Food Protection Trends

COMMENTARY from the Executive Director
February 2007

“This month, I wanted to talk about commitment and dedication to IAFP”
By David W. Tharp, IAFP Executive Director

In this month’s issue of Food Protection Trends, our Secretary candidates are announced on page 104. Lee-Ann Jaykus and John Sofos have agreed to stand for election and whoever receives the highest number of votes in the election will be the 2007–2008 IAFP Secretary. This month, I wanted to talk about commitment and dedication to IAFP.

Each year, the Nominating Committee devotes numerous hours of their time to reviewing potential candidates for the position of Secretary. They look at various elements including direct involvement in IAFP activities (Annual Meeting attendance, Committee and PDG work, symposia and
poster presentations, workshop presentations or development, and similar activities). They look at potential candidate’s interaction with other Members along with their leadership style. Each of these components becomes an important factor in determining the Committee’s top selections for potential candidates.

Once the Committee identifies the top candidates, then the potential candidate must be invited to stand for election. IAFP has been very fortunate over the years to be able to attract top candidates to stand for election as Secretary for the Association. This year is no exception to our history! By committing to stand for election, candidates have agreed that they are willing to serve the Association for five-year periods of time as they ascend to President, then serve a final year on the Executive Board
On the surface, five years sounds like a long-term commitment and it is a significant period of time. But when a Board Member reaches the end of his or her term, the typical remark heard is “I can’t believe it is time for my term on the IAFP Board to end!” Certainly, we attempt to keep our past Board Members active within IAFP and most continue to communicate and provide input and guidance for the Association.

So both Lee-Ann and John have agreed to place themselves up for election to the position of Secretary, knowing that they could be making a five-year commitment to Board meetings, E-mail communications and an occasional teleconference. Knowing how busy they both are, this is a real complement to IAFP; that they are willing to devote their time in this way.

We thank Lee-Ann and John for their willingness to run for election and we encourage you to place your vote for the candidate of your choice. Watch your mail for your ballot, review the candidate bios, then record your vote and return your ballot to the IAFP office. Ballots are due back to the IAFP office for receipt not later than Friday, March 16.

Another sign of dedication to IAFP is shown through IAFP’s Awards. Our Awards recognize Members’ outstanding service to IAFP and the food safety profession. There are a number of Awards available to recognize those individual Members who show their active dedication to IAFP on a continuing basis. A list of Awards is shown on page 107 of this issue. Nominating criteria are available on the IAFP Web site, linked from the Annual Meeting page.

You may show your dedication to IAFP by recognizing a fellow Member through nominating them for an Award. Award nominations must be received in the IAFP office by Monday, March 12. We encourage you to prepare a nomination for a deserving colleague!

Many IAFP Members serve on Committees and PDGs each year and numerous have served in this way for a lot of years. This is another way you can show commitment to IAFP, by actively participating on a Committee or PDG. Through active participation, you will meet colleagues with similar interests, gain life-long resources for information, and continue learning new and exciting processes or procedures that can assist your career in food safety.

Now, back to where we started, with the Secretary candidates. When you review their biographical information, you will see how committed and dedicated that both Lee-Ann and John are to IAFP. You can easily see their life-long commitment to food safety and to IAFP. They have both been involved from early in their careers, right up to the current moment. And whoever is not elected this year, we can be certain they will continue to be actively involved with IAFP. We only wish we could have both Lee-Ann and John elected to the IAFP Board!