Candidates Sought for National Cave Rescue Commission Positions

July 6, 2010

The National Cave Rescue Commission (NCRC) is currently seeking eight persons to serve on its Board of Regional Coordinators (BORC) and/or Education Committee. The Board will consider candidates for the positions of Regional Coordinator for the Caribbean Region, Southeastern Region, South Central Region, and Rocky Mountain Region.  It also seeks applicants for Education Committee Member-at-large and Training Coordinator. All will be considered at the Commission’s upcoming summer meeting during the NSS Convention. (The NCRC meeting is currently scheduled for Monday, August 3, 2010. 

Persons interested in applying for a position, or suggesting other qualified persons for possible service, should submit contact information and letters of intent or reference to Anmar Mirza NCRC National Coordinator via e-mail at national@ncrc.info, by July 19, 2010, or be physically present at the summer meeting to describe their qualifications. The Board will review this information, appoint an Education Committee Member-at-Large, and nominate candidates for the Coordinator positions. The NSS Board of Governors (BOG) will later consider the Coordinator nominations and make appropriate appointments. All candidates must be current members of the National Speleological Society.

Position Description Summaries

Regional Coordinators

Regional Coordinators are members of the Board of Regional Coordinators, the governing body of the National Cave Rescue Commission. Each has specific responsibilities for one of the 10 geographically delineated regions of the Commission, including acting as a spokesperson on issues of cave rescue, serving as a liaison with appropriate authorities, coordinating cave rescue training activities, maintaining an equipment cache (where feasible), and tracking cave rescue resources. Regional Coordinators make regular reports to the National Coordinator, BORC, and Financial Officer. They assist the Commission in development of training standards and curricula and in the conduct of its other duties as described in the NCRC Charter. Regional Coordinators serve three-year terms and face no term limits. A full description of regional coordinator responsibilities is available at http://www.caves.org/io/ncrc/regresp.html.

Training Coordinator

The Training Coordinator is a member of the NCRC Board of Regional Coordinators, chairs the Education Board, oversees national seminars, and plays many other key roles in the organization. The Training Coordinator has no assigned geographic region, and serves across NCRC regions to coordinate training activities and curriculum development. The Training Coordinator serves a three-year term and faces no term limits

Education Board Member-at-Large

The Education Committee Member-at-Large is a voting member of the Education Committee, a subcommittee of the Board of Regional Coordinators (BORC). The Committee, which includes several members of the BORC, drafts training policies and procedures, curricula, and educational materials. Education Committee members serve two-year terms and face no term limits.

Suggested Qualifications

Persons nominated for Coordinator positions should have significant experience in caving and rescue and advanced NCRC training. They should be in tune with regional or national issues and be able to convey those needs to the BORC for NCRC action. They should have the means to travel to meetings of the Board and any subcommittees on which they serve, and be willing to commit to active service. Candidates for Diving Coordinator should be active in the cave diving community and have active affiliation with the NSS Cave Diving Section.

Education Committee nominees should have experience with NCRC curricula, be experienced in both caving and rescue, and skilled at curriculum development. The position requires a significant commitment of time, the ability to travel to attend meetings approximately twice per year, and regular access to e-mail.

Notice

Neither the NCRC nor any of its regions are functional rescue units: rather, the Commission provides training and resource coordination and acts as a liaison to agencies involved in cave rescue.

Recommendation Procedures

Recommendations must be made in writing and e-mailed to: Anmar Mirza, NCRC National Coordinator, E-mail: national@ncrc.info.

Telephone recommendations will not be accepted.

Your input is important. Please give this request careful thought and return your suggestions by August 6, 2008. For more information contact John Punches.