1. YNPN National Congress
YNPN 3.0

2. Purpose
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 Create a body that represents the network
 Connect Chapters to National
 Connect Chapters to other Chapters
 Create a pipeline of national-level leaders

3. Congress Description
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 Decision-making body comprised of
representatives from Novice, Emerging and
Affiliate YNPN Chapters
 Meets to propose, discuss and, when
necessary, vote on issues related to the
network
 Has annual terms aligned with the calendar
year.

4. Membership
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 Every chapter sends one delegate
 Every delegate has one vote
 No term limits
 Delegates are expected to attend all meetings
and an orientation

5. Membership
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An ideal delegate is someone:
 Who knows what is happening throughout
chapter
 Who maintains good relationships with fellow
chapter leaders
 Who can make time commitment
 Who has some decision-making authority for
the chapter
 (i.e., former National Liaison, Chair, Ex-officio
board member or other active chapter
member).

6. Meetings
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 First meeting is an orientation in January
 Subsequent meetings held quarterly
 Open to all Congress representatives and
members of the YNPN National Board of
Directors
 Meeting times and dates set prior to the start
of the year

7. Leadership and Structure
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 Joint leadership from Chapters and National
 National appoints Liaison
 Congress votes a chair and vice chair
 Chair and Liaison set agendas, manage
business between meetings and maintain
roster of chapter delegates
 Nominations at orientation
 Can set committees/task forces as needed

8. Voting
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 Robert’s Rules apply for voting
 National Liaison oversees voting; does not
participate
 When necessary, Congress can vote via email
 Proposals for vote due 30 days before
meeting
 Proposals submitted later must vote via email
or next meeting
 Congress has discretion to update policies for
specific situations

9. Elections
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 Chapters may select delegate in any way they
see fit
 Delegates submit their name, chapter, email,
phone number and picture plus other contact
from chapter chair via a web form
 Delegate’s name, chapter and picture will be
featured on the YNPN National website

10. Transitions
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 Delegates expected to serve one year term
 If a delegate must resign, should send notice
to National Liaison
 Chapter has 30 days to replace delegate
 *It is most important that there are always
lines of communication between Congress
and every chapter*

11. Topics of Discussion
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Congress designed to discuss:
 Connection between National and Chapters
 Funding,
 Membership models,
 Board structure,
 Advocacy,
 Communication
 Partnership

12. Types of Decision-Making
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 Centralized: Congress helps define proposal; final
decision applies to the entire network, requires a
majority vote to move forward (eg: adopting
national website platform)
 Coordinated: Congress gives input on
recommendation for full network; chapters
encouraged to participate, but choose whether or
not to opt in (eg: promoting an advocacy imitative
distributed through another nonprofit)

13. Types of Decision-Making
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 Decentralized: Congress may discuss the option,
but all decisions remain with the local chapter (this
is the current default method for decision-making)

14. Examples of Decision-Making
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Topic Example Question Approach
Connection between What should be the legal relationship between Centralized
National and Chapters chapters and the national organization?
Funding How should national and chapters co-fundraise? Decentralized
Membership Models Should the network move to a central membership Collaborative
model?
Advocacy Should YNPN lead or sign on to an advocacy Collaborative
campaign?
Communication What is the policy for sharing information with all Collaborative
chapters’ members?
Partnership Should YNPN pursue a partnership with a specific Collaborative
organization?

15. Proposed Timeline
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 November 30, 2012: All feedback from chapters
due
 December 15, 2012: Final plan for Chapter
Congress submitted to chapters with schedule for
first year of meetings.
 January 15, 2012: All delegates submitted to
National Board Liaison
 January 2012: Orientation for Congress held and
first Chair and Vice Chair elected
 February 2012: First meeting of the YNPN National
Congress

16. Questions? Concerns?
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The lady you talk to:
Kim Caldwell
National Board Member and American
Revolution/Federalist Era Enthusiast
kimberelayne@yahoo.com