Military Officer - January 2008 - (Page 14) SEEKING APPLICANTS for MOAA’s Board M Invitation of the Chair MOAA is an association of individual members. When members vote on matters of importance, we don’t have a delegate system or vote by region, service, or component. We vote as individuals who hold or have held warrants or commissions in the seven uniformed services. It is one of MOAA’s great strengths: one officer, one vote. This year, we will elect a new “class” of the board of directors — 12 new directors who will succeed the 12 who will complete their service in November. Board eligibility includes all officers — officers on active duty, officers in active status in the reserve components (including those in the “gray area”), former officers, and retired officers.1 The board is charged with governing and overseeing the operations of the nation’s fourth-largest military association. This year’s operating budget is some $24 million, and the board currently shoulders fiduciary responsibility for some $180 million in assets. These responsibilities demand the board be composed of directors who think strategically and understand their responsibility to govern MOAA in the best interests of its members. MOAA directors serve one six-year term and must be MOAA members. Each director serves on at least one of the standing committees, which oversee strategic planning, finance and audit, government relations, health care, publications, council and chapter affairs, educational assistance, membership, member services, and investments. Most committee meetings are held in conjunction with the three scheduled board meetings each year. The chair appoints special committees to address specific issues as needed. Interested officers should submit their applications and letters of recommendation by March 28. A nominating committee (one MOAA member from each service who is not an MOAA director) will consider all applications received. Details of the application process appear on the facing page and also will appear in the next two issues of Military Officer. Board seats are allocated by service and geographic region. There are no quotas for uniformed officer grade. (Current directors serve or served in grades W-5 through O-10.) The nominating committee also will be charged to consider service component (regular, Reserve, National Guard), gender, and ethnic diversity. The committee will seek candidates with special qualifications, such as financial management, investment banking, accounting, health care, legal, or political expertise, that complement essential board functions. MOAA’s continuing leadership in the world of military associations requires a crosssection of our membership on the board. We need a large number of well-qualified officers of all ranks in the application pool. Within MOAA’s membership there are many officers with the knowledge, experience, and special skills we can use to good effect. Each eligible voting member will receive a ballot with the August 2008 issue of Military Officer. Space will be provided on the ballot to write in votes for other MOAA members not on the committee’s slate of nominees. Voting via the Internet also will be available. After the election results are validated, new directors will take office right after the annual meeting in the Washington, D.C., area Nov. 18. We need highly skilled men and women in all officer grades. Please consider offering yourself as a candidate, and above all, plan to vote in the upcoming election. 1 DoD and Coast Guard ethics regulations provide that currently serving DoD and Coast Guard personnel may participate in the management of non-federal entities, such as MOAA, in a personal capacity provided (1) they act exclusively outside the scope of their official positions, (2) they were not offered the management position because of their DoD or Coast Guard assignment or position, and (3) their management status or activities do not conflict with their official duties. Coast Guard officers also must secure a favorable ethics opinion from their servicing Coast Guard ethics attorney. 14 MILITARY OFFICER JANUARY 2008
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