Frequently Asked Questions About Board Membership
Q. How many vacancies are there currently?
A. There are two upcoming vacancies on St. Croix to be filled.
Q. What is the size of the Board?
A. The Board is comprised of thirteen members. Ten are elected
by the membership, and the remaining three are appointed by the Governor of the
U.S. Virgin Islands.
Q. How long do members serve?
A. Members are elected to two three-year terms served consecutively for a
total of six years. Members are allowed to serve after their terms have
expired until a replacement is found.
Q. Is there an application? How do I
indicate my interest?
A. There is no application. All that is required is that you send a
letter addressed to the Board Development Committee that addresses the following
points:
1) Your willingness to serve on the Board
2) Your experience with and/or knowledge of the humanities
3) What do you feel you can contribute to the Council
4) A brief biographical statement and/or a copy of your current resume or C.V.
Q. What if I want to nominate someone other
than myself?
A. That is also acceptable. Simply send a letter to the Board
Development Committee nominating the person of your choice. You should say
something about why you are nomination that person and why you think he or she
would be a valuable addition to the Council. Once the Council receives the
letter, we will contact the nominee to let the person know of his or her
nomination and request certain information.
Q. What does the Council do?
A. In a nutshell, VIHC promotes the humanities in the Virgin Islands
through a variety of programs including awarding of grants to community groups
for humanities projects, operaion of a humanities resource center, publications
program and speaker's bureau among other programs.
Q. What are the humanities?
A. The humanities are all those disciplines that help us to explore what
it means to be human (the human experience). They include history,
literature, folklife studies, cultural anthropology, archaeology, philosophy,
ethics, comparative religion, law, and the history and criticism of the arts.
Q. Is the Council a government agency?
A. No. The Council is a private not-for-profit organization that is
affiliated with the National Endowment for the Humanities, an agency of the
federal government. The Council currently receives no dollars from the
Government of the Virgin Islands.
Q. May I fax or email my application?
A. No. All letters of interest should be mailed to: Board
Development Committee, Virgin Islands Humanities Council, 7 Kongens Gade, St.
Thomas, Virgin Islands 00802.
Q. Does the Council have a website where I
can learn more about its programs?
A. Yes. The address of the website is <www.vihumanities.org>.