There are a lot of questions still up in the air when it comes to securing new leadership for the Emporia Senior Center.
That was the consensus of ESC board members when they convened for their regular meeting Monday evening. According to Board President and Acting Director Jan Loux, an individual had been approached in recent weeks and appeared to agree to take on the director’s position at least on an interim basis.
However; near the conclusion of Monday’s meeting members agreed the individual in question will need to come back before the board for another set of conversations in the coming weeks. When asked what the desired outcome of those conversations would be, Loux told KVOE News she simply wanted to gauge the individual’s commitment to the role.
Board member Jeff Hodges felt differently about the matter saying he has no question of the individual’s commitment but does agree it needs to be conveyed to the rest of the board. Hodges added that in his opinion the uncertainty with the interim position has little to do with the “person” and more to do with the board’s bylaws.
Loux stated if the hiring were not to work out the board would then begin to seek out another viable candidate. KVOE asked if the board could afford to “start from scratch” given the urgency of finding a new leader that has been expressed by board membership in the past. Loux responded by saying she did not feel it would be starting from scratch but rather a small step backward.
Regardless of their feelings on the hiring process itself, both Hodges and Loux, as well as the rest of the board, agree the ideal candidate for the director’s role, whether on an interim or permanent basis, needs to be someone who has a wealth of knowledge in fundraising and generating donors. Hodges tells KVOE News the board is in “emergency mode” saying they are trying to resolve as many issues as possible noting all four board members’ commitment to keeping the center open and operating to the best of their ability.
Hodges would add that once the director situation is resolved, another major focus will be filling the trio of vacant board seats. He believes having a full board will be an important piece in helping to drive needed change and growth for the center down the road.
All of this comes as the board has stated its goal of re-engaging with the local community both through programming and transparency.
This includes the resumption of bingo on Tuesday evenings and Saturday afternoons and the creation of the new Coffee and Chat with Loux every Monday at 9:30 am. Speaking of chat’s KVOE will be chatting with both Loux and Hodges Monday at 11:06 am when they join KVOE’s Talk of Emporia to provide additional updates on the director search and center operations.
