By Pam Watts
Join us in welcoming two long-serving members to the association’s volunteer leadership.
NIRSA’s Board of Directors recently appointed Chris Dawe, RCRSP and Director of Recreation at Mount Royal University and Jacqueline Hamilton, Ed.D, RCRSP, CRSS, and Director of Recreational Sports at Texas A&M University Corpus Christi as 2013-2014 Annual Directors on the Association’s Board of Directors.
During their January 29, 2013 meeting, in selecting an Annual Director for the 2013-2014 NIRSA year, the NIRSA Board carefully considered the current work and focus of the Board; these volunteer leaders are committed to continuing Association progress on the strategic alignment of both a research and an education agenda. The Board also evaluated emerging opportunities to activate another strategic value of the association—global perspectives.
Their resulting review of the strategic work and new opportunities on the horizon, the Board unanimously appointed two visionary leaders in collegiate recreation to serve as Annual Directors on the 2013-14 Board of Directors: they are excited to welcome Chris Dawe and Jacqueline Hamilton to their leadership team.*
2013-2014 NIRSA Board Annual Directors
Chris Dawe, RCRSP
Chris Dawe will be completing three years as Region V Regional Representative on the Member Network; he is a past Provincial Director for Alberta and is the current Secretary of the Western Canadian Campus Recreation Association. Chris has been an active member of NIRSA for over 16 years and has presented at NIRSA professional development events on numerous occasions. The combination of Chris’ experience in the field and his fluency over issues and opportunities that are important to students and professionals north of the U.S. border ensures that his perspective will bring invaluable insight to the efforts of the 2013-2014 NIRSA Board.
Jacqueline Hamilton, Ed.D, RCRSP, CRSS
Jacqueline Hamilton is currently serving as Co-chair of the 2013 ACPA-NIRSA Annual Conference Program Committee, NIRSA’s representative to the ACHA Healthy Campus Initiative, and Co-convener of the NIRSA Education Content Review Work Team. She served two years on the NIRSA Assembly, and has served as a member and Chair of NIRSA’s Research and Assessment Committee. She has been active member of NIRSA for nearly 25 years and has served the association in numerous capacities; the combination of her experience with her organizational and management skills will make her a valuable contributor to the efforts of the 2013-2014 NIRSA Board.
To learn more about the makeup of the 2013-2014 NIRSA Board of Directors, visit the NIRSA website.
*The Annual Director position for the NIRSA Board was created after the members’ adoption of the ‘Future First’ governance model in 2009. The Bylaws provide for flexibility and opportunity within a nimble governance structure by allowing “the number of directors [to] be increased or decreased from time-to-time by resolution of the board of directors” (Bylaws Article III., Section 2., F).
For the 2013-2014 leadership year, the Board exercised this option and will increase the number of Directors to ensure the range of skills and expertise were represented on the Board. The Board does not intend to permanently resize the Board from seven members to eight members; rather, they are looking to capitalize on the unique opportunities to advance the work of NIRSA during the 2013-14 year.
