On 8/2/06, Julie Holcomb <[log in to unmask]> wrote: Hello Ms. Holcomb, I can appreciate your colleague's concern and they have every right (if not obligation) to be concerned. There are real and serious consequences to what by all indication appears to be a violation of fiduciary responsibility on the part of the board member. To begin with I strongly suggest your colleague review Marie Malero's seminal A Legal Primer on Managing Museum Collections (Second Edition, 1998). Start with pgs. 10-15 of Chapter 1 entitled "What is Required of (a museum's) Board Members". The cases brought against board members of other institutions that she describes sound eerily like something that might well occur in your colleague's institution. I appreciate that as a new director, your colleague may not (yet) be in a position to effectively persuade the board member that the current operating procedure is not good. Maybe the threat of lawsuit or criminal prosecution will (see Malero). At any rate, it would probably be prudent to consult legal authority. Their advice may carry the needed persuasion. Does the museum have a lawyer? Is it a fellow Board member? (This may or may not present problems.) Certainly the Board president or Chairperson must be apprised of the situation and kept in the loop. There are undoubtedly thousands of web based resources as well. Try the Center for Non-Profit Management. Also, look at museum board management/education/responsibilities information. Finally, when this problem is all solved (and it will be!) make board education and a board policy/handbook your next goal. Good luck and I wish you all the best. Sarah Sessions ____________________________________________ Sarah Sessions National Museum of the USAF (937) 255.5174 x376 [log in to unmask] I am posting this question for a colleague who is not on the list. My colleague is the new director of a museum which will be established by a private non-profit foundation. The foundation's checking account was opened by and continues to be controlled by a member of the board who donated the "seed money" for the foundation. The foundation's taxes are handled by the board member's wife and audits are completed by the board member's daughter. Even though the foundation has now hired an executive director, the board member is reluctant to relinquish control of the finances. Currently all invoices, etc. are submitted to the board member who cuts the checks. The board member is interested in seeking AAM accreditation at the appropriate time, but does not see any need to change current financial procedures until it is time to seek that accreditation. My colleague has searched the AAM web site without finding what he needs to convince the board member to relinquish sole control of the checkbook. Suggestions? Resources? Policy statements? Please send your responses to me and I'll forward them to my colleague. Thanks in advance. Julie Julie Holcomb, MLIS, CA Director of the Pearce Collections Museum/Navarro College Archivist Pearce Collections at Navarro College 3100 W. Collin St. Corsicana, Texas 75110 Phone: (903) 875-7438 ~ Fax: (903) 875-7593 E-mail: [log in to unmask] Internet: http://www.pearcecollections.us ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).