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August 2007 - COVAA Update
Dear COVAA Delegates and Friends,
The COVAA Steering Committee has been very busy this
last month as we continue to follow your mandate to
create a new, national membership association. We
are working very thoughtfully to ensure that this
association is relevant, positive, and sustainable.
The following is a recap of our July activities:
Several members of the Steering Committee and sub-committees
attended the National Conference on Volunteering and
Service in Philadelphia. COVAA had a booth as an exhibitor.
Over one hundred people visited the booth and signed
up to be on the mailing list. Feedback was very enthusiastic.
People indicated a strong need for an organization
like COVAA. Many volunteer managers are eager to join
a national organization that will help them to develop
professionally and represent their interests at the
“national table”.
In addition to our presence in the exhibition hall,
members of COVAA convened a Town Hall Meeting as a
pre-conference event. As stakeholders in the profession,
attendees participated in a dialogue, as well as received
a report on the outcomes of the Congress in Denver,
progress of the Steering Committee, and next steps.
Over 40 people attended this pre-conference opportunity,
including attendees of last December’s Congress
in Denver, colleagues of Congress attendees, and representatives
of interested national organizations such as the Corporation
for National and Community Service, The National Assembly,
and VolunteerMatch. Download
the PowerPoint presentation that was given at
this meeting.
An important part of the Town Hall meeting agenda
was to gather feedback on the Steering Committee’s
work to date. Attendees were asked for comments regarding
the drafts of the mission statement, vision statement,
and value statement, as well as their thoughts regarding
COVAA’s unique niche. Without repeating all of
the feedback that was made during the two hour meeting,
the following themes were identified:
- People want something to join and they want to
join it NOW! People do not feel that it is necessary
for the Steering Committee to have everything done
in order for the new organization to be launched.
The “baby” needs to simply be birthed
and the new organization will grow and develop in
the future.
- The feedback on the drafts of the different statements
included
a. The vision statement is too much like a mission
statement and needs to reflect where we want to
be in the future.
b. The mission statement needs to clearly explain
the value of COVAA.
c. The mission statement may need to include the
word, “networking” or something similar,
as well as words related to advocating on behalf
of the profession and advanced training. It was
also noted that all levels or types of volunteer
leaders should be acknowledged so it is clear who
we serve.
d. The value statement would be best supported if
we identified our core beliefs as an organization.
- It was commented that we need to become clearer
regarding what we mean by inclusivity in our value
statement. A professional association is automatically
exclusive since not everybody is a professional.
- It was commented that we need to reflect whether
we are an association of associations or an association
of individuals or both.
The Steering Committee has followed their commitment
to take the naming of this entity seriously and waiting
until research can be done on the best term for future
outreach. Over the last few months, many suggestions
for a name have come forward. One came forward during
the Town Hall meeting and is being added to the list
for review by the Steering Committee, stakeholders,
and delegates. Town Hall attendees were very enthusiastic
and enjoyed the lively demonstration by the group
who offered the suggestion.
At the booth and the Town Hall meeting, some individuals
expressed confusion or concern regarding Association
of Volunteer Resources Management (AVRM) and COVAA.
In April, the COVAA leadership requested a dialogue
with AVRM to discuss each organization’s efforts
and mutual interests. Since there are new leaders
involved, we thought it was appropriate to re-open
discussions with AVRM in order to identify opportunities
for collaboration. It is clear that both of our groups
desire to serve the profession of volunteer resource
managers in the best way possible. We have just learned
that the leadership of AVRM is available to have a
conference call on August 20th. We will let you know
the results of that conversation.
COVAA’s Future:
The Steering Committee will be completing organizational
identity work soon after all input is received. Each
of the sub-committees is beginning to write their
sections of the business plan. The goal is to complete
organizational development and hand off the new association
to its first board of directors by January 2008.
COVAA is following a broad, inclusive path that will
lead to a strong professional association. The process
has and continues to incorporate representatives of
the professionals that will ultimately be served.
In addition, COVAA is looking outside of the usual
sphere of volunteer engagement to obtain input from
other people or organizations with a broad perspective
who are also potential collaborative partners. The
end result will be a membership association that is
going to be an advocacy organization on behalf of
the profession, a standard bearer, and a developer
of leaders for our communities.
Sincerely,
Joanna Johnson and Rita Chick
COVAA Steering Committee Co-Chairs
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