ACLU of Colorado Board Candidate FAQs

Candidates for the Board do not need legal qualifications. We seek candidates for Board positions who care deeply about the mission of ACLU of Colorado, bring a variety of experiences, perspectives, and worldviews, and can commit to sharing their time and talents through Board service.

Current expectations for Board service include: Preparing for and attending Board meetings (six meetings per year), an annual full day Board advance, service on at least one Board Committee or ad hoc working group (6– 12 meetings a year) and participating in ACLU of Colorado events such the annual Membership Meeting and/or the annual Bill of Rights Event.

ACLU of Colorado Board members initially serve a term of three years that begin in September of each year. Board members may opt to serve for a second three-year term; Board members may not serve more than two terms.

Regular Board meetings occur six times a year on the fourth Tuesday of the month at 5:30 pm–7:30 pm MT. In the past, meetings have occurred in person at a downtown Denver location with optional video or audio access for members who cannot attend in person. More recently, meetings have been hosted virtually via Zoom. Board members are encouraged to attend in person at the annual full day Board advance which is usually at a location in downtown Denver.

All Board members must be a member of the ACLU ($25 a year). Board members are expected to support the ACLU of Colorado’s development effort. This might mean making a donation, assisting in fund raising efforts, or both.

Yes! We especially value perspectives from Board members outside of Denver. In order to assist Board members who are outside of Denver, we offer a stipend for travel to Denver for in- person meetings. 

• Finance, Accounting and Budget Committee: Meets monthly
• Nominating Committee: 6-12 meetings a year, mostly between February and August 
• Governance Committee: 6-12 meetings a year
• Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging: 6-12 meetings a year
• Legal Panel (must have legal qualifications): 6-12 meetings a year
• Executive Committee (Elected Board Officers only): Meets monthly

We have between one and four positions open every year. We typically have more candidates applying for positions than open positions.

 Every year the Board conducts a self-assessment of the skills and talents of its members. We use this data to set goals for what we are looking for in future members. We then solicit nominations from outside organizations, Board members and Staff. We also solicit self-nominations from our membership. Once we have received applications, there is a multi-step process for selecting candidates. Following the April application deadline, the Nominating Committee will invite selected candidates for a telephone interview. The Nominating Committee then selects a set of finalists from among those interviewed in the first round. The finalist candidates are then interviewed via Zoom by the entire Nominating Committee, usually in June. A final slate of candidates is selected by the Nominating Committee and presented to the entire Board at our July board meeting for approval. Once approved by the board, the list of candidates is submitted to a final vote by the membership (usually in August.) If selected, service begins at the September Board meeting.