The Nominating Committee*
i. Purpose: The purpose of the Nominating Committee is to nominate persons to fill all vacancies on continuing committees (except the Nominating Committee), commissions and other bodies that require election by the Presbytery.
ii. Responsibilities: This Committee shall recommend to Presbytery the list of nominees to fill vacancies for:
a) Moderator
b) Vice-Moderator
c) Stated Clerk pro tem
d) Committees and Commissions of Presbytery (except the Nominating Committee)
e) Commissioners to Synod and General Assembly
iii. The offices of Moderator and Vice-Moderator shall alternate, as much as possible, between a Minister of the Word and Sacrament and a Ruling Elder, so that when a Minister of the Word and Sacrament is Moderator, the Vice-Moderator will be a Ruling Elder, and vice-versa.
iv. Nominations may be made by Presbytery from the floor providing the nominee has been contacted in advance and has agreed to serve if elected. The Moderator shall always ask for nominations from the floor at every election.
v. Nominations for regular vacancies shall be presented at the October Stated Meeting of Presbytery; nominations for unexpired terms occurring during the year shall be presented by the Nominating Committee at the next Stated Meeting of Presbytery.
vi. The committee members shall be nominated in such a way as to assure, as far as is practical, that there is a balance of Ministers of the Word and Sacrament and Ruling Elders or Ministers of the Word and Sacrament and church members. Vacancies in the membership shall be filled at the next Stated Meeting of Presbytery.
vii. The Presbytery year shall be from January 1 to December 31, and officers and Committee members elected at the last Stated Meeting of the year shall take office on January 1st of the following year.
viii. Guidelines for General Assembly (G.A.) Representation
a) Commissioners to each General Assembly shall be nominated at the October stated meeting prior to the assembly according to the guidelines approved by the Presbytery. The Moderator of Presbytery shall ordinarily be one of these nominees and when elected, shall serve as coordinator of the General Assembly Commissioners. The Moderator shall also serve as liaison for the Presbytery with all persons serving from this Presbytery on General Assembly units. Should the Moderator not be elected a Commissioner, the elected Commissioners shall elect a coordinator from among themselves to fulfill the above responsibilities.
b) Ordained Minister Guidelines for Nomination:
1) The Nominating Committee will solicit applications from Ministers of the Word and Sacrament but will not be limited to only those who apply.
2) Ministers are representatives of their own membership in Presbytery, not the place of service. Generally, only one G.A. Commissioner is sent from any church.
3) The Nominating Committee shall strive for a balanced mix based on age, sex, race, ethnicity and theology.
4) Members who have been and are currently active in the life of the Presbytery shall have higher priority. “Currently active” means regular attendance at Presbytery stated meetings and service on at least one committee of the Presbytery.
5) The Minister commissioner should be a member of Presbytery for at least one year and should not plan on transferring out of the Presbytery until their term is over.
6) Preference shall be given to those who have never been a commissioner, or those who have gone longest without being a commissioner.
c) Ruling Elder Guidelines for Nomination:
1) Session takes initiative in submitting name to Nominating Committee and providing application completed by elder and session.
2) The Nominating Committee shall strive for a balanced mix based on age, sex, race, ethnicity, theology, and church: city, rural, suburban.
3) The Nominating Committee shall give consideration to how active a Ruling Elder has been in the life of the Presbytery.
4) The Nominating Committee shall give preference to elders from churches that have never had a commissioner or which have gone the longest time without sending a commissioner.
d) Young Adult Advisory Delegate (YAAD) Guidelines for Nomination:
1) Session takes initiative in submitting name to the Nominating Committee and providing an application completed by the youth and session.
2) The YAAD must be between 17 and 23 years of age, per G.A. rules.
3) The Nominating Committee shall give preference to YAADs from churches that have never had a YAAD or which have gone the longest time without sending a YAAD.
ix. Membership: There shall be a minimum of six members on this Committee, nominated by the Council and elected by Presbytery. Membership shall be from all regions of the Presbytery. Presbytery’s representative on the Synod Permanent Nominating Committee and the chair of the Committee on Representation shall be additional members of this Committee. Committee members shall serve three-year terms with no more than two consecutive terms.