by Stephanie Ricketts, Board Member
WE DID IT Y’ALL. We made it to a new year! While so much remains challenging and uncertain, I am eager to turn the page and start out this new year hopeful and grateful. Thank you for being a part of this cooperative community.
Run for the Board!
Are you passionate about Willy Street Co-op? Excited by policy governance and strategic priority setting? Consider running for the Co-op’s Board of Directors! Three seats will be up for election this upcoming July, and nomination materials will be available in late winter/early spring on the Co-op’s website. If you’re curious about what serving on the Board is like, feel free to attend a Board meeting (all held remotely at this time) and find out! You can find the calendar of Board meetings here: www.willystreet.coop/about-us/co-op-governance.
Step Up, Equity Matters Report
The Board is hearing preliminary results from Step Up: Equity Matters initial assessment of Willy Street Co-op. Step Up is a local consulting group that the Co-op and the Board have contracted with to help lead the Co-op’s efforts to be more equitable and inclusive for customers, staff ,and other organizational stakeholders. Staff from Step Up have spent the past few months gathering baseline data from staff, managers, Board members, and other key stakeholders across the organization. The Board received initial recommendations from Step Up on December 16, 2020, and will be continuing this work in the new year. Learn more about Step Up’s work here: www.stepupforequity.com.
Upcoming Board Retreat
The Board’s annual retreat will be conducted virtually this year, and is planned for February 2021. Please note that there will not be a regularly scheduled Board meeting that month, as the group will be at the retreat instead. If you have any questions or concerns for the Board, please reach out to us by emailing This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Strategic Planning
An ad hoc committee of the Board of Directors has formed to better define the Board’s role in strategic planning at the organization. Throughout Willy Street Co-op’s history the Board has been charged with setting strategic direction for the organization, with mixed degrees of success and follow through. This is an important aspect of the Board’s role for the organization, and better articulating this work is a focus area of the Board for 2021 and beyond.