What’s new at the 2022 annual meeting?
The 2022 Annual Meeting of the Delegate Assembly will be a first for ASWB’s new CEO, Stacey Hardy-Chandler. The annual meeting will bring new firsts for members as well, from interactions with the new DEIJ Committee at the preconference sessions to a new governance session on Saturday, the last day of the business meeting.
Registration to attend the meeting closed on October 21. “We have 135 members registered to attend, including 52 delegates representing their jurisdictions,” said Melissa Ryder, director of volunteer engagement and outreach. The number of delegates is one of the highest in recent history, reflecting the importance of this meeting for members to give and receive support during an especially challenging time following ASWB’s publication of exam demographic data in August.
Members who will be attending can look forward to business as usual at the annual meeting, as reflected in the draft agenda: a review of operational activity by CEO Stacey Hardy-Chandler on Friday and governance actions by Board President Roxroy Reid on Saturday; committee reports, including a financial review by the Finance Committee; voting on proposed bylaws amendments and resolution 1-2022; and elections!
New this year
DEIJ conversations at Administrators Forum and Board Member Exchange
The DEIJ Committee will be attending both the Administrators Forum and Board Member Exchange preconference sessions to facilitate conversations with attendees about diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice in regulation. The committee will also ask attendees to complete a survey to solicit ideas about what the committee’s work should focus on for the future and to get a sense of where jurisdictions are in their DEIJ journey. Jennifer Henkel, ASWB staff to the committee said, “This is an amazing opportunity for members to help the committee plan its future DEIJ work based on the needs of membership.”
Governing documents information session
On Saturday, attendees will participate in a new session that reviews ASWB’s bylaws and policies, the governing documents of the association. “The governing documents provide information about how staff communicates with members,” said Ryder. “We often get questions from members asking what we do with their contact information and why we need it. This session is intended to help members understand how the bylaws and policies guide our communication and outreach to our members and volunteers.”
VEO staff would like to encourage member boards to identify a delegate at the beginning of the year, rather than waiting to assign this role to someone right before the annual meeting, an idea that will be discussed during this session. “We feel having a board enter this role earlier in the year will allow the delegate to take more ownership and responsibility as the board’s representative,” said Ryder. “We now have a department and staff to better support the delegate role, which means that ASWB is able to provide more direct communication and education for the individual serving in that role.”
Having a delegate identified early in the year will also help support Resolution 1-2022, Including ASWB on member board agendas to increase current and ongoing knowledge of ASWB. The Bylaws and Resolutions Committee submitted the resolution and recommends a vote of DO PASS.
Other meeting highlights
Online orientation, November 14
ASWB staff will hold an online orientation for all attendees in advance of the annual meeting, on November 14. Orientation will include voting instructions for online delegates and information about accessing materials for all attendees. “This will be a good refresher for anyone who has attended the annual meeting in the past as well as an important session for new attendees,” said Ryder. All registered attendees will receive a link for the session via email.
Meet the candidates reception
With the return to the in-person format, the Meet the Candidates reception will resume. Candidates will be available Friday after the annual meeting recess to share their platform and answer questions during the reception.
Elections
Delegates will vote on Saturday to elect new members to the 2023 Board of Directors and 2023 Nominating Committee. Voting will be conducted in person and online.
Strategic conversations with membership
President Roxroy Reid and CEO Stacey Hardy-Chandler will facilitate this session on Saturday afternoon to answer questions and discuss updates about ASWB strategic initiatives.
Reminder about the role of delegates
To conduct business at the meeting, a majority of delegates must be in attendance. ASWB funds one delegate from each member board to attend the annual meeting to ensure representation in the voting process.
Delegates may be member board members or member board staff. They may make and second motions and they vote in elections, on proposed bylaws amendments and resolutions, and on other business that may come before the delegate assembly. ASWB notifies member boards about the election slate and proposed amendments and resolutions in advance of the meeting to allow for discussion and instructing the delegate about how the board wants to vote. Delegates also have the autonomy to make decisions on-site, if warranted. “We encourage member boards to designate an alternate delegate to serve in case the delegate cannot,” said Ryder. “However, ASWB will assign an alternate from those registered if the member board does not do so.” Learn more about the role of delegates.
Questions?
Please contact VEO@aswb.org if you have questions about the annual meeting. ASWB looks forward to welcoming attendees at the meeting in Scottsdale, Arizona, in November!