ACF Set to Amend Constitution in Compliance with USOC
Tuesday, February 2, 2016: The Board of the American Cricket Federation (ACF) today announced that it has approved amendments to its Constitution, designed to further align the national organization with the United States Olympic Committee’s (USOC) guidelines and particularly to appoint an additional number of Independent Directors.
The ACF has prided itself since its formation in 2012, in leading American cricket toward fair governance and transparent representation of all U.S. cricket constituencies. It recently completed its third consecutive and successful annual election, occasioned from the term limit provisions inherent in the ACF Constitution.
ACF Chairman Jagan Jagannathan explained, “It is not enough for a national organization to have its governance provisions in some dusty archived corner that do not evolve with the times. U.S. cricket needs representation, needs professional fundraisers and bright marketing minds to galvanize cricket to be the force it can be in American schools and the American marketplace.”
“It is easy to write a strategic plan for U.S. cricket”, commented Mike Thomas, Treasurer and Chair of the ACF’s Governance Committee, “it is entirely another matter to implement it, to afford it, and then transition from essentially a volunteer framework to the professional expertise necessary for execution.”
The ACF Board approved a motion of intent to have the following changes made to its Constitution:
• That the number of Independent Directors be increased (from one) to a maximum of four
• That Independent Directors shall be appointed by a Nominating Committee consisting of three U.S. Sports governance/business luminaries and two veterans of U.S. cricket of unimpeachable integrity, all to be appointed by the non-independent members of the Board
• That the ultimate evolution of the Board shall be broadly representative of all U.S. cricket constituencies
• That mindful of needed transitions from a) a volunteer organization to a professional one, b) Board executive duties to a remunerated Operations staff, and c) weaker U.S. cricket constituencies growing to a greater critical mass, the Constitution shall provide for an appropriate transition path
• That the revised Constitution be fully USOC-compliant
• That checks and balances already existing in the current Constitution, including term limits and a non-voting Chairman shall be maintained
• That the Governance Committee be further tasked to review the Advisory & Judiciary Committee’s function and responsibilities and recommend changes as appropriate to align with USOC guidelines for committees
• That the Constitution shall include for clarity, definitions of a) an Independent Director, and b) an Athlete Director
The ACF is already an enviable model of transparency, inclusiveness and fairness. It is anticipated that these changes will further ensure confidence that the future of U.S. cricket can be in very safe, competent and caring hands.
