Dear RID members and our communities,
I’m Star Grieser, RID’s CEO. This is a short announcement regarding our Special Elections.
As you know, a few weeks ago the RID Board of Directors announced their intention to complete their terms until August 31, 2021, after which they will not continue and serve their next elected terms.
The executive board, including the President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary and Member-at-Large all have three years of their term. Regional Representatives for Regions I, II, III, IV, and V all have two years, which means we do know we will have special elections to fill these vacancies.
I am working with a parliamentarian/consultant on the details and timeline of this. We have to comply with the state of California’s Office of Attorney General regarding laws for nonprofits, RID’s Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws, and lastly with Robert’s Rules of Order moving forward. As I get more information, I will be sure to share it with all of you.
Meanwhile, RID just hosted our national conference online, “Re-Orienting” which focused on audism, racism, “isms”, and systemic oppression that exists within our organization and our profession. Conversations pressed us to look inward and confront these issues which profoundly impact ourselves, our colleagues and our consumers.
This was an opportunity for us to think about what needs to shift within RID as we move forward towards creating a more inclusive organization and towards advancing the profession for the benefit of our Deaf community.
As President Dr. Jonathan Webb said in his closing plenary speech, we tend to ask what RID can do for us, but it’s time now for us to think about what we can do for RID, for the advancement of our profession, for our Deaf community.
Think about it.
Thank you,
Star Grieser, RID CEO
