[nabs-l] Thoughts?

Mon Jun 20 21:45:19 UTC 2011

Hi Mary and all,
Just to clarify: Anyone running for a NABS board position (including
president or vice-president) must be a student during the year
following election, not the year preceding election.
Arielle

On 6/20/11, Mary Fernandez <trillian551 at gmail.com> wrote:
> 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
>
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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