The ARA Executive Board is pleased to announce upcoming structural changes to help us better represent all of the US riichi community! First is the edit to the Bylaws, currently in a final draft form: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_SgZ0cYaPLWltWRMY-xps_UF5OtpfBXx/edit?usp=sharing&ouid=104665166224765132000&rtpof=true&sd=true
Updates to American Riichi Association Structure
The American Riichi Association is composed of a 12-member executive working board (“the board”) and a council of riichi mahjong organizations based in the United States of America (“the general assembly”).
About the ARA Executive Board
The Board is made up of 12 registered players, elected on a 3-year term. The Executive Board is responsible for the day-to-day work of the organization and pushing forward its aims and goals, and each member is responsible for at least one project or function of the Board. Board initiatives and projects are approved by the general assembly (see below). A Board member does not get a vote of their own but a single individual may fulfill the roles of both executive board member and voting assembly member. All votes will be conducted via google forms, posted on discord and sent via email, and the ARA Discord and ARA Monthly Meeting will be the forums for live discussion. The current Board has 10 members. Nominations to fill the remaining 2 Board seats will open at the September ARA meeting, and a special election will be held by ranked choice vote 2 weeks before the October ARA meeting, and the two most-voted representatives will begin their term at the October ARA meeting. The next general election, based on the bylaws and 3 year terms that board members have, will be conducted next June for one-third of the board consisting of 4 standing board members seeking reelection and other potential nominees.
About the ARA General Assembly
The assembly includes representatives from any riichi mahjong organization operating in the United States of America representing at least 12 unique mahjong players that meet at least monthly in a public location, including local clubs, parlors, leagues, and professional organizations. Any such organization is eligible to nominate a representative to join the assembly. Joining the assembly gives your organization the ability to vote on matters such as American ranking systems, the composition of the ARA board, tournament approvals, and allocations of seats to foreign events, such as ERMC and WRC. The assembly also functions as a coordinating platform for event scheduling and logistics amongst the heads of organizations. Nominations for an organization and representative to be added to the Assembly can be completed at any point by submitting the google form at https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfHVMJ9s9SWV0S5GmiyeeqmUcq2lLGUPoTJiWEdKtHUXDuqOQ/viewform.
Note that this form is multiple pages, and the final page requires the names and emails or discord handles of the applicant plus 11 others to verify club size. The first wave of nominations will be approved by the Board at the September ARA Board Meeting. At future board meetings, the Assembly will vote on approvals of new organizations representatives.
Timeline Summary
September 16 Board Meeting: Bylaws draft finalized; planning for club representative nominations begins.
September 30 ARA Meeting: First group of org representatives join ARA as the General Assembly. Official bicameral system begins. Nominations open for 2 representatives to join the Board. First orders of business for the General Assembly will be ratifying the bylaws themselves and then approving or suggesting edits to the ARA Code of Conduct, which was removed from the Bylaws to ensure it is more easily editable.
2 weeks prior to October ARA Meeting: Assembly uses ranked choice voting to elect the 2 new board members. Voting is open for two weeks.
October ARA Meeting: New executive board members installed. (edited)