American Friends Service Committee

About American Friends Service Committee (AFSC)

The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) promotes lasting peace with justice, as a practical expression of faith in action. Drawing on continuing spiritual insights and working with people of many backgrounds, AFSC nurtures the seeds of change and respect for human life that transform social relations and systems.

The AFSC is guided by a corporation composed of no fewer than 120 nor more than 180 members. No fewer than 60 nor more than 90 of these members are to be nominated by the yearly meetings of Friends in the United States. No fewer than 60 nor more than 90 Friends are chosen at large by the Nominating Committee of the AFSC. Of these, up to 25 are chosen to serve as the Board of Directors. The clerks of the four U.S. regional offices and of the international office sit as ex-officio members of the corporation.

Each yearly meeting appoints from two to five members. The number of Friends to be appointed from each yearly meeting is generally based upon the size of the yearly meeting and is determined by the AFSC. In addition, New York Yearly Meeting may recommend names to the nominating committee of the corporation for appointment to the Northeast Regional Office.

Link to the Committee's Handbook page.

Resources for Members and Clerks of NYYM Committees

Guidelines for Committee Service—Relevant sections from the yearly meeting Handbook on committe membership and committee clerking.

Guide for Committee Clerks—A resource packet designed to make clerking a NYYM committee easier.

Coordinating Committee Timeline—A guide to the year's tasks for coorcinating committee clerks.

Accountability Queries—Queries for use by committees and the coordinating committees for considering the spiritual state of the yearly meeting's committees.

Documents & Resources