This article explains what a reserved chapter role is, who can reserve one, and what changes for chapter organizers when a role is reserved.
A chapter role can be marked Reserved from chapter organizers directly in the chapter role editor. Once a role is reserved, only someone who holds the site permission Assign reserved chapter roles can give it to, change it on, or take it away from a team member. Chapter organizers no longer see the role in their role picker.
This works the same way for every community — there's no setting to turn it on or off.
Who can reserve a role
The following table shows what's needed for each part of this feature:
| To do this | You need |
|---|---|
| Reserve or unreserve a role | The site permission Assign reserved chapter roles. This is granted through a site role in Admin Dashboard > Members > Roles. The Administrator site role has it by default; other site roles need it turned on individually. |
| See the reserved checkbox | The same permission, plus the usual Admin Dashboard access and the Change chapter role permission. Without Assign reserved chapter roles, the chapter role editor looks the same as before. |
| Give a reserved role to a team member | The same permission, in addition to the chapter-level Assign chapter roles permission that every role assignment already requires. |
If you can edit chapter roles but don't see the checkbox, your site role is missing Assign reserved chapter roles. Ask an Administrator to add it.
Where the reserved checkbox appears
You can find the checkbox in two places:
- Admin Dashboard > Members > Chapter Roles > edit a role, below Description.
- Admin Dashboard > Members > Chapter Roles > New Chapter Role, between Description and Based on.
The checkbox is labeled Reserved from chapter organizers, with the helper text: "Only holders of 'Assign reserved chapter roles' can give this role to a team member."
Reserve or unreserve a chapter role
To reserve a chapter role:
- Open the role in the chapter role editor.
- Select Reserved from chapter organizers.
- Select Save Chapter Role and confirm.
To unreserve the role later, reopen it, clear the Reserved from chapter organizers checkbox, and save again.
Reserving a role takes effect immediately and applies to every chapter. Team members who already hold the role don't lose it.
What changes for chapter organizers
For a chapter organizer — someone whose chapter role grants Assign chapter roles but who doesn't hold the site permission Assign reserved chapter roles — a reserved role:
- Doesn't appear in the role picker when adding or editing a team member.
- Can't be added, changed, or removed on a team member. The Edit and Remove buttons are hidden for organizers on any member who holds a reserved role.
- Isn't listed on the Chapter Roles page or in automated-email audience pickers.
Team members who already hold the reserved role keep it and keep its permissions — only who's allowed to hand it out changes. Holders of Assign reserved chapter roles see and assign reserved roles the same as any other role.
What doesn't change
Reserving a role affects who can assign it, not what it does:
- Reserving a role doesn't change the permissions the role grants.
- Assigning any role still requires Assign chapter roles on that chapter — reserving adds an extra condition, it doesn't replace this requirement.
- The Chapter Roles list doesn't show a reserved marker. Open the role to check its status.
- Every role change is still recorded in the audit log as a role update.
| What you see | Why it happens | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| The checkbox is missing on the New Chapter Role page after a hard reload | The page can render before your permissions finish loading. | Go to the page from the Chapter Roles list instead, or change any field once — the checkbox will appear. |
| Saving a role fails with a permission error, even though you only changed the name | Your Assign reserved chapter roles permission was removed while the form was open. | Reload the page and save again. |
| A chapter organizer says a role "disappeared" from their picker | The role was reserved. | Either unreserve the role, or have a holder of Assign reserved chapter roles make the assignment. |
| A role is reserved but no one remembers reserving it | On some communities, this flag was set by a data migration before the checkbox existed. | Open the role and clear the checkbox if it should be open to chapter organizers again. |
If you run into an issue not covered here, contact Bevy Support.