Inside the 2025 January American Radio Relay League Board Meeting – A new Vice Director’s Views

In August 2024 I was appointed the Vice Director for the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) Southeastern Division. Part of these duties is attending the two in person Board meetings held near ARRL headquarters in Newington, Connecticut and participating in committees. There is a lot of conjecture about the ARRL Board, and I didn’t quite know what to expect going into the meeting. Join me after the break to dissect the meeting, the people, and what it means to influence the future of Amateur Radio.

The ARRL Board consists of fifteen Directors, elected by the membership of the fifteen ARRL Divisions, and Officers, elected by the Directors. Some ARRL staff are present at the meeting, including the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer as well as a recording secretary and executive assistant. Invited guests from the International Amateur Radio Union (IARU), Radio Amateurs of Canada (RAC), and past Directors provide courtesies and observer the meeting. Also present, sitting in the back row, are fifteen Vice Directors, non-voting members who would fill in the absence of a Director or otherwise observe.

As a new Vice Director I participated in an “orientation” at ARRL headquarters on Wednesday. This full day was busy to say the least. It started with a business overview with the CEO, CFO, and general counsel to cover the role of the Board, expense reports, and the like. Following this started a marathon of presentations from each department. While we all know of QST or DXCC and many consider that to be the main benefit of their membership, it is hardly the only thing going on at the ARRL. We spent time meeting with Publications (including, but definitely not limited to QST), Field Organization, Development, Education, Marketing, QSL Bureau, Member Services, Radiosport, Volunteer Examiners Coordinator, Emergency Coordinator and the ARRL Laboratory. As an Electrical Engineer, the ARRL Laboratory is by far the coolest asset to me: testing radios and equipment, providing radio frequency interference help, and technical support to members. The knowledge kept in the ARRL Library from past issues of QST, QEX, NCJ, and most recently On The Air are an incredible homage to work of the ARRL over the past century. However, the orientation was far from complete and was rushed. It’s simply impossible to cover everything ARRL does in a single day. For us members, that’s a good thing!

After an exhausting Wednesday, Thursday brought committee meetings. The Board has several committees that meet in person prior to the meeting. While I sit on the Public Relations Committee, we meet monthly and as a result I had a light Thursday. I sat in on the Administration and Finance Committee meeting in the morning. For a long time I’ve seen critiques that ARRL “doesn’t need more money” and that raising dues wasn’t necessary. From my observations of that meeting, it is clear that everything is scrutinized. From the cost and revenue of publications to membership dues to program spending to building capital expense, the committee and CFO work hard to be good stewards of League resources.

The CFO Diane Middleton did an excellent job articulating each item and providing insight. Like most staff Diane isn’t discussed much among membership, but she should be recognized for her intelligence, passion, and good character. She is an incredible asset to the League. As a new Vice Director, she took time to answer my questions thoughtfully and provide a clear understanding. I genuinely appreciate her taking the time to bring me up to speed. She extended that same care to each member of the committee and other observers.

Following lunch, I joined a couple of other of the new Vice Directors on a trip to W1AW, the ARRL HQ Station. I operated from W1AW several years ago and it was great to go back. I caught up with Station Manager Joe Carcia, NJ1Q, and he highlighted some of the recent upgrades at the station. We got the radios patched to the antennas and Josh Long, W9HT, from the Central Division got on 20 meters CW. John Litz, NZ6Q, from the Pacific Division got on FT8 on 17 meters and later 10 meters SSB. I activated 15 meters SSB. As a bit of fun, I logged into my home station in Florida and worked myself on SSB. We didn’t really spot ourselves and just had fun rag chewing. It was nice to casually have fun on the radio with a group of friends. After all, that’s really what this hobby is about.

Friday started the formal board meeting. The agenda included Board governance items as well as some awards and program updates. The meeting started with a moment of silence to remember all the Silent Keys since the last meeting. Next, the meeting moved to statements from the invited guests representing the IARU and RAC. I have always appreciated the close collaboration between ARRL and RAC and it is great to see Amateur Radio growing in Canada. The IARU highlighted that this is their centennial. In April that milestone will be celebrated with an on-air activity: World Amateur Radio Day. I encourage every amateur around the world to celebrate by getting on the air! The ARRL Foundation gave a report of their work for scholarships and grants. Each year the foundation gives away thousands of dollars to students, clubs, and even hamfests.

Next was review of the reports from the various committees. As I mentioned I’ve served on the Public Relations Committee for a number of years. Reports were reviewed by the Board and some topics were discussed in depth to help inform the direction of ARRL. This thoughtful review brought us to the end of Friday and it was incredible to see the care each Director took in reviewing the reports. CEO David Minster provided additional background, often answering questions or providing an operational perspective to the topic discussed. A common theme was the digital transformation at HQ as ARRL recovers from the cyber attack. I’ve been impressed with the dedication of the staff to formulating creative solutions to restore operations. While not everything is back yet, as systems were prioritized based on impact, many of the reports highlight the challenges that had to be overcome. I commend the staff on their tireless work and appreciate everything they did for the membership.

David Minster is probably the most discussed ARRL Staff member and I have a few thoughts to share as he is often mischaracterized. I’ve met David at hamfests in the past. I really appreciate his passion for ARRL and his work ethic. While he isn’t without faults, he is genuine and an active ham. David’s focus on transparency is a welcome approach to leadership and while his communications can sometimes be raw, lacking organization and polish, I appreciate the accessibility. At the meeting David actively promoted the work ARRL Staff is doing while also being realistic about the challenges to the League: the aging membership, inflation, and past missteps. Following some tough discussion of the Board, I was talking to David and he was adamant about the need for those conversations. I was impressed with his character that even when things got tough and there was passionate debate, David welcomed the conversation.

Saturday was another busy day discussing motions before the board. There was passionate discussion and well-crafted arguments. I admit that I found a couple of arguments persuasive and messaged my Director on my updated thoughts. I also expressed my gratitude to those Directors for their well-thought-out comments and perspective. As I continue my journey to one day being a Director, I think it is important to be able to reflect and appreciate all the perspectives in the room. A Director must balance the representation of the Division that elected them with their duty to the overall organization. It isn’t quite a representative democracy as I once believed, but really a duty to the mission of the ARRL. Your view must be influenced by the membership you represent, the members beyond your Division, what is required for the organization, and what you feel is best. It’s definitely a tricky balance and I can see Directors struggling with that.

While this post is a 30,000 foot recap of my experience, I encourage you to take a look at the minutes. They will soon be posted to the ARRL website. I also have to share that there were a lot of things that didn’t happen at the meeting. I heard of the “Shadow Board” running things, but that seems hardly true. There is no single majority and there were lots of discussions around each issue. I didn’t see a lot of direct conflict, everyone was polite to one another. I frequently found myself interacting with multiple different Directors. I also didn’t feel like the meeting was just “boring legal stuff”. There was practical discussion that directly affects the hobby as a whole. It is true that most Directors are older and I encourage younger hams to consider running; however, many Divisions do not have elections as there is only one candidate. It’s hard to fault someone for their position when no one else runs. In that regard, if you would like to serve the hobby, I would encourage you to consider running.

If you’ve made it to this point in the post, some 1500 words in, you’re probably invested in the ARRL. The League is an extraordinary organization with a unique position in society. I’d encourage you to continue your membership and invite others to join. If you can afford it, consider supporting the Diamond Club. Even a couple of dollars makes a huge impact in the programs the ARRL can offer and the work the League can do to promote the hobby. If you have the time, consider volunteering in one of the many opportunities the League offers. The future of amateur radio and the American Radio Relay League is what we make it.