Dear Members,
As you know, we have elections coming up at our May 14th meeting for ACCESS Officers and At-Large Reps. Some people who are ready to step up and get involved don’t feel ready for one of those positions but are interested in becoming a Rep or Alternate for their group. Here’s the process for becoming a Rep:
Each “position title group” is entitled to one Rep and one Alternate for every ten ACCESS members or fraction thereof. For example, we have 5 ECIS members, so that group is entitled to one Rep and one Alternate. We have 20 Developmental Specialist members, so they get 2 Reps and 2 Alternates, etc. Even position title groups as small as one or two members are entitled to Reps.
Nominations and election of Reps and Alternates should be held within each group of members holding that same position title prior to the September monthly ACCESS meeting, where they officially take on the role. Usually this is done informally: a member volunteers to be a Rep for their group and lets everyone in their group know (at a meeting or via email), everyone thanks them for volunteering, and the member becomes the Rep unopposed. This is fine. If a group is entitled to only 1 Rep and two people are interested, usually they agree between themselves who will be the Rep and who will be the Alternate. If both want to be the Rep or if there are more volunteers than there are positions for your group, you’ll need to hold an election within your group. Someone in your group should contact Nominations & Elections Chair Jeanni Zeal (zeal.jean@cuyahogabdd.org) for help with conducting the election.
If your group does not have their full allotment of Reps and Alternates, it’s fine to step up at any time during the year and follow the procedure above. It’s better to fill a vacancy than to leave a position open until September.
(A little clarification about Reps vs. Alternates: if the Rep is unable to attend an ACCESS monthly meeting, the Alternate is to substitute; if both are present and a vote is held on some matter, only the Rep gets to vote – both are always welcome at meetings.)
If your group does have its full allotment and you want to take on a more involved role with the Association, what about joining an ACCESS committee? More information on that to follow!