does not answer emailed information requests. They may instead call during regular hours or come into the office.
  2. Click to highlight the information request email, then choose “reply” under the “message menu.”
  3. Now open the form letter by choosing “form letter” in the “MEC” folder under the “mailbox” menu.
  4. If there is not a form letter in the “MEC” folder already, or it is there but outdated, make a new form letter. Choose “new” under the “message” menu. Write the letter and transfer it to the “form letter” folder in the “MEC folder”

IV.To archive an outdated folder

  • Never delete old emails! When a subfolder becomes outdated, transfer it to the archive. The archive filing system is a mirror of the regular email filing system.
  • Press the “check email” button on the launcher. Open the email archive by clicking the “email archive” icon in the window that appears. Now click on the “MEC email account” to open the email file system. Find obsolete subfolders in the file and drag and drop them into the same place in the archive.
  • Always date subfolders when they are created to assist users looking through the email or email archive file systems.

Membership Coordinator

General Responsibilities

  1. Data entry
  2. Generate reports, stickers sets and Filemaker Pro files on schedule
  3. Filing

Requirements:

  1. Must be available for a minimum of 10 hours a week, flexible schedule
  2. Basic database and Macintosh skills

Compensation:

$10/ hour as an independent contractor

Specific Responsibilities

I. DATA ENTRY

The membership bag contains the following items

  1. White membership receipts or
  2. Membership forms
  3. MEC Mailing Lists
  4. Returned newsletters
  1. Regularly receive the contents of the membership bag (ask Office Coordinator for location). Bring your own folder; leave the membership bag at the MEC.
  2. Pick up the most recent copy of the MEC Database from the Office Coordinator.
  1. Enter all data (see FileMaker Pro MEC database instructions.)
  1. Destroy records.

II. GENERATE REPORTS AND STICKERS SETS ON SCHEDULE

The MEC Member Type Code is as follows:

VMember

VMMember, Gives monthly

VXExpired member

VXXExpired member ignored renewal

request for two months

LMEC Mailing List

VPPublication

  1. Generate the following sticker sets using the MEC Contact Schedule:
  • Newsletter sticker set: V and VP,
  • bulk mail sorted
  • Direct mail sticker set: VX and L,
  • bulk mail sorted if over 200 names
  • Purge postcard sticker set: VXX
  • MEC Alert! sticker set: V
  • Board Nomination sticker set: V
  • Board Election sticker set: V
  1. Using the Membership Report Schedule, generate the following reports:
  • Board Report: New, renewals, members, $ from new, $ from monthly givers, # expired
  • MEC Database Hard Copy: Name, address, current member type, renew date and last $ amount, highest $ amount sorted by renew date. Print onto legal size paper.
  • Member List for Door Canvassers: First and last name and street address sorted first by street then by last name.
  • Member List for Events and Misc. Outreach: First and last name and town sorted first by town and then by last name.
  1. Generate the following FileMaker Pro Files:
  1. Every time you update the MEC database, keep a digital copy with the date of the update in the file name, give a floppy or zip disk backup to the Office Coordinator

III.FILING

  1. Use Burn Trashcan to erase digital copies of the database on all digital media
  1. Use floppy and zip disks that are no older than a year for the MEC Database. Date all floppy and zip disks with the date of first use
  1. Destroy paper records from the membership bag as well as any obsolete hard copy reports or sticker sets by burning them in a wood stove.
  1. The MEC Database, either whole or in part, is to be considered confidential. Only the board may authorize use of the MEC Database for other than what is written in this job description

Office Coordinator

General Responsibilities:

  1. Coordinate office operations
  2. Mail processing
  3. Coordinate volunteers
  4. Receive contributions
  5. Monthly renewal requests
  6. Reception

Requirements:

  1. Able to work on multiple tasks
  2. Able to establish and maintain working relationships with a broad range of people
  3. Good written and verbal communication skills
  4. Knowledge of environmental and peace and justice issues
  5. Phone skills

Qualifications:

Experience with and interest in office work for the environment and peace and justice

Specific responsibilities:

8.Coordinate office operations

  1. Coordinate workers as needed
  • Get to know the MEC Policy and Procedure book
  • Suggest updates regarding this job description to the Coordinator Council.
  • Familiarize with the office itself
  • Expect people to come to you to learn the flow of information at the MEC; paper, electronic, verbal and other
  • Sometimes a radio interview or report is taking place over the phone lines of the MEC. Usually, for concentration, the interviewee/ reporter is sitting in one of the back rooms. At these times be especially quiet and guard their phone line against interruption’s.

Office Machines

  • Photocopier
  • Take copy counts for Xerox company when they call for them. Directions are pasted on the Xerox machine above the display
  • Contact Xerox to arrange a service call if copy quality is unacceptable. Service visits are free. Call again if the problem is not fixed. If things can’t be dealt with by local rep, call Lauren Pilgrim at 877-414-1289. The account number with Xerox is N9N079251.

B.Computers

  1. Contact the MEC computer tech if there is a problem
  2. Post signs on malfunctioning computers as needed
  3. Assist users to your ability

C.Computer printers

  • Contact Kim Cottom’s (in phone book) if laser copy quality is unacceptable. Get the printer to them and get a cost estimate, bring estimate to the attention of the Coordinator Council.
  • Change toner as needed.
  • Make sure to replace roller pad every time toner is changed in the Apple Laserwriter II. Otherwise the part will cost $150!
  1. Stereo
  • Be aware of the decibel level in the room when someone on is the phone, keep music at a volume that does not compete with phone use.
  1. TV/ VCR
  • Get tapes folks select from the database, make sure they rewind using remote, reshelve when they are finished.
  • Make sure people use the headphones during regular business hours.
  1. Fax Machine
  • Replace toner and paper as needed
  1. Maintain events calendar
  1. Seek out information on local and regional events of interest to the community
  2. Enter information on calendars on wall
  • Other group’s meetings
  • Board meetings
  • Coordination Council
  • Newsletter
  • Individual campaigns
  • Events
  • Actions/Protests
  • Benefits
  • Community functions

Erase and rewrite calendar on white board every two or three weeks