Nominating Committee Report
November 17, 2007
The Nominating Committee is pleased to present a slate of seven excellent
candidates for the Board of Directors, who we believe will best help move
the Club forward into its future.
Initially, the Nominating Committee contacted over 70 individuals to gauge
their interest in running for the Board. An additional 5-10 people
contacted us. The committee received 17 completed applications from
individuals. Selecting the final slate was extremely challenging.
The candidate pool was limited in size in part because of the perceived
challenge of running against incumbent candidates. The committee was also
challenged to present an ethnically diverse slate. Achieving diversity on
the Board will require more focused efforts by Club leadership. This year
the committee embraced the Diversity Policy and incorporated it into our
call for nominations. We specifically contacted chapter level leaders
seeking interested minority candidates. We found that many potential
candidates preferred to make their contribution at the local level where
they feel most effective. We strongly recommend the Diversity Council
and/or the Environmental Justice Committee be represented on the Nominating
Committee. Furthermore, we urge these committees to help identify people
of color to serve on national committees.
We urge the Board and Club leaders to continue ongoing efforts to encourage
diversity at all levels within the Club. Because some of the people we
interviewed had great talent, but little experience, we urge our Club
leadership to give more attention to mentoring future leaders and
encouraging their involvement in national committees.
Some potential candidates declined to run because the current workload of
directors seems excessive, particularly for those who have full-time jobs.
As indicated in our “Call for Nominations,” we sought candidates who are:
•Dedicated to the purposes and goals of the Club
•Able and willing to accept the legal responsibilities of a Director
•Experienced handling large budgets
•Able to listen and communicate effectively
•Able to work well in a team environment
•Able and willing to dedicate sufficient time to Board duties
•Able to think and plan strategically and politically
•Knowledgeable about critical environmental and political issues
•Knowledgeable about the structure and operations of the Club
•Experienced as a Club leader
•Able and willing to deal with a broad range of issues
In addition to considering the characteristics listed above, we tried to
create a balanced slate of candidates in terms of geography, gender, age,
and past board experience.
The seven nominees represent the unanimous opinion of the committee. The
nominees are:
Lane Boldman (KY)
Joni Bosh (AZ)
Jeremy Doochin (TN)
Barbara Frank (WI)
David Scott (OH)
Matt Urban (DE)
Nathan Wyeth (MD)
Members who wish to run by petition must announce their intention to do so
by noon PST on the last business day of November (Friday, November 30,
2007). This should take the form of an email message to
[log in to unmask] which will be forwarded to the Club’s Secretary.
Official petition forms and instructions will be sent to all announced
petitioners the following week. The signatures of at least 284 Club
members are required to qualify for the ballot. All petitions must be
filed by noon PST, by the 2nd Wednesday of January (January 10, 2008).
The Nominating Committee sincerely thanks all who submitted applications
this year, and those who helped us gather information in other ways. We
also thank the President and the Board for the opportunity to serve and to
meet an incredible pool of talented and dedicated Club leaders.
Richard Miller (CA), Chair
Sue Merrow (CT)
Katherine Pendleton (TN)
Donald Parks (WA)
Bettye Harris (GA)
Vivien Li (MA)
Jeri Andrews (CA)
document.getElementById("MsgContainer").innerHTML='\x3cpre\x3e \x3cbr\x3eNominating Committee Report\x3cbr\x3eNovember 17, 2007\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3eThe Nominating Committee is pleased to present a slate of seven excellent\x3cbr\x3ecandidates for the Board of Directors, who we believe will best help move\x3cbr\x3ethe Club forward into its future.\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3eInitially, the Nominating Committee contacted over 70 individuals to gauge\x3cbr\x3etheir interest in running for the Board. An additional 5-10 people\x3cbr\x3econtacted us. The committee received 17 completed applications from\x3cbr\x3eindividuals. Selecting the final slate was extremely challenging.\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3eThe candidate pool was limited in size in part because of the perceived\x3cbr\x3echallenge of running against incumbent candidates. The committee was also\x3cbr\x3echallenged to present an ethnically diverse slate. Achieving diversity on\x3cbr\x3ethe Board will require more focused efforts by Club leadership. This year\x3cbr\x3ethe committee embraced the Diversity Policy and incorporated it into our\x3cbr\x3ecall for nominations. We specifically contacted chapter level leaders\x3cbr\x3eseeking interested minority candidates. We found that many potential\x3cbr\x3ecandidates preferred to make their contribution at the local level where\x3cbr\x3ethey feel most effective. We strongly recommend the Diversity Council\x3cbr\x3eand\x26\x2347\x3bor the Environmental Justice Committee be represented on the Nominating\x3cbr\x3eCommittee. Furthermore, we urge these committees to help identify people\x3cbr\x3eof color to serve on national committees.\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3eWe urge the Board and Club leaders to continue ongoing efforts to encourage\x3cbr\x3ediversity at all levels within the Club. Because some of the people we\x3cbr\x3einterviewed had great talent, but little experience, we urge our Club\x3cbr\x3eleadership to give more attention to mentoring future leaders and\x3cbr\x3eencouraging their involvement in national committees.\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3eSome potential candidates declined to run because the current workload of\x3cbr\x3edirectors seems excessive, particularly for those who have full-time jobs.\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3eAs indicated in our \x26\x238220\x3bCall for Nominations,\x26\x238221\x3b we sought candidates who are\x26\x2358\x3b\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bDedicated to the purposes and goals of the Club\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bAble and willing to accept the legal responsibilities of a Director\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bExperienced handling large budgets\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bAble to listen and communicate effectively\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bAble to work well in a team environment\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bAble and willing to dedicate sufficient time to Board duties\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bAble to think and plan strategically and politically\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bKnowledgeable about critical environmental and political issues\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bKnowledgeable about the structure and operations of the Club\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bExperienced as a Club leader\x3cbr\x3e \x26\x238226\x3bAble and willing to deal with a broad range of issues\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3eIn addition to considering the characteristics listed above, we tried to\x3cbr\x3ecreate a balanced slate of candidates in terms of geography, gender, age,\x3cbr\x3eand past board experience.\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3eThe seven nominees represent the unanimous opinion of the committee. The\x3cbr\x3enominees are\x26\x2358\x3b\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3e Lane Boldman \x26\x2340\x3bKY\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e Joni Bosh \x26\x2340\x3bAZ\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e Jeremy Doochin \x26\x2340\x3bTN\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e Barbara Frank \x26\x2340\x3bWI\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e David Scott \x26\x2340\x3bOH\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e Matt Urban \x26\x2340\x3bDE\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e Nathan Wyeth \x26\x2340\x3bMD\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3eMembers who wish to run by petition must announce their intention to do so\x3cbr\x3eby noon PST on the last business day of November \x26\x2340\x3bFriday, November 30,\x3cbr\x3e2007\x26\x2341\x3b. This should take the form of an email message to\x3cbr\x3egene.coan\x26\x2364\x3bsierraclub.org which will be forwarded to the Club\x26\x238217\x3bs Secretary.\x3cbr\x3eOfficial petition forms and instructions will be sent to all announced\x3cbr\x3epetitioners the following week. The signatures of at least 284 Club\x3cbr\x3emembers are required to qualify for the ballot. All petitions must be\x3cbr\x3efiled by noon PST, by the 2nd Wednesday of January \x26\x2340\x3bJanuary 10, 2008\x26\x2341\x3b.\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3eThe Nominating Committee sincerely thanks all who submitted applications\x3cbr\x3ethis year, and those who helped us gather information in other ways. We\x3cbr\x3ealso thank the President and the Board for the opportunity to serve and to\x3cbr\x3emeet an incredible pool of talented and dedicated Club leaders.\x3cbr\x3e \x3cbr\x3e Richard Miller \x26\x2340\x3bCA\x26\x2341\x3b, Chair\x3cbr\x3e Sue Merrow \x26\x2340\x3bCT\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e Katherine Pendleton \x26\x2340\x3bTN\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e Donald Parks \x26\x2340\x3bWA\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e Bettye Harris \x26\x2340\x3bGA\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e Vivien Li \x26\x2340\x3bMA\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e Jeri Andrews \x26\x2340\x3bCA\x26\x2341\x3b\x3cbr\x3e\x3c\x2fpre\x3e';