Are any of the current board members running for the 2017 Board of Directors?

DMS General
#21

I’ll say here what I said in the last board meeting, I haven’t decided what to do. I likely won’t until late in the process for various reasons. There are compelling reasons why I should and shouldn’t run again.

Luis asked me some questions and asked for a photo and I obliged. At the time I let him know I hadn’t decided whether or not to run again. The bulletin board doesn’t have anything to do with our bylaws or election process, I think he’s just trying to be helpful and get more people involved.

It’s a pretty thankless task in general which I knew going into it. The overwhelmingly negative feedback on a consistent basis is something I wasn’t expecting. It has me questioning how much I positively contribute to DMS and whether or not I have to be a board member to contribute in the most meaningful ways. I could look at it as only the angry people reach out and the happy people don’t, or maybe I’m simply not a good fit for the organization because my values are not inline with the rest of the community. I’ll figure it out by the deadline but until then expect an answer of “I don’t know” and refer to the wiki page. :v:

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#22

For what little my opinion is worth in this realm, I think this is it.

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#23

Like Luke said, Luis asked for 3 things we accomplished and wanted to put them up on the wall. It was supposed to be a “get to know the board members” for new people. It wasn’t originally supposed to be related to the elections but its placement does come across that way. I originally told Luis I wasn’t sure if I was running and I am still not sure.

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#24

Thanks for your input guys ~ that makes more sense now for those of us who read this.

#25

Well then he missed two other board members in that process. Don’t know about why he left Erik out but I suppose he didn’t talk to me since we have had issues. :wink:

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#26

Perhaps you simply did not cross paths with him at DMS.

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#27

Certainly a possibility.

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#28

I noticed that as well, which was part of the reason it appears like “ads” are for members planning on running…

At any rate, thanks again to Nick for opening the discussion that allowed us to all understand better; and, thanks to all the current Board members for your responses and service (whether you intend to run again or not… :wink: :slight_smile: )

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#29

Thankless job indeed. Unfortunately goes with the territory. Most of the membership does not know or are not concerned about the enormous amount of work that goes on in the background to keep DMS up and running - until it affects them. And then they sound off.

Despite the current the political hot potato issues being debated/argued over, differences of opinion, etc.,etc., I would like to see part of the current BoD carry over to the new BoD. Why?? Lessons learned from the school of hard knocks, how to handle/not handle certain issues and so on. Some level of continuity and not having to start from scratch. A BoD that does not have to start out on the flat end of the learning curve.

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#30

Why do we re-elect all of the board positions every year? This is the only charitable organization that I’ve worked with that does it this way. The rest either elect half each year with two-year terms, or elect 1/3 each year with three-year terms. This is specifically for the purpose of not ever losing all of your experienced people at the same time.

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#31

Yeah but have you ever done a year on the DMS Board? I think some of them have to rotate out to maintain their sanity. I don’t know how the ones who have been on it multiple years have survived.

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#32

I understand the burnout factor. I’ve been there before. However, for the good of the organization, I don’t see re-electing all of the BoD at the same time being a good idea. Maybe we should be electing half of the board in April and the other half in October. That way there is always some number of directors that are not brand new.

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#33

Well, we may have Luke, Robert, and Alex again. They aren’t new. Plus Ken and Erik will be around for questions, as I don’t believe they’re planning to quit.

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#34

Those boards likely have more directors/positions than we have, as well. We could probably use 2 more n the board, as well as urge them to actually appoint day-to-day officers/management, which would alleviate much of the stress and burden shouldered by the board in its current configuration and roles.

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#35

Shhhhhhh, we are not going anywhere. Been a member since 2010 and love this place. Just want to contribute in another area.

To be honest I think anyone running for BoD should have been a chair first. Like a toad in a pot of cold water you gotta warm them up to it. :frog:

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#36

Are you brewing toads??

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#37

They won’t realize until it’s too late.

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#38

All good points. Realize that we are not your typical nonprofit. Most nonprofits have a Board that is separate from the agency staff and sometimes the volunteers. It elects its own officers. Here DMS members serve on an in house BoD.

#39

I haven’t seen a single person propose we re-elect every single board member this next term. Not sure where you got that idea from. EDIT: What Mathew said.

Anyways, I like the idea of a rotating BoD (like the USGov Senate), however you would need to change the bylaws for that. And as Amelia said, not many can handle even a year. Six months seems appropriate.

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#40

He saying we elect every position, not re-elect every Director.

Most places only elect a part of the Board each election, such that the entire Board always has a minimum number of veterans.

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