In creating your program’s family advisory committee, you will need to develop the role of chairperson. A sample description is provided below. You can create your own to help recruit interested individuals
Tips
- You may want to appoint a temporary Chair in order the get the advisory committee up and running.
- Think about a rotating chair system to offer the leadership role to various leaders.
- Once you have your team working together and making progress, have it address the process for choosing a new chairperson.
- Set monthly individual meetings with the chairperson to stay connected and to help coach where needed.
Responsibilities
The role of the family advisory committee chairperson is to provide direction and to serve as a spokesperson for the committee. The chairperson must be a family member of a program participant who is motivated to improve the programs, policies, and procedures of our organization. This individual needs to be organized, computer literate, and a strong communicator in order to network with families, staff, and the community at large.
The duties of the chairperson include, but are not limited to:
- Keeping the committee informed on current needs of youth and families in the program and helping promote family engagement.
- Coordinating the planning and development of an agenda for each monthly family advisory committee meeting.
- Presiding at meetings, giving members the opportunity to express their opinions, giving advice, and making recommendations.
- Providing input, when appropriate, to our program’s leadership staff regarding the committee’s ongoing progress and recommendations.
- Serving as the spokesperson for the advisory committee in meetings with organizational leadership as necessary.
Appointing a representative to facilitate the meetings in the chair’s absence.
