Position Description
The Chatelaine is the newcomer information officer.
The Chatelaine may be referred to as a Castellan or Hospitaller in other branches.
The Chatelaine is responsible for the introduction of the Society to new and prospective members.
The Chatelaine assists in providing education pertaining to the conventions of the current middle ages, the Kingdom, and this branch;
The Chatelaine is to encourage active participation and period behaviors within the Society;
The Chatelaine, coordinating with their deputy, Gold Key, is to help make period style clothing accessible to new members;
The Chatelaine is also responsible for assisting in maintaining the Wyewood library.
Requirements
The Chatelaine of a Local Branch of the SCA must be a current member of the SCA, Inc.
You must maintain your SCA Membership for the duration of your term in office.
Term of office in Wyewood is traditionally two years.
The applicant must be at least 18 years of age in order to hold this office.
Although not required for this office, it is recommended that the Chatelaine have a working telephone number.
As email has become the approved medium for the dissemination of information and communication within the Barony and the Kingdom at large, daily access to both email and the Internet is recommended.
Duties
The Chatelaine is usually the first person newcomers officially deal with in the Society.
As such, the Chatelaine is usually the person that provides information regarding all aspects of the Society, its rules, and how to enjoy the activities associated with the Society.
The Chatelaine provides a valuable and necessary service within the Society.
While the Chatelaine’s Office is not difficult to administer, there are a number of duties directly associated with this office.
To that end, the following are a list of those duties and a brief explanation of each duty.
1. Ensuring that there is a representative of the Chatelaine’s Office present at all Wyewood events.
It is likely there will be newcomers at any given event and they will have questions.
You will need to answer their questions and encourage them in becoming members of the Society.
It is not necessary for you to personally be in attendance at every Wyewood event, but if the Chatelaine is not present, the Deputy Chatelaine, Gold Key or other designated individual may represent the Chatelaine’s Office in your stead.
2. Supervising and coordinating newcomer activities and demonstrations (demos) at local events.
Periodically, you will make arrangements for knowledgeable individuals to teach informative beginner classes or present demonstrations on a variety of subjects regarding the Society, both period and modern in aspect, at socials or other local Wyewood events.
You are not responsible for teaching or attending any of these classes, but you may do so at your own discretion.
3. Providing access to educational information for newcomers and newer members.
The Chatelaine provides a wide variety of educational materials in the form of handouts, booklets, and pamphlets to interested newcomers at socials and other local events.
These materials are derived from a variety of sources, and are directly applicable to participation in the Society.
You should be familiar with all of these materials, and readily able to explain their significance and application to interested individuals.
4. Organizing and attending demos, both for recruitment and educational purposes.
From time to time, you will receive requests from individuals or organizations outside the Society for educational demos.
It is the responsibility of the Chatelaine, working closely with the Seneschal, to ensure that any information that goes out to the public conveys a true sense of the purpose and intent of the SCA.
It is not necessary for the Chatelaine to attend or directly participate in demos, but to act as a coordinator for the demos.
Instead of the Chatelaine, the Seneschal may designate another individual to coordinate demos.
5. Keeping newcomer records on all Wyewood events.
Include such pertinent information as name, contact number, and areas of interest.
This information is used in the reporting process on both a local and Kingdom level.
You also will need this information to follow up on prospective new members to insure their easy transition into the Society.
6. Submitting required quarterly reports to the Kingdom Deputy Chatelaine for the Western Area and the Wyewood Seneschal.
Keep a copy of all reports in your office files.
Monthly reports are due to the Wyewood Seneschal prior to the monthly Officers’ Meeting and are given verbally at both the Officers’ Meeting and the Monthly Business Meeting.
In your report, provide a brief overview of the reporting period, including all events where the Chatelaine’s services were provided.
Include the number and type of newcomer contacts and member outcomes, any demos requested or attended, and classes taught.
Discuss any problems encountered or resolved, and give a short accounting for deputies and lesser offices relating to the Chatelaine’s Office.
All reports may be sent using either standard mail or e-mail.
If the Chatelaine’s Office was not active during any given reporting period, indicate this in your report by using the phrase “No Activity to report”.
7. Maintaining the Library.
Wyewood is required to have a library and obtain, through gift or purchase, current copies of:
The Known World Handbook;
The Organizational Handbook (a.k.a. Corpora);
The An Tir Handbook;
The Laws of An Tir;
The An Tir Book of Combat;
Additionally, whatever resources the branch deems appropriate, including the officer manuals and handbooks.
The Chatelaine’s Office is responsible for maintaining the library unless the branch has a librarian or delegates the responsibility to another officer.
These items belong to Wyewood as a branch of the SCA, Inc., and need to be used by Wyewood.
The Chatelaine is expected to inventory and maintain any Barony regalia, property and records assigned to or held by them.
They are expected to transfer these items in good order to their successor or to the Seneschal if no successor exists.
They are expected to arrange advertising for, or the training of a successor.
They are expected to attend regular officer and business meetings unless prior arrangements are agreed to.
They are expected to submit a yearly office budget to the Barony Financial Committee.
Maintain the printed handbook and update as needed to keep in compliance with the governing documents of the SCA, Inc.
Deputies and Lesser Offices
The Chatelaine’s Office currently includes deputy positions of Gold Key and Librarian.
Gold Key:
The office of Gold Key maintains a collection of clothing, accessories and feast gear that a branch keeps on hand to loan to guests and new members.
The Gold Key officer is in charge of maintaining this collection; making sure it gets to and from events when needed;
and setting up a system for loan and retrieval of the items.
Neither the Gold Key officer nor the Chatelaine is responsible for making or providing permanent garb for newcomers.
The Gold Key officer may collect fabrics or raise funds to buy fabrics for Gold Key items, arrange sewing bees, solicit donations of suitable articles from branch members, or find other appropriate means of amassing a collection.
Gold Key reports to the Chatelaine on a monthly basis.
Keeping track of how often the collection is used, at which events, and which items are borrowed the most frequently will help the Gold Key and Chatelaine focus their efforts.
The Gold Key Officer must maintain an inventory of all items in Gold Key, including any storage boxes or containers.
These items belong to Wyewood as a branch of the SCA, Inc., and need to be used by the Gold Key successors.