Encouraging members to take leadership initiative in FCCLA Running for Office Encouraging members to take leadership initiative in FCCLA

Types of Officer Positions Local Officers District Officers SPOT (State Peer Officer Team) Family Leader Team – 5 positions Career Leader Team – 5 positions Community Leader Team – 5 positions State Officer 8 positions National Officer 10 positions Types of Officer Positions

Duties of Officers SPOT State Officer Team Present workshops on peer education at District Leadership Conferences Plan and conduct Peer Education Conference in Kearney Promote FCCLA programs in their community and state State Officer Team Present workshops at Fall Leadership Workshop, District Leadership Conferences, and State Leadership Conference Present workshops to local chapters at their request Plan Fall Leadership Workshop and State Leadership Conference Promote FCCLA in their community and state Represent FCCLA at official functions Fulfill all their responsibilities and prioritize FCCLA above other school activities Duties of Officers

Duties of Officers National Officer Team National Officers Present workshops at Capitol Leadership, Cluster Meetings, State Leadership Conferences, and National Leadership Conferences Promote FCCLA throughout the nation Represent National FCCLA at official functions Fulfill all their responsibilities and prioritize FCCLA above other school activities Duties of Officers

Process of Running A step-by-step guide to running for an office

Every member running for office, whether running for SPOT, SOT, or NEC, must fill out an application form. Must include responses to some essay questions, FCCLA involvement and accomplishments, and other school and community involvement and accomplishments Must include all required personal information Must be submitted by date listed on the application to be considered as a valid applicant Require a variety of signatures from candidate, adviser, parent, and/or administrator Application

Make sure your members are aware that this process includes interviews. Prepare them to answer questions professionally and with ease Candidates are required to participate in interviews, sometimes more than one interview Questions may include behavioral interview questions, experience and preferences in FCCLA, and ideas for growth and development for the organization Interview

Speech All applicants are required to deliver a speech of some form. SPOT – a short presentation to a team of evaluators at SLC SOT – a short speech to voting delegates and other members/advisers NEC – a short speech to voting delegates and other members/advisers (at SLC and NLC) Typically, an impromptu question is asked to each candidate after they deliver their speech that they must respond to in front of their audience. An example of this question might be, “Which FCCLA program do you feel is most important to the identity of FCCLA and why?” Speech

Any applicant for an officer position is required to take an FCCLA knowledge test. Study Guides are provided on the FCCLA website. SPOT – online test focused on the content knowledge of the team they are applying for SOT NEC Make sure your members are fully prepared for the knowledge test. If they want to lead our organization, they should know the facts about the organization and their content area. Test

Benefits to You How having a member of the SPOT, SOT, or NEC can benefit you and your chapter

By having a member serving on an officer team, you will stay updated with changes being made to the State and National Associations. SPOT – get insight on recent peer education initiatives and Peer Education Retreat SOT – get insight on changes being made to the organization at the state level, and be aware of new programs, initiatives, and opportunities for your members. NOT – get insight on changes being made to the organization at the national level, and be aware of new programs, initiatives, and opportunities for your members. You often get free resources and training to assist in learning about these updates. Updates

By one member running for an officer position from your chapter, they will pave the way for others to expand their leadership in your chapter. By running for an office, they will also gain skills in public speaking, promoting and publicizing FCCLA, and interpersonal communications. Paving the Way

Having an officer provides another opportunity to promote the accomplishments of your members and chapter. Publicity

Professional Development The knowledge and experiences you will gain will help you grow as a professional. There are multiple networking opportunities to learn from your peers as well. Professional Development

Encouragement How to encourage your members to run for an officer position

Make running for office an object of business at member meetings. Create posters and/or flyers that promote running for office with benefits to the member. Look for potential officer candidates in your chapter that might be interested and connect with them about the opportunity of running for an office. Publicity

Take the time to travel with your members to conferences and workshops where they can see the officers in action. Schedule a State Officer to come visit your classroom and chapter and allow students the chance to talk with them direcrtly Some of these include: Fall Leadership Workshop Capitol Leadership District Leadership Conference Peer Education Retreat State Leadership Conference National Leadership Conference This is a sure way to get your members excited about taking the next step in their leadership journeys. Exposure

Additional Information Things you should know

Number of Candidates SPOT SOC NEC As many applicants from each chapter can apply that want to, but only one from each school is allowed to serve on each team. SOC The number of candidates that can run from your chapter depends on the previous year’s affiliation. The scale can be found in the Nebraska Operational Procedures Prior to State Leadership Conference, candidates will be cut to 4 from each region NEC As many students can apply as they want, but only 2 will represent Nebraska FCCLA at NLC Elections Number of Candidates

For more information on running for an office, reference the following : http://www.nebraskafccla.org/members/ (For SPOT and SOT) http://fcclainc.org/youth-leaders/national-elections-information.php (For NEC) Contact Kristin Vest, State Adviser at kristin.vest@nebraska.gov For More Information…