At the 2017 Annual Meeting in Amherst, the Board of Directors of the Emily Dickinson International Society (EDIS) agreed to run an election to fill a vacant Member-at-Large seat on the Board. The position of Member-at-Large is for a three-year term, which would begin at the EDIS Annual Meeting in Amherst in August 2018 and conclude in 2021. The Board normally meets once a year, usually in the summer, in conjunction with the Society's annual meeting or international conference. The Member-at-Large is expected to attend these meetings and to fund his or her own attendance.

Members-at-Large have the same responsibilities and opportunities for service to the organization that all EDIS Board members have, which include the following: becoming familiar with the Society’s bylaws; conducting Society business by serving on committees; reading the EDIS Bulletin and the Emily Dickinson Journal; following Board discussions on e-mail; attending Annual Meetings; checking the Society’s website for information and updates; staying current with Emily Dickinson Museum activities; writing for the Bulletin when needed; and, depending on location, sponsoring or participating in local activities focused on Emily Dickinson, and perhaps even starting a local chapter (if one does not already exist). An ongoing issue for EDIS is increasing membership, and Members-at-Large are asked to contribute to this goal by having their ears tuned to members’ preferences, interests, and concerns.

If you are interested in providing leadership for the Emily Dickinson International Society (EDIS) and supporting its mission of promoting interest in Dickinson and her poetry, you are invited to submit your name for consideration for the position of Member-at-Large. Members are also invited to submit names of those they think will serve well in this important capacity on the EDIS Board. Please send nominations or self-nominations and a short statement about how you or the person you are nominating would contribute to the Society to Páraic Finnerty (paraic.finnerty@port.ac.uk) by 15 December 2017. Páraic is Chair of the Nominations Committee, which will compile a list of candidates to present to the general membership for election to the Member-at-Large position. The election will take place in March 2018, with the winner announced in April 2018. Candidates for the position will be asked to prepare a statement (500 words) describing their qualifications and interests to be distributed to all members of EDIS for consideration.