The Language Teacher
December 2002
A Chapter in Your Life
Angela Ota
President, Niigata JALT
Angela Ota reports on Niigata JALT this month and discusses the challenges faced in recruiting members and officers. The coeditors warmly invite chapters and JALT members to submit 800-word reports of chapter interest in English, Japanese, or a combination of both.
Niigata: Where to go From Here?
Being asked to write this article has forced me to take a good look at the state of Niigata Chapter, and putting down on paper some of the challenges we face has thankfully given me some ideas for directions to move in. It's not all good news, but our dilemma may help spark ideas from other smaller chapters facing the same difficulties.
When I first joined Niigata Chapter about eight years ago, we had a membership of close to 100; now it's about 36. After showing interest by attending several meetings, I was asked to become the treasurer. (I have my own small school and so it was assumed that I knew something about accounting--ho ho!) At that time, there was an abundance of officers, but within a few years, most retired in order to pursue masters programs, or moved away from the Niigata area to other universities in Japan. Gradually, as officers retired, I took on additional roles--first putting together and sending out the newsletter, then taking over as program chair. I certainly never planned nor wanted to become the president, but when our past president left the country for a foreign posting, it came down to taking over or seeing our chapter disappear. And here I am, two years later, newly aware that this organization functions due to its volunteers.
Although there are other challenges such as finances, the main problem I see now is how to get the help needed to keep Niigata alive. These last few months, I've been bringing all the necessary paperwork, money, and refreshments to meetings, and doing almost all the before and after meeting paperwork myself. This is unavoidable as none of the present officers live closer than a 50-minute drive from each other, so we can't just pass things back and forth if one of us can't attend the next meeting. I have tried to simplify the various officers' duties in order to keep the current officers in their positions. But I now realize that by doing so, I have virtually created a situation where no one else is in a position to take over. In the past, I have sent several pleas for help to members, listing the positions we need to fill, and the basic requirements of those positions. As you might have guessed, this was not at all effective, and no one responded. It has only dawned on me, after being requested to write this article, that what needs to be done is what was originally done to me. I have to request specific help from individuals who have shown an interest in attending the presentations we have held. However, there is no pool of regular attendees from which to ask for help. Apart from myself and two other officers, the maximum any one person has attended is three presentations within a one-year period, and of these attendees, most are not even members. As both of the above mentioned officers are unable to continue in their present positions, that leaves me to find a minimum of three new officers--even if just on paper--in order for Niigata to continue as a chapter.
In the past we have tried to cover a range of teaching areas over the 10 presentations we host a year. However, looking back at attendance figures, the only area we consistently have a good turn out for--25 or more attendees as opposed to 10--is presentations for teachers of children. So, perhaps, if we concentrate on this group we could draw more regular attendees, and then I can start recruiting some help. I don't mean to imply that a smaller attendance means a meeting is less worthwhile, but by covering various areas of interest, we do not draw the same crowd, so regular attendees do not exist. I'm still enjoying the opportunity of arranging and attending the meetings each month, but perhaps decreasing the number and scope of presentations we put on each year will help lessen the workload. Without help, it is truly difficult keeping up with all the email lists. Also, being the only one to attend all the required meetings at national means I don't get to see all the presentations I'm paying to attend--a sacrifice, I'm sorry to say, I'm not willing to make to stay informed.
I'm very thankful for all the help I have gotten from present and former officers and other members of Niigata JALT, and sincerely hope we can find a way to pull together and once again thrive. If reading this has given you ideas on a different approach we might try, your input would be most welcome.
Reported by Angela Ota, President, Niigata JALT
t: 0250-41-1104; f: 0250-41-1226; angela@cocoa.ocn.ne.jp
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