| << BACK | ||||
|
Too Few Test the Exec Committee Waters By Alex Goff for Rugby Imports December 16, 2005 — It's not rare for me to get embroiled in a conversation about the State of Rugby with a reader when I go to a rugby event. Heck, sometimes it seems almost required. So often the people I am talking with is very concerned with what's happening to the governance of the game on the national level. They want to know what support there is for the national team; they want to know what's going to happen with eligibility, dues, and whether USA Rugby is really doing its job. In short, they care.
Unfortunately, that caring has rarely translated into full participation in the voting process. When the general membership voted for representatives on the USA Rugby Board of Directors, voter participation was less than 1 percent (according to Paul Ganey, who has overseen this process for several years). One wonders if the current opportunity for the membership to get involved will be much better. Nominations are now being taken for five positions on the Executive Committee. Any member of USA Rugby can nominate any other member of USA Rugby for any of the positions (the exception being the Athlete Representative position). And who wouldn't want to take an unpaid position with an organization that will pillory you (figuratively) as often as anything else? We hope lots. According to Ganey, 99 percent of those who put themselves up for Exec Committee consideration are current or former members of the USA Rugby Board. Why? Well the Board selects who gets the position, and like any vote, they tend to vote for people they know well. Non boardmembers who run for these offices face a steep learning curve in the ins and outs of Board politics, and boardmembers, too, face a learning curve in trying to find out as much as they can about an unknown candidate. Nominations are scarce, said Ganey. USA Rugby's by-laws call for a candidate to win a post by a majority vote of the Board. If no one receives a majority vote, the bottom-most vote-getter is dropped and a revote is held. Gainey said USA Rugby has never had to impose that rule. In addition, there hasn't been a slate of candidates with every position having at least two running for the post since March of 2000. Generally there is always at least one post where someone is running unopposed. This year could be stranger than most in that USA Rugby is ready to undergo massive changes. It could be that someone gets a post only to relinquish it because it ceases to exist (unlikely with a treasurer, for example). It could be that new elections would have to be held because the job has changed a great deal. There's a lot of who knows? in this process. But what we do know is that USA Rugby's membership, whether in having their voices heard or in nominating candidates for the Executive Committee, need to get involved. Nominations are due January 16, 2006 and will be voted on March 3-4, 2006. Go here for details. Goff on Rugby (www.goffonrugby.com) is a web magazine covering North American rugby news. The site offer news, analysis, and statistics you can't find anywhere else. Much of the site is free, but Goff on Rugby Gold is a subscription site, where $39.95 gets you a username and password to access the good stuff. Go to Goff on Rugby to see what our low annual subscription fee gets you. Or register at https://www.goffonrugby.com/registration.cgi Goff on Rugby (www.goffonrugby.com) is a web magazine covering North American rugby news. The site offer news, analysis, and statistics you can't find anywhere else. Much of the site is free, but Goff on Rugby Gold is a subscription site, where $39.95 gets you a username and password to access the good stuff. Go to Goff on Rugby to see what our low annual subscription fee gets you. Or register at https://www.goffonrugby.com/registration.cgi |
||||
| Copyright 2004 Rugby Imports Ltd. | ||
|
||