Regions
Number of regions. There are 11 regions. Each region comprises several states, provinces, or territories of the United States and Canada.
Region definition. The regions are defined as follows:
- Eastern Provinces: Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario
- Western Provinces: Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, Nunavut, Northwest Territories, Yukon
- Northeast: Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania
- Mid-Atlantic: Delaware, Maryland, District of Columbia, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina
- Southeast: South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Puerto Rico
- Great Lakes: Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin
- South Central: Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana
- Plains: Minnesota, Iowa, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas
- Southwest: Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, New Mexico
- Pacific Northwest: Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, Washington, Oregon, Alaska
- Pacific West: Arizona, Nevada, California, Hawaii, Guam
Region redefinition. Any change in the definition of a region will take effect at the end of the term of the current regional advocates.
Regional advocates
Regional advocate. One regional advocate will serve in each region.
Duties. The duties of a regional advocate are
- to advise the board of directors and the project managers on matters that may impact the region
- to raise awareness of issues affecting the region to the board of directors
- to request action by the board of directors on matters affecting the region
- to request an exemption for maintenance or testing requirements from the Judge Levels Manager and the Exams Manager on behalf of a member in the region
- to publicly recognize exceptional contributions from members in the region
- to assist conference organizers in finding quality presenters
- to provide information on a candidate’s regional involvement to the panel lead during the candidate’s advancement process
- to mediate disputes between judges who are within the region
The duties of a regional advocate do not include:
- to provide information to a tournament organizer regarding a specific member
- to provide staffing services for a tournament organizer
- to discipline a member
- to ensure or guarantee that any member or potential member has a mentor or an exam proctor
- to organize conferences within the region
Election. The regional advocates are elected annually at the same time as the directors. Each voting member may vote only on the regional advocate for their own region. Election for regional advocates will use instant runoff voting. The details of casting and counting votes using instant runoff voting may be specified in special rules of order. A member must be a nominee to be eligible for election; write-in votes are not allowed.
Region determination. For the purpose of electing regional advocates, a member’s region is determined 30 days prior to the election. If the member is not a voting member 30 days prior to the election but becomes a voting member during this 30-day period, their region is determined at the time of the election. The election committee and regional coordinator can jointly grant an exemption to a member to vote in a different region from their own.
Nominations. A member may nominate themselves as a candidate for regional advocate. A member may not nominate someone else.
Term. The term of office for a regional advocate begins November 1 following the election and ends 13 months later on December 1 or until a successor is elected.
Qualifications. A regional advocate must
- be a Level 2, Level 3, Level 4, or Level 5 member
- reside in the region in which they serve as regional advocate
- not be a director
- not be employed by a major tournament organizer or serve as a staffing manager for a major tournament organizer
Qualification exemptions. Acting jointly, the regional coordinator and the election committee can grant an exemption to any of the qualifications required for a regional advocate. This exemption can be granted prior to election or, if a regional advocate’s circumstances change, during the regional advocate’s term. An exemption may not extend beyond the end of term.
Removal. The board of directors may remove a regional advocate, with or without cause, by a two-thirds vote at a regular or special meeting of the board. The notice for the meeting must include removal of regional advocates as one of the purposes of the meeting, and it must include the names of the regional advocates that are proposed to be removed. Notice must also be given to each regional advocate that is proposed to be removed; this notice must be given a reasonable amount of time prior to the meeting. Removal of a member from the office of regional advocate does not prohibit the member from being reelected to the same office.
Vacancy. In the event of a vacancy in the office of regional advocate, the board of directors may schedule an election to fill the vacancy. If the board does not schedule an election, the office will remain vacant for the remainder of the term.
Area communicators
Appointment and removal. A regional advocate may appoint any number of area communicators within the region. A regional advocate may remove an area communicator with or without cause.
Duties. The duties of an area communicator are
- to ensure that the region has communication channels for important program updates
- to ensure that important updates use these communications channels
- to ensure the region has a place or method for judges or tournament organizers to request judges for small competitive events
- to maintain a document for new members, containing information on the regional communication channels
- to inform mentors and exam proctors about this document for new members
- to give new members the opportunity to join the communication channels
- to introduce new members and advancement candidates to potential mentors
The duties of an area communicator do not include:
- to provide information to a tournament organizer regarding a specific member
- to provide staffing services for a tournament organizer
- to discipline a member
- to ensure or guarantee that any member or potential member has a mentor or an exam proctor
Qualifications. An area communicator must be a voting member.
Regional coordinator
Appointment and term. The board of directors will appoint a regional coordinator, who must be a voting member of Judge Foundry. The regional coordinator will serve indefinitely—that is, until the regional coordinator resigns or is removed from office.
Duties. The duties of the regional coordinator are
- to advise the regional advocates in their duties
- to help prevent expectations beyond a regional advocate’s duties
- to ensure a smooth transition between terms
- to inform the board of directors when a regional advocate is not performing their duties
Removal. The board of directors may remove the regional coordinator with or without cause.
Provisos
- The first election of regional advocates will be held by electronic ballot without a meeting, the record date for the election will be 12:00 noon Central Daylight Time on July 11, and the election committee will determine when the polls will open and close.
- The term of the first regional advocates will begin when the election committee announces the results of the election and will end December 1, 2025.