Volunteer Structure: ACM Council Executive Committee Boards Regional/Policy/Diversity Councils

Headquarters: Office of Executive Director Office of Chief Operating Officer/Deputy Executive Director (Administration, Personnel, Policies and Procedures, Information Systems (IS), Finance) Office of Membership Office of Publications Office of SIG Services

Volunteer Structure
Membership is the vital component of the organization, out of which emerges a very special class of ACMers called volunteers. Volunteers serve on the ACM Council, boards, committees, task forces and other subgroups that comprise ACM's governing structure.

ACM Council
The ACM Council, consisting of 16 members, is the highest governing authority in ACM. Council is composed of the President, Vice-President, Secretary/Treasurer, the Immediate Past President, the Special Interest Group Governing Board (SGB) Chair, three SGB Council Representatives, the Chair of the Publications Board, and seven Members-at-Large.

Committees of Council:
Audit Committee
Awards Committee

Executive Committee
The Executive Committee consists of the President, Vice-President, Secretary/Treasurer, the Past President and other members of Council as prescribed by the Bylaws. The Executive Committee is responsible for managing the affairs of ACM between Council meetings except in those matters for which Council action is required by the Constitution or by the Bylaws.

• Coalition to Diversify Computing (CDC)
• Committee on Computers and Public Policy (CCPP)
• Constitution and Bylaws
• Nominating Committee
• Elections Committee
• Committee on Professional Ethics (COPE)
• ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC)
• History Committee
• Investment Committee
• Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA)

Boards

The boards, comprising numerous volunteer councils, committees and subgroups, work together with the Headquarters staff to manage ACM's broad spectrum of programs, services, and products.

Education Board

Education Council

Practitioners Board

Professional Development Committee

Publications Board

 

SGB Executive Committee

SIG Governing Board

Education Board and Council
A key mission of ACM is the education of computer and information specialists. Various volunteer committees under the Education Board develop and recommend computer curricula for all educational levels and provide self-assessment procedures, home study courses and professional development seminars for persons already in the field. Through its participation in the Computer Sciences Accreditation Board, ACM is instrumental in evaluating and accrediting computer science programs in colleges and universities.

Practitioners Board
The Practitioners Board and Professional Development Committee focus on products and services that support and enhance the professional and technical development of practicing computing professionals, including engineers, architects, IT specialists and managers. The Practitioners Board is responsible for developing programs that support the professional needs of ACM members as well as promoting computing as a profession.

Publications Board
The Publications Board is responsible for the production and management of all ACM publications. The ACM Digital Library was launched in July 1997 and provides online access to tables of contents and full text of ACM journals, magazines and conference proceedings. The Digital Library also supports searches by author or keyword in either the publicly available biblographic reference pages or in the full text of articles.

Officially, the Board has authority over conference proceedings and SIG newsletters, but these functions are delegated to volunteer conference committees and SIG newsletter editors. The ACM journals, with volunteer Editors-in-Chief, publish research papers, articles, and reviews written by volunteer experts. The production functions—editing, proofreading, composition, artwork, advertising and printing—are managed by the Publications Department at Headquarters.

SIG Governing Board
ACM has 37 Special Interest Groups, each covering a defined computing discipline. SIGs set their own dues (collected by Headquarters), write and edit their own newsletters (printed and distributed through Headquarters), and are governed by their own elected officers. The SIG Governing Board (SGB), under the SGB Executive Committee, establishes financial and other policies which relate to all SIGs.

Regional Councils

ACM Europe Council

ACM India Council

ACM China Council

Policy Issues

USACM Council

Diversity/Gender

ACM Women's Council (ACM-W)

Headquarters
Through its formative years and until 1960, ACM was managed entirely by volunteers without a paid Headquarters staff. In that year office space was leased in New York City, an Executive Secretary was hired, and staff personnel were gradually added to provide the administrative and clerical services necessary to support a growing number of professional activities and publications.

The following represents the major offices and their areas of responsibility:

Office Facilities/Services
Mail Room and Stock Room

Receptionist Area

Council/Executive Committee
Elections
Constitution and Bylaws
Policy and Procedure Guidelines
Key People Roster
Awards
Certificate of Recognition Program
Fellows Program
Senior Member Program
Distinguished Engineer/Scientist/Member Program

The Office of Information Systems participates in the overall direction of ACM through interaction with all levels of headquarters staff and volunteers. IS provides reliable, secure and cost effective information systems and services that support the activities of ACM, including the development, implementation and maintenance of custom solutions as well as the management of outsourced solutions. IS also provides custom application and database development; custom reporting; Web site development, hosting and optimization; and mailing list and email services.

Overall responsibility for Headquarters financial matters, specifically:
Accounting Department
Monthly and quarterly financial statements and reports
Preparation of the annual ACM budget

Membership and Marketing Services
Membership Processing
Single Copy Sales Operation
Local Activities*
Education
Public Relations

*Local Activities: More than 195 local ACM Professional Chapters and more than 500 Student Chapters at colleges and universities worldwide publish newsletters and meet regularly to hear lectures and conduct workshops and conferences. Chapters collect their own dues, elect their own officers and manage their own activities. They benefit from a number of ACM-funded programs like the Distinguished Speakers Program (DSP), and the ACM International Collegiate Programming Contest (ICPC).

Office of Publications
Publishes ACM's professional journals, Digital Library and Guide to Computing Literature

Office of SIG Services
Responsible for the overall management of ACM's 37 special interest groups. This includes financial services, conference support, promotion, publicity, membership development and newsletter activities for each group.