Association for the Assessment of Learning in Higher Education Elections Procedures for Board Members and President
- By the end of November, current board members evaluate their ability to continue to fulfill the time commitment of the Board of Director role and affirm their plans to continue as a Director for the next year by completing their Board of Director profile (see Appendix A). If a current Board of Director determines they must end their term early, they must alert the AALHE President by the end of November if possible, or as soon as they are aware of their decision.
- During the December board meeting, board members discuss needed skills, experiences, and perspectives for the next iteration of the board. The board communicates those needs to the Infrastructure Committee (IC) Chair.
- By the end of January, the IC Chair issues a call for nominations for new board seats from board members and all active volunteers on committees. All board nominees must be eligible, current, active AALHE members, as defined by the bylaws. In the call, the IC Chair provides information about the work of board members, the skills identified as needed for the board, and the requirement for board approval of the slate submitted for member vote. The IC Chair also provides information about the representation of the members leaving the board and any board recommendations for improving the representativeness and/or diversity of the board.
- By the end of January, the IC Chair also issues a call only to active board members for nominations for the AALHE presidency.
- By the first week of February, the IC Chair confirms with candidates that they have accepted the proposed nomination and collects biographies (see Appendix B) from proposed nominees. Nominees have two weeks from the date the IC Chair emails them to accept their nomination and complete their biographies. The IC Chair ensures that the biographies are within the parameters described in the appendix and are consistent in terms of font, formatting, etc.
- A week prior to the February board meeting, all proposed nominations and biographies will then go to the board for approval. Once the slate is approved, the Board forwards the final nomination slate to the IC Chair. Not all proposed nominations are necessarily added to the final nomination slate. The board may choose to select a final nomination slate based on diversity, geographic location, institution type, and skill needed. Proposed nominees not included on the final nomination slate will be informed by the IC Chair.
- Elections will open the second Monday of March and will close at 11:59pm Eastern Time on the first Friday of April. The IC Chair will manage this process. Elections will be conducted through an online survey tool using the email addresses on file with the Association. Per AALHE bylaws, eligible members can participate in voting. The IC Chair shall send to members three reminders to cast their ballots. The reminders should be spaced out roughly once a week. Members can only vote for a nominee, not against a nominee. Winners are those nominees receiving the most votes. For example, if two board seats are available and there are four nominees, the two nominees with the largest number of votes will win the two board seats.
- Within a week after elections close, results are counted/confirmed by the IC Chair and past president and the winning nominees are reported to the board. The past president reports the results (but not vote counts) to the nominees, the board, the AALHE committee leadership, and copies the president.
- In the event of a tie, the board votes and breaks the tie at its April meeting and reports its decision to the IC Chair, the nominees, and the president.
- At the annual membership meeting (business meeting) held at the annual conference, the IC Chair announces the election results but not vote tallies. The terms of new board members and presidents are effective July 1st.
- By the end of August, the IC Chair requests suggestions from Board Members to improve the election procedures and works with the IC to prepare recommendations in time for the September board meeting.
Appendix A: Board Director Profiles
A bulleted list of responses that addresses your experience in any of the following areas:
- Assessment of academic and non-academic programs
- Accreditation region
- Educational technologies
- Faculty development
- Finance/budget/non-profit management
- Involvement in other, relevant associations, organizations, and/or working groups
- Marketing/advancement • Publication oversight/editing/research experience
- Teaching experience
- Type of institution you’re at and have previous experience with
- Anything else you think you would like to add?
Appendix B: Biography Statement Prompts
Biographies for prospective board members and candidates for president include the following (current board members will be asked to review this information each November before the election process begins):
- A photo to be included with the ballot (optional). Photos may or may not be used during the elections process. In the event, one or more nominees choose not to submit photo, photos will not be used – either all nominees will have a photo or none.
- A brief statement no longer than 200 words addressing how you will support diversity, equity, and inclusion in their work as president or member of the AALHE Board.
Nominations must also include a bulleted list of responses no longer than 400 words with no hyperlinks that addresses the following:
- Current position, institution/organization, and any previous positions related to assessment for learning
- Statement describing you personal interest in AALHE
- Statement of what your goals would be as an AALHE Board Member
- History of involvement with AALHE, AALHE committees, AALHE subcommittees, and or ad-hoc committees
- Skills, connections, resources, and expertise you have to offer and how these will benefit AALHE
- Comment on how you can help AALHE achieve the values described in the Values Statement
- Anything else you think you would like to add.
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