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Newsroom

Two-year terms: OK
World project in Kiwanis’ future
A profile in courage
Canaday elected 2008-09 President
It's time to reach out
Simply dashing!
Kiwanis International Policies
Ready for Web makeover?

Two-year terms: OK

Kiwanis clubs and divisions now can elect officers to two-year terms, according to decisions made by the House of Delegates during the 93rd Annual Kiwanis International Convention in Orlando, Florida, in June. The House considered six proposed amendments. Here is a summary of decisions:

Approved

To alow clubs to elect officers for one- or two-year terms.
To allow divisions to elect lieutenant governors for one- or twoyear terms. (The club or district must first amend its bylaws with Kiwanis International.)
To allow clubs to use electronic balloting for elections.
To improve efficiency during elections for International offices.

Defeated:

To allow a district to have one Trustee and, at the same time, one higher officer on the Kiwanis International Board.
To allow certain entities the right to use Kiwanis marks without paying a licensing fee or other charge.

Withdrawn

To add “Chairman of the Board” to the International President’s duties.
To ensure the geographical boundaries of Circle K and Key Club districts remain aligned with Kiwanis districts.
To allow districts to have one- or two-year terms for most officers.

The deadline for clubs and districts to submit proposed amendments for the 2009 convention is February 15.

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New Builders fee favors growth

Beginning with the 2008-09 administrative year, existing Builders Clubs will be assessed an annual club fee of $150, to be billed to each club’s sponsoring Kiwanis club. The annual fee replaces individual membership dues.
The change is similar to one K-Kids adopted a couple years ago, which resulted in significant growth.

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Canaday elected 2008-09 President

Don Canaday will serve as Kiwanis International President during the 2008-09 year, as confirmed by the House of Delegates at the 93rd Annual International Convention in Orlando, Florida, this past June 26-29.

Don Canaday addresses convention delegates as International President-designate.

Don, a retired United States Army officer and business executive, has been president of three Kiwanis clubs—Chena-Fairbanks, Alaska; Lawrence, Indiana; and his current club of Meridian Hills, Indianapolis. He is a past Indiana District governor and lieutenant governor and joined the International Board as a Trustee in 2003.

Joining him on the International Board’s Executive Committee will be President-Elect Paul G. Palazzolo and Vice-President Sylvester Neal. Paul is a member of the Springfield-Downtown, Illinois, club and past governor and lieutenant governor in the Illinois-Eastern Iowa District. Sylvester is a member of the Kiwanis Club of the Valley, Auburn, Washington, and past governor and lieutenant governor in the Pacific Northwest District.

The Executive Committee also will include Immediate Past President Dave Curry, Silver Bow, Butte, Montana, and CEO Rob Parker, Indianapolis.

Elected Trustees in Orlando were: Region I (United States), Wm. “Ed” Hutchinson, Cape May, New Jersey; James S. Jennings, the Santa Ritas Green Valley-Sahuarita, Arizona; Garry L. Warner, Sikeston, Missouri.
Region V (At-Large), Robert Vande Rieviere, Tielt, Belgium.
Tadao Oda, a member of the Sendai, Japan, Kiwanis club, will join the Board in 2008-09 as a Region IV Trustee. He was elected to the position at the 2008 Kiwanis Asia-Pacific Convention in Jakarta, Indonesia, this past March.

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Simply dashing!

Have you visited KiwanisOne lately? The Kiwanis member portal was built just for you—and it’s looking better than ever. Check out the new dashboard, easy-to-use landing pages, and quick links to the resources you need to recruit new members, raise funds, to improve your leadership skills—and serve more children around the world.

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Kiwanis International Policies

Kiwanis International Bylaws require that all changes to Kiwanis International Policies be published in the official publication.

Revised by the Kiwanis International Board, January 2008 and April 2008.

INTERNATIONAL ADMINISTRATION

International Board

International Board: The International Board shall define the organizational policies and procedures and shall have full administrative authority in all matters of Kiwanis International, including CEO oversight responsibilities. (Per International Bylaws) (5/83) (1/08)

International President: The International President shall serve as Chairman of the Board of Kiwanis International. (5/83) (1/08)

Chief Executive Officer: (no change)

Purpose and Accountability: The Board is accountable to the membership for the organization’s performance through all of its activities. The purpose of the Board, working solely on behalf of the membership, is to assure that Kiwanis International achieves its strategic objectives. (1/08)

Governing Style: The Board will govern with an emphasis on:

(1) Outward vision,

(2) Encouragement of diversity of viewpoints,

(3) Strategic leadership more than its own administrative detail,

(4) Clear distinction of Board and CEO roles,

(5) Collective rather than individual decisions,

(6) The future rather than the past or present;

(7) Proactive rather than reactive; and

(8) Open, efficient, and productive meetings. (1/08)

Code of Conduct

The Board commits itself and its individual members to ethical, businesslike and lawful conduct, including proper use of authority and appropriate decorum when acting as Board members. (1/08)

Board Members may not attempt to exercise individual authority over Kiwanis International operations except as explicitly set forth in their duties and/or Board policies. (1/08)

Board Members’ interaction with the public, press, or other entities must recognize these limitations as well as the ineligibility of any Board member to speak for the Board as a whole except to repeat explicitly stated Board decisions. Board members must be aware at all times that their comments could be perceived to be statements of the Board as a whole or to otherwise carry official weight. (1/08)

Outside of Board discussion, individual Trustees and Officers will not publicly criticize Staff performance. (1/08)

Board Members will maintain the confidentiality of sensitive issues as defined and discussed by the Board. (1/08)

Cost of Governance

The Board will invest in its governance capacity, including skills, methods, and supports to assure governing with excellence. (1/08)

Conflict of Interest

In order to protect its interests as a taxexempt organization, Kiwanis International, when contemplating a transaction or arrangement that might benefit the private interest of an Officer or Trustee of the organization or that might result in a possible excess benefit transaction, shall exercise due diligence to assure no conflict of interest exists and/or it shall take appropriate disciplinary and corrective action if, upon investigation, a conflict of interest is determined to exist. This policy is intended to supplement, but not replace, any state and federal laws applicable to nonprofit and charitable organizations. (4/07)

Trustees and Officers must represent unconflicted loyalty to the interests of Kiwanis membership. This accountability supersedes any conflicting loyalty such as that to advocacy or interest groups and membership on other boards or staffs. (1/08)

Board Members must not use their positions to obtain employment at Kiwanis International for themselves, immediate family members, or associates. Board members must wait for three years after Board service prior to application for employment for any paid service within Kiwanis International. (1/08)

It’s time to reach out

Kiwanis clubs and members worldwide are called to foster inclusion within the organization. A resolution adopted by the 2008 House of Delegates encourages “all leaders and members … to take action to create a culture and club environment that develops and nurtures mutual respect for all and celebrates the inclusiveness of our beloved Kiwanis.”

The resolution cites the following reasons for celebrating inclusiveness:

Kiwanis is a global organization.
Kiwanis’ commitment to diversity and diverse perspectives leads to recruitment of new members and expanded service.
A commitment to diversity is key to establishing a reputation as club, community, state, provincial, country, and world leaders.

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A profile in courage

By Bo Shafer,
Past International President

Walter Sellers had two distinguishing characteristics. One—a husky, oratorical voice. He used it judiciously, but when he spoke, everyone listened. The second—a full, merry laugh. He used it frequently, and when he laughed, everyone joined him.

“Make it known that Kiwanis represents all races, cultures, and religious beliefs. … that Kiwanis is an organization for men and women. … that Kiwanis welcomes young, middle-age, and older adults in our fellowship and service. Make it known—not by words but by deeds.”—Walter G. Sellers

With Walter’s death this past May, Kiwanis lost a beloved leader. As 1997-98 Kiwanis International President, Walter used that wonderful voice and joyful sense of humor to guide our organization toward a new era of fellowship and service enriched by all races, genders, cultures, and ages.

Throughout life, Walter overcame numerous challenges, including a number of childhood years moving from place to place and relative to relative until his family settled in Michigan. During his enlistment with the United States Navy, he experienced the ugliness of racism. Yet he always persevered. His 38 years as an administrator at Central State University led to an honorary doctoral degree and the dedication of the university’s Walter G. Sellers Alumni Center. He served as the first black president of the Xenia City Schools Board of Education and as president of the Ohio School Boards Association. A senior citizens’ apartment complex also bears his name in recognition of his support for Xenia’s elderly residents. In 1986, he received a US presidential appointment to the National Afro-American History and Cultural Museum Commission.

For Kiwanis, Walter served as a member and president of the Xenia, Ohio, club. In 1997, he became the organization’s first African-American to serve as International President. He humbly accepted the responsibility of this role, for he realized that, despite our progress in areas of diversity, Kiwanis can and must do more.

By his side was his wife and fellow Xenia Kiwanian, Irene. Kiwanis is blessed because we have known—and have been led—by Walter Sellers.

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Ready for Web makeover?

In the Internet age, most organizations are represented on the World Wide Web. Kiwanis clubs are no exception. An online presence communicates a club’s mission and accomplishments to its members, community, and the world.

Kiwanis International now offers a free template to help clubs establish their Internet presence. The new design offers a professional look, is easy to build and maintain, and is compatible with Kiwanis guidelines and graphic standards. The templates come with instructions and other Web-related resources, such as logos and a Webmaster tutorial.

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World project in Kiwanis’ future

Looking toward the future, Kiwanis is initiating a process to identify its next Worldwide Service Project. Three things already are known:

The next global project will be bigger than the successful 1990s campaign to virtually eliminate iodine deficiency disorders.
It will solve a major problem threatening children worldwide.
To accomplish a project of this scale, Kiwanis first will spend the next two years concentrating on membership development and aligning its resources so it will be better positioned for success.

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