Neutron Sciences Directorate

January 1, 2023

MISSON/PURPOSE

The Women in Neutron Sciences (WiNS) group promotes professional development of women. WiNS seeks to foster a work environment that is equitable and inclusive through thoughtful discussion, awareness, outreach, learning events, partnerships, and support. Women in Neutron Sciences serves both the Neutron Sciences Directorate and the Second Target Station Project.

FUNCTIONS

MEMBERSHIP AND ENGAGEMENT

Encourage active participation in this group to drive engagement and activities that aim to attract and retain new female talent, in an inclusive environment.

LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT

Develop and execute a series of learning and development events that are determined based on multiple inputs, including staff surveys, proposals from members and subcommittees, suggestions from the Employee and Organization Development Group and other ideas.

STRATEGIC EVENTS

Develop and execute several larger strategic events on an annual or semi-annual basis that are tied to a specific theme and that are of general interest to science, operations, business and administrative staff. The larger event may be tied to an event at ORNL as well.

PARTNERSHIPS

Ensure this group leverages partnerships with other Employee Resource Groups (ERGs) like the Veterans Group, Hispanic Group, and similar groups across ORNL as well as the ORNL Diversity office and the ORNL Committee for Women. Establish engagement with societies like the Neutron Scattering Society of America (NSSA) and other like women in science societies.

ORGANIZATION, FUNCTIONALITY AND PROJECT COMPOSITION

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OFFICERS

Executive Committee positions are elected. Annually, the WiNS committee members will request volunteers for each open position from NScD and STS. The new committee members will be elected through the annual survey, which is open to the Neutron Sciences Directorate and STS project. The Executive Committee will work with the Communications Officer to design the annual survey which will be sent out in September each year. The candidate with the most votes will be selected to serve in that position for the described term. Newly elected candidates will be notified in October and will begin attending monthly meetings in November to facilitate a smooth transition at the beginning of the calendar year. Executive Committee Officers are expected to attend monthly meetings, attend an annual planning meeting, and participate in planning and running events as schedules allow. Officers may send the Committee a report or update when unavailable to attend the monthly meeting.

COMMITTEE CHAIR

Term

The Chair will serve a one-year term. The same person cannot serve as Chair consecutively, however, they may be reelected after a period of at least two years. In the event that there is no candidate to take over as Chair, the presiding Chair will remain until a new candidate(s) is identified.

Responsibilities

The Chair is responsible for leading the chapter and managing the activities according to the Charter of the committee and established policies and procedures. The Chair will create the meeting agenda and preside over the monthly scheduled meetings. The Chair will make decisions in coordination with the committee and the other officers.

VICE CHAIR

Term

The Vice Chair will serve a one-year term, after which they will rotate into the Chair position.

Responsibilities

The Vice Chair will preside over the meetings when the Chair is not available and will manage internal communications for the WiNS group. Duties include: sending out reminders about meetings, keeping meeting minutes at monthly meetings to be sent to Chair for review, and networking with other ORNL women’s committees to see where collaboration is possible.

OUTGOING CHAIR

Term

The Outgoing Chair will participate on the Executive Committee for a period of no more than six-months.

Responsibilities

The Outgoing Chair will stay on to ensure continuity within the group as it transitions to the newly elected leaders.

COMMUNICATIONS OFFICER

Term

The Communications Officer will serve a one-year team. The same person cannot serve in this position consecutively, however, they may be reelected after a period of at least two years.

Responsibilities

The Communications Officer will manage external communications for the WiNS group and continuously look for opportunities to improve methods used to communicate the WiNS mission to users and staff. The Communications Officer will ensure all communication, language, and positioning is consistent and aligned with the WiNS Champion, Executive Sponsor and ORNL. Duties include: maintaining the WiNS website, distributing WiNS e-mails for the group (when not organized by a subcommittee), producing and distributing the annual WiNS survey (September), and working with the NScD Communication Team to publicize upcoming events.

HR ADVISOR

Term

The HR Advisor will serve a one-year term with the option of being elected for one or more contiguous terms.

Responsibilities

The HR Advisor will serve as a general committee advisor to ensure WiNS events, communications and processes adhere to NScD and ORNL policies.

WINS MEMBERS AT-LARGE

Term

The WiNS Members at Large will serve a one-year term with the option of being elected for one or more contiguous terms. Members at Large will be selected by the Executive Committee after annual elections to ensure cross-divisional and cross-discipline representation on the committee. There will be no more than five Members At-Large on the Executive Committee.

Responsibilities

Members At-Large will serve as liaisons for the general WiNS membership. They will ensure that there is sufficient diversity on the Executive Committee. The WiNS Executive Committee must have representation from HFIR, SNS, and the post doc community. When possible, the Committee should have representation from each division within the NScD.

PROJECT LEADS

Term

Project Leads are elected positions for the four standing projects described below. Additional, short-term projects may be selected by the WiNS Committee members as opportunities arise with project leads chosen by the Executive Committee. The Project Lead will hold their position until project completion or until they have served a one-year term. Project leads and the Chair can renew their term for 1 year by going up for re-election. If the chair opts to renew their term they must receive approval from the vice chair as it also extends the term of the vice chair. If the chair opts to extend the vice chair will remain as without re-election.

Responsibilities

Project Leads, with the help of their teams, are expected to run all aspects of their assigned projects until the project reaches completion. Duties include: organizing the project, scheduling meetings, assigning roles, executing tasks and promoting the event. Project Leads are expected to involve all team members in the project, delegating as needed to ensure all tasks are completed on time and as expected. Project Leads are expected to attend the monthly Executive Committee meeting to participate in discussions and give an update on the project’s progress.

STANDING PROJECTS

RECOGNITION AND ENGAGEMENT

Use tools, such as the WiNS website, to recognize and promote outstanding woman in Neutron Scattering. Look for ways to promote ORNL staff outside of the lab – nominate women for speakers at other societies (NSSA, etc.).

LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT

Responsible for developing events or looking for opportunities that WiNS can offer to the NScD community to enhance personal and career development. Coordinate and promote at least six Lunch & Learn events throughout the year.

OUTREACH AND NETWORKING

Responsible for recruiting, promoting, and collecting feedback for WiNS. Responsible for coordinating both onsite and offsite events that foster networking across all areas of NScD. Organize and promote at least six offsite social events throughout the year.

STRATEGIC EVENTS/PARTNERSHIPS

Each year, the WiNS Committee members will select at least 2 events to champion. Events may include: a seminal event, workshops, panel discussions, community events, or other pivotal lab wide events (e.g. Lab Anniversary events, Women’s Leadership Workshop).

DIVERSITY EQUITY AND INCLUSION INITIATIVES

Responsible for Diversity Equity and Inclusion events and initiatives brought to WiNS through NScD and/or STS management. The DEI project lead will be the interface between WiNS and NScD and STS management. They will bring proposals to the committee to be voted upon. Ideas from the directorate will be brought up to the DEI project lead who then discusses them with the executive committee. If the committee approves the DEI project lead will discuss with the NScD and STS executive leadership team if needed. Large initiatives must be approved through NScD, STS and lab leadership. The DEI project lead will coordinate the events with support from the other executive committee members and members at large.

PROJECT COORDIATORS

Project Coordinator – a member of WiNS who takes a leadership role for a specific event or project who acts under the supervision of specific executive committee members. This person will not be part of the executive committee quorum and will not attend executive committee meetings unless the event or project is being discussed. Examples of specific events or projects are the NScD Family Picnic, film screenings, and events with groups outside of ORNL. Project Coordinators will be voted upon during the annual survey.

Permanent Project Coordinator Roles

PICNIC COORDINATOR

This role will be overseen by the strategic events/partnerships lead and the outings coordinator. In the event someone does not get elected the position will be filled by other members of the executive committee and/or members at large. The role is to coordinate the efforts for the annual NScD/STS picnic.

SPECIAL ELECTIONS

In the event a member of the WiNS Executive Committee resigns before their term expires, the committee will hold a special election to vote in a new replacement member.

VOTING

• The WiNS Executive Committee will invite members of the WiNS listserv to nominate candidates for open positions.
• In the event one person is nominated multiple times, the Executive Committee must decide if they can hold more than one position. If they cannot, the Executive Committee must ask the nominee to choose a single position.
• Nominees must confirm that they wish to participate on the WiNS Executive Committee before the election takes place.
• Write-ins will not be allowed, and the Executive Committee must approve all nominees to avoid bogus election results.
• Once candidates have been chosen, the Communications Officer will include an option to participate in the vote with the annual survey.
• The NScD Directorate will vote for the candidates.
• The candidate with the most votes will be invited to attend the monthly Executive Meetings and be mentored by the incumbent during their transition period. They will take over their elected position on the first of the calendar year.