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Resident urges Select Board to improve recruitment and diversity on town boards
Summary
Heather Stephenson urged the Select Board to address board culture, transparent recruitment, candidate information and remote participation to improve diversity and volunteer recruitment; she suggested candidate nights, exit interviews, and clearer public information on roles and terms.
Resident Heather Stephenson told the Select Board that volunteer recruitment and board diversity require proactive governance changes, not only outreach.
Stephenson said "People volunteer when board culture feels good, respectful, and worth their time," and recommended reviewing exit interviews, offering candidate nights, publishing one-page descriptions of board duties, and making participation accessible via remote options. Board members discussed term lengths (two- and three-year terms), noted there is no recall or mandatory term limit under state law as discussed in the meeting, and agreed to improve posting of vacancies and to draft accessible candidate information for the public.
Board members offered to meet with potential candidates, revive candidate-night formats and to post clearer vacancy and term information on the town website.
