2020 Executive Board Elections

NOTE: The 2020 Executive Board Elections process has concluded. This page will be updated in 2021 for the next election cycle. Thank you for being a part of our community!

Capital Science Communicators was created by tireless, passionate volunteers who believed in our mission — and you too can contribute your talents and experience to lead our professional network. Please consider nominating yourself or a colleague for our 2020 Executive Board Elections.

Voting Instructions (NOTE: Voting ended August 26th)

  1. Check your membership. Only dues-paying CapSciComm Professional Members and Student Members may vote in the election. (Want to upgrade from a Community Membership to a Professional or Student Membership? Apply today: https://capscicomm.org/join/)
  2. Get to know the candidates! Click here for the 2020 Executive Board election candidate statements.
  3. Vote by Wednesday, August 26th! All ballots must be submitted by 11:59 p.m. Pacific that Wednesday.

Nomination Instructions:

  1. Read through the eligibility, positions, and responsibilities listed in the excerpts below from our CapSciComm Charter. (Not yet a CapSciComm Professional or Student Member? Apply today.)
  2. Excited to run for a Board position? Click here to submit your nomination!
  3. Have questions? Email us at admin@capscicomm.org

Timeline:

  • July 1, 2020: Elections announced.
  • August 6th, 2020: Nominations Due at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time
  • August 12, 2020: Candidates Announced
  • August 25, 2020: Candidates Meet and Greet Virtual Social
  • UPDATED August 26, 2020: Election Day/Ballot deadline at 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time
  • August 31, 2020: Election Results Announced
  • Early September 2020: New Board Term Begins; onboarding meeting with departing Board Members

Eligibility and Search Criteria

Number: There shall be six members to fill the Executive Board.

  1. President  
  2. Vice President
  3. Secretary
  4. Treasurer
  5. Membership Officer
  6. Communications Officer

Terms of Service: Each Board member shall serve a term of one (1) year upon election. There are no term limits — Board members may run for re-election.

Qualifications: Qualifications to run for a seat on the Board include:

  • Being a CapSciComm Professional or Student member in good standing.
  • Demonstrated interest in science writing or science communication.
  • One nomination by a CapSciComm Professional or Student Member (can be self nomination).

Desired Attributes:

  • Diversity: Does this person bring a diverse perspective to our Board? In other words, would their addition make the board more well-rounded, in terms of individual backgrounds and type of scicomm careers and career stages represented?
  • Enthusiasm: Has this person expressed an interest in CapSciComm or CapSciComm-type activities in the past? How much time and energy will they likely have to fulfill their board member duties and be proactive in creating new opportunities to grow the organization? 
  • Assets: What unique skills or connections does this person bring to CapSciComm that could help fill a gap in our organizational structure, and/or more productively pursue our organizational mission? 

Ineligibility: The Executive Board holds full authority to reject a nomination on the basis of conflicts with the Community Code of Conduct.

Positions and Responsibilities

President: Sets the annual agenda for implementing CapSciComm’s mission and vision pursuit, and represents the organization in dialogue with other entities and institutions. 

Vice President: Manages committees, and takes stewardship of organizational institutional knowledge. Activities include: Coordinating committee chairs and setting regular meetings. Working with the Secretary in maintaining cloud drive archives. Substitutes for the Secretary or President as needed. 

Secretary: Manages the operations of the Executive Board. Activities include: organizing board meetings; taking and logging minutes; calling and recording votes; organizing and implementing elections for Executive Board officers; working with the Vice President in updating and maintaining cloud drive archives and internal Board calendar. Primary manager/switchboard of admin@capsciomm.org email; redirecting received emails to relevant Board Officers and Committee Chairs.

Treasurer: Manages and reports organization finances. Activities include: processing and verifying membership dues; reconciling and issuing payments for services and reimbursements; keeping ongoing accounting of the treasury. Working with the Membership Officer to verify member dues payments.

Membership Officer: Recruits and manages the membership community and encourages membership participation, interest, growth, and satisfaction. Activities include: Processing membership applications in coordination with Treasurer; analyzing member demographics and needs; organizing membership drives; assessing member benefits; managing member access to listservs, Slack, emails, and newsletters.
Communications Officer: Manages external outreach, technologies, and properties, such as the website, listserv, newsletter, social media, print collateral, and event promotions. Activities include: managing and sharing relevant news and resources via Twitter and Facebook; aggregating and publishing website content and email newsletter; answering external questions on organization activities and events; stewardship of branding, graphic files, and “swag” items.

Election Process

Announcement: Call for elections, call for candidates, and election date must be announced at least one (1) month prior to election date.

Candidate Filing: Candidates must submit their interest and proof of nominations to the Secretary by at least three (3) weeks prior to the election date. All candidates who are approved and invited to run for the election will be alerted by the Secretary, and given three (3) business days to confirm. All invited candidates must submit a 250-word candidate statement and portrait photo for public posting.

Declaration: The full field of candidates must be announced at least two (2) weeks prior to the election date. The field of candidates must be posted on the CapSciComm website in some manner, and announced by email to current Professional and Student Members. 

Election: The Secretary shall design an online voting form which records the name and email of each voter. The voting link must be emailed to current Professional and Student Members at least two (2) weeks prior to the Election date. Ballots received by 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time of election day shall be counted. 

Verification: The Secretary shall verify the member status of all voters. For any duplicate or suspicious ballots, the Secretary shall verify the intended ballot selections with the Professional or Student Member in question. The Secretary will then present the election results to the Executive Board.

Certification: The Executive Board shall certify the results by a majority vote. The Secretary shall contact the election winners in writing by email.

Onboarding

All departing Board members are asked to hold at least one (1) one-on-one meeting, in-person or virtually, with the incoming person filling their Board position.