Domestic Affairs Committee (DAC)

The Domestic Affairs Committee (DAC) is a section of JALT dedicated to creating, developing, and maintaining reciprocal relationships with other academic and professional organizations in Japan.

At the start of 2023, the DAC is in need of volunteers for the following roles:

• One or more members interested in developing additional domestic affiliations by exploring prospective organizations and corresponding with the relevant officers. The ability to correspond in Japanese and attend Japanese-language events would be a great help.
• One member capable of organizing the DAC Forum at the JALT International Conference, and to consider organizing joint events at JALTSIG, PanSIG, and other large SIG/Chapter events.
• One member to be responsible for our relationship with the United Associations of Language Societies (UALS), which would include participating in meetings, corresponding with the executive board, and updating the UALS website with JALT news. 

Duties of the Domestic Affairs Committee

I. Creating, developing, and maintaining relationships with other organizations.

1. Creating relationships
   1. Researching potential partners: The DAC Committee should be active in looking for and researching potential partners.
   2. Recommendations: THE DAC Committee should solicit and receive recommendations from JALT members about potential partners.
   3. Requests: The DAC Committee should consider all requests for partnerships from other organizations.
   4. Once a potential partner has been identified, the Partnership Evaluation form (see Appendix A) should be used to determine if an organization qualifies for a partnership and, if yes, what type of partnership (see Appendix B)
   5. Organizations the DAC Committee recognizes as potential partners will be recommended to the BOD. If the BOD agrees with the assessment, the DAC Committee will reach out to the potential partner (if not already in contact) to determine if a partnership can be established.
   6. If the organization agrees to the partnership, a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is drawn up (see Appendix C). JALT’s President and the leader of the potential partner organization both sign the MOU.
   7. The potential partnership is submitted as a motion to the EBM and voted on at the next meeting. Note that DAC cannot submit motions. A member of the BOD must support the motion.
   8. The DAC Chair will speak to the motion at the EBM and field any questions from EBM members regarding the potential partnership.
   9. If approved by the EBM, JALT and the organization become partners. Partnership terms are typically three years, with the potential for renewal.
2. Developing and maintaining relationships
   1. The DAC Chair will maintain contact with their counterpoints in partner organizations and answer, or pass along to the appropriate individual, any requests or queries.
   2. DAC will assist partner members with participation in the JALT Conference (see part 3 in this section) and other JALT events.
   3. DAC will report Partner Events to the Director of Public Relations so they may be shared with JALT members.
   4. DAC will help select a JALT representative for Partner Conferences and help prepare the representative for the conference.
   5. DAC will keep track of when MOUs are set to expire. DAC will re-evaluate the partnership and recommend to the BOD whether or not to renew the partnership.

II. Reporting to the BOD and the EBM

1. Reporting to the BOD
   1. The DAC Chair attends (typically via video call) BOD meetings to provide a report of DAC activities.
   2. The Chair should prepare a document of discussion points for the BOD and submit it before the meeting.
   3. The BOD may assign tasks to the DAC Chair and Committee during these meetings.
2. Reporting to the EBM
   1. The DAC Chair participates in the EBM as a non-voting member.
   2. A JENL report should be submitted to the Director of Records before every EBM.
   3. During the EBM, the DAC Chair may be asked to participate in various breakout groups. Also, when possible, the DAC Chair should participate in the Pre-Conference Planning Committee (PCPC).

III. Participating in the JALT Conference

1. The DAC Chair is a member of the PCPC.
2. The DAC Roundtable
   1. The DAC Chair hosts a Roundtable forum at JALT National every year. The topic of the forum is decided by the DAC Committee. Representatives of each Domestic Partner are invited to attend as members of the panel. The DAC Roundtable must be submitted as a presentation to be included in the conference schedule.
3. Aiding Partner Organizations: Depending on the agreement, many of JALT’s Domestic Partners are entitled to an unvetted presentation slot and/or a booth at the JALT Conference. DAC will aid Domestic Partners in the following ways:
   1. Informing all Partners of the call for presentations and deadlines for conference registration.
   2. Aiding Partners and acting as a point of contact with the Conference team if a Partner Organization has any trouble registering for, or questions about, the Conference.
   3. Informing Partner Representatives of the date, time, and topic of the DAC Roundtable.
   4. Informing Partner Representatives of any additional events they are asked to participate in (such as the VIP Dinner)
   5. Serving as a guide/helper for Partner Representatives during the Conference. 

IV. Facilitating relationships between Chapters, SIGs, and partner organizations

1. If any Chapters or SIGs are interested in working with a Domestic Partner for an event, publication, etc., DAC shall act as a facilitator and contact point and help in making arrangements.
   1. Additionally, DAC should maintain awareness of any relationships or joint events/projects between Chapters and SIGs and other domestic organizations (whether or not those organizations are JALT Partners).

V. Participating in other committees as requested by the BOD

1. When deemed necessary, the BOD may ask the DAC Chair to participate in committees or task groups focused on issues within JALT.