General Position Responsibilities

**Please note that these are generalities, not requirements

  • Keeps minutes of cabinet and house meetings.
  • Posts and distributes meeting minutes to house members (usually within 24 hours of the meetings).
  • Is responsible for all correspondence between the house and outside entities.
  • Keeps track of attendance at house meetings and events.
  • Is responsible for balloting during elections and votes.
  • Maintains a house e-mail list and web page.
  • Produces and distributes a house newsletter

A House Secretary should know:

  1. How to write and format minutes.
  2. The roster of house residents (for attendance purposes).
  3. The house constitution and by-laws.
  4. The Department of Residence posting policy.

Secretary FAQs:

How should I format the minutes?

There are many ways to format minutes.

  • More structured minutes follow the agenda exactly and report on each item that was discussed.
  • Less structured minutes include only officer reports, old business, and new business.
  • Loosely structured minutes report only the main points from the meeting (often in bullets).

Good minutes are:

  • Concise – there’s no need to record every word that was said. Summarize the main points.
  • Easy to read – use a good font, as well as bullets or numbers to make it flow well.
  • More structured minutes follow the agenda exactly and report on each item that was discussed.

Use boldfaced or italicized words to indicate that a task needs to be done, or follow-up is necessary.

An effective way to format the minutes and keep them brief is to use two headings: “decisions made” and “tasks that need to be accomplished.”

Get creative with the minutes. Use colored paper, pictures, different fonts, etc. Make them fun and interesting to read.  Keep a clean copy for house records.

What are some effective methods of distributing the minutes?

  • A great place to post things is in the bathroom. If your house has community bathrooms, put them in every stall, .
  • Make copies for each room.
  • Set up an e-mail distribution list and send them out electronically