[nabs-l] Thoughts?

Mon Jun 20 12:31:44 UTC 2011

Hello All,
Arielle thank you so much for your informative and clear post; it
really got to the heart of what I was trying to get at.
The Constitution of any organized body, if well written, allows for
clear specifications while being flexible enough for interpretation by
the body of that organization. If a Constitution is to specific and
constricting it might limit the potential of the organization, however
by allowing for interpretation, it insures a structure that can be
molded to fit the interests and needs of the organization. It is the
duty of the membership of that body to uphold the Constitution. As
elections draw closer I think that it is important for those who are
voting to be familiar with at least the very basic requirements that
we have written out in the NABS Constitution. And after doing so, that
those we elect fit those Constitutional requirements. This brief
excerpt for example, clearly states that anyone running for the
positions of President and vice President must be students for a year
proceeding their election. Personally, this is important to me. If we
are an organization of Blind Students, then it follows logically, that
I would want a Blind Student heading this organization. Well, what is
a student? How strictly or ambiguously should we interpret that
definition?
To me, a student is someone who is,  in some way furthering their
education. Whether it is in a training center, in graduate school, or
in a part time capacity, or even planning to go abroad to do research,
they are furthering their education. I have a harder time being
convinced that someone who has a full time job and isn't enrolled in
any academic classes, truly qualifies as a student. But there are many
who disagree and have valid arguments for doing so. The point of this
post for me, was to have all of us think about what we want in a
leader, and to encourage us to ask questions of those who have stepped
up and declared their intention to run for a NABS office.
The point of a constitution is to provide structure to a body. It is a
document that directly reflects what the majority of the membership
thinks is important in the governing of their organization. If we
consciously believe that there should be an amendment to a
Constitution, then we should speak up and make that conscious
decision. However, a Constitutional clause should not just be ignored
because we are not responsible in the upholding of that document. If
we begin to ignore what we at one point believed was important, we are
letting the structure of our organization collapse. And without a
structure what will be left?
I'm not saying that we should not change and grow as our needs,
thoughts and priorities change, but we should do so consciously and
not because we do not know and do not care about our Constitution.
Sincerely,
Mary Fernandez

On 6/18/11, Arielle Silverman <nabs.president at gmail.com> wrote:
> Hi all,
> I agree that  this constitutional clause is a bit ambiguous and could
> be made more concrete in its application. The way I have seen it
> interpreted is that candidates may run for the board if they intend to
> be a student in either the fall term, spring term, or both in the year
> following their election. So, someone who is not enrolled in fall, but
> who is enrolled in spring is technically eligible under this
> interpretation. The constitution also allows for people to finish out
> their elected terms if they graduate mid-term, which happens
> frequently. However, after graduation, the candidate is not eligible
> to run for a second term, unless they plan to enroll in a different
> educational program at that time.
> The phrase "in school" has been interpreted quite loosely so that
> part-time students or students at NFB training centers are eligible
> for election.
> I would support a discussion of how the membership wants to define
> student status, and what they feel is necessary to be an appropriate
> elected representative for the student division. For instance, I might
> be willing to entertain the argument that people who have recently
> graduated can still be appropriate representatives for NABS, since
> much of the material we cover in NABS is relevant to young
> professionals as well.
> The other problem, though, is that this constitutional clause has not
> been strictly enforced, and more than once, individuals have been
> elected to the board despite having no intention to be in school
> during the year following election. It is up to the membership to
> challenge the eligibility of candidates they believe do not meet the
> criteria, either because  they are not blind or because they are not
> students. If someone is nominated for a position and a NABS member
> challenges that candidate's eligibility, the membership can discuss
> and vote on whether or not that particular candidate is eligible to
> run. As far as I know, this is the only way to enforce constitutional
> rules on eligibility, since the NABS president, as a non-voting chair
> of the election, cannot do so. If we as an organization believe it is
> important to have our leadership be made up only of students, then it
> is our responsibility to ensure this happens-by not seeking election
> to the board unless we will be students and by challenging  the
> eligibility of those who attempt to run despite not being students.
> If, on the other hand, we as a membership are not particularly
> concerned about the student status of our board, then we can always
> amend the constitution to drop that clause.
> Arielle
>
> On 6/17/11, Chris Nusbaum <dotkid.nusbaum at gmail.com> wrote:
>> Hi Elizabeth,
>>
>> By her subject line, I think Mary was trying to ask our opinions
>> on this part of the NABS constitution.  Hope this helps!
>>
>>  Chris
>>
>> "A loss of sight, never a loss of vision!" (Camp Abilities motto)
>> To learn more about Camp Abilities and find a local camp near
>> you, just click on this link to their national Web site:
>> www.campabilities.org.
>>
>> The I C.A.N.  Foundation helps visually impaired youth in
>> Maryland have the ability to confidently say "I can!" How? Click
>> on this link to learn more and to contribute:
>> www.icanfoundation.info.
>>
>>  Sent from my BrailleNote
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Elizabeth" <lizmohnke at hotmail.com
>> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
>> Date sent: Thu, 16 Jun 2011 17:00:47 -0400
>> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Thoughts?
>>
>> Hello Marry,
>>
>> Thanks for reminding all of us the duties associated with being
>> elected to
>> the NABS board.  Since the subject line of your message seems to
>> imply a
>> question of some kind, do you have any particular questions about
>> this
>> specific section of the constitution? I am simply asking because
>> I am not
>> quite sure what your purpose was for posting this to the list.
>> Was it simply
>> a reminder for those who may be seeking election this year, or
>> did you have
>> some questions about it?
>>
>> Thanks,
>> Elizabeth
>>
>>
>> --------------------------------------------------
>> From: "Mary Fernandez" <trillian551 at gmail.com
>> Sent: Thursday, June 16, 2011 9:20 AM
>> To: "National Association of Blind Students mailing list"
>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org
>> Subject: [nabs-l] Thoughts?
>>
>>  ARTICLE IV--Officers and Their Duties
>>  "The President and Vice Presidents of this organization must be
>> blind.
>>  ...  All officers and board members must be in school for one
>> year
>>  following
>>  their election.  "
>>  for the complete NABS Constitution visit www.nabslink.org
>>  -- Sincerely,
>>  Mary Fernandez
>>  President: Georgia Association of Blind Students
>>  Emory University 2012
>>  P.O.  Box 123056
>>  Atlanta Ga.
>>  30322
>>  Phone: 732-857-7004
>>
>>  "It's not worth doing something unless someone, somewhere, would
>> much
>>  rather you weren't doing it."
>>  Terry Pratchett
>>
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>
>
> --
> Arielle Silverman
> President, National Association of Blind Students
> Phone:  602-502-2255
> Email:
> nabs.president at gmail.com
> Website:
> www.nabslink.org
>
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>

-- 
Mary Fernandez
President: Georgia Association of Blind Students
Emory University 2012
P.O. Box 123056
Atlanta Ga.
30322
Phone: 732-857-7004

"It's not worth doing something unless someone, somewhere, would much
rather you weren't doing it."
Terry Pratchett