SECTION I, Purposes:
The general purpose of the Association of North American Graduate Programs in the Conservation of Cultural Property (hereinafter referred to as ANAGPIC) is to “help serve the need of the conservation field for well-trained professional conservators by aiding its member training programs to attain their educational objectives.”
SECTION II, Membership eligibility:
(a.) Member organizations must have been providing conservation training for at least three consecutive years.
(b.) Member organizations must award a diploma, degree or certificate formally acknowledged by the academic institution with which the member organization is associated.
(c.) Within their parent institution, member organizations must constitute a distinct department or program, whose primary mission is conservation education and training. The primary goal of member organizations is providing education and training in conservation. Member organizations shall not award diplomas, certificates, or degrees to the parent institution’s student body at large simply on the basis of acquiring a set number of conservation-related credits. Program curricula must have substantial components of practical training in solving problems in conservation and conservation science.
(d.) Member organizations must have a ratio of students to faculty that is no greater than 10 students per FTE faculty member and must have demonstrated a continuing commitment to advanced conservation training and research as one of its major functions.
(e.) Member organizations must have faculty members whose professional qualifications to teach at the graduate level in conservation are clearly evident through substantial professional recognition such as election to Fellow in the International Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (IIC) or the American Institute for Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works (AIC), or accreditation by the Canadian Association of Professional Conservators (CAPC).
(f.) Member organization courses in methods of conservation practice must be taught by conservators with necessary conservation experience in the subject which they are teaching, and should conform to the AIC Code of Ethics and Guidelines for Practice and/or the Canadian Association for Conservation of Cultural Property (CAC) and CAPC Code of Ethics and Guidance for Practice.
(g.) Organizations wishing to join the ANAGPIC must petition a current member to nominate them for membership. The nomination will be considered at the annual ANAGPIC meeting normally held at the annual Conference of the Conservation Training Programs, which convenes in late spring (but may be otherwise scheduled). A majority vote of current member organizations, as cast by their delegate, is necessary to elect a candidate organization to membership.
SECTION III, Directors and officers:
The officers of the ANAGPIC shall be President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. They shall be elected by majority vote at the annual meeting and will hold two-year terms of office. In the event of the resignation of an officer, the ANAGPIC will conduct the nomination and election of his/her replacement by mail as expeditiously as possible. The responsibility for seeing that the election is carried out is that of the remaining officers.
SECTION IV, Meetings:
(a.) At least one meeting of the ANAGPIC will be held annually, normally concurrent with the annual Conference of the Conservation Training Programs, at present held in late spring. Other meetings can be called as necessary if agreed to by at least two-thirds of the membership.
(b.) Each member organization shall normally be represented by the training program director/chairperson. With the assent of a majority of the members, other individuals may be invited to a meeting or some part of it. Each member organization will be represented by only one vote.
SECTION V, Amendments to the Bylaws:
The adoption of the Bylaws and any changes thereto require a vote of not less than two thirds of the member organizations. Notice of such adoption or proposed changes, along with the proposed Bylaws or changes thereto must be provided in writing to all voting members of the AGPIC at least four weeks prior to the taking of the vote concerning them. The vote may be taken at any scheduled ANAGPIC meeting or by registered mail ballot.
SECTION VI, Founding member organizations:
ANAGPIC was founded in May, 1984 by the following organizations (current organization names being given in alphabetical order):
Buffalo State College, State University of New York, Art Conservation Department;
Harvard University Art Museums, Straus Center for Conservation and Technical Studies;
New York University, Conservation Center, Institute of Fine Arts;
Queen’s University, Art Conservation Program;
Winterthur/University of Delaware Program in Art Conservation ;
The University of Texas at Austin, School of Information, Kilgarlin Center for Preservation of the Cultural Record