The Society for Vascular Surgery (SVS) will ask voting-eligible members to consider three revisions to article X of the SVS bylaws that would take a step toward change on the SVS Nominating Committee.
In the past several years, the membership of the committee, which selects candidates for officer consideration, has expanded from the three most recent past presidents to include four more members: a member of the Strategic Board of Directors, an at-large member elected from among the membership, the vice chair of the Community Practice Committee and the chair of what formerly was called the Leadership and Diversity Committee. There also has been an ex-officio, non-voting representative of the Young Surgeons Committee (now Section).
The referendum changes would keep the Nominating Committee membership at seven, while expanding diversity of perspective. The SVS Executive Board has proposed—and the Strategic Board of Directors has approved—putting the following three changes to the membership for a vote:
- Reducing the number of past presidents on the Nominating Committee from three to two; the most current past president, who serves on the Executive Board, will join the Nominating Committee one-year removed from this service
- Adding the SVS Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Committee chair, or vice chair if the chair is unavailable, as a voting member of the Nominating Committee, replacing the chair of the Leadership Committee. The Leadership Committee chair was added when the committee’s name was the Leadership and Diversity Committee, but diversity has since been migrated to the DEI Committee
- Adding the chair of the Young Surgeons Section, or the vice chair if the chair is unavailable, as a voting member of the Nominating Committee. The Young Surgeons Section chair has been serving as a non-voting ex-officio member
These changes have been proposed and approved to further increase the diversity of perspective and voice in the Nominating Committee process. Because the process for nominating SVS officers for 2022–23 begins in January 2023, this special referendum is being called to ensure changes are implemented in time for the 2023 nominating process and elections.
“We feel it is imperative to broaden the perspective of the group that selects our candidates, to hear from the wide range of voices among our members,” said SVS President Michael C. Dalsing, MD. “The Strategic Board of Directors feels making this change before our next election cycle is so important, in fact, that we’re taking the unusual step of holding an off-cycle referendum election.”
Online voting on the questions will begin in early December. Only Active and Senior members in good standing are eligible to vote.
Read the proposed changes at vascular.org/2023NomCommBylawsChange.
