The Nominations Committee of the Society for News Design, chaired by immediate past-president Gayle Grin, has announced six SND members as candidates for the upcoming 2009 election.
THE BALLOT
President
• Jeff Goertzen
• Kris Viesselman
Vice president
• Patricia Cox
• Steve Dorsey
Secretary/treasurer
• Jonathon Berlin
• Lily Lu
When: Ballots will go out to current SND members around September 1 and voting will take place online.
The Nominations Committee of the Society for News Design, chaired by immediate past-president Gayle Grin, has announced six SND members as candidates for the upcoming 2009 election.
The candidates for president are Jeff Goertzen, graphics editor of The Denver Post and SND director for Region 5, and Kristine Viesselman, director of digital product development for National Geographic Maps.
The candidates for vice president are Patricia Cox, managing editor/presentation at the St. Petersburg (Fla.) Times and Steve Dorsey, deputy managing editor for presentation and innovation at the Detroit Free Press and SND secretary/treasurer.
The candidates for secretary/treasurer are Jonathon Berlin, graphics editor of the Chicago Tribune and SND publications director, and Lily Lu, consultant at L5 Communications and director of SND Chinese.
Members also will be able to write in candidates on the ballots.
The SND publications team plans to post candidate statements online at www.snd.org. Candidates also may post information on their own Web sites.
Ballots will go out to current SND members around September 1 and voting will take place online. Members current as of September 11 will receive ballots. The election ends at 12 a.m. Sat., Sept. 26, Buenos Aires time. The results will be announced at the SND Annual Meeting in Buenos Aires at lunch September 26.
The elected officers will begin their terms Jan. 1, 2010.
Grin invited all SND members to nominate candidates, and the Nominations Committee selected from among those receiving multiple nominations.
The members of the Nominations Committee are: SND Vice President Bonita Burton, visuals editor of the Orlando Sentinel; Grin, managing editor for design and graphics at the National Post in Toronto; Dorsey; C. Marshall Matlock, emeritus professor at Syracuse University and SND competition & judging director; Melissa Angle, senior designer at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and SND Region 3 director; Hans-Peter Janisch, a consultant with Zeitungs- und Kommunikationsdesign in Grossenlueder, Germany, and SND international director; Cristobal Edwards, professor of visual journalism at Pontificia Univerdidad Católica de Chile in Santiago; and Kenneth F. Irby, visual journalism/group leader at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies in St. Petersburg, Fla.
It’s encouraging to see a contested election. Members deserve a choice for leadership at such a critical time.
I’ve already received a lot of valuable feedback from people on how to course-correct, on how to ensure that SND becomes more agile and meets the rapidly changing needs of members.
As a candidate unencumbered by the status quo, I am ready to tackle SND’s challenges with fresh eyes and unmatched enthusiasm. All members are owed the chance to be heard. SND is a microcosm of the industry. The sooner we evolve the Society, the sooner we can evolve this industry.
I will proactively reach out to elected and appointed leaders — past and present — and do what I can to dispel any notion of “camps” in SND. I thank all of you for your generous volunteer efforts and am eager to work together to do what’s best for the Society.
Finally, I’m happy to see an old friend on the ballot next to me. Board member Jeff Goertzen was among the first to send me encouragement when my write-in campaign saw early success. We certainly share a passion for information graphics. And, hey, we can always have a “Chart Off” competition if the election becomes dull.
The dialogue about the future has already started at http://www.snd2010.org. Please stop by. The site is regularly updated and currently hosts a brief training survey. There will be more ways to have your voice heard in the coming weeks.
Let’s put all ideas on the table. Let’s start fresh.
Please feel free to e-mail your ideas to me directly at: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Thanks.
Dear members and colleagues.
I’ve launched my presidential campaign for SND. Feel free to visit my campaign website http://www.jeffgoertzen2010.org. It offers a 3-point plan to address the challenges we face in our Society.
And what is the absentee or remote ballot option for people who happen to be of country during the first two weeks of the September?