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Standards & Guidelines » CAA Guidelines

Standards and Guidelines Procedures and Format

Adopted by the CAA Board of Directors on May 4, 2008.

I. Introduction

CAA develops Standards and Guidelines as needed to assist members and interested persons in professional practices in the visual arts. Since its founding in 1911, CAA has regularly issued Standards and Guidelines in the fields of art, art history, and visual studies. CAA makes these available for use by its members and the general public.

Standards and Guidelines are developed by CAA committees, task forces, and, in some instances, by affiliated societies, working with CAA professional staff. Standards and Guidelines are reviewed and approved by CAA’s Board of Directors.

Published formally by CAA since 1973, Standards and Guidelines are grouped into the following categories:

  • Ethics
  • Career and Workplace
  • Legal Issues
  • Best Practices for Art Professionals

II. Developing Standards and Guidelines

A. By Board Task Force or Ad Hoc Committee

1. A board task force or ad hoc committee may be appointed by the board to develop or revise a standard or guideline.

2. The board shall define the topic and scope of the work on the development or revision of a standard or guideline, instruct the responsible task force or committee, and establish assessment criteria and deadlines.

3. The task force or committee shall send a draft of the proposed or revised standard or guideline to the executive director and CAA counsel for review in relation to the CAA By-laws and other Standards and Guidelines.

4. Revision of a standard or guideline must retain the original wording with the changes indicated through the final approval by the board.

5. The appropriate vice president shall send the draft with comments to the Executive Committee with a resolution for adoption.

6. The Executive Committee may then either return the draft with comments to the task force or committee for revision or recommend its adoption and submit it directly to the board for the board’s review and approval.

B. By a Standing Committee

1. A CAA standing committee proposing to develop a standard or guideline, or to revise an one, shall first submit the proposal to the Professional Practices Committee, the executive director, and the appropriate vice president. The proposal shall include a description of the text needed, identifying what constituency (or constituencies) of CAA’s membership will be served; a brief explanation of how the proposing group’s charge makes it the appropriate author for the topic in question; and a description of what research or expertise is needed in order to develop a draft text based on sound information.

2. The Professional Practices Committee shall review the proposal and shall, in consultation with the executive director and with the advice of the vice president, inform the standing committee of: (a) the format for Standards and Guidelines; (b) any concerns or conflicts with other CAA policies or Standards and Guidelines that might require a revision to the proposal; and (c) if necessary, which other standing committee or task force shall be involved in the development or revision process, and which related organizations or stakeholders should be consulted.

3. The Professional Practices Committee shall, in consultation with the standing committee, determine whether any other persons (including any outside experts) shall vet the draft of the new or revised standard or guideline. The vice president or executive director may also determine whether any persons or experts need be consulted.

4. The standing committee shall prepare the first draft of any such new or revised standard or guideline and consult any other CAA committee, task force, affiliated society, or other persons deemed appropriate. Relevant CAA professional staff shall also be included in the drafting of the text. Thereafter, the draft shall be submitted to the Professional Practices Committee for initial review.

5. Revision of a standard or guideline must retain the original wording with the changes indicated through the final approval by the board.

6. The Professional Practices Committee shall provide the standing committee with any comments or requests for further revisions. After the standing committee and the Professional Practices Committee are satisfied with the draft, they shall submit it to the executive director and CAA counsel for review. The CAA staff will copy edit the text.

7. After such review and copy editing, the executive director shall submit the draft to the authoring committee for its final review.

8. After acceptance by the standing committee, the revised and edited draft will be submitted to the Professional Practices Committee for its final review.

9. When both the authoring committee and the Professional Practices Committee are satisfied with the final draft, they shall submit it to the vice president, who will prepare the resolution for adoption and submit it to the Executive Committee. The Executive Committee shall, if and when it determines, recommend its adoption and submit the final draft to the board for final review and approval.

10. If unresolved issues arise between the Professional Practices Committee and the authoring committee, the CAA president, in consultation with the vice president for committees and CAA counsel, on behalf of the Executive Committee, will resolve the dispute, as appropriate.

11. After approval by the board, the newly adopted or revised Standard or Guideline will be posted on the CAA website under “Guidelines” (cross-referenced as appropriate throughout the website), promulgated in CAA News or by letter to members as appropriate, and permanently recorded in CAA documents. The CAA staff shall notify CAA members of the new or revised standard or guideline.

C. Affiliated Society Standards and Guidelines

1. Standards and guidelines from CAA’s affiliated societies may be adopted by the board upon request, or adapted by CAA through the process described above.

2. In considering the request, the board may inform itself as to whether and to what extent the affiliated society has followed procedures similar to those described above.

3. The board may adopt or adapt an affiliated society’s standard or guideline only after ensuring that it is consistent with the mission of CAA and does not conflict with any CAA policy or with other Standards and Guidelines.

4. The CAA staff will post a link from the CAA website to an affiliated society’s standard or guideline after its adoption by the board, with date of approval; CAA staff may also post the text in the “Guidelines” section of the CAA website, as appropriate.

III. Standards and Guidelines Format

Standards and Guidelines must adhere to the following format:

1. Introduction: States the need for the standard or guideline (or for its revision); summarizes the content and scope of the standard or guideline; and indicates for whom it is intended and in what circumstances it may be applied. The assessment process used by the authors may be summarized here.

2. Body: Follows the above summary of contents and sets forth the substance of the standard or guideline.

3. Originators: Lists the names and affiliations of the authors of the standard or guideline, and the committee or task force through which they worked, at the end.

4. Reviewers: List the names and affiliations of the readers who vetted the standard or guideline at the end.

5. Date: The date of adoption by the board appears at the end.

6. Supporting materials, case studies, statistical information, and examples of application are not part of a standard or guideline, but may be attached as links to an appendix text, which shall be placed in a relevant location on the CAA website.

IV. Standards and Guidelines Review

A. The Professional Practices Committee shall review each Standard and Guideline at least once every five years to determine its continuing relevance. If the Professional Practices Committee or the board recommends that a standard or guideline be revised in connection with such review, the committee will place the standard or guideline on a priority list to provide clear direction on which Standards and Guidelines need to be revised, and the order of priority. The Professional Practices Committee shall submit to the board any recommendation for revision or deletion of a standard or guideline as well as its list of priorities for revisions (if any) for board review and approval.

B. When and as appropriate, the board may initiate review and revise any standard or guideline.

C. Revision of existing Standards and Guidelines will follow the same procedures of drafting and review as outlined above for new Standards and Guidelines.

V. Communications

A. The Professional Practices Committee will list the Standards and Guidelines that are in process of being drafted or revised on the CAA website, under “Guidelines.” Originating authors, reviewers, supporters, and opponents of a draft or final standard and guideline may communicate with the Professional Practices Committee, the Executive Committee, or the board regarding the drafting, review, and distribution of the standard or guideline, or request that an action be taken with respect to a draft of final standard or guideline.

B. Any such communication should be separately attached to, not included in the body of, the draft standard or guideline. Such attachments may be accompanied by the authoring committee’s response, as appropriate.