The ARRL Board of Directors’ annual meeting in mid-January will mark the beginning of a changing of the guard for the League. After serving three 2-year terms, ARRL President Kay Craigie, N3KN, of Blacksburg, Virginia, is stepping aside, and the Board will choose her successor — and the League’s 16th president — when it convenes on January 15. The Board also will elect other officers, as well as vice presidents, Executive Committee members, and ARRL Foundation directors.

A former college instructor, Craigie was licensed in 1983. She served previously as ARRL Section Manager for Eastern Pennsylvania, Atlantic Division Vice Director and Director, and ARRL First Vice President. As President, Craigie presided during the League’s Centennial and transition into its second century.

The annual meeting also will be the last for ARRL Chief Executive Officer David Sumner, K1ZZ, and for ARRL Chief Operating Officer Harold Kramer, WJ1B. Both are retiring this year. Kramer will depart at the end of February. Sumner has targeted May 1 as his last day, and he plans to work with the new CEO to ensure a smooth transition. During the annual meeting, the Board will receive the report of the CEO Search Committee, which is expected to include a recommendation for Sumner’s successor. The Board initiated its CEO search last July. The COO position will remain vacant until the new CEO is in place.

By the time he steps down, Sumner will have been on the ARRL Headquarters full-time staff for 44 years. He was named Secretary and General Manager in 1982, with a change in title to Executive Vice President in 1985, and the additional title of Chief Executive Officer in 2001 (the title of Executive Vice President was phased out in 2011).

The Board of Directors also will receive the report of the Strategic Planning Working Group, which has been working on a revised Strategic Plan to guide the League in the coming years. In addition the Administration & Finance Committee will ask the Board to ratify the operational budget plan for 2016-17.

The ARRL Board of Directors’ annual meeting will take place Friday and Saturday, January 15 and 16, in Windsor, Connecticut.