Purpose

The Recording Clerk of Yearly Meeting is responsible for preparing and distributing full and correct Record of Yearly Meeting proceedings, working under the oversight of the Clerk of the Yearly Meeting.

Appointment

The Recording Clerk of Yearly Meeting is appointed for a three-year term beginning at the rise of an annual session. Current practice is to appoint a person as needed to provide either a single Clerk or a shared or teamed effort of two Clerks when appropriate.

The Record of a Yearly Meeting

The Record of a yearly meeting’s proceedings includes minutes of the annual business session, attached reports presented to the annual session, epistles approved by the annual session, Memorial Minutes, and State of the Meeting reports from Monthly Meetings and Worship Groups. The Record and the Documents-in-Advance will comprise the formal description of the annual session. A complete copy of these materials should be made available to the Archivist. Past Records for recent annual sessions should also be posted on imym.org with the assistance of the Communications Assistant.

Responsibilities of the Recording Clerk

Assisting the Clerk of Yearly Meeting in conducting the business and plenary sessions of IMYM and, with the Clerk, keeping accurate minutes of all proceedings. Minutes prepared after gathering the sense of the meeting shall be read immediately, and if approved, so recorded.
Having at hand the minutes of the most recent previous annual business session and Representatives Committee Meeting.
Collecting and assembling the Record of the current yearly meeting which includes sending out requests to those who have not yet submitted the reports they gave at the annual meeting. Each request should include a deadline for returning the report or otherwise in the final record it would state “report not provided”. When all this is completed review the record with the Clerk, who will sign the final version.
Finalizing the Record of a yearly meeting as soon as possible and submitting it to the Communications Assistant for posting on imym.org. The Communications Assistant should send a message (usually by e-mail) to the Monthly Meetings, Worship Groups, Regional Meetings, and members of the Representatives Committee and Arrangements Committee informing them that the full Record is available on the web. It is expected that Meetings and individuals will be able to download and print the Record as needed.
Maintaining a file of pertinent records for the guidance of succeeding Recording Clerks.
Assisting the Historian-Archivist with maintaining original archival records of documents of fundamental importance originating from the yearly meeting.
Meeting with and/or communicating with the Recording Clerk-designate to transfer records and information.

Financial Arrangements

The Yearly Meeting pays the expenses of the Yearly Meeting Recording Clerk to the annual session as needed. (See the Guide page Who Pays IMYM Travel.) Incidental operating expenditures for clerical supplies, communications, etc., may be submitted to the Treasurer for reimbursement. The Treasurer should be consulted before incurring unusual expenses.