Board of Directors
As a cooperative, White River Valley Electric is controlled and governed by its membership. Members elect individuals from their district to represent them on the Board of Directors. The Board then, collectively, sets policy and helps to guide strategic planning.
Board of Directors
District A- STONE COUNTY
Jenny Whorton (President) – Reeds Spring
Keet Short (Sec./Treasurer) – Galena
District B- TANEY COUNTY
Lyle Rowland – Cedarcreek
James (Jim) Burns- Forsyth
District C- CHRISTIAN COUNTY
Joey Glenn – Nixa
Jeff Hyatt – Sparta
District D- DOUGLAS COUNTY
Neal Crum (Vice President) – Ava
District E- OZARK COUNTY
Pat Funk – Gainesville
Jim Kyle – Gainesville
Interested in becoming a director?
Do you have a passion for serving the community? Are you a strategic thinker with the ability see the big picture? Are you familiar with the elements of the cooperative business model? If you answered “yes” to these questions, you may be the ideal board candidate.
Read each section below to learn more about being a director. Consider applying if you meet the qualifications, understand the time commitment, and feel you would be an asset to WRVEC.
Contact Angie O’Dell aodell@whiteriver.org, Manager of Executive Business, for eligibility and to learn more about serving as a director.
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Here is a list of the duties that WRVEC Directors are required to fulfill:
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- Hire, delegate, and appraise the CEO
- Govern through policies and plans
- Comply with director duties and standards of conduct
- Provide direction through a strategic planning process
- Authorize resources consistent with the strategic plan and the long-range financial plan
- Serve as a regulator (setting rates)
- Provide monitoring and oversight of the cooperative
- Demonstrate due diligence through board assessment
- Facilitate member dialogue regarding improving the quality of life in the community
- Recognize the impacts of regulatory and legislative issues on the cooperative
- Actively participate in state and national associations to drive public policy that supports electric cooperatives
- Engage co-op members to support local, state, and federal elected officials who support electric cooperatives
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Serving on the WRVEC Board will require significant time and commitment. The ideal candidates will:
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- Assure consistent and fair treatment
- Have a good understanding of the cooperative, its role in the community, and its challenges
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- Meet on the third Thursday of the month (days and times may vary)
- Attend committee and outside association meetings
- Spend an additional 25 hours a month on “homework” such as reviewing information, preparing for meetings, or talking with fellow co-op members
- Complete the Credentialed Cooperative Director program through the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association
- Continue their professional development each year
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As specified in Article IV Section 2 of the Cooperative Bylaws, summarized here, candidates:
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- Must be a member of the cooperative.
- Primary residential abode must be in the county and district you would serve.
- Must have an account in good standing with the cooperative.
- Cannot be a current applicant or employee of WRVEC.
- Cannot be a close relative of a WRVEC employee or incumbent director.
- Cannot be employed by or financially interested in a competing enterprise or business selling energy, services, or supplies to WRVEC or its subsidiaries.
- Must have the capacity to enter legally binding contracts.
- Or, as it currently stands, be the principal of a business or organization on WRVEC lines in Stone, Taney, and Ozark Counties.
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The WRVEC service territory is split into five districts as divided per county. Each district is represented as follows:
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- District A – Stone Co, 2 seats
- District B – Taney Co, 2 seats
- District C – Christian Co, 2 seats
- District D – Douglas Co, 1 seat
- District E – Ozark Co, 2 seats
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Eligible and vetted candidates are presented to the membership from the nominating committee. Candidates are then elected for director seats at Annual Meeting. Directors represent their district for three-year terms and are elected on a rotating schedule; (ABE), (ACE), and (BCD). Rotations are scheduled as follows:
- 2021: BCD
- 2022: ABE
- 2023: ACE
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Members who attend Annual Meeting cast their ballots on board candidates vetted and chosen by the nominating committee. Candidates may also run via member petition or floor nomination. However, these candidates will miss out on public relations opportunities facilitated by the Cooperative. Said opportunities include a bio posted on the following WRVEC platforms: Current Times (Rural MO Annual Meeting Notice) , digital (web and social), and big screen rotation day of meeting.
Candidates with the majority vote are elected to a director seat. What constitutes a vote? Each member number serves as one vote. A member number can be found on your monthly statement, incorporated into the account number minus the last three digits. Feel free to contact us if you have additional questions about your member number or finding it on your statement.
In the example, 123456 would be the member number.
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Are you interested in becoming a board member? The Nominating Committee of White River Valley Electric Cooperative starts accepting candidate applications every year in June.
The committee seeks interested and qualified candidates in specified districts (determined in Article 4, Section 4 of the bylaws) to serve three-year terms. Those chosen to interview with the nominating committee will be verified as a member in good standing and will undergo a background check. Qualified applicants will be asked to attend a nominating committee interview at the WRVEC headquarters. The committee has final authority to select a slate of qualified and vetted nominees from those candidates who apply.
These nominees are then voted upon by members during Annual Meeting.
