Becoming an active member of VAHPERD.
Castelvecchi, Henry
I often get questions about "How can I become more involved in
VAHPERD?" VAHPERD has many opportunities for you to become
involved. These opportunities range in time commitments from short to
3-year commitments. It is my hope that after reading this you are
motivated to become a more active part of VAHPERD.
Since you are reading this, you have already committed to becoming
involved by being a member. Attending one of workshops or Convention is
the next step in becoming an active participant in our association. The
VAHPERD Convention, held annually in November, brings in nationally
recognized presenters for the 600-800 teachers who attend the
convention. In addition to the convention, VAHPERD holds workshops
throughout the state 3 or 4 times a year.
If you are looking to become more involved with the convention or
workshops, you can volunteer to help. It takes many people to run
registration, help with the exhibits, decorate and plan for a
convention. If this interests you, look for an email about a month
before the convention asking for volunteers for the upcoming convention.
If you are interested in helping at a workshop, contact the workshop
director about ways you can volunteer.
Presenting at the convention or at a workshop is a great way to
become involved and share with colleagues. Everyone has a favorite
activity from school that their students enjoy. Use this idea and turn
it into a presentation about how to excite and motivate your students
about physical activity. I have heard many potential presenters say,
"Everyone has seen this before". I have been that same
presenter who has said that. But, believe it or not, most of the time
everyone has not seen your presentation. I remember a few years doing a
presentation and making the assumption that everyone had used a
pedometer before. Out of the 200 people there, only half of the people
had used a pedometer in their classes. Step out and submit a
presentation proposal for the convention. A call is sent out after the
convention and presentation proposals are on the website.
If you are looking to become deeply involved in the association and
can make a 3 year commitment, there are leadership positions that need
to be filled very year. These positions included becoming a par t of a
committee, a section chair, or a member of the board of directors. Every
year the President Elect is in charge of choosing members to be on
committees. Many times they choose people according to interests that
are marked on their online profile. Marking your interest can be done by
logging into your VAHPERD account and updating your profile information.
If you are interested in becoming one of the section chairs, attend the
Division meeting at the convention and run for a section chair position.
Section chairs are responsible for securing programs for the convention
from the section that you represent, Division brainstorming with your
Division at the January Leadership Development Conference LDC, and
selecting VP-Elects for the Board of Directors. You can also decide to
serve as a member of the Board of Directors. In this position, you have
the opportunity to be a part of guiding the direction of the association
for 3 years. The primary function of the Board of Directors is to
facilitate and implement the Association's Strategic Plan and to
initiate and transact all business of VAHPERD. To become a member of the
Board of Directors, you would need to have previously served as a
section chair and be elected by the Representative Assembly. Becoming a
Board member is a wonderful way to become involved and serve the members
of VAHPERD.
Whether you want to volunteer at the Convention or become a Board
Member, I hope you have found a way that you can become more involved.
Feel free to contact me if you would like to have more information about
becoming involved. Thank you for being a member of VAHPERD and I look
forward to working with you in the future.
Henry Castelvecchi
Executive Director
[email protected]
804 253 5468
