A. Introduction

1. This document, International Master Gardener Committee Operating Instructions, describes the process to submit a proposal to be host of the International Master Gardener Conference and the selection of the candidate by the International Master Gardener Committee hereafter known as the IMGC.
    
2. Any organization within the IMG Program may submit a proposal to host the IMG Conference as long as it meets the criteria set forth on the Proposal Form (IMGC Proposal Form). Multiple organizations from a Region can submit proposals. Each will stand on its own merits in the selection process.
    
3. A rotation by Region has been established to promote change in geography and local interest for the Host City. Preference will be given to the Region whose rotation is due. The Region which hosted the last IMG Conference will have the lowest priority.
   
   
4. Opening and closing ceremonies must be held in the Host City.
   
   
5.  Tentative arrangements must be made with the host facility at the submission of the proposal. 

B. History 
The IMG Conference has been held every two years as follows:

1987 - Washington D.C. 1989 - Portland, Oregon 1991 - Detroit, Michigan 1993 - San Antonio, Texas 1995 - Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada 1997 - Sacramento, California 1999 - San Antonio, Texas

2001 - Orlando, Florida 2003 - Covington, KY and Cincinnatti, OH 2005 - Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada 2007 - Little Rock, Arkansas 2009 - Las Vegas, Nevada 2011 - Charleston, WV

C. Process
Conference proposals after 2007 will be totally electronic. The proposal should be designed as a website, powerpoint presentation or electronic document that can be easily viewed by the members of the IMGC. No hard copy information will be received.

D. Site Selection
The IMGC is the final authority in the selection of the International Master Gardener Conference Host City. Any organization belonging in any capacity to the International Master Gardener Program is bound by the provisions of this process. Anyone submitting a proposal to the IMGC to host an IMG Conference agrees to adhere to this process.

E. Role of the IMGC

The role of the IMGC is to be a committee that manages the process to perpetuate the continuance of International and Regional Master Gardener Conferences. The IMGC will have the responsibility to recruit host cities for IMG Conferences if no proposals are submitted. It is expected that through periodic communication between Regional Representatives and State/Provincial Coordinators or other regional members there will not be a need for this action. Since a rotation has been defined with sufficient lead time, each Region should begin identifying candidates within their region on an ongoing basis in order to meet the deadline to submit a proposal to be host.

F. Subcommittees

1. The IMGC may create subcommittees to assist the IMGC in fulfilling its duties.
2. The IMGC created the IMG Webpage Subcommittee to develop and maintain a brochure that provides information helpful to becoming host of the IMG Conference. It contains experiences from past conference hosts, average costs associated with a conference, various coordinator responsibilities and functions that are typical of a conference, contacts for assistance and how to promote and advertise your conference.  The Designated Conference Coordinators will serve on the IMG Webpage Subcommittee and will update the webpage with any changes by January 1 of each year following their conference. The current chair is Rosie Lerner of Purdue University Extension.
   
3. A Nominating Subcommittee has been established.  This subcommittee is charged with finding regional representatives when terms are up. This committee will prepare the ballot of nominees for the current conference. 
   All MG must obtain written documentation from their state MG Coordinator of their current certification and/or membership status within that state. 
   All Extension or equivalent must provide a letter from their immediate supervisor with permission to serve for at least four years on the IMGC.
   MG or Extension will not be nominated to serve on the IMGC without this signed document.  The current chairs are Leanne Moorman of West Virginia University Extension and Shirley Wagner of Penn State Extension.
4. An Archives Subcommittee has been established.
5. A Search for Excellence Subcommittee has been established. This subcommittee is charged with recognizing the outstanding MG volunteer projects within the United States and Canada. The current guidelines can be found on this webpage and the current conference website. The current chair is Barbara Stendahl of University of Minnesota Extension.
   

G.   Regions

The IMGC committee will be made up of the following regions:

1. Southeast Region (Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North & South Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia , Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.)
2. Northeast Region (Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont and West Virginia.)
3. Central Region (Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Ohio, Wisconsin and Nebraska)
4. Western Region (Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, American Samoa, Guam and Northern Marianas)
5. Canadian Region (Alberta, British Columbia, Northwest Territories, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, & Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon ) IMGC Operating Instructions

H. Representation

1. Each Region will have two Master Gardeners and two Extension Staff or equivalent persons.  A total of twenty (20) Regional Representatives (5 Regions, 4 Reps per Region)  will sit on the IMGC. 
2. The IMGC  will have an Executive Board made up of four officers: Chair, Vice-Chair, Secretary and Treasurer. The length of term is to be two years for each position.
   1. No more than two consecutive terms is allowed for each officer.
   2. The Executive Board will be elected from the IMGC membership by its members. 

I. Term

The term of each representative will be on a two (2) year rotational basis. To assure continuity the following terms have been assigned to the particular regions until completion of their term.

• Southeast Region (starting 1/1/07) 
• Central Region (starting 1/1/05)
• Northeast Region (starting in 1/1/07) 
• Western Region (starting in 1/1/05) 
• Canadian Region (starting in 1/1/07) 

A Regional Representative may be elected for no more than two consecutive 2 year terms. 

Current IMG Committee Members
Southeast Region	TOM WICHMAN-EXT (FL) JOE MAPLE-MG (SC) JANET CARSON -EXT (Arkansas) TREASURER JANE DRUFF -MG (Arkansas)
Northeast Region	LEANNE MOORMAN-EXT (WV) CHAIR DELORES BARBER- MG (WV) ROSANNE SHERRY-EXT (RI) SHIRLEY WAGNER -EXT (PA)
Central Region	ROSIE LERNER-EXT (IN) DIANA HUSBAND-MG (IL) SECRETARY PHYLLIS STENGLE- MG (Michigan)
Western Region	SHARON MCCRAY-MG (CA) LLOYD DRAPER- MG (CA)
Canadian Region	PATRICIA HANBIDGE (Saskatchewan) RALPH BULLOUGH-MG (ONTARIO) DIANE VAUGHAN - MG (ONTARIO)

J. International Master Gardener Conference

1. The IMG Conference includes seminars, tours, committee meetings, Search for Excellence presentations and provides a means to exchange ideas and concerns. 
2. The IMG Conferences take place every two years in the odd year.
3. Submit proposals 48 months before January 1 of each conference year per the Table below.
   
4. Rotation for Conference Hosts

   Conference Year	Submission Deadline
   2011	January 1, 2007
   2013	January 1, 2009
   2015	January 1, 2011
   2017	January 1, 2013
   Future years	48 months before Jan. 1 of a conference year

   The International Master Gardener Committee has assigned Regions for the IMG Conferences on a rotational basis. This provides for convenience for the near region host attendees and at the same time permits for obtaining first hand knowledge of gardening in the host region. Preference will be given to the region assigned rotation if proposals come from multiple regions. The rotation by conference year by Region is:

   2005	Canada Region
   2007	Southeast Region
   2009	Western Region
   2011	Northeast Region
   2013	Central Region

     

K. Announcement of Selected IMG Conference Host

1. The next Host City will be introduced at the current Conference. At this introduction, the current Host will indicate turnover of the seed money ($5,000.00) to the new Host City.
2. The next Host City will make a presentation at the closing session of the current conference.

L. IMGC Operation Expenses

Seed money for each IMG Conference is to be $6,000.00. Of that $6,000.00, $5,000.00 is turned over to the Delegated Coordinator of the succeeding Host City and $1,000.00 is to be turned over to the Treasury of the IMGC for operational expenses at the closing ceremony of the current IMG Conference.