The new Lander Rotary Club Bulletin

 

All of us are members of the Lander Rotary Club, but we’re also part of a much larger worldwide organization and business -- Rotary International (RI) is, in some ways, an international business, with worldwide headquarters in Evanston, IL, offices in seven countries, 1.4 million members in roughly 200 countries, and projects and activities all over the world.  All led by volunteers!

 

 So, how are those volunteer leaders chosen?  Sit tight, it’s a tad convoluted!

 

Rotary’s 35,000+ clubs are assigned to 530+ Districts, and those Districts are assigned to 34 Rotary Zones (usually 20-25 districts/zone).  Those 34 Zones are aligned into 17 pairs for the election of RI directors and the RI president. Lander Rotary is in District 5440, the District is in Zone 27, and Zone 27 is linked with Zone 26.  They call themselves “The Big West.”  The Districts and Zones are focused on providing leadership training, education and support for the clubs and districts in their respective areas.

 

RI, in turn, is governed by a 17-member Board of Directors.  Two “paired” Rotary Zones select a new director every two years. Directors may serve only a single two-year term. The Directors are typically Rotarians who have been involved in Rotary leadership posts for several years.  They must have previously served as a District Governor.

 

So how is the President of Rotary selected?  Well, each year the Board of Directors appoints a Nominating Committee of about 15 Rotary leaders from around the world to nominate a president.  That person becomes the president two years later unless there is a challenge within 30 days of the nomination.  That rarely occurs.  Traditionally, a U.S. Rotarian will be the president every third year.  This is done collegially to ensure that the U.S. does not dominate the presidency or Rotary leadership every year.

 

Administratively, the organization is under the direction of a General Secretary, appointed by the Board of Directors.  Perhaps needless to say, this is a paid position!  The General Secretary also oversees The Rotary Foundation, which is a 501(c)(3) organization that has a separate Board of Trustees appointed by the RI Board of Directors. We'll write more about it soon.

 

Complicated?  Yes.  Effective?  Also, yes.