Seeking individuals for our Board of Directors

The Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition is seeking applicants for its Board of Directors (see below for more information on what it means to be a Board member). Joining the Board is a great way to connect to other civically-minded bike enthusiasts and make a real difference in the city.

If you are interested, please send to [email protected] a resume and up to 1 page that addresses the following questions:

1. 
   Why are you interested in serving on the Board and how have you been involved in the Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition to date?


2. 
   What areas of expertise and what experience would you bring to the Board?


3. 
   What contributions do you feel that you can make on the Board?


4. 
   Please express which of the following Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition committees interest you the most: Open Streets, Bikeways for Everyone, Outreach/Events, Diversity Task Force, Communications, Minneapolis Bike Week, Fundraising, Executive Committee on the Board (President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer),and Finance Committee on the Board.

Application Deadline: Friday, October 3rd at 5pm.

Process: A subset of the Board will review applications, interview candidates as needed, and make a recommendation to the full Board to consider at the November Board meeting. All candidates will receive final word in mid- November.

What it means to be a Coalition Board member

The Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition Board of Directors focuses on governance and oversight. The Board is comprised of people who are exciting about growing the organization. The Board is also responsible for hiring, managing, and evaluating the Executive Director and other staff. Board members are expected to do some non-Board-related volunteering with the Coalition. Directors are chosen who want to enthusiastically grow the capacity of the Coalition by supporting organizational development, volunteer engagement, and fundraising efforts. Board members make governance decisions and perform tasks in the best interest of the Coalition in fitting with the mission, vision, and core values. Directors perform at least the following tasks that are expected to take a minimum of 8 hours a month:

• 
  Regularly attend a Board meeting once every other month (likely to continue to be on the first Tuesday from 6-8pm) and review related materials;


• 
  Actively participate in at least one work group beyond the standard Board meetings;


• 
  Make a financial contribution that is personally significant and support Coalition fundraising in some way;


• 
  Work to help implement the Coalition’s strategic plan (we are working to update some aspects of the strategic plan now);


• 
  Support key Coalition initiatives as needed (those include our internal and external priorities); and


• 
  Offer personal outreach as appropriate to stakeholders and generally further the reputation of the organization.

The current Board has up to 21 members and so we will consider adding up to 8 new members as members this year. Board members serve two-year terms, with an option for a one-year term upon request. Terms will begin in January 2015 at our Board meeting (note that this meeting will probably be moved to the second Tuesday because of the New Year holiday; the regular meeting time is the first Tuesday of the month, meeting every other month).

Specific Skills and Qualities the Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition is Seeking

The Coalition is looking for people who have a positive passion for bicycling in Minneapolis and are ready and willing to get to work. We try to maintain a diversity of skills, experiences, and perspectives. Some perspectives, skills, and connections we are especially looking for at this time include:

• 
  people with board, strategic planning, management of staff/HR experience


• 
  people of color;


• 
  residents from North and NE Minneapolis;


• 
  experience with finance and accounting (does not have to be a CPA);


• 
  fundraising experience;


• 
  nonprofit governance;


• 
  connections to large Minneapolis companies and foundations;


• 
  connections to immigrant communities;


• 
  connections to low-income communities; and


• 
  interest in serving in a leadership role on the Board at some point in the future (President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer)

If you have any questions, please contact [email protected]. Thank you for your interest!

Best,

Ben Olson

Board Nominations Committee Chair

[email protected]