SVU Members Urged to Run for the 2011-2013 Board of Directors

Through out its almost 33-year history SVU has been an organization of action. The founding members recognized a need for education and research in the emerging field of non-invasive vascular testing, and thus created an organization designed to represent the best interests of those active in the field. The SVU membership is comprised primarily of vascular technologists/sonographers and physicians, as are the various levels of its leadership. Acts of service and leadership occur at many levels throughout the organization. Locally, members can participate in governance of an SVU affiliated chapter or provide support as speakers, faculty, moderators, or even mentors to vascular ultrasound students.

These same opportunities exist at the national level where SVU members can provide service to the Society through various pursuits, e.g., annual conference, education, membership, products, and advocacy services. Service can be in the form of participation in meetings, committee service (as a member or chair), as a member of the Board of Directors, and ultimately as a member of the Board’s Executive Committee.

Those drawn to service with SVU are invited and encouraged to do so. As members become more active and familiar with the processes of the SVU and how it functions, participation as a member of the Board of Directors is often the best way to affect meaningful change. Thus, every fall, the SVU Nominations Subcommittee, begins the process of soliciting and identifying candidates for the following year’s annual election at the SVU Annual Conference.

The Board of Directors and the Executive Committee are certain that there are many qualified members who can and should run for one of the three technologist director positions on the SVU Board that are open each year and urge those members to do so. Over the years the nominations process has included greatly contested races, and unfortunately many uncontested annual elections as well. It is the goal of the Board of Directors and Nominations Subcommittee to invite the membership to consider running for a position on the Board of Directors and provide the membership with a varied and qualified slate of Annual Election candidates from which to choose.

This article is intended to clarify the process and outline the commitment that is necessary to pursue and fulfill a position on the SVU’s Board of Directors.

Annual Election Nomination Process

In order to qualify for the Annual Election ballot, interested SVU members in good standing must accrue a certain number of points based on a system defined in the SVU’s Policy and Procedure Manual. A member’s eligibility for SVU Board service is not determined based on years of membership, but rather on how the candidate has contributed to the furthering of SVU’s mission and to the vascular ultrasound profession on the whole. In addition to certain basic attributes, service to the Society at various levels is the primary avenue through which points are accrued. Thus members who have not served on SVU Committees or Subcommittees or who have not been active in leadership positions in an affiliated chapter, or have not been a speaker at an SVU educational program will likely not have enough points to be approved by the Nominations Subcommittee for a position on the Annual Election ballot.

This is an objective process that is designed to identify those members who have demonstrated leadership ability and experience and whom are most active and familiar with the SVU and its mission. Many factors weigh into the selection of potential candidates for the Board. Among them, the candidate must be:

• a SVU member for at least 1 year
• the recipient of either the RVT or RVS credential
• active in an SVU affiliated chapter
• active in the SVU Committee/Subcommittee structure
• be an SVU speaker, faculty member, moderator, or JVU author, and
• active in the vascular ultrasound profession outside of SVU related activities

The primary factors for selection to the SVU Annual Election ballot are knowledge and experience. However, it is not unusual for many well qualified individuals to run together, which results in competent potential candidates not being elected to the Board. Thus the election process often becomes one of perseverance. Some members run several times before being elected to a three-year term on the Board.

Service on the SVU Board of Directors is a privilege, an honor and a rewarding experience; but it is also a serious undertaking that requires a great deal of effort and commitment. Elected Board Directors serve a three-year term and are eligible for re-election to a second three-year term. Each of the elected officer positions (Secretary, Treasurer, Vice President and President-Elect) are two-year terms, but only current Board Directors can run for these officer positions. And only the Secretary, Treasurer and Vice President positions are eligible for re-election. The President-Elect and President positions are two-year terms that are not eligible for re-election. Thus transition through the entire Board Director and Officer process as outlined in the SVU Bylaws can result in up to 12 years or more of SVU service as a Board Director and Officer.

Most SVU officers serve only a single two-year term in the various officer positions as they gain experience at the Executive Committee level in preparation for a potential term as President should they decide to run for that position. While the process is a long one, it ensures that those who serve at this level are adequately experienced and committed to the position.

Nominations for 2010 SVU Annual Election

The 2010 Nominations Subcommittee, chaired by 2010 President-Elect Debbie Pirt, is now soliciting names of members interested in running for one of the three elected technologist director positions for the 2010 SVU Annual Election to be held at the 2010 Annual Conference in Boston, MA, June 10-12, 2010.

Any member interested in running for a three-year term (2011-2013) on the SVU Board of Directors must submit a Candidate Profile/Nomination Form to the SVU national office by January 15, 2010 for consideration by the Nominations Subcommittee for the 2010 Annual Election in Boston. The SVU Candidate Nomination Form can be found at http://www.svunet.org/mo/SVUCandidate_Nomination_Form.doc.

If you have any questions concerning running for the SVU Board of Directors, please send an email to Debbie Pirt, 2010 Chair of the Nominations Subcommittee, at dpirt@yahoo.com or SVU Executive Director Steve Haracznak at steveh@svunet.org.

The SVU Board of Directors sincerely hopes several members will consider running for an open position on the 2011-2013 SVU Board of Directors by becoming a candidate in the 2010 SVU Annual Election.