Summertime is a great time for housecleaning and Association business is no exception. Summer is when NIRSA, NSC, and NIRSA Foundation budget projections are prepared and approved for the upcoming fiscal year.

See related: “A Culture of Clean: Wall to wall, ceiling to floor—WSU’s Student Recreation Center strives to stay immaculate”

In previous years, summer has also always been great time to renew your NIRSA membership, ahead of dues increases which were traditionally enacted within the changes reflected in Portland CPI, as stipulated by NIRSA governing documents. As part of 2019 elections, members voted down a bylaws amendment that would have resolved a freeze in annual dues adjustments that has resulted from the Department of Labor’s 2018 decision to no longer issue a CPI number for the city of Portland.

In the wake of the election results, a Town Hall event was held during the 2019 NIRSA Annual Conference in Boston to invite member feedback about the proposal and to begin considering other alternatives.

See related: “Congratulations to NIRSA’s newly-elected leaders”

The dialogue from that meeting and subsequent discussions at various levels of Association leadership—from NIRSA Board meetings to Finance Committee calls to NIRSA Headquarters staff conversations—have led us to table any member vote on bylaws changes until the regular January 2020 NIRSA election cycle at the earliest.

This timeline will impact the Association’s budget planning cycle for 2020, but it will more importantly provide ample time for members, NIRSA volunteers, and Association leaders to craft a thoughtful resolution to our bylaws impasse that can ultimately be endorsed by stakeholders and embraced by members.

Details about how you can add your voice on this topic will be shared over the coming months through the NIRSA news, regional communications, NIRSA social media outlets, and face-to-face at fall events. In the meantime, summer is still a great time to renew your membership! Consider taking advantage of this year’s freeze in membership rates by locking in multi-year discounts. Learn more at www.nirsa.org/join.

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Learn about the NIRSA Board of Directors here.