However, the College Democrats recognized early in the process that input was essential to a well run exec board so the current board has been extended dramatically to include several positions of note including: Events Chair, Membership Director, Communications Director, and Senior Adviser.
Beginning in the Fall of 2011, another chair will be introduced and given full exec board privileges: Freshman Representative to the Exec Board. This new position will be elected by popular vote of the incoming class and be given immediate responsibility to organize a function on behalf of the College Democrats. While this may seem intimidating, the Freshman Representative will have the full support and authority of the College Dems exec board which means they will have the power to delegate responsibilities to other members of the exec board or membership.
While the President is the head of the Exec Board, each member of the Board and Extended Board holds equal power. That is to say, no decision about the course of the club can be made without the majority of the Exec Board's approval. This is the reason why a larger Exec Board is important because it allows for a larger opinion base to draw ideas from and criticisms. It is also helpful to fulfill the multitude of responsibilities that is demanded from a political organization such as appearances at local and state fundraisers and campaign initiatives as well as other group meetings like the Young Professional Democrats.
Positions:
President: The President of the University of Tennessee College Democrats has the most responsibility of the entire group. It is the President's duty to set Exec Board meeting times and orchestrate the meetings according to Parliamentary Procedure. The President is also responsible for reserving meeting rooms and times as well as campus placement reservations for special events such as registration drives.
Current President: Mitch Thompson
Vice President: The Vice President is the second authority and fulfills obligations that the President cannot handle. The Vice President is also responsible for meeting promotion and attendance. It is the responsibility of the Vice President to ensure all Exec Board members are aware and arrive at meetings in a timely manner.
Current Vice President: Caroline Cranford
Secretary: The secretary is responsible for documentation for the organization. The secretary records minutes in meetings and drafts emails and signs for the club's promotion.
Current Secretary: Feroza Freeland
Treasurer: The treasurer is responsible for the club's finances and must accompany the president to any receiving of funds and deposit of funds. The Treasurer also approves or rejects claims for reimbursement. No financial background is necessary for this position, but the position needs to be filled by someone who is responsible and mindful of simple finances.
Current Treasurer: Reid Guthrie
Campaign Liaison: While the President is the face of the club to the University, the liaison is the face of the club to the outside establishment. This position is responsible for coordinating speakers with meetings and representing the club to candidates and local and state parties.
Current Campaign Liaison: Alex Colbeck
Membership Director: The Director of Membership is responsible for club outreach. Democrats are often scattered amongst several clubs throughout the university and the Membership Director is responsible for outreach to those groups as well as possibly coordinating dual events with certain groups.
Current Membership Director: Mandy Dean
Communications Director: This position is responsible for communicating with local and university media. This role can also be described as the public relations officer except that the Director will sometimes need to dictate certain responsibilities to other members.
Current Communications Directors: Beth Borromeo
Events Chair: This position is responsible for coordinating and organizing outside events that are something other than regularly scheduled meetings. These events are quite important and can be very large so the chair is responsible for delegating tasks to the Events committee and ensuring their completion.
Current Events Chair: Kate Stamper
Freshman Representative: This position is announced during the first meeting of the year and voted on in the second meeting. Only freshmen can hold this position. The Freshman Representative will give a voice to freshman on the Executive Board and will hold a full Executive Board vote. Responsibilities include holding events to recruit other freshman to the organization, distributing flyers to dorms, and communicating with individual dorm representatives.
Current Freshman Representative: TBD
Senior Adviser: This role is normally held by an older member with exec board experience or outside contacts. In essence, this role ensures there is no learning curve for a new Exec Board and the organization can continue to proceed with new Exec members without losing the organization's momentum.
Current Senior Adviser: Christina Gore, Ryan Thompson
