Why I’m Thankful for My Time on the Board of Directors
At our past summer Board of Directors Meeting, we did an activity that we call our “morning warm up” which for all intents and purposes, is just a fancy way to say “ice breaker.” That morning, Ellen Engh was leading the warm up and did an activity where we had to move to different parts of an imaginary map across the room to note locations associated with different points of our career. In her last question, Ellen asked us where we first felt connected to NACA. I went to grad school in Illinois and then had my first professional position in Oklahoma, so folks were surprised to hear see that I was standing in a place that equated to Tennessee. The first time I truly felt connected to the Association was when I was part of a National Convention Planning Team for a conference in Nashville, TN and wasn’t until a few years into my engagement with the Association.
Some of you may be wondering why for a blog titled “Why I’m Thankful for My Time on the Board of Directors” I’m choosing to start with this story. Well, I think that there is this perception by some that volunteers on the Board of Directors have felt this connection to the Association from the very first moment they went to a NACA. A lot of folks think that all volunteers “drank the Kool-Aid” from the very first moment and have been at it ever since. That wasn’t the case for me, but over time, it has become an Association that has given me so much. In 2020 when I had the chance to apply to be a general member, it seemed like a logical next step in my volunteer journey.
Over the years, though, I’ve gotten a few questions about what was different about that moment that made me feel ready to be on the Board. For me, I was reaching this point in my volunteer engagement in the Association that I was entering more and more experiences that were talking about trends in Campus Activities. I had a few opportunities to dabble in strategic visioning with an experience I was part of called the Live Event Action Group (LEAG) and I really enjoyed my time in that volunteer role. As my time with LEAG was coming to a close, I felt I had more to give around strategic visioning and being a thought leader for NACA and the Board was a wonderful outlet for me to explore that further.
Now, as I sit here four years after that moment of application and in my current role as chair of the Board of Directors, I am very thankful for my time with this group thus far. I’ve gained skills I never thought I would have a chance to develop in a role I was volunteering for. I think my time on the Board - particularly as Chair - has given me the experience of what it means to be the senior volunteer officer for an organization. Daily as chair, I am thinking through how what we are doing today will set the standard of the Association for years and decades to come. I’m immersed in financial records and planning, evaluating volunteer and recruitment strategies, ideating around the case for Campus Activities, and continually am in conversations where we guiding the development of resources that align with our vision of “creating college communities where everyone belongs.” One day, I aspire to be a vice president for Student Affairs and I imagine all of these skills will come up in my interview that I developed in my time on the Board and as chair.
These skillsets are not the only thing I’m thankful for my time on the Board. The chance to work closely with so many outstanding professionals around the country is by far one of the best take aways from my time on the Board. I’ve had the chance to learn from so many innovative, passionate, and creative people. Whether they be my peers on the Board, the phenomenal Office Team, our outstanding volunteers, our exceptional associates, or our budding membership community, the experience to connect and learn from others has truly been one of the things I will carry with me for years to come once my term ends.
If you are thinking about what your next step in your volunteer journey will be, I hope that either this year or in the future, you consider the Board of Directors. Few other experiences have the potential to be as transformative as this volunteer experience can be. If nothing else, I can guarantee that your time on the Board will leave you thankful for a new batch of skills and NACA community. Whether you are reading this blog at the moment of publication or years down the road, I will leave an open offer to connect to talk about Board membership. I love talking about my experience, and am happy to help anyone as they are considering the next step in their volunteer journey.
