It’s that time of year when we elect our NACE National Board for the next year! Each year our National Board elections are held in the Summer months at the Annual Meeting during the National Experience Conference which is historically in July or August. The elected board serves a one year term from January to December.

Members should have received an email announcement from NACE National announcing the 2021 candidates, however, you can also find the information here: https://www.nace.net/elections2020/. 

The NACE National Board is the governing body of the association to regulate networking opportunities, showcasing for companies, and job opportunities for the community. They set the strategic direction of the association, help monitor progress on initiatives for each chapter, and work to strengthen and help grow our NACE community. The National Board will also give support to newer chapters in how to set up their boards, how to conduct a meeting, etc. And, let’s not forget the awards program! They have provided a platform for all NACE Chapters to showcase their achievements!  

The National Board also searches for resources that would benefit individual members that they normally would not qualify for on their own such as rental car rates, shipping, etc. They also focus on certification access, speakers and education, and a central community for our industry. Some of the member resources can be found on the NACE website here: https://www.nace.net/connect/memberbenefits/

Our NACE National Election board is elected by delegates. Each chapter is allotted 1 voting delegate for every 25 Professional Members in good standing. The voting delegates must be NACE Professional members in good standing and not subject to suspension at the time of election and at the time of the meeting. Our DFW NACE Chapter delegates are chosen by the President and are suggested to be a mixture of active members who are attending the National Conference (where the elections are held annually) and board members attending. It’s nice to have a mix of perspectives on the incoming leadership. The delegates will vote on behalf of their chapter and will vote with one voice, meaning they must be in agreement with their voting (per chapter).

This year our DFW NACE chapter delegates are: 

• Don Mamone (Immediate Past President)
• Kimberly Rhodes (President)
• Angie Moors (President-Elect)
• Lauren Twichell (Vice President)
• Jennifer Burns (Treasurer)
• Christopher Harmon (Director of Community Service)
• Amber Knowles (Director of Communications)
• Rebecca Wright (Awards Chair)

Here is a breakdown of the election process:
Once the Voting Delegates have been selected, each Voting Delegate is certified and authenticated by the Executive Director (Lawrence Leonard, CAE, CMP) that they meet the qualifications of membership. The ED will then notify each Voting Delegate of their approval as a certified delegate. A printed list of the certified delegates signed by the Executive Director is forwarded to the Governance Committee. 

The Governance Committee coordinates election efforts, reviews all potential candidates for elections to ensure they meet the minimum criteria required for each position, and they conduct the election process at Experience Conference where elections take place every year. 

The Chair of the Governance committee will appoint inspectors: a Judge and two Tellers – these inspectors cannot be a candidate for office, a certified voting delegate, or assigned as a certified proxy. The Judge and Tellers are responsible for processing & certifying the elections by determining the voting power of the certified voting delegates, the existence of a quorum, the validity and effect of proxies with fairness to all members. The Judge and Teller must be professional members in good standing and appointed (15) days prior to the election.

The Tellers, after collecting and counting the ballots, will determine the result of the election. The judge and tellers will certify and report the results of the election to the chair of the Governance Committee, who will be responsible for announcing the results to the membership. You can find the Governance Committee information on the NACE National website, along with other National Committee information (http://www.nace.net > “About NACE” > “National Standing Committees”). 

This year, due to COVID & the postponement of the National Conference, the ballots were mailed to the delegates and a virtual Q&A was set on July 19th. Each delegate is responsible for mailing, faxing, or emailing their ballots to the NACE National office no later than August 17th. The Governance Committee will meet on August 18th to count ballots, and there’s a virtual Town Hall meeting on August 20th at 4:00pm CST where the 2021 Board will be announced.

An email invitation for the Town Hall has been sent to all members, so if you are available to join, please do! You will also hear from our 2020 National Board & Foundation of NACE on the state of NACE including strategic initiatives, operating metrics, and the ongoing response to COVID-19. Log in to your NACE account here to register for the Town Hall.