Teed off over schedule conflict

A 7:30 a.m. tee off at Torrey Pines Golf Course prevented three board members from attending the NABJ executive board’s business meeting Friday.

Not being able to conduct business frustrated Cheryl Smith, the president of NABJ’s Dallas chapter, so she made a motion to prevent future board meetings from being held at the same time as other NABJ events. The motion passed, although it received some opposition.

Friday’s conflict was the NABJ National Golf Tournament — a fundraiser for NABJ Scholarships.
The tournament, held at the popular San Diego golf course known for hosting PGA events, kept NABJ Secretary Roland Martin; Region II Director Charles Robinson; and Region III Director Ken Knight away from the board meeting.

Reached after the golf tournament, Martin said he thought it was a “silly motion.” Martin says that the commitment to Robinson has been in place long before the meeting was scheduled. “The real question is why did our planners schedule the business meeting at that time?” Board members thought it was a serious issue, however.

“There is no reason in the world, not even fundraising, that this board meeting should conflict with anything else,” Cindy George, the Region V Director, said after the motion was approved.
George, who was late to Friday’s meeting because she was speaking on a panel, said she thinks scheduling conflicts have been a big problem at this year’s convention.

George said she remembers a time when board meetings did not conflict with other events. It should be that way, she said, because it will allow more NABJ members to attend board meetings, giving them “every opportunity in the world to ask all board members questions.”

Janet Johnson, an NABJ member who attended the meeting, said she was opposed to the change and thinks that if members want to attend board meetings they should have that option.
“I understand the spirit behind (the motion), but I think this morning’s vote was emotional, and possibly short-sighted,” Johnson said. “I don’t think you can legislate participation. The country doesn’t shut down on election day.”

Interim Executive Director Drew Berry shared those sentiments.

“If people want to make the session, they should make the commitment to be there,” Berry said.
Martin said they have tried every possible way of holding a business meeting.

“I don’t know of a single thing we haven’t done to spur interest,” he said. “If folks choose not to attend, they don’t attend. I’ve been coming 19 out of 21 years and this has been an issue all of these years.”