Roles and Responsibilities of Neighborhood Association Board Members

Are you trying to recruit new elected leadership to your Neighborhood Association? The roles and assigned responsibilities of each board member should be clearly defined within your association's bylaws. The bylaws should also detail your association’s voting procedure, how roles are determined, and how long the terms should be for each elected position.

Though roles and duties may vary from association to association, the most common are:

President:
Set and finalize meeting agenda. Facilitate meetings. Can act as main contact for association. Follow processes and procedures outlined in bylaws. Delegate and supervise officer and member responsibilities. Ensure meetings adhere to agenda timelines. Maintain fairness and respectful behavior of meeting attendees.

Vice-President:
Serves as an alternate to the President. Assist with planning meetings. Help maintain accurate records. Respond to mail and inquiries. Attend other meetings as needed.

Secretary:
Maintain clear and accurate meeting documentation such as minutes, attendance sheets, sign-in forms, and other relevant documentation. Ensure bylaws are maintained. Maintain updated roster of members. Maintain records of association’s agreed-upon plans.

Treasurer:
Manage and track association finances. Prepare budget reports. Report on fiscal issues at meeting. Balance bank statements. Maintain association’s tax-exempt status if necessary. File tax returns as needed.

Other elected roles and responsibilities can include:

Membership Representative:
Promote association membership at external events. Greet attendees at association meetings and events. Explain meeting sign-in, membership and communication processes. Explain association dues process as needed. Follow up with new members and attendees.

Land Use Representative:
Receive land use reviews and provide a summary report of notifications at monthly meetings, follow association’s procedure on developing a response to land use reviews, draft and send association’s response to land use reviews, represent the neighborhood at the coalition’s Land Use Committee and City Land Use meetings.

Public Safety Representative:
Receive any crime reports from Albuquerque Police Department (APD) as needed, report on crime issues to association, act as liaison between APD and association.

Communication Representative:
Maintain association communication channels. Oversee association communication projects such as newsletters, websites, social media, and e-mail lists. Assist with outreach and promotion of association events, activities and efforts.

Coalition Representative:
Represent association at coalition meetings. Serve as liaison between association and coalition. Maintain communication between association and coalition on pertinent issues, events and activities.

Depending on your association’s needs and bylaws, there can be other elected board positions as needed. If your association uses Robert’s Rules of Order, the recommended structure of a board has a president, vice-president, secretary and treasurer, but this is not required. Each board is different and may have different structures.

The Office of Neighborhood Coordination (ONC) recommends reviewing and updating your bylaws every five-10 years to ensure all information, including board members, responsibilities, and election processes, are accurate and reflect the evolving needs of your neighborhood.