ASA Board of Directors

Purpose of the ASA Board

The ASA board of Directors serves several purposes, including:

1. To serve as the policy-making arm of ASA as directed by the ASA bylaws, except for those matters which the bylaws specify are under direct authority of society membership or are specifically designated responsibilities of stated ASA officers. The ASA Board of Directors establishes policies and revises them when deemed advisable.
2. To have, hold, and administer all property and funds of ASA, in conformity with the ASA Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws.
3. To engage the ASA Chief Executive Officer and other employees as needed. However, ASA does not directly employ personnel, but has an agreement with the Alliance of Crop, Soil, and Environmental Science Societies (ACSESS) to handle its operational activities on a cost-input basis.
4. To continually reassess the current operations and future role of ASA and of agronomy as a profession. This includes updating the society’s strategic plan regularly and monitoring the plan’s progress.
5. To meet to conduct society business. The presence of 50% of the voting members of the board shall constitute a quorum. Official action by the board is based on a majority vote. Agendas and board materials are emailed by the Director of Governance prior to the Board Meetings. Resources such as Bylaws, Strategic Plan, Rosters, and Board Minutes, etc. are posted at https://www.agronomy.org/about-society.

Fiscal Decisions: The ASA Board of Directors has a Budget and Finance Committee (B&F Committee) that reports financial results during board meetings. The Board of Directors approves the annual operating budget that is recommended by the B&F Committee (prepared in collaboration with headquarters staff), generally at CANVAS. If ASA receives special requests for funding not in the approved budget, the B&F Committee may review the request and make a recommendation for the board to approve the new funding requests.

Special Board Committees: Several subcommittees tackle particular tasks for the ASA Board of Directors. These committees include:

• ASA Organization, Policy, and Bylaws Committee
• ASA Budget and Finance Committee
• ASA Nominations Committee
• ASA Science Policy Committee
• Reinvest ASA Committee

Board Memberships and Responsibilities

Individuals serving on the ASA Board of Directors must have an active membership. The term of office for members of the board begins on January 1 and ends on December 31. The ASA Board of Directors includes the following members who serve for the terms indicated.

Executive Board Members: The ASA executive board members are the president, president-elect, and past president of ASA. the ASA President serves as the presiding officer of the board.

Section Board Members: These board members include one elected member representing each of the sections of ASA, each serving a three-year term. Section nominations committees prepare the slate of candidates. If a section board representative is unable to attend a board meeting, they may request that the section presiding chair or vice chair represent the section at the meeting and serve as a voting member.