ASPE Seeks Board of Directors Applications

Following is a letter from Mitch Clemente, CPD, FASPE, 2019–2021 ASPE Nominating Committee Chair:

The election for the 2020–2022 Society Board of Directors is quickly approaching and will take place during the Business Meeting later this year in New Orleans. The election process is well documented in the Policy & Operations Manual and the ASPE Bylaws, but I would like to provide some general information about the role of the Nominating Committee, the importance of each of the Board positions, and how to apply to be a candidate.

First let me tell you a little bit about the Nominating Committee. The Committee is comprised of members from every ASPE Region and is tasked to help find candidates for every position regardless if a current Board member is seeking re-election or not. The Committee shall review every application and then create a list of those candidates who meet the requirements, which is presented to the membership. The next step is to interview every candidate, and, based on the information provided in the application and the interview process, the Committee shall then develop what is known as the recommended slate of officers. To clarify, the recommended slate of officers is a list of those candidates the Committee feels are most qualified after going through an in-depth interview.

The Board consists of 12 elected positions and is comprised of five Region Directors, one Treasurer, five Vice Presidents, and the President. Region Directors are responsible for overseeing the activities of the Chapters within their Region. Candidates for this position shall be Full Members in good standing of a Chapter within the Region they want to represent, and they shall have held a position(s) as a Chapter Officer for not less than four years.

Those wishing to run for the position of Vice President, Affiliate shall be a Full Member or an Affiliate Member in good standing for not less than four years. The VP Affiliate, as the name implies, is responsible for all activities pertaining to the representation of the Affiliate Members.

All other candidates for the remaining positions shall be Full Members in good standing holding either the Professional Engineer (PE) license or the Certified in Plumbing Design (CPD) certification, and shall have been active members in good standing for a continuous period of not less than the immediately preceding 12 months. These positions include the Treasurer, who is the Chief Financial Officer, and the VP Education, who is responsible for the educational and professional development programs of the Society. The VP Membership is responsible for recruiting new members, approving new member applications, and planning all membership activities, while the VP Legislative is responsible for all activities related to codes or ordinances as they pertain to the Society. The VP Technical is responsible for planning, organizing, and directing the technical activities of the Society, and in the absence of the President shall perform all the duties of the President.

The President has many different duties including, but not limited to, presiding at all Conventions, serving as Chair of the Board of Directors, administering the affairs of the Society, and submitting the proposed budget for the fiscal year to the Board. Members can apply for any position on the Board in accordance with the Bylaws, but the office of President requires an in-depth knowledge of the Society, so the preference is to have candidates with previous Board experience for this position.

Being elected to the Board is a two-year commitment, and to be considered a candidate you must complete an application, meet the requirements, and provide written approval from both your employer and your spouse/significant other acknowledging the time away from work and family to fulfill the duties of the position. A lot of responsibility comes with being a Society Board member, but it is also a great honor to be recognized and elected by your peers to hold one of these very important positions. If you are up to the challenge and are not afraid to do some work, you can find some additional information regarding each of the positions and the election process in the P&O Manual. A more detailed description of each of the Board positions starts on the first page of Chapter One, The Society, and Article 5 of the Bylaws in Chapter Two covers some additional information about the process.

To apply for one of the Board positions, just go to the ASPE website at aspe.org, hover over the “Membership & Global Community” heading and click on the “Members Only” link. Then scroll down to the Membership Forms section at the bottom of that page and click on the “Application Package for Candidates to the ASPE Board of Directors” link. This will bring up the latest application package that you will need to complete and submit no later than May 8, 2020 to be considered as a candidate.

If you have any questions, please reach out to any Chapter Officer, Society Board member, or anyone on the Nominating Committee.

Without your help and support, ASPE cannot continue to be a leader in this industry. Please consider running for a position on the Society Board of Directors.

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