Dear Fellow ACA Members:We’ve heard concern from some members about the process for selecting the new Board of Directors slate. To address those concerns we’d like to share the following information with you about the process from the nominating committee:The Nominating Committee this year consisted of five members selected by various ACA constituencies, representing broad paddling backgrounds and wide geographic regions. We evaluated candidates for seats on ACA’s Board of Directors, who completed an application found at https://americancanoe.org/aca-board-of-directors-nominations-and-elections/. Pursuant to ACA Bylaws, we developed our selection process based on precedent and nonprofit board selection best practices, to select the candidates we felt most qualified, and to submit the slate that is best for the ACA. ACA’s Board was not involved in the nominating committee’s deliberations. We worked by consensus to develop a rubric to carefully weigh the candidates’ answers and skills needed for ACA leadership. We then spent hours working to ensure that the nomination slate and candidates were eligible to hold the seats for which they were nominated. The slate we presented represents the candidates with the highest scores on our rubric, who met the qualifications for each seat, as defined in the bylaws and eligibility requirements. Six total seats are open.
- Two Independent Directors – Only two of the candidates met all qualifications to be an Independent Director
- One Athlete Director (Para-canoe) – Only one eligible candidate submitted a complete application
- One Properties Directors – Nominees are selected by representatives of ACA’s three properties; only one name was submitted
- Two At-Large Directors – The balance of the candidates could have qualified for At-Large seats. Four candidates were selected but one withdrew due to family commitments and the other was elected as SEIC Chair and was thereby assigned a Board seat. This left two candidates for the two At-Large positions.
We selected candidates who demonstrated broad, holistic understanding and first-hand experience with the ACA’s mission and four focus areas (Safety Education and Instruction, Athletic Competition, Conservation and Public Policy, and Recreation). The committee discussed having contested seats. However, given the narrow eligibility criteria for many seats, the last-minute candidacy withdrawals/reappointments, plus the strong caliber of the top candidates remaining for at-large positions, the slate was retained as is. We encourage any additional candidates for At-Large to be submitted as write-ins.This year’s nominating committee will work with ACA’s Board to continue improving our process for selecting members of the Board of Directors in the future. Suggestions for the process can be submitted to feedback@americancanoe.org. The ACA was fortunate this year to have great candidates volunteer and apply for nomination to the Board of Directors. The above highlights part of the nominating process and shares how decisions were made to create the slate we did. We encourage you all to be actively engaged members of the ACA by serving on committees and Boards so the organization can thrive through a diverse group of perspectives and experiences, and the open communication that comes from having engagement. As a nominating committee, we are grateful for the opportunity to dedicate our time to strengthen the ACA. Sincerely,Lynne C Andrus, ACA Divisions, State Directors and Affiliated Clubs (Texas)Jeff Atkins, Safety Education and Instruction Council (South Carolina)Thom Crockett, Elite Athlete Representative – Sprint (Washington, DC)Alessia Faverio, Selected by DEI Committee (North Carolina)Laura Zulliger, Safety Education and Instruction Council (California)
