Nominating Committee Annual Report 2022

submitted by Bruce J. Evans

Current Roster

  • James P. Cassaro, Incoming Chair (2023)
  • Morgan Davis, Member (2022)
  • Bruce J. Evans, Chair (2022)
  • Nara Newcomer,  Member (2022)
  • Ellen Ogihara, Member (2022)

List of Previous Goals and Progress Made

The Committee, formed during April 2022, focused on the following goals:

  1. MLA Board Recruitment Town Hall.
    • At the invitation of board member Marci Cohen (invitation made December 2021), committee members Bruce J. Evans and Ellen Ogihara participated in the MLA Board Recruitment Town Hall on May 25, 2022. The Town Hall’s purpose was to demystify service on and recruitment for the MLA Board of Directors. Bruce spoke from the perspective of a recent Member-at-Large, and Ellen spoke from the perspective of a recent Student/Early Career Board Representative (pilot). The Town Hall yielded many useful questions and suggestions for the election process.
  2. Prepare a slate of candidates for MLA Board Members at-Large, and make recommendations regarding the MLA Citation.
    • The Committee posted the call for nominations in May, with many outstanding nominations received. For Members-at-Large, the Committee contacted nominees recommended by MLA members and by Committee members. In relation to a suggestion we received at the Board Recruitment Town Hall, and with agreement from the MLA Board of Directors, we decided to not cull down the list of nominees to six. Instead, as a “pilot,” every Member-at-Large nominee who agreed to stand for election will appear on the ballot. The Committee also discussed potential recipients of the MLA Citation. The election slate and MLA Citation recommendation will be submitted to the MLA Board of Directors for consideration at their Fall 2022 meeting.
  3. MLA-L Mediator Review Board.
    • After previous discussion and approval by the MLA Board of Directors, the committee posted the call for nominations for the inaugural MLA-L Mediator Review Board in June. After the nomination period closed on August 1st, no nominations had been received. MLA President Liza Vick will report this to the MLA Board of Directors to discuss next steps.
  4. Collaborated with the MLA Board of Directors, after approval by the board in June 2022, on putting out a call for nominations for the permanent MLA Board Student/Early Career Representative.
    • After specific parameters for the newly-approved permanent Student/Early Career Board Representative are spelled out – and operating under the assumption that the membership will approve the associated bylaws change in September to make this position official — the committee will post a call for nominations in late Summer/early Fall, with the goal of having a slate of candidates to be included on the ballot later in the fall.

List of Future Goals

  1. Update the committee handbook.
    • Supports Goal Area 1: Organize Strategically from the Strategic Plan.
    • The committee will complete revisions to clarify committee processes and timelines, including a list of previous committee members. Most notably, this will include the addition of guidelines regarding nominations and other election details for the permanent MLA Board Student/Early Career Representative.
  2. Evaluate pilot of having all Member-at-Large nominees agreeable to run on the Fall election ballot.
    • Supports Goal Area 1: Organize Strategically from the Strategic Plan.
    • Next year’s committee, in collaboration with the MLA Board of Directors, and in conjunction with any membership feedback, will evaluate and reflect on how things went with the pilot of not limiting the total number of Member-at-Large candidates to six, and if this should continue for subsequent election cycles. If the committee and board decide to continue this practice, it may be wise to consider setting an upper limit on number of candidates, so we don’t end up with an unwieldy election slate (for example, ending up with 15 Member-at-Large candidates to fill the three available slots).