Membership Officer of the British Shakespeare Association

22nd May 2023

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS

The Board of Trustees of the British Shakespeare Association wishes to appoint a new Membership Officer to further the Association’s aims to educate, promote, and foster a better understanding of Shakespeare and his work. The Membership Officer is one of the senior positions in the leadership of the BSA, working closely with the Chair and Deputy Chair, the Web and Communications Officer and Deputy Officer, and the Treasurer, as well as the Board of Trustees as a whole, to support the Association’s work. The Membership Officer is also automatically a Trustee of the BSA. Unlike elected trustees, however, the Membership Officer’s period of service is not time-limited, although notionally three-year terms are encouraged.

The position is open to any member of the BSA who possesses the necessary technical skills (see below for the specifics). Trustees work voluntarily (with reasonable expenses reimbursed when necessary) to further the aims of the BSA across its four main constituencies of members: academic researchers, teachers, theatre practitioners, creatives, and members of the public.

The British Shakespeare Association is a registered Charity and its Trustees are also Directors, and take joint responsibility to help the Board promote the Association’s objectives which are: to educate, promote, and foster a better understanding of Shakespeare and his works in a manner consistent with an educational charity limited by guarantee; and benefiting those individuals, members, charities, or institutions with an educational purpose toward the study of Shakespeare in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The British Shakespeare Association has a diverse and widespread international membership, and we warmly welcome applications from any member of the Association from any part of the world, in line with these objectives, and with its policy for diversity, inclusivity and equal opportunities. We particularly welcome applications from disabled applicants, those from BAME backgrounds, and members of the LGBTQ+ community.

Trustee profile and duties

Trustees are required to attend three meetings of the Board of Trustees per year, which are normally held via Zoom in January, May, and September, and to attend the Association’s Annual General Meeting (normally held in November). The BSA will meet reasonable expenses for UK travel associated with attending any BSA meetings where necessary, and accepts virtual attendance via videoconferencing. In addition, some of our Trustees also sit on sub-Committees of the Board (whose business is usually conducted virtually).

The Membership Officer will:

• Report to the Board about the state of the membership, its numbers, and its international composition.
• Maintain / oversee the membership database hosted within our WordPress website, liaising with the Web and Communications Officer and Deputy Officer as appropriate (training will be provided).
• Liaise with the Web and Communications Officer to produce and circulate the BSA’s Bulletin, usually sent out by email to subscribers of our mailing list once a month through the MailChimp platform.
• Maintain a record of Gift Aid donors for submission to the Treasurer every year.
• Maintain a record of subscribers to Shakespeare, our academic journal, for submission to its publisher, Taylor & Francis, to facilitate the distribution of paper copies at the end of the calendar year.
• Answer membership-related queries from members of the BSA by email.
• Propose to the Board any initiatives to grow the membership of the BSA.
• Liaise with the Chair of the BSA and other members of the Board.
• Serve on the BSA’s Conference Team and liaise with the organisers of the BSA conference on all aspects related to membership (which is a necessary condition to attend or present work at the conference).
• Be involved in the allocation of bursaries to qualifying members presenting work at the BSA conference.

The BSA is a charitable company limited by guarantee and all Trustees share a responsibility as Directors to ensure that the BSA is managed well.

• For more information on the roles and responsibilities of a Trustee, please read the documents published by the Charity Commission here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-essential-trustee-what-you-need-to-know-cc3
• To make sure you are eligible to become a Trustee, please check the criteria on the Charity Commission website: https://www.gov.uk/government/get-involved/take-part/help-run-a-charity

What are the benefits of joining the BSA Board?

You will gain:

• opportunities for networking, mentoring and collaboration with scholars, practitioners and education professionals in Shakespeare studies
• professional development through contributing to a non-profit charitable organisation
• a wider perspective on Shakespeare and advance knowledge of Shakespeare-related events and research
• the opportunity to steer the organisation to better meet the needs of practitioners in theatre, radio, TV, film, education, and academia, and to engage members of the public with the work of Shakespeare.

Application process:

If you wish apply for this post, please submit a CV and a 300-word (max.) statement that outlines your interest in the role and any relevant experience. Please submit this by email to José A. Pérez Díez and Maria Shmygol, Joint Deputy Chairs of the BSA, at the BSA’s email address by Monday 26^th June 2023.

The role of Officer is a senior role on the BSA Board; appointment to this role therefore requires a short interview by a small panel of current BSA Board members. The new Trustee will be expected to take up their role from July 2023, following the BSA Conference in Liverpool.

Please contact the current holder of the post, José A. Pérez Díez, should you require any further information about this role.