About Groundswell's Board of Directors!

The Groundswell Board of Directors (Board) is charged with the organization’s fiduciary and generative health in addition to ensuring its strategic direction, managing risk, and evaluating the executive director’s leadership and performance. Groundswell is committed to building and maintaining a board of directors that reflects gender balance and ethnic and racial diversity.

The Board seeks individuals who are active in professional life or in their communities, and who share a common commitment to youth development and advancing social change through the arts. Members are inspired by our mission, self-directed in promoting our cause, and willing to make contacts to enlarge our base of support.

Board members are expected to attract financial and other resources to Groundswell; to build a broad constituency of friends and benefactors; to raise public awareness of the organization and mission, and to provide strategic, financial, fundraising and overall policy guidance to Groundswell’s executive director and senior staff.

In addition to the expectations listed above each Groundswell Board member will:

Advocacy and Skills
• Demonstrate a strong interest in and commitment to Groundswell’s mission and promote the mission among friends, business associates, and clients, as well as funders, government agencies, and the general public as appropriate.

• Have experience or “expert” knowledge in at least one area of board responsibility, such as strategic planning, financial management, fundraising, human resources, social justice, the visual arts, community relations, etc.

Financial Support
• Make a generous and personal, annual gift to Groundswell. We expect 100% of our Board to make an annual gift at each member’s highest annual giving capacity. Groundswell must be one of the top 3 annual charities supported by a board member.

• Take responsibility for purchasing a table, securing corporate support for a table and/or as a syndicate and assembling a group of people who will attend Groundswell’s annual fundraising events.

• Make a leadership commitment, in addition to the above, when the organization is engaged in a campaign at a level consistent with each member’s means. Board members are also encouraged to consider a bequest or other gift in the context of their estate plan.


Fundraising
• Identify personal contacts and make introductions to people and organizations of influence, i.e. corporations, foundations, individuals, etc.

• Work with the development committee and staff to secure charitable contributions from personal contacts and prospects. Each board member will identify potential donors and agree to an amount for which he/she will fundraise in addition to his/her personal gift.

Board Development
• Work with the governance and nominations committee to suggest new board members who can make significant contributions to the Board and the organization.

• Participate in new board member orientation.

Reporting
• Review and understand regular reports of Groundswell’s activities and finances.

The guidelines that govern board membership include:

Meeting Attendance
• Attend all board meetings.
• Actively participate on a minimum of one board committee.

Terms of Office
• Each board member is elected to a three (3) year term with a renewable second (3) year term. Thereafter, board members must rotate off the board for at least one (1) year before being eligible for reelection. Former board members are allowed to serve on committees as a non board member during this intervening time. Terms are renewable subject to the recommendation of the governance and nominations committee and election by the board. One third of the board is assigned to one of three “classes” to stagger board terms.

Board Review
• Meet annually with the board chair and a member of the governance and nominations committee to review the member’s past year of service and to define his/her specific role and responsibility for the coming year.

Confidentiality
• For the most part, the work of the Groundswell is transparent. However, information related to the financial administration of the organization and to personnel issues, is presumed to be confidential.