Now that Drupal 8 is a year old, it is an exciting time to be on the Drupal Association Board. With Drupal always evolving, the Association must evolve with it so we can continue providing the right kind of support. And, it is the Drupal Association Board who develops the Association’s strategic direction by engaging in discussions around a number of strategic topics throughout their term. As a community member, you can be part of this important process by becoming an At-large Board Member.

We have two At-large positions on the Association Board of Directors. These positions are self-nominated and then elected by the community. Simply put, the At-large Director position is designed to ensure there is community representation on the Drupal Association Board. If you are interested in helping shape the future of the Drupal Association, we encourage you to read this post and nominate yourself between 1 February and 19 February 2017.

How do nominations and elections work?
Specifics of the election mechanics were decided through a community-based process in 2012 with participation by dozens of Drupal community members. More details can be found in the proposal that was approved by the Drupal Association Board in 2012 and adapted for use this year.

What does the Drupal Association Board do?
The Board of Directors of the Drupal Association are responsible for financial oversight and setting the strategic direction for serving the Drupal Association’s mission, which we achieve through Drupal.org and DrupalCon. Our mission is: Drupal powers the best of the Web.  The Drupal Association unites a global open source community to build and promote Drupal.

New board members will contribute to the strategic direction of the Drupal Association. Board members are advised of, but not responsible for matters related to the day-to-day operations of the Drupal Association, including program execution, staffing, etc.

Directors are expected to contribute around five hours per month and attend three in-person meetings per year (financial assistance is available if required).

Association board members, like all board members for US-based organizations, have three legal obligations: duty of care, duty of loyalty, and duty of obedience. In addition to these legal obligations, there is a lot of practical work that the board undertakes. These generally fall under the fiduciary responsibilities and include:

• Overseeing Financial Performance
• Setting Strategy
• Setting and Reviewing Legal Policies
• Fundraising
• Managing the Executive Director

To accomplish all this, the board comes together three times a year during two-day retreats. These usually coincide with the North American and European DrupalCons as well as one February meeting. As a board member, you should expect to spend a minimum of five hours a month on board activities.

Some of the topics that will be discussed over the next year or two are:

• Strengthening Drupal Association’s sustainability
• Understanding what the Project needs to move forward and determine how the Association can help meet those needs through Drupal.org and DrupalCon
• Growing Drupal adoption through our own channels and partner channels
• Developing the strategic direction for DrupalCon and Drupal.org
• And more!

Please watch this video to learn more.

Who can run?
There are no restrictions on who can run, and only self-nominations are accepted.

Before self-nominating, we want candidates to understand what is expected of board members and what types of topics they will discuss during their term. That is why we now require candidates to:

• Read the Drupal Association bylaws
• Read the board member agreement
• Watch the video of what it means to be a board member (transcript available. Request it here)
• Read The Drupal Association mission statement

What will I need to do during the elections?
During the elections, members of the Drupal community will ask questions of candidates. You can post comments on candidate profiles here on assoc.drupal.org and to the public Drupal Association group at http://groups.drupal.org/drupal-association.

In the past, we held group “meet the candidate” interviews. With 22 candidates last year, group videos didn’t allow each candidate to properly express themselves. This year, we will replace the group interview and allow candidates to create their own 3 minute video and add it to their candidate profile page. These videos must be posted by 20 February, the Association will promote the videos to the community from 20 February through 4 March, 2017.

How do I run?
From 1 - 19 February, go here to nominate yourself.  If you are considering running, please read the entirety of this post, and then be prepared to complete the self-nomination form. This form will be open on 1 February, 2017 through 19 February, 2017 at midnight UTC. You'll be asked for some information about yourself and your interest in the Drupal Association Board. When the nominations close, your candidate profile will be published and available for Drupal community members to browse. Comments will be enabled, so please monitor your candidate profile so you can respond to questions from community members.

Reminder, you must review the materials listed above before completing your candidate profile:

Who can vote?
Voting is open to all individuals who have a Drupal.org account by the time nominations open and who have logged in at least once in the past year. If you meet this criteria, your account will be added to the voters list on association.drupal.org and you will have access to the voting.
To vote, you will rank candidates in order of your preference (1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc.). The results will be calculated using an "instant runoff" method. For an accessible explanation of how instant runoff vote tabulation works, see videos linked in this discussion.

Elections process
Voting will be held from 6 March, 2017 through 18 March, 2017. During this period, you can review and comment on candidate profiles on assoc.drupal.org and engage all candidates through posting to the Drupal Association group. Have questions? Please contact Drupal Association Executive Director, Megan Sanicki. Many thanks to nedjo for pioneering this process and documenting it so well!
Flickr photo: Clyde Robinson