GT: Hall of Sitters

W-C Rep - MoS - MoA - Keeper - M'Hael - Amyrlin Seat - MoT - MoN - GC

General Information:

Welcome to the Hall of Sitters, which is where the Sitters, the main governing body of the Tower, make important decisions. Each Ajah is represented by three Sitters and its Ajah Head.

Most of the discussion between the Hall takes place on this message board. You're not allowed to post there if you're not a Sitter or officer, but feel free to go along and see what's happening there right now.

If you're interested in what's happened at the Hall of Sitters in the past, we have an Archives page which lists past decisions, and the results of votes.

If you have any questions on how the Hall of Sitters operates, the officers are always willing to help, as are the Sitters themselves.

Officer Duties:

The duties of the Amyrlin, M'Hael, and Master or Mistress of Arms are:

To guide discussions in the Hall of Sitters by presenting points of information and to ensure that discussion stays on track and that the number of issues being presented remains at a reasonable level (should be randomly rotated between the Amyrlin, M’hael, and MoA)
To vote on issues in the Hall of Sitters
To organize the votes in the Hall of Sitters, making voting forms and calculate the results using the voting forms submitted, and announce the results to the Hall of Sitters
To ensure the pages get updated promptly, emails sent to the admin account are dealt with accordingly by the appropriate person, that all officers complete their assigned duties and ensure that a substitute is found for an admin member on shara, which may be the Amyrlin, M’hael, or MoA if no other admin member is available
To be available as a resource for Tower members to come to with questions, comments or concerns about anything, and have them dealt with immediately
To discuss any major decision or action with one another before proceeding and maintain communication with one another and among the various levels of the administration and the Tower
To handle matters of OOC discipline, ensure that the rules of the Grey Tower are not broken, and if they are, that the appropriate action is taken within the guidelines
To process Benefit requests (Amyrlin and M’hael handle all tiers except the Warder and Character tiers which are processed by the MoA)
To Process OP strength requests (Amyrlin and M’hael only)
To Process Talent/Ability applications (Amyrlin and M’hael only)
To Process Weapon Skill applications (MoA only)
To Process Blademaster applications (MoA only)
To Process Shara and Return from Shara requests (all admin may assist in this)
To send out the Biannual Tower census and tally the results
To begin the Biannual Awards nominations, process the results and announce the awards
Any decision or action regarding the Tower which is outside of the normal duty of the aforementioned officers must be preceded by consultation with the other two.

The duties of the Keeper of the Chronicles, Keeper of the Archives, and Gaidin Captain are:

To add new members/characters to the member and character databases
To add the loot that can be gained from the bio (two rivers apple brandy and tabac, and the andoran lion or westlands map)
To add submitted Fanfics and RP transcripts to the Database
To add submitted Artwork to the database
To process submitted Profile/Biography changes
To update the database to reflect member's Raisings.
To be available to roleplay with all Tower members
To be available to give OOC help to all Tower members.
To assist as needed in weapons training (GC only)
To add new Trainees to the Warder Yard Roster (GC only)
To update the Warder Yard Roster to reflect Trainee's Raisings. (GC only)
To represent the best interests of the Tower in the Hall of Sitters.
To fill in for the Amyrlin, M'Hael, and Master of Arms if one or all are absent and there is no Warder-Channeler Representative.
To ensure all tower pages remain up to date after Officer changes or HoS decisions, including updating the HoS Archives, FAQ and other areas as needed.
To create class MBs when necessary and add them to the class listing.
To update the class listings when a class is to be closed down
To archive classes once they are removed from the list.

The duties of the Master of Soldiers, the Mistress of Novices, and the Master or Mistress of Training are:

To accept, welcome, and announce new members/additional Characters
To inform the Keepers/Captain of new members to be added to the database
To suggest revisions for Applications which need improvement
To find mentors for new members
To add them to the mentor list
To be available to roleplay with the learning ranks
To be available to deal with any problems encountered by the learning ranks
To represent learning ranks in the Hall
To send people the Raising Tests when they request them, after showing their RRs
To grade raising tests
To raise members once they pass Raising Tests and announce Raisings.
To perform Mentor Census once every six months
To Accept or Reject Council of Youth Applications (MoN/MoS only)
To begin and guide Council of Youth discussions in parallel with the HoS discussions
Helping to develop, proofread, and approve new classes based upon clarity, content, and realism to the books.
To monitor classes (so that each lesson is responded to within 4 days - that means, stepping in and grading them oneself and then contacting the teacher if necessary)
Informing the Keepers/Captain when a class should be closing down and archived.
To conduct the bi-annual Class Census and inform the Keepers/Captain of results for updates.

The duties of the Warder-Channeler Representative are:

To function as both a Warder and Channeler administrator
To know the basic functions of every admin position and be able to carry them out. In the event of a vacancy (or shara) in an admin position, the WCR handles the duties of the absent administrator as needed.
To maintain and update the bond and bondable listings.
To Accept or Reject Sa'ji'alantin/dar applications, announce the raisings, and to inform the GC about the required updates.
To oversee bonds and promises both IC and OOC.
To compile and send out the Warder Eyes and Ears Report
To update the Warder Q&A
To be available to roleplay with all Tower members
To be available to give OOC help to all Tower members.
To make him/herself available to assist with site updates, queries from members, or other miscellaneous duties he/she is asked to perform.

The duties of the Master or Mistress of Revels are:

Receiving ideas (and in the absence of suggestions, generating ideas for) Big RPs which would include: feasts, feast-days, balls, hunts, parades, delegations, ceremonies (weddings and the sort), travel arrangements for the Amyrlin Seat and M'Hael, IC theater and concerts, but also other events as needed.
Coordinate with the Admin (and Major RP hosts) to see that Big and Major RPs are carried out in an organized fashion.
Generate ideas for Major RPs.
Making message boards for events as needed.
Update the major RP list.
Update the Events Calendar
Update permanent MB links to include or delete links to Big and Major RPs.
Generate banners for Major RPs. - Advertise Big and Major RPs.
Receive notification of Sovin Tar missions (from the Sovin Tar officers) that reach the level of Big or Major RPs, work around them, help set them up, and advertise them.

Please also note that these duty lists are not all encompassing. All admin are encouraged to assist one another and the Tower as their time and abilities permits them.

Information on the duties of the Sitters and Ajah Heads can be found Here.

Selection and Removal of Officers:

The Warder Channeler Representative may be either a warder or a channeler, and is appointed by the Amyrlin, M'Hael, and Master of Arms. As such, should the appointee be a channeler, they receive additional Talent Points above that of the average Aes Sedai or Asha'man (totaling the same amount as the Mistress of Novices/Master of Soldiers). Should the position be held by a warder, they receive additional Weapon Skill points (totaling the same amount as the Master/Mistress of Training). Also since this position is appointed and not elected, the appointee receives no official voting rights within the Hall of Sitters as a direct consequence of their appointed position (If they also serve in a voting position in their Ajah, they get a vote from that position alone).

The Hall of Sitters has approved the following measures for electing Officers (M'hael, Amyrlin, Master of Arms, Keeper of the Chronicles, Keeper of the Archives, Gaidin Captain, Master of Soldiers, Mistress of Novices, Master of Training):

The Amyrlin, M'Hael, or Master of Arms petitions the Hall of Sitters for formal nominations of candidates. It is suggested that the request for Nominations also include a request that anyone interested in running for a position put themselves forward, as this makes it easier for the Hall to find suitable candidates to nominate. A candidate may choose to put themselves forward without first being nominated by another member. Each member of the hall may submit a single nomination, and all nominations should be for fully-raised members (also of the appropriate gender if for a channeling position).
After one week allowed for the nomination process, if there are candidates are willing to run, then a vote is held. Each Sitter, Ajah Head, and Officer may submit one vote. (In the case of elections for Amyrlin, M'Hael or Master of Arms, each fully raised member of the Tower receives a vote, regardless of whether or not they hold a position in the Hall). Whichever candidate receives the most votes will be appointed to the position.
In the event of a tie, the Amyrlin and/or M'Hael and Master of Arms will consult with the rest of Admin and choose between the tied candidates.

The Amyrlin, M'Hael, and Master of Arms serve one year terms. There is no limit to the amount of terms one member may serve, but an election for each position is held every year. Incumbents may submit themselves for re-election. Amyrlin elections are held in October, M'Hael elections are held in April, and Master of Arms elections are held in July. Should an officer step down before their term is over and a replacement is elected: if the Replacement steps up in the first half of their predecessors term, there is an election at the appropriate time. If they step up in the latter half, the election is postponed till the next year.

The Amyrlin, M�Hael, and Master of Arms are accountable to each other, and next to the Keepers and Gaidin Captain. All other officers are accountable to the Amyrlin, M'Hael, and Master of Arms. These include the Keeper of the Chronicles, the Keeper of the Archives, the Gaidin Captain, the Master/Mistress of Training, the Master of Soldiers, the Mistress of Novices, the Warder Channeler Representative, and the Master/Mistress of Revels.

Applications and submissions must be responded to in a timely manner. A response would entail anything from an email to the applicant letting them know that it is being looked at, or a request to resubmit with changes or alterations, or even a response that it has been approved. The time limits as set forth by the Hall include:

Application / Submission	Response deadline
Joining applications	3 days
Raising applications	4 days
Benefit applications	3 days
Larger transcripts	4 days
Fanfics	3 days

If approved, all applications and submissions must be processed fully within 3 days of sending the appropriate response.

An Officer must request an extension from the appropriate Official(s), stating exactly how long it will be. A casual IM or e-mail will suffice, no shara form is required. If the extension is deemed by the official(s) to be too long, a suitable replacement will be asked to fill in.

Web page updates (HoS archive, HoS Queue, Main Page Announcements, etc.) must be done at least on a weekly basis. Any delays will follow the same delay policy outlined below.

Any delay counts as a Semi-Shara (up to 2 days after the original deadline) or Shara (4 or more days after the deadline).

Typically Officers can expect their duties to require anywhere from 5 to 15 hours per week, with the average falling between 8 to 11 hours per week (not including non-admin role plays and interactions)

All absences (full or semi-shara) above 2 days should be posted by an Officer on an official Shara form at least 2 days before the Shara is to begin so that appropriate replacements or assistants can be found and the other Officers are not left with an indeterminate amount of time filling in for the Officer on Shara.

Official Shara is limited to a maximum of 90 days throughout one calendar year (60 days of announced Shara, and 30 days added extension if needed). Every 2 days of Semi-Shara counts as one day of Shara.

Any unexcused or unexplained extended Shara will be met by an email from the appropriate Officials after one week has passed. The missing Officer has exactly one week after this to respond to the Official before being removed from their office, and replaced.

Unexcused absences or unexplained extended Shara will be punished as follows according to the consensus of the Hall:

Number of Offenses	Punishment
1	Warning from the Mother/Father
2	A second warning from the Mother/Father
3	Discussion among all of the Officers
4	Removal from Office

If an Officer is removed from their office according to these guidelines, they will be given one chance to redeem themselves. If removed a second time the punishment is to be banned from future office permanently (unless they are able to plead their case before the Hall and receive clemency)

Officers who have been banned from holding office have the right to plead their case before the Hall of Sitters and ask for clemency. If the clemency is granted the Officer will be allowed to take office once again under these guidelines. He or she will be banned again permanently if removed from office for a third and final time.

Officers must give two weeks notice before stepping down from a position. This is just enough time to hold a nomination and voting period. Should an officer fail to provide advanced notice, they will be unable to retake office for at least 6 months of uninterrupted activity as a member of the Tower before they will be eligible for office again. If re-elected, the previous offender will be placed under the watch of an appointed Official to see that he or she is keeping up with their duties as outlined in these guidelines

The period between December 21st and January 2nd each year is considered a Tower Holiday time. The Hall and the Tower are on leave, meaning that any and all time guidelines are suspended for this period and No Administrative Shara is accrued.

Information on the appointment and removal of Sitters and Ajah Heads can be found Here.