Congrats to our 2013-2014 Officers!

President: Annie George
Vice President and Director of External Relations: Scott Cheney-Peters
Director of Membership: Chris Barber
Director of Social Media: H. Lucien Gauthier III
Director of the NextWar Blog: Matt Hipple
NextWar Journal Editor in Chief: Michael Junge

Associate Editors
James Bridger
Sherman Patrick
Michael Haas
Matt McLaughlin
Matt Hipple
John Wilshusen
Scott Cheney-Peters

Chapter Presidents
New Caledonia/France: Alix Willemez

Unfortunately our candidate for Director of Operations and Treasurer found out his company ruled against his taken on the positions as a potential conflict of interest. So those two are vacant for now, but if you have any interest or would like to nominate a candidate, please let us know. Likewise, if you have any interest in becoming a chapter president we would like to work with you to carry the CIMSEC banner in your neighborhood.

More to come on the way ahead, and congrats again!

Voting is now open for CIMSEC members to choose the officers for the 2013-2014 term. Voting will end July 14th at midnight. Click here to vote.

Members and Friends of CIMSEC,

As an all-volunteer group we rely on our officers to keep the machinery of our organization running, and July means its time for our annual elections to bring in a new group. The following is a list of board positions and responsibilities. Neither the list nor the responsibilities are all-inclusive. If there’s something you’d like to do that’s not on here, let us know.

To nominate yourself or someone you know, simply email director@cimsec.org by July 6th and let us know which position(s) you’re interested in, what you’re qualifications for that position are, and what you intend to do in that position (or the same for the person you’re nominating). We will then contact those nominated by others to confirm interest, and announce the nominees and the information you provided. Voting begins July 7th.

Note:*You can run for (and win) more than one position, in which case we will ask if you want to take on both, or choose one.

President
– Works with the Board of Directors to oversee our strategic direction. Will help develop the formal bylaws for CIMSEC. Coordinates and keeps tabs on the running of the group. Needs to be committed to regular communication with the other officers and comfortable giving direction (I will not be running for this position).

Vice President and Director of External Relations
– Works with the President on all major projects or as otherwise directed. Engages external groups for collaborative opportunities (I will be running for this position, but yes, you can run against me. Monitors from Belarus will ensure the election is “free and fair”).

Director of Operations
– Facilitates meet-ups, networking, engagement, speaking, panel, and conference opportunities.

Director of NextWar Blog
– Oversees the behind-the-scenes details on the blog. Solicits and edits blog submissions, schedules blog postings. We’ve got tools to help you out with this.

Director of Membership
– Works with the board to increase membership, readership, and develop ideas for recruitment of unrepresented segments of the international maritime community. Maintains the membership database; sends out acceptance emails; updates membership roster on the website.

Director of Social Media
– Runs and explores ways to use the tools of the internet and social media to increase CIMSEC reach and user participation. Boosts our use on such forums as Twitter, Reddit, Linkedin, Wikipedia, Facebook, etc. Not necessarily responsible for using the content (i.e. staying on twitter 24/7), rather sets up and helps our members understand the tools available. Must stay engaged with Associate Directors of Social Media. Great learning experience!

NextWar Journal Editor-in-Chief
– Oversees the submissions, editing, production, and online distribution of our new journal. Need to be willing to take the initiative on setting up a new journal from scratch, but with the tools available and a lot of content coming from the blog it’s not that difficult and you will receive much help. Great learning experience!

Treasurer
– As we get our legal ducks in a row we’ll be able to start taking in money. Sets up revenue streams (kickstarter, paypal donation buttons, etc.) and helps keep our “books”. A DC law firm is working pro bono with us, so they will be able to assist you in the legal aspects of things. Great learning experience!

Others:
– Associate Editors: If you have decent writing/editing skills, we need your help with editing the blog and/or the journal.
– Associate Directors of Social Media: Helps the Director of Social Media in their functions.
– Chapter Presidents: Live outside of DC? Want to host intellectually stimulating maritime events under CIMSEC’s name? Let’s set you up with a chapter.

Voting Eligibility
All current members of CIMSEC at the time of the announcement of the candidates will be eligible to vote. To check your eligibility, look for your name on the website’s “About Us Page” – not the “Roster” subheading – if you don’t see yourself there, make sure you’ve submitted a formal application.

Please let us know if you have any questions or suggestions!