Staff Report 2001-05

Appointment of a Nominating Committee

Note: Please see by-laws 10 and 36 included at the end of this report.

Preamble

Board vacancies will need to be filled at the next AGM due to the resignation of two 
board members and the expiration of the terms of two other board members.

By-law 10 provides for election of board members to fill vacancies at the AGM.

By-law 36 allows for the creation of various standing committees.

Discussion

The current members of the board and their terms are as follows:

			ID		Elected		Expires
Graeme Beckett 		(aw958)		2000		2003
Sandy Campbell 		(dt820)		2001		2004
Chris Cope		(bz787)		2001		2004
Gary Eikenberry		(aa353)		2001		2004
Mark Mielke		(al278)		2000		2003
John Peterson		(af186)		2001		2004
John Wenuk		(ep585)		2001		2003

The following members terms expire in February 2002

David Millman		(aa342)		2000		2002
Cathy Wenuk		(ep584)		2001		2002

The following members have resigned their positions on the board

Miranda Gray		(ak717)		2001		2002
Seline Herz-Fischler 	(as370)		2000		2003

I have conducted research and interviews to determine best practices in the area of 
not-for-profit boards.  The people I have interviewed, particularly the Executive 
Directors of two not-for-profit organizations indicated that it is standard practice 
to appoint nominating committees to recruit new board members.

In 1999 the Panel on Accountability and Governance in the Voluntary Sector 
chaired by Ed Broadbent issued a report titled "Building on Strength: Improving 
Governance and Accountability in Canada's Voluntary Sector. A quote from that 
report follows:

" In order to maintain the viability and health of the organization, the board must also
develop a plan for its own succession and for recruiting new board members. Although 
often overlooked until just before the annual general meeting, successful recruitment is 
a year round activity. We recommend that voluntary organizations appoint nominating 
committees, independent of management, which are charged with
responsibility for assessing the qualities of board members desired, developing
selection criteria and proposing suitable candidates. In recruiting prospective
board members, adequate information needs to be provided to them so that they
understand what they are being asked to undertake and can make an informed decision 
about whether to join the board."

Recommendation

That the following motion be put forward:

That the board appoint a nominating committee charged with responsibility for
assessing the qualities of board members desired, developing selection criteria 
and proposing suitable candidates. The nominating committee shall be comprised
of Chris Cope, Sandy Campbell and Gary Eikenberry.

By-laws

                              COMMITTEES

10.   Any vacancy on the board may be filled by appointment by a majority
      vote of the board of directors until the next Annual General Meeting.
      At that time, the members shall elect a director to fill the remaining
      years of the term. The candidate with the most votes shall receive the
      longest term until all positions are filled.

36.   The board of directors may appoint committees whose members will
      hold their offices at the will of the board of directors.  The
      directors shall determine the duties of such committees and may
      fix any remuneration to be paid.