Now that I have your attention… I am honored to have the opportunity to offer you a position that will enable you to:
- Combine your talents with leaders in hand therapy to shape the future direction of our professional society!
- Reach new professional heights through program development, leadership and helping to expand the reach and prominence of the hand therapy specialty!
- Be involved in the design of strategic initiatives to educate students, physicians and patients about the importance of hand therapy!
- Receive more professional satisfaction than you could ever imagine possible!
And that is only a few bullet points. I am asking you to apply to become a member of the ASHT Board of Directors. ASHT is an organization with a history of incredible volunteer leaders. Now, it’s your opportunity to lead! While it may seem a bit intimidating at first, we have the succession planning structure in place to help you succeed. We need your talent and desire, and have a team in place to help you excel in a leadership position.
Vice President
- (4-year commitment, serving a one-year term in each of the following positions: Vice President, President-Elect, President, Immediate Past President).
- Serves on the Executive Committee; understudies the President-Elect; manages special assignments as requested by the President; serves as a non-voting member of the Finance Committee.
Secretary/Treasurer-Elect
- (2-year term, serving one year as Secretary/Treasurer-Elect and one year as Secretary/Treasurer).
- Supports and understudies the Secretary/Treasurer. The Secretary/Treasurer oversees the records of the Board, including meeting minutes, and any historical documents; chairs the Finance Committee; and oversees the financial records of ASHT, ensuring the board receives good reports of ASHT's financial condition. The Secretary/Treasurer-Elect position requires a background in financial management.
Board-Member-at-Large
- (2-year term, serving one year as “junior” BMAL and one year as “senior” BMAL)
- Serves as a liaison between the board and membership, responds to member inquiries, participates in monthly board conference calls, may write ASHT Times articles and other member correspondence and fulfills assignments requested by the President or Board of Directors.
My time on the board is just about up, but let me tell you a little about my journey. I served as Education Division Director, which really allowed me to develop my project management skills. I served as Secretary/Treasurer-Elect where I learned about how to best utilize our financial resources to provide members with desired services. The year after, I became the Secretary/Treasurer (note the full year of mentoring), and helped to prepare and manage the budget as well as establish financial priorities for ASHT. It was after that I began the path of the “Presidential Line” serving as Vice President, President-Elect, and finally President in 2016-2017. There was mentoring, support, guidance and a respect for exchanging ideas throughout each step in the process.
I can’t even begin to write about how the experiences with ASHT have changed my life and about all of the incredible people I have met along the way. Needless to say, I implore you to take that step and apply to begin your ASHT leadership journey. As our current President Kris Valdes stated in her address at the 40th Annual Meeting, “If not me, who? If not now, when?” It’s your turn now – please don’t miss out!
Visit our Board Elections & Nominations page for complete details. If you want to discuss any position with me personally, please contact ASHT@asht.org.
Thank you all!!
Gary Solomon, MBA, MS, OTR/L, CHT
2017-2018 Immediate Past President