About the Texas Archeological Society

TAS Committees

Standing Committees

Unless otherwise specified, all committee and chair appointments are made by the President with the approval of the Board of Directors.  Ad hoc committees shall be appointed by the President and approved by the Board as deemed necessary to carry on the work of the Society.  The chair of each committee shall designate one of its members to provide content to the Internet Committee.

The Academy Committee

Academies may be conducted when practical to train members of the Society in disciplined archeological techniques and in complementary areas of study.

The Academy Committee shall be composed of six members.  Two members shall be appointed annually by the President, with approval of the Board of Directors, to serve terms of three years.  Advisors, ex officio members of the committee, may be appointed to one-year terms as needed to assist the Committee in its duties.

The duties of the Academy Committee, subject to approval of the Board of Directors, shall be to direct the development of new training sessions, and to organize and assist in the implementation of the Academies, including the development and updating of a procedures manual.  The Committee shall supervise any Academy workshops with a field component through the completion of reporting and curation until the terms of the archeologist’s contract have expired, or sooner if approved by the Executive Committee, and shall oversee the acquisition and maintenance of Society properties pertaining to Academy operations.

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The Annual Meeting Committee

The Annual Meeting Committee shall assist local arrangements coordinators to organize, publicize, and produce the meeting, and shall act as an interface between that group and the Board of Directors. The Committee shall consist of five members: the President-Elect, who shall serve as chair, the Immediate Past President, and three appointees, with one member appointed each year for a term of three years.

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The Awards Committee

The Awards Committee shall recommend nominees to receive acknowledgment of meritorious service to Texas archeology and/or the Society.  The nominees shall be approved by the Executive Committee.  The Committee shall be composed of three members, with one member appointed each year for a term of three years.

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The Budget Committee

The Budget Committee shall prepare a budget for the next fiscal year for approval by the membership at the Annual Meeting. The Committee shall be composed of the President-Elect, the Treasurer, the Treasurer-Elect in such years as the office is filled, and two members, with one member being appointed each year for a term of two years.

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The Donors’ Fund Trustees

The Donors' Fund shall be a permanent fund, the income from which shall be used by the Board of Directors of the Society to promote and expedite research and publication of special reports.

The Donors' Fund shall be managed and administered by six trustees.  Two Trustees shall be appointed annually by the President, with the approval of the Board of Directors, for terms of three years.  The Trustees shall elect their chair with approval by the Board of Directors.

The Trustees shall review requests for funding and make recommendations to the Board of Directors for approval. The grants for funding shall be issued from the revenues of interest accrued on the Donors' Fund.

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The Education Committee

The Education Committee shall promote archeological education and develop educational projects.  The Committee shall consist of six members, with two members appointed each year for terms of three years.

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The Ethics Committee

The Executive Committee shall serve as an Ethics Committee and shall be responsible for upholding the ethical standards of the Society by making recommendations to the Board of Directors for appropriate action.

The Executive Committee, acting as the Ethics Committee, shall establish and amend guidelines for the disposition of complaints, subject to approval of the Board of Directors.

A member may be expelled from the Society upon vote of the Board of Directors for violation of the terms and conditions of any Federal or State antiquities laws or regulations, as they exist or shall be hereafter amended or enacted; for the practice of buying and selling artifacts for commercial purposes, for the disregard of proper archeological field techniques, or for the willful destruction or distortion of archeological data.

If a complaint is filed alleging a violation under the section above, it shall be processed in accordance with the Ethics Committee Guidelines for Disposition of Complaints and referred to the Board of Directors for final action.

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The Field School Committee

A Field School may be conducted when practical to train members of the Society in disciplined archeological techniques.

The Field School Committee shall be composed of six members.  Two members shall be appointed annually by the President, with approval of the Board of Directors, to serve terms of three years.

The duties of the Field School Committee, subject to approval of the Board of Directors, shall be to solicit, investigate, and recommend potential field school projects; to supervise the field schools and completion of reporting and curation until the terms of the archeologist’s contract have expired, or sooner if approved by the Executive Committee; and to oversee the acquisition and maintenance of Society properties pertaining to Field School operations.

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The Fiscal Overview Committee

The Fiscal Overview Committee shall examine the financial records of the Society except in a Leap Year (in accordance with Article II, Section 5).  The Committee shall be composed of three members appointed for terms of one year, with no member currently serving as a member of the Board of Directors.

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The Human Remains Committee

The Human Remains Committee shall advise the Board of Directors in matters relating to the handling of human remains and associated materials which are encountered in Society activities.  The Committee shall be composed of three members, with one member being appointed each year for a term of three years.  Duties of the committee will include monitoring the Society's field activities, considering the disposition of remains and associated materials which are encountered, negotiating with interested parties (agencies, landowners, appropriate ethnic groups), keeping abreast of pertinent laws, and reporting findings and information to the Board of Directors.

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The Internet Committee

The Internet Committee shall be responsible for the Society’s Internet entities.  The Board will approve the creation and implementation of domains and/or electronic discussion lists and Internet partnerships, as well as issues of substantive policy or content for these entities.  The Committee shall see to the design, general content, and upkeep of the Society’s website(s) and maintenance of its electronic discussion list(s).  The Committee shall be composed of the President-Elect, the Webmaster, the Listowner, and four additional members, with two appointed each year for terms of two years.  The Webmaster and Listowner (who may be either members or employees of the Society) are appointed annually by the President with the approval of the Board.  The chair shall be a member of the Publications Policy Committee.

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The Merchandising Committee

The Merchandising Committee shall be responsible for overseeing the production and marketing of items that feature and promote Texas archeology and the Texas Archeological Society.  The Committee is also responsible for maintaining stock inventory and assisting with the sale of Society publications.  The Committee shall consist of six members, with one appointed each year for a term of three years.

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Multicultural Programs Committee

This committee oversees the raising of funds for and administration of the scholarship programs offered by the Society.  The Multicultural Committee shall strive to increase the diversity of persons who participate in activities of the Society, and to promote a more inclusive understanding of the heritage of Texas.  The committee shall include Native American Scholarship, Collegiate Scholarship, and Diversity Program subcommittees, and other subcommittees appointed at the discretion of the President.  Each subcommittee will have a chair and at least two members, appointed annually.

The chairs of the subcommittees shall comprise the Multicultural Committee, and one of them will be appointed to serve as Multicultural Committee Chair.

The Committee shall extend scholarship invitations for Field School, the Archeology Academy, the Annual Meeting, and other activities to individuals from groups that are underrepresented in the Society, under advisement of the Executive Committee and within the limits of donated funds.

The Committee shall establish guidelines to ensure continuity in the operation of scholarships and other programs.

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The Nominating Committee

The Nominating Committee shall submit at least one name for each office to be filled.  At the direction of the Board, the Nominating Committee will add specified officer-elect position(s) to its regular slate of nominees.  The report of the Nominating Committee shall be included in the notice for the Annual Meeting and shall be reported to the membership at the meeting.  Nominations from the floor shall be called for.

a. All nominees for offices of the Society shall be members in good standing.

b. No name shall be placed in nomination without consent of the nominee to serve if elected.

The Nominating Committee Chair shall be elected by the Society at the Annual Meeting.  The President shall appoint two additional members of the committee, at least one of whom is not presently serving as an officer of the Society.  Members of the Committee shall serve a term of one year and shall not be eligible to serve again on this committee until the expiration of one full year following their term in this office.

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The Public Outreach and Membership Committee

In accordance with the goals of the Society, the Public Outreach and Membership Committee shall work with the Regional Directors to promote TAS in their regions and shall seek to increase membership through publicity of the Society's activities.  The committee shall be composed of six members, two being appointed each year for terms of three years.

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The Publications Policy Committee

The Publications Policy Committee shall provide advice and counsel on matters of policy on all Society publications.  The Committee shall be composed of the Publications Editor, Publications Editor-Elect in such years as the office is filled, Newsletter Editor, Newsletter Editor-Elect in such years as the office is filled, the chair of the Internet Committee, and the remainder of the Executive Committee, with the Publications Editor serving as chair and the Newsletter Editor serving as vice-chair.

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The Reports and Curation Committee

The Reports and Curation Committee shall be responsible for assembling society history, recruiting authors, and arranging contracts for the completion of Field School reports from expired contracts.  The Committee shall gather materials relating to the history of the TAS and seek their placement in proper facilities.  In order to follow the progress of current field activities, a representative of this committee shall act as an advisor to the Field School Committee when initial field school contracts are considered, as well as to the Rock Art Committee during the planning, implementation, and completion of its projects.  The Reports and Curation Committee shall accept the responsibility for current work after the terms of the archeologist’s contract have expired, or the project director’s responsibilities have been relinquished, or at any time if approved by the Executive Committee.  The Committee shall see that collections (records, artifacts, special samples, etc.) from all Society field activities, including but not limited to field school and rock art recording projects, are properly curated and that access to these collections is assured.  The Committee shall consist of six members, with two appointed each year for terms of three years.

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The Rock Art Committee

A Rock Art recording project may be conducted when practical to compile detailed documentation of Texas rock art sites and to train members of the Society in disciplined rock art recording techniques.  The Rock Art Committee shall be composed of six members.  Two members shall be appointed annually by the President, with approval of the Board of Directors, to serve terms of three years.

The duties of the Rock Art Committee, subject to approval of the Board of Directors, shall be to solicit, investigate, and recommend potential rock art recording projects; to supervise these projects through the completion of reporting and curation (as defined by the Executive Committee), and to oversee the acquisition and maintenance of Society properties pertaining to rock art recording operations.

The recommended curatorial facility for original records compiled by the Rock Art Committee will be the Texas Archeological Research Laboratory of The University of Texas at Austin, with copies provided to the landowner upon request.

Ad Hoc Committees

Bylaws

Field School Review

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Special Appointees

The Antiquities Advisory Board Representative

The Antiquities Advisory Board Representative shall be appointed by the President and nominated by the TAS Board in consultation with the Texas Historical Commission (THC).  Upon acceptance by THC, the nominee will be endorsed by the Board.

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The Texas Archeology Month Liaison

The Texas Archeology Month Liaison shall assist in and report on the work undertaken by the Society and its partners, the Texas Historical Commission and the Council of Texas Archeologists, in promoting the public awareness of archeology through an annual series of events.

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The Texas Archeological Stewardship Network (TASN) Liaison

The Texas Archeological Stewardship Network (TASN) Liaison shall report on the Texas Historical Commission's TASN program.