Board of Directors

Our Board of Directors serve rotating, three-year terms. EECA seats a board of nine (9) directors, who along the Executive Vice President/General Manager and the Cooperative management team, meet monthly to review policy, assess cooperative finances, and receive other important co-op updates. Each year at our annual meeting, the membership elects three (3) member-owners to represent them on the board. Board elections are conducted yearly, by in person only, at our Annual Meeting of the Members. 

Board meetings are typically the last Tuesday of each month, (unless trainings, meetings and/or a holiday conflict) at the Cooperative headquarters, located north of Murphysboro, IL.

What do board members do?

The 2nd Principle of the Rochdale Principles (the foundation of the Cooperative form of business) states, “Cooperatives are democratic organizations controlled by their members, who actively participate in setting their policies and making decisions. Men and women serving as elected representatives are accountable to the membership. In primary, cooperative members have equal voting rights (one member, one vote) and cooperatives at other levels are organized in a democratic manner.

Cooperative boards are challenged around the country to discuss the challenges they face daily and into the future, and to plan for those emerging issues, through education, training, and peer-to-peer networking. Serving as a director goes back to the Seven Cooperative Principles — one of which is a duty of service to the community. The commitment of a director requires both education and training. There is a significant time commitment to serving on an electric cooperative board. Beyond the monthly board meetings, which can last up to four hours, there is time at home reading meeting notes and minutes, reviewing board packets, and prepping for meetings. In addition, time is needed to attend committee meetings, trainings, seminars, special events, and statewide and national update meetings. All in, a potential director can expect to attend over 20 meetings in a calendar year. While directors are not salaried, they do receive compensation for meetings attended and are reimbursed for travel and training expenses. Many times, spouses are also able to attend events (other than board/committee meetings), but at the expense of the director.

You may ask, what does a Director do? Mitigating risk, setting rates, understanding power supply, strategic planning, financial decision making, promoting the cooperative business model, gaining insights on political and environmental impacts, and meeting member expectations — these might sound like bullet points pulled from varying co-op employee job descriptions, but there’s one person who’s responsible for all of these tasks consecutively — a Cooperative director.

Who qualifies to be a board member?

Here are some of the Frequently asked Questions on what the position entails. A member interested in serving as a director must be a full-time resident, receiving electric service from EECA and their account must remain in good standing. The full requirements to be a board member are listed in our Cooperative Bylaws 4.05 (below). For 2024, our Annual Meeting of the members will be held on Thursday, July 11, 2024 at 6PM. Three directors are up for re-election: Paul Pyatt of Pinckneyville, Paul Hicks of Carbondale, and Randall Campbell of Chester.  To complete a petition to also run for a board seat, you must complete this petition and return to EECA (Attn: Board Attorney) by Monday May 13, 2024. The Nominating & Credentials Commitee will meet on Tuesday, May 14, 2024, for the purpose of nominating directors for the election at the Annual Meeting. Voting is conducted in person at the Annual Meeting. One signature on the petition is eligible for a sole account, and one signature is eligible for a joint account. Below is the director petition, Cooperative Bylaws and link to board policies.

Want to contact a director/board member? Do so by emailing directors@eeca.coop