Foulke Family Internet Charter

Adopted by the executive committee Oct. 17, 1998.

The Foulke Family Association members have shown a great interest in family matters related to descendants of Edward and Eleanor Foulke, who immigrated from Wales in 1698 with their nine children. Recognizing that there will be a continuing interest in family matters, as evidenced by their participation in the recent 300th Anniversary Family Reunion, and recognizing the World Wide Web will be an important medium in future information access, the Foulke Family Association intends to establish an Internet domain known as "foulke.org".

Objectives and Policies

A World-Wide Web Site and Email accounts will be created to serve the Family. Other Internet technologies may be employed as they are developed.

The Executive Committee of the Foulke Family Association will establish an Editorial Board to manage the detailed policies, procedures, and the actual contents of the web site and other Internet technologies. The Committee will appoint members to the Board, as well as a Site Manger and an initial Webmaster.

The Webmaster and Site Manager will be selected from descendants of Edward and Eleanor Foulke. The Webmaster and Site Manager must have not only the technical skills to manage and develop site content, but they must be committed to ensuring that the site contents honor the Foulke Family name and the descendants of Edward and Eleanor Foulke.

World Wide Web site

The Webmaster, in accord with direction, policies, and procedures from the Site Manager and Editorial Board, and with the help of Associate Webmasters, shall create and establishing the Foulke Family Association web site.

The goal of the site will be to provide information on the descendants of Edward and Eleanor Foulke and their family members and on family related matters, for reasons that serve the family members, including communication amongst cousins, contacts with newly discovered cousins, and reference material of history, genealogy, and pictures. Good taste will be inherent throughout, as the site honors our forebears and the family.
The primary intended audience will be descendants of Edward and Eleanor Foulke and their spouses. The site will, as a side benefit, also serve other people interested in the Family, as it benefits the Family. Some portions of the site may be limited to Family members only, if appropriate.
The overall content of the site will be aimed at family reference (static or slowly changing content), and news (dynamic or rapidly changing content). Reference content may be accumulated over several years, including such information as identification, genealogy, history, pictures, and stories of ancestors. News content may be rapidly changing information about family members and "letters-to-the family."

The goals and overall content of the site are expected to be a subject of continuing discussion of all family members either through the Web Site feedback or the Annual Meeting of the Foulke Family Association. The aim of this discussion will be to get input on desirable content from as many family members as possible. The goals and policies regarding content are subject to revision as required based on this discussion.

It is not intended that the Web Site would replace the Foulke Family Newsletter, at least in the near term. However, as Internet usage increases, the site may become the preferred medium for Foulke Family news.

The site may be used to solicit donations and sell family memorabilia as a means to support the site financially.

The Webmaster and the Editorial Board should strive to develop new content, update the site's technical standards, and keep the design and art fresh and periodically changed.

Publication on the site of information about and pictures of any identified, living cousins is subject to their permissions. Pictures en masse, without further identification, will be exempt from approval.

Appropriate permissions (publication and commercial use) for all site contents shall be obtained.

Accuracy of information on the site is important. The authority for a subject area should be consulted. Information on the site shall identify authorship, source, date, etc. so as to identify responsibility for its accuracy.

Email accounts

The Editorial Board shall establish policies and procedures for the use of email forwarding from the Family domain to individuals' email accounts. These Family accounts will include functional (e.g. "pres@foulke.org", "genealogy@foulke.org", "webmaster@foulke.org", "sitemanager@foulke.org") and personal (e.g. "joefoulke@foulke.org") emails. Personal email accounts shall be limited to members of the Foulke Family Association unless individually approved by the Editorial Board.

Definitions, responsibilities and detailed policies

Foulke Family Association: The Foulke Family Association is composed of natural or adopted descendants of Edward and Eleanor Foulke and spouses of descendants ("cousins") who wish to promote family values, family history and family communications ("the Family").

Executive Committee of the Foulke Family Association: The Executive Committee, as established by the By-Laws of the Foulke Family Association, will establish goals and policies for the Web Site. It may provide direction in any matter concerning the site. A review of site content by the full Executive Committee would be expected to be conducted at least once a year.

Editorial Board:The Editorial Board, appointed by the Executive Committee, is responsible to the Executive Committee and to the Family for the proper establishment, update, and maintenance of the web site and other Internet technologies, and for helping the Webmaster keep the content fresh. Its role is one of establishing organization, people, and ground rules in advance, and ensuring appropriate review as the web project continues.

The Board collectively, or its members in their assigned areas, will direct the Webmaster as required. The various members of the Board will directly oversee assigned areas of the site and review site content with the Webmaster.

Where appropriate, Board members may prepare, or acquire and edit, content for the Webmaster to implement.

Members of the Editorial Board will be expected to maintain active awareness of site content and proposed changes to the site. Review of additions to and changes of the site contents shall specifically include approval of any hyperlinks from the foulke.org site to other Internet sites.

The Board shall establish a predetermined and relatively short (i.e., two weeks) period of time to review new material and respond with comment. Proposals to the Board members by the Webmaster are deemed acceptable if review is not made or addressed within the review time limit.

The Board shall approve the web site hosting arrangement.

The Board will be composed of no more than six voting "on-line" family members with active email accounts and Internet access, and shall include the Site Manager and Webmaster. The members of the Editorial Board, except for the Webmaster, will be appointed, for an annual term, by a majority vote of the Executive Committee. The Board members may also be removed by a majority vote of the Executive Committee.

Site Manager: The Site Manager will have overall responsibility to the Editorial Board, the Executive Committee, and the Foulke Family Association for the Web Site and other Internet technologies. He or she is the principal actor and coordinator for:

Site establishment and continuation
Policy preparation and recommendation
Site review.

The Site Manager will propose procedures for control, governance, maintenance, and updating of the site for approval by the Editorial Board of the Foulke Family Association. The Site Manager will assist the Editorial Board in its oversight and policy implementation as requested by the Executive Committee. He or she is responsible for the entire site's suitability and success.

Other than by review and guidance, the Site Manager has no direct role in making and managing site contents. (This does not preclude the Site Manager from also becoming an Associate Webmaster, at the pleasure of the Webmaster.)

The Site Manager will serve as a voting member of the Editorial Board and is appointed by the Executive Committee like the other Board members.

Webmaster: The Family Webmaster will have specific responsibility for the Web Site's pages, and the technical contact with the Web Hosting Service. The Webmaster is responsible (by him- or herself, or with Associates) for:

Making the web site contents
Managing the web site computer directories, settings, and contacts with the web site hosting company
Managing the domain's email post office settings
Implementing and managing the technical details as new technologies and Internet capabilities are developed and are adopted by the Editorial Board
All details of the site design, structure, organization, and contents, subject to the direction of and review by the Site Manager, Editorial Board and Executive Committee.

The Webmaster will be the only person permitted to add documents to or remove documents from the website, except in the case of an urgent need and the Webmaster is unable to do so. In this event the Site Manager may designate himself or herself to serve as Temporary Webmaster or may designate an Associate Webmaster to serve as Temporary Webmaster.

The Webmaster will serve as a voting member of the Editorial Board.

He or she is appointed by the Editorial Board to an annual term, serving at the pleasure of the Editorial Board, and may be removed by a majority vote of the Board.

The Webmaster is the point of contact from general Family members and the public for site-related issues. The Webmaster will forward issues regarding content, editorial policy, and any complaints or contentious email to the members of the Editorial Board.

Associate Webmasters: Associate Webmasters are volunteers solicited and selected by mutual agreement of the Webmaster and the Site Manager.

Organizational/Administrative Contact: The person recognized with responsibility and authority over the foulke.org domain by organizations outside the family will be the Chairman of the Foulke Family Association or his or her designee, on behalf of the Foulke Family Association.

Financial/Billing Contact: The Financial/Billing Contact for Internet matters will be the Foulke Family Association Treasurer or his or her designee. The approval, making, and reimbursement of expenditures shall be in accordance with the Association By-Laws.

Domain Hosting Service: The Domain (and Web Site) Hosting Service may be changed by the Executive Committee at any time upon recommendation of the Site Manager or a majority vote of the Editorial Board.