Constitution | Officers

The Association for Political Theory is a not-for-profit educational professional association. Currently not incorporated, its accounts are held and managed on its behalf by the Colorado College Department of Philosophy.

APT charges no membership fees. Its only income arises from fees charged to pay for expenses associated with the annual conference. Those fees are based on a budget that the Executive Co-Directors arrange with the institution hosting the conference and that the Governance Committee as a whole reviews and approves. This budget, in turn, is ideally designed to pay for all of the Association's conference expenses and to insure against any risks that the Association may undertake in staging a conference. Consequently, the goal of the Executive Co-Directors is to establish an accurate estimated budget for the conference, to which another 20% is added in order to cover possible cost overruns. Any surplus generated is then banked to help finance and insure future conferences. In 2008, the Governance Committee set as a goal the accumulation of approximately $20,000 in reserves, which should enable the Association to finance unexpected cost overruns from at least two conferences in a row. If and when those reserves are fully funded, the Governance Committee may consider lowering the 20% buffer and, correspondingly, the conference fee.

Over time, the Association may attempt to raise funds and may undertake projects with other expenses, which would then require revising this financial plan. At some point, the Association may incorporate as an independent not-for-profit educational foundation.

Finances are handled by Association officers, working with our sponsor, the Colorado College Philosophy Department. The Executive Co-Directors, as noted above, negotiate a budget with the host institution, which the Governance Committee as a whole reviews and approves. The Secretary-Treasurer then bills conferees, collects their payments, and keeps track of conference income generally. Those registration fee payments, in turn, are banked in an account held on behalf the Association by the Colorado College Department of Philosophy. Webmaster Dennis McEnnerney manages that account, and makes payments to hosts and vendors, as instructed by the Executive Co-Directors with the review and approval of the whole Governance Committee and conforming to best practices established by the Colorado College Business Office.

From its inception, APT has aimed to provide service to its members at minimal expense.