Join the Board of Directors!
APPLICATIONS
DUE: SEPTEMBER 10th BY 9PM
ELECTIONS: OCTOBER 15 - NOVEMBER 15
BOARD OF
DIRECTORS INFORMATION
The Olympia Food Co-op Board of Directors is
the elected body that represents the membership by establishing policies,
overseeing the operating and capital budgets, approving plans and
recommendations, and setting general guidelines for staff and working members.
The Board holds ultimate legal responsibility for the operations and actions of
the Co-op.
The Mission Statement for the
Co-op (from Section I.2. of The Bylaws)
is:
The purpose of the Cooperative is to contribute to the
health and well-being of people by providing wholesome foods and other goods
and services, accessible to all, through a locally-oriented, collectively
managed, not-for-profit cooperative organization that relies on consensus
decision making. We strive to make human
effects on the earth and its inhabitants positive and renewing and to encourage
economic and social justice. Our goals
are to:
A. Provide
information about food;
B. Make
good food accessible to more people;
C. Support
efforts to increase democratic process;
D. Support
efforts to foster a socially and economically egalitarian society;
E. Provide
information about collective process and consensus decision making;
F. Support
local production;
G. See
to the long term health of the business;
H. Assist
in the development of local community resources.
Board Responsibilities (as outlined in
Section III.12. of The Bylaws) are:
13. BOARD DUTIES
Except as to matters reserved to membership by law or by these bylaws,
the business and affairs of the Cooperative shall be directed by the Board of
Directors. The major duties of the Board
are to:
A. employ
Staff, approve the make-up of the hiring committee, approve job descriptions,
and approve a hiring policy;
B. select
officers, and fill Board vacancies as needed;
C. approve
an operating budget annually;
D. monitor
the financial health of the Cooperative;
E. appoint
standing and special committees as needed;
F. authorize appropriate agents to sign
contracts, leases, or other obligations on behalf of the Cooperative;
G. adopt,
review, and revise Cooperative plans;
H. approve
major capital projects;
I. adopt
major policy changes;
J. adopt
policies to foster member involvement;
K. authorize
major debt obligations of the Cooperative;
L. ensure
compliance with all corporate obligations, including the keeping of corporate
records and filing all necessary documents;
M. ensure
adequate audits of Cooperative finances;
N. maintain
free-flowing communication between the Board, Staff, committees, and the
membership;
O. adopt
policies which promote achievement of the mission statement and goals of the
Cooperative;
P. resolve
organizational conflicts after all other avenues of resolution have been
exhausted;
Q.
establish and review the Cooperative's
goals and objectives.
R. Provide
an annual report to the members to include a financial report, committee
reports, and a summary of other significant events held and actions taken by
the Cooperative during the year.
Board members receive volunteer working
member credit for their time spent in Board and committee meetings. The monthly hour commitment ranges between 10
to 20 hours.
The Board meets once a month. Each
Board member is required to join 2-3 committees which also meet 1-2 times per
month (though this will vary from committee to committee.) These committees establish plans and policies
that are then passed on to the Board or membership for approval. The standing committees include Finance,
Personnel, Outreach and Education, Newsletter, Ecological Planning, Hiring,
Local Farm, Products and Producers, and Member Relations. Temporary committees
may be formed to deal with specific short-term projects (Expansion,
International Year of the Co-op, etc.)
To be eligible to run for the Board you must be a member of
the Co-op with a current address on file, and you must be willing to make a
2-year commitment.
Board members are elected for two-year terms and may serve for a maximum
of two consecutive terms. This year the Board has five positions to fill. The newly elected Board members will receive
an in-depth training on consensus decision-making, anti-oppression, the Co-op’s
finances, policies and general procedures, and a history of the organization.
The election will be held from October 15 to November 15. New Board members will be asked to attend the
November and December Board meetings to begin their training and meet the
current Board members, and they will officially begin their term in
January.
If
you are interested in running for the Board, you must fill out the application
and submit it and a current digital
photo of yourself to boardapplication@olympiafood.coop by 9pm on September 10th.
Take this opportunity to be an active
participant in your Co-op’s future and the future of our community!
For more information contact Fern at
boardapplication@olympiafood.coop
Board
of Directors Application
Please answer the following questions
and email them, along with a current digital photograph of yourself, to boardapplication@olympiafood.coop.
There is a strict, combined 500 word
limit to your responses below.
1. NAME:
EMAIL ADDRESS:
PHONE NUMBERS:
2. Why do you want to be on the Co-op
Board of Directors?
3. What general abilities would you bring
to the Board? What specific abilities
and experiences would you offer to help provide direction in dealing with the
Co-op’s challenges?
4. What do you see as current strengths of
the Co-op that you would like to see maintained? What would you like to see changed?
5. What vision do you have for the Co-op
for the next five years?
6. Other comments
*Applications
will only be accepted by email at boardapplication@olympiafood.coop,
unless a reasonable accommodation is needed and requested.
