About The Board Of Directors

The Ashland Food Cooperative is a consumer-owned, member-governed cooperative corporation, and the Board of Directors is the ultimate decision-making center of the Cooperative. The Board provides overall direction for the Cooperative on behalf of the ownership, ensures sound management to achieve the goals of the Cooperative, and keeps the ownership informed about the status of the Cooperative. Board members are elected by the ownership for a three-year term.

Qualifications to become a board member are as follows:

• Co-op owner in good standing.
• Knowledge of natural foods desirable.
• Useful experience, education, or skills might include prior work on a volunteer board; financial, business, or legal background management, supervisory, or organizational skills; negotiation, facilitation, and conflict resolution skills; collective/cooperative experience.

Article IV Section 4.3 of the Ashland Food Cooperative Bylaws state, "Patron directors may be nominated by the Board, by a nominating committee appointed by the board, or by petition signed by at least fifty owners and submitted to the Co-op at least forty-five days before commencement of election of directors. Patron directors shall be elected by owners at the annual meeting or at a meeting in lieu thereof. The staff director shall be nominated and elected by the staff who are owners."