GUIDE DOG USERS, INC.
c/o Sarah Calhoun
3603 Morgan Way
Imperial, MO 63052
TOLL FREE: 1-866-799-8436
Announcing the GDUI 2021 Elections
The 2021 GDUI Elections will commence on Saturday, May 29 at 12:01 a.m. EDT and run through Sunday, June 6, 2021 at 11:59 p.m. EDT.
GDUI is seeking candidates for the following positions in our upcoming 2021 elections.
1 Interim Secretary ending in 2022
1 Interim Director ending in 2022
2 Director Seats (3-Year Term) ending in 2024
The two open director positions will be filled by the two candidates who receive the largest and second-largest number of votes for director. The Interim Director position will be filled by the candidate receiving the third-largest number of votes for director.
GDUI members in good standing are eligible to run for a position on the GDUI Board. Interested candidates should submit an application, resume and cover letter to the Nominations Committee Chair, Margie Donovan at elections@guidedogusersinc.org by the deadline of March 31, 2021.
The information supplied within the cover letter, application and resume will be shared with the GDUI members eligible to vote in this election.
GDUI members who have paid their dues by this year’s record date of April 9, 2021 will be eligible to vote in the upcoming elections.
GDUI is proud of our universally accessible voting system in which each member of GDUI is entitled to a voice in the election of our GDUI Board.
If you have not renewed your membership, now is the time to do so. An at-large membership in GDUI costs $25.00 per person per year. Dues may be paid online by going to https://guidedogusersinc.org/join/, by credit card by calling 1-866-799-8436 or by mailing your check to the above address and made payable to GDUI.
Important dates to remember:
In order to be eligible to vote in the 2021 GDUI election your 2021 GDUI dues must have been received on or before the record date of April 9, 2021.
We will hold two Candidate Forums prior to the election. Phone numbers for these calls will be publicized closer to the dates.
Candidate Forum 1. Thursday, May 6, 2021 7:30 p.m. EDT
Candidate Forum 2. Saturday, May 15, 2021 1:00 p.m. EDT
Between the dates of April 1, 2021 and April 15, 2021, we encourage members to submit questions for your candidates. Please submit your questions to the Nominations Chair, Margie Donovan at elections@guidedogusersinc.org and include “Candidates Forum” in the subject line of your message.
Election period: Saturday, May 29 12:01 a.m. EDT through Sunday, June 6, 2021 11:59 p.m. EDT
Amendments: Any questions relating to Constitutional Amendments should be sent to Maria Hansen at Byalaws@guidedogusersinc.org by March 15, 2021.
Application for Candidacy:
GDUI has three major responsibilities:
- To promote the acceptance of guide dog teams by all agencies, employers, educational institutions, commercial establishments, and the general public;
- To work for the expansion, standardization, and enforcement of legal provisions, both civil and criminal, governing the rights and responsibilities of guide dog users in the areas of public access, employment, housing, personal injury to dog and handler, transportation, and recreation; and
- To work in cooperation with guide dog training providers by contributing constructive input concerning selection, training, health care, and accommodations for both canine and human students, and providing constructive suggestions that will improve the quality of the training experience.
With these goals in mind, please answer the following questions.
Date:
Position for which you wish to be a candidate:
Applicant’s Name:
Street Address:
City/State/zip code:
Phone numbers:
Home:
Cell:
E-mail Address:
Are you a guide dog user?
Describe your background (Educational, occupational and general experience).
Why do you wish to serve on the GDUI Board?
Which of your skills and experiences would most support Board activities? Please describe a time when a group of which you were a part accomplished its goal(s).
What caused the group to be successful? How did you contribute to this success?
The GDUI Board of Directors uses e-mail to communicate with one another. Are you able to communicate effectively using this medium and do you have access to e-mail?
The GDUI Board of Directors meets every other month by telephone. Meetings last from two to three hours. Other ad hoc telephonic meetings are sometimes called as well.
Board Members are often asked to chair and serve on committees and perform tasks on behalf of GDUI as directed by the officers and committee chairpersons. Will you be able to find time to perform the tasks described above?
Candidates, please note: Your cover letter, application and resume will be sent in its entirety to the GDUI members eligible to vote in this election.
GDUI Officer and Director Position Descriptions
All GDUI officers and Directors must:
Be willing and able to participate in regularly scheduled meetings and e-mail discussions.
Always act in a dignified manner and interact respectfully with fellow directors and Officers and agree to abide by GDUI’s current code of conduct for board members.
Work as a team member to maintain and protect GDUI and its mission.
Become well versed with GDUI’s By-Laws.
Respect the authority of the GDUI By-Laws and work within their guidance and the requirements of the GDUI Articles of Incorporation.
Be a collaborative participant in the democratic process–respecting the outcome of votes of the membership and votes of the board.
Possess sufficient computer skills to participate in e-mail work.
Be flexible for scheduling meeting times. (The GDUI Board meets by phone conference bi-monthly for two or more hours, with committee meetings or other special meetings scheduled separately.)
Responsibilities and criteria for GDUI Secretary Position
The GDUI Secretary must be willing and able to accept the legal, fiduciary and ethical responsibilities of an organizational secretary, in accordance with standard nonprofit practices and procedures.
The Secretary must:
Record (in document-form) meeting minutes for business meetings of the GDUI Board of Directors.
Arrange for the audio-recording of meetings if it is the secretary’s desire to take minutes from an audio-recording.
Possess thorough and quick note-taking skills in case an audio-recording of a meeting fails.
Have the ability to use notes, memory, and/or recordings to reproduce accurate accounts of meetings for minutes.
Use writing skills and discretion to summarize (or write in detail when appropriate) to create informative meeting minutes.
Submit drafts of meeting minutes in time frames which allow other board members to submit suggestions/corrections before a final draft is submitted for approval/ acceptance at the subsequent board meeting.
Send minutes and attachments to the Web Master for posting to the GDUI Web Site.
Assist GDUI by researching and reproducing content from previous minutes as is practical.
The secretary is expected to attend all board meetings. If the Secretary is unable to attend a board meeting, after informing the President, the Secretary will arrange for a competent recorder for the meeting which the Secretary will miss.
The Secretary may not miss three (3) or more meetings in any twelve month period without being excused.
Responsibilities and criteria for GDUI Board of Director position
Each member of the GDUI Board of Directors must be willing and able to accept the legal, fiduciary and ethical responsibilities of an organizational director, in accordance with standard nonprofit practices and procedures.
Board members are expected to attend all board meetings.
Members of the GDUI Board of Directors shall inform the President, in advance, if unable to attend a particular board meeting.
A GDUI board member shall not miss three (3) or more meetings in any twelve month period without being excused.
A majority of Board members will be guide dog users.
GDUI Code of Ethics – revised June 20, 2017
Code of Ethics of Guide Dog Users, Inc. This board of directors code of ethics was adopted by the Guide Dog Users, Inc. Board of Directors on June 20, 2017.
Preamble
Guide Dog Users, Inc., (hereinafter, “GDUI”) or “organization” is a not-for-profit, tax-exempt organization formed to promote, develop, educate, and otherwise further the guide dog team community as listed in its Articles of incorporation and bylaws. GDUI’s principal membership class consists of individuals and affiliates engaged in advocacy, legislative and civil rights. The business of the organization is managed under the direction of the GDUI board of directors. The board’s code of ethics serves as a code of conduct for organization volunteers in their capacity as board members. Code violations may result in sanctions imposed under the Procedures for Review of Board Member Conduct. The principles and requirements that comprise the code and procedures are based on and are designed to ensure full compliance by GDUI and its officers, directors, and volunteers with the fiduciary duties imposed on such individuals by Washington, D.C. non-profit code, the federal tax code’s prohibition on private inurement and private benefit, and other requirements of federal tax exemption, common law due process requirements, federal and state antitrust and unfair competition law, state tort law, and other legal precepts and prohibitions. At the same time, the code and procedures are not designed to supplant courts of law in the resolution of disputes within non-profits. Moreover, the checks and balances built into the code and procedures are designed to strike the proper balance between ensuring full compliance with the legal obligations described here and ensuring the integrity and efficacy of the code on the one hand and, on the other, the protection of board members, through the use of reasonable due process procedures, against patently false, malicious, or groundless accusations that could result in significant business or personal harm if not properly handled. Members of the board affirm their endorsement of the code and acknowledge their commitment to uphold its principles and obligations by accepting and retaining membership on the board.
Board of Directors Code of Ethics
Members of the board (including ex officio members of the board) shall at all times abide by and conform to the GDUI bylaws and the following code of conduct in their capacity as board members:
1. Each member of the board of directors will abide in all respects by the GDUI Members’ Code of Ethics and all other rules and regulations of the organization (including but not limited to the organization’s articles of incorporation and bylaws) and will ensure that their membership (or the membership of the entity for which they serve as officer, director, employee, or owner, as the case may be) in the organization remains in good standing at all times. Furthermore, each member of the board of directors will at all times obey all applicable federal, state and local laws and regulations and will provide or cause to provide the full cooperation of the organization when requested to do so by those institutions and their persons set in authority as are required to uphold the law.
2. Members of the board of directors will conduct the business affairs of the organization in good faith and with honesty, integrity, due diligence, and reasonable competence.
3. Except as the board of directors may otherwise require or as otherwise required by law or the organization’s bylaws, no board member or member subscribed to the Board list shall share, copy, reproduce, transmit, divulge or otherwise disclose any confidential information related to the affairs of the organization and each member of the board will uphold the strict confidentiality of all meetings and other deliberations and communications of the board of directors.
4. Members of the board of directors will exercise proper authority and good judgment in their dealings with organization members, suppliers, and the general public and will respond to the needs of the organization’s members in a responsible, respectful, and professional manner.
5. No member of the board of directors will use any information provided by the organization or acquired as a consequence of the board member’s service to the organization in any manner other than in furtherance of his or her board duties. Further, no member of the board of directors will misuse organization property or resources and will at all times keep the organization’s property secure and not allow any person not authorized by the board of directors to have or use such property.
6. Each member of the board of directors will use his or her best efforts to regularly participate in professional development activities and will perform his or her assigned duties in a professional and timely manner pursuant to the board’s direction and oversight.
7. Upon termination of service, a retiring board member will promptly return to the organization all documents, electronic and hard files, reference materials, and other property entrusted to the board member for the purpose of fulfilling his or her job responsibilities. Such return will not abrogate the retiring board member from his or her continuing obligations of confidentiality with respect to information acquired as a consequence of his or her tenure on the board of directors.
8. The board of directors dedicates itself to leading by example in serving the needs of the organization and its members and also in representing the interests and ideals of the guide dog user community at large.
9. No member of the board of directors shall persuade or attempt to persuade any employee of the organization to leave the employ of the organization or to become employed by any person or entity other than the organization. Furthermore, no member of the board of directors shall persuade or attempt to persuade any member, exhibitor, advertiser, sponsor, subscriber, supplier, contractor, or any other person or entity with an actual or potential relationship to or with the organization to terminate, curtail, or not enter into its relationship to or with the organization, or to in any way reduce the monetary or other benefits to the organization of such relationship.
10. The board of directors must act at all times in the best interests of the organization and not for personal or third-party gain or financial enrichment. When encountering potential conflicts of interest, board members will identify the conflict and, as required, remove themselves from all discussion and voting on the matter. Specifically, board members shall follow these guidelines:
o Avoid placing (and avoid the appearance of placing) one’s own self-interest or any third-party interest above that of the organization; while the receipt of incidental personal or third-party benefit may necessarily flow from certain organization activities, such benefit must be merely incidental to the primary benefit to the organization and its purposes;
o Do not abuse board membership by improperly using board membership or the organization’s volunteers, services, equipment, resources, or property for personal or third-party gain or pleasure; board members shall not represent to third parties that their authority as a board member extends any further than that which it actually extends;
o Do not engage in any outside business, professional or other activities that would directly or indirectly materially adversely affect the organization;
o Do not engage in or facilitate any discriminatory or harassing behavior directed toward organization staff, members, officers, directors, meeting attendees, exhibitors, advertisers, sponsors, suppliers, contractors, or others in the context of activities relating to the organization;
o Do not solicit or accept gifts, gratuities, free trips, honoraria, personal property, or any other item of value from any person or entity as a direct or indirect inducement to provide special treatment to such donor with respect to matters pertaining to the organization without fully disclosing such items to the board of directors; and
o Provide goods or services to the organization as a paid vendor to the organization only after full disclosure to, and advance approval by, the board, and pursuant to any related procedures adopted by the board.
Respectfully Submitted,
The GDUI Nominations Committee
Margie Donovan (Chair)
Robert Acosta
Dixie Sanderson