Society for Creative Anachronism Organizational Handbook Preface

Members of the Society for Creative Anachronism may copy and distribute this document to other members of the Society so long as copyright credit is given and no changes are made in the text.

The governing version of this document is the SCA ORGANIZATIONAL HANDBOOK, published 1989, and the official update sheets released subsequently. Printed copies are available from the SCA Stock Clerk, P.O. Box 360743, Milpitas CA 95036, for $6.00. Any disputes over the actual content of the document will be decided in favor of the printed version. [ as of 8/92 ]

PREFACE

A. INTRODUCTION

The Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc. is a non-profit educational organization devoted to study of the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Most of its activities take place in the context of a social structure adapted from the forms of the European Middle Ages, which allows participants to take a first-hand look at various aspects of the life, culture and technology of the times under study. This volume includes the Corpora and Governing and Policy Decisions of the Board, which establish the rules for the Society's internal social structure. It also includes the Articles of Incorporation and the By-Laws, which define the Society as a corporation and establish the principles it must follow in relation to other corporations and civic bodies. The internal guidelines can be interpreted to some extent to suit regional needs and customs, but the Articles of Incorporation and the By-Laws are formal obligations to the outside world and are not subject to regional adaptation. For more information on this subject, see Governing and Policy Decision #2.

In addition to the rules, this volume includes four sections of general information:

1. "Introducing the SCA" addresses questions and concerns often raised by people who own sites suitable for Society events or provide other services useful to Society members and branches. You may quote from it as you wish, and need not cite the source. It is recommended as a base for publicity statements about the Society.

2. "Scope of the Society" discusses the way the Society views the world. It is designed to help members determine whether or not a given activity is appropriate for Society sponsorship.

3. "Channels for Complaint and Appeal" provides a useful approach to problem-solving. It is not a required procedure, but it is very strongly recommended. Anyone who chooses not to follow it should be prepared to explain why another approach was necessary.

4. The "Index" provides paragraph citations for a variety of topics in the By-Laws, Corpora, and Governing and Policy Decisions. While it is as accurate as could be managed, users should be aware that it may contain errors and omissions. Please notify the Steward regarding any problems you encounter with the Index, so they can be corrected in subsequent editions.

The Organizational Handbook is available from the Corporate Secretary or the Stock Clerk. In addition, members of the Society may copy and distribute any parts of the volume or the updates thereto among themselves provided that no changes are made to the text and that copyright credit is given.

B. TERMINOLOGY

In this volume, the following terms are used only with the meanings given here:

• Society--The Society for Creative Anachronism, Inc.

• Board--The Board of Directors of the Society.

• By-Laws--The By-Laws of the Society.

• Corpora--The Corpora of the Society, including the Corpora Appendices.

• Governing documents--The Articles of Incorporation, By-Laws, and Corpora of the Society, and the Governing and Policy Decisions of the Board.

• Subscribing member--A Contributing, Foreign or Sustaining member of the Society.

• Period--Noun: The era used by the Society as a base for its activities, that is, Western culture prior to the beginning of the 17th Century--mainly the European Middle Ages and Renaissance. Adjective: Of, from, or reflecting that era.