With over 370 registrants and record-breaking attendance each week, District Six was able to provide basic parliamentary training for those who attended live or benefited from listening to the recorded sessions. The initiative was kicked off in October 2023 with a survey to gauge the interest of Provisional members in attending training that would prepare them to take the NAP Membership examination. The first seven persons who responded received a copy of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief, 3rd Edition. A look at the survey results led to the development of a comprehensive program focused on inviting Provisional members and others interested in learning more about parliamentary procedure. We Want You! then became a reality.
The District Six We Want You! program is a five-part series of instruction to prepare prospective members for the NAP membership exam based on Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised In Brief, 3rd Edition. Sessions focused on Chapters 1-11 were held virtually in February and March 2024. Regenia Moore-Lee, PRP served as the Program Coordinator and Sheryl C. Womble, PRP was Assistant Coordinator. Instructors were C.J. Cavin, PRP; Beth James, PRP; and Sheryl C. Womble, PRP. The sessions were supported by David Whitaker, PRP – NAP Technology Chair and Cherise Story, RP – NAP Leadership Conference Chair. We were also pleased to hear greetings from NAP President Alison Wallis, PRP, during our second session.
In addition to Provisional members, the participants included members of various organizations. To broaden the District’s reach and increase the number of potential new members of NAP, Coordinator Moore-Lee, a Past Regional Director of Jack and Jill of America, Inc. extended an invitation to We Want You! to those chapters in the District Six geographic area. As a result, over 100 members of Jack & Jill registered to attend. Other attendees included members of several sororities and fraternities, county and state political committees, political women’s clubs, independent school districts, municipalities, universities, law offices, state houses, etc. The program was marketed for three months via email distribution of the program flyer which resulted in interested attendees across the country.
The highlight of the We Want You! series was the Kahoot! interactive experience used to test knowledge gained during the sessions. Three winning participants showed off their new parliamentary knowledge and received a NAP Bookstore gift credit.
Based on the participant survey, so far 53 respondents definitely plan to take the NAP Membership exam. The overall feedback has been very positive. District Director Lucy Anderson and the District Six Administrative Team are pleased that a significant number of participants will become members. And the success of the program, as revealed by the survey, is worthy of repeating.
The We Want You! Planning Team
