ECFS Board Structure & Terms of Reference

Structure

The ECFS Board is to consist of:

  • President
  • Secretary
  • Honorary Treasurer
  • Five ordinary board members

A Vice-President will be elected by the Board from among its Members.

The board members shall represent different European countries and the various major disciplines of CF.

All Board members will be elected for a 3 year term, and may be elected for another 3 years (but no more than 2 consecutive terms of office).
A minimum of 3 years must elapse before a past Board member may be nominated again for a Board position.

The Executive Board consists of the President, Secretary and Honorary Treasurer.

Other Board Members

President Elect  
If not already a member of the Board:
4-06-06:  This member will become a member of the Board a year prior to taking over the Presidency in order to ensure a handover of tasks.

Past President
4-03: The immediate past President will be an ad hoc member (non-voting) of the Board for one year following the end of his/her presidential term.

 
Conference President/Conference Vice-President
The President/Vice President of the annual conference will become non-voting members of the Board and are elected for 2 years (1 year prior to the conference, and 1 year after the conference).

Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Cystic Fibrosis is a non-voting member of the Board and normally only asked to attend the summer Board Meeting to provide a report.

Basic Science Conference Chairperson is a non-voting member of the Board, and normally only asked to attend the summer Board Meeting to provide a report.

Special Project leaders may be asked to be a non-voting member of the Board and invited to attend meetings on an ad-hoc basis.

Terms of Reference

The ECFS President is

4-06-01: Responsible for the overall administration and control of the ECFS, and as such will call and chair Board meetings at regular intervals (minimum twice a year) and an Annual General Meeting. If there is equal voting in specific business matters, the President's vote is decisive. 

  • Elected for 3 years at the Annual General Assembly
  • Chairs regular Executive Board meetings (teleconferences) to oversee and execute the ongoing activities of the ECFS.
  • Chairs a Strategy Board meeting (normally held in conjunction with the North American CF Conference).
  • Keeps the ECFS Executive Board and Executive Director informed of all activities being proposed for ECFS coordination.
  • Reviews contracts and is authorised to sign them in coordination with one other Board Member.
  • Attend site inspections for future conference venues.
  • Meet with the Scientific Steering Committee and Executive Director (February) for the final review of abstracts to be included as Oral presentations at the following conference and the final selection of abstracts warranting a Young Investigator Award.
  • Attend (Open) the Basic Science Conference (April)
  • Attend the annual ECFS Conference (June) - Chairs Opening Ceremony, Annual General Assembly, Prize Giving events, and participates in events requiring the President.

Vice-President

Assists the President by chairing or attending meetings the President is unable to participate in.  Should the President be unable to continue in office, the Vice President will take over the presidency until an election can be held at the next Annual General Assembly.

Secretary

4-06-02:  Responsible for the preparation of the agenda and minutes for Board meetings & Annual General Meetings. The incumbent is also the point of contact for membership and annual awards.

  • The Secretary will be a member of the Executive Board.

Honorary Treasurer

4-06-03: Responsible for providing the Board and Annual General Assembly with up to date information on the Society’s financial status.

  • The ECFS office will augment this position by keeping the daily ECFS accounts and ensuring their authenticity via a professional accountant who will also provide an annual audit report.
  • The Honorary Treasurer will be a member of the Executive Board.

Board Members

4-06-05: Responsible for providing support and advice to the Board on areas of a specific nature of expertise.

  • Elected for 3 years at the Annual General Assembly
  • Required to attend the minimum two annual Board Meetings (one held in conjunction with the annual ECFS Conference (June) and a Winter Board Meeting. A third Board meeting, to discuss strategy, will normally be held in conjunction with the North American CF conference.
  • Be responsive to regular correspondence from the President/Executive Board/ECFS Office for decisions on ECFS issues.
  • Willing to assist in the selection of nominations for the Scientific Committee for annual conferences.
  • Be prepared to evaluate future conference venues (based on submissions from the ECFS Office).
  • Deputise for the President at meetings on request.

Executive Committee:

The Executive Committee is made up of the President, Secretary, and Honorary Treasurer.

Responsibilities: In accordance with the above individual terms of reference, they will participate in regular meetings (teleconferences) to discuss the ongoing activities of the ECFS and inform the Executive Director of decisions that require full Board decision. The minutes resulting from these meetings will be sent to the full board for comments and where indicated a vote on issues requiring the full boards participation. (Deadline with silence procedure will be adopted). The Executive Board will also, via the minutes, inform the ECFS webmaster on issues that should be added to the website.

4-09: In the absence of an Executive Director, the running of the everyday business of the Society will devolve to members of the Board Executive.

6-04: ECFS business commitments are bound by the signature of an executive Board member (President, Secretary or Treasurer) and the signature of one other Board member.

Future Conference President 

In conjunction with the choice of venue for a future conference, a Conference President (and as applicable a Vice President) is selected. For 1 year prior to the conference and 1 year following the conference, the Conference President is to report on progress and results at the Board Meetings.

Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Cystic Fibrosis

4-10: ECFS Journal:  The Board will appoint an editor of the journal on a four yearly basis. If the editor is not an elected member of the board, the editor will attend the Board meetings in a non-voting capacity.

Executive Director ​
This position (non-voting) is appointed by the ECFS Board and is responsible for the overall administration of the Society.