CONCORD, N.H. – If it’s spring, it’s time for a ROC Association election.
Resident-owned communities (ROCs) in much of the country will select a fellow leader to directly represent ROCs on the ROC Association and the ROC USA Board of Directors.
This year, ROCs in the New England region as well as East, Midwest, and South region will vote for candidates. In case you’re unfamiliar with the ROC Association, it was started by two community leaders, Natividad Seefeld from Park Plaza Co-op in Fridley, Minn., and Lois Parris of the Lakes Region Co-op in Belmont, N.H. Both were appointees to the ROC USA® Board of Directors when they saw the potential of a large national network of local communities if we were to formalize an organization and develop an election process for ROCs like ours. 
Membership is free to all of the now 197 ROCs that are or once were under contract with a Certified Technical Assistance Provider trained and certified by ROC USA® Network.
Communities elect Directors to the ROC USA, LLC Board of Directors, helping ensure not only community involvement in the governance of ROC USA — our national nonprofit supporter — and a strong voice in the planning and shaping of ROC USA’s work. One Director is elected from each of three regions and serves a two-year term, and staggered elections are held every other year.
In 2017, the New England region as well as East, Midwest, and South region’s positions are up for election.
Directors take part in all ROC USA Board meetings (usually held in Washington, D.C., three times per year) and the annual Community Leadership Institute. CLI is a four-day conference that brings together two-dozen ROC leaders and hundreds of other community leaders from across the country for training, networking and more. Directors’ expenses for all these events are paid for by ROC USA. All that is required is a Director’s time and dedication.
We strongly encourage committed community leaders to run for a Director position. They need not be members of your community’s Board of Directors but they must be nominated by your Board of Directors. Each ROC may nominate one candidate.
We will distribute a ballot with all nominees this summer. Each ROC Board of Directors gets one vote for the Director representing its region. We will confirm a quorum and tabulate the votes this summer and report the results on myROCUSA.org.
We are happy to host a call-in session to answer any questions of those considering running for the ROC Association Board of Directors. Details are on the next page. You are also welcome to email any of us or Paul Bradley, President, ROC USA, LLC at pbradley@rocusa.org
Keep reading for more details. Your involvement is essential to the resident-ownership movement. We are Better Together.