There are many pieces to the puzzle when planning for the start of a successful First Book Advisory Board in your community. One of them is just getting folks around the board table.  In the Starting an Advisory Board section, we asked you to execute a few key items and now we're at the planning phase for the number 3: conduct three initial meetings with your interested volunteers and begin to discuss Board structure, leadership roles and general local objectives within First Book's mission and vision.

This section (below) will give you a wealth of tools and resources to help recruit, plan for and promote your first Advisory Board planning meeting.  We've got you covered.  First, lets start with the option to download and Initial Meeting Flyer, giving you a customizable flyer to promote your first meeting, thereby recruitng more volunteers for around your Advisory Board. We've also give you a few tips, tricks and additional customizeable documents to make the planning of your first meeting as successful as possible!

Lets get started!

It is my sincere pleasure to introduce First Book –_________________to [ORGANIZATION]. First Book – ________________ is a local Advisory Board (AB) of First Book, a national nonprofit organization whose single mission is to give children from low-income families the opportunity to own and read their first new books.

Download: Intro Letter to Your Community

50 Great Ways to Recruit in the Community The number one reason people do not volunteer is because no one asks them.

• Put up eye-catching fliers in coffee shops, bookstores, and libraries.
• Tell everyone you know. Develop relationships with other literacy groups.
• Ask for the opportunity to do a short presentation about First Book.

Download: Recruit 'Em Flier

As an Advisory Board, it will be easy to stack goals very, very high before you realize that you will typically meet only once a month and that everyone around the board table will only have about 10-15 hours of time each month to contribute. So it becomes critical--in advance--to plan in advance of your very first meeting by making sure to include an Advisory Board timeline. Everything from the start of your board recruitment to planning for fundraising and local book granting, having this timeline will be critical to your success from day one!

 

Design an Advisory Board Structure that highlights the talents volunteers bring to the group.

Once you have invited members of your community to join an Advisory Board, it is important to identify the leadership positions. As an Advisory Board grows and changes over time, it is important to remember and recognize individual talents that each volunteer brings to the group. Below is a suggested structure for organizing your volunteers. While most positions are optional, First Book highly recommends that all members feel committed to either a role or a task to help the Advisory Board succeed.

Just because you're passionate about getting books does not mean we're going to assume you've planned a successful volunteer board meeting before.  But perhaps you have. Either way, we've got your covered.  

• Prepare an agenda and send it, well in advance, to the committee members. Note next to each item whether it is for information, for discussion, or for decision. If appropriate, note the names of the people responsible for reporting on each agenda item.
• Inform committee members of dates, times and locations of meetings. Request that members who cannot attend a meeting inform you in advance and provide you with information about the status of the tasks that have been assigned. This will enable you to report to the committee on the absent member's accomplishments.
• Come early, and if necessary, set up the meeting room, arrange handout materials, etc. Have extra copies of the agenda available for committee members and observers.