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Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ Annual Meeting

Thanks for joining us at the 2024 Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ Annual Meeting!

Dan Schurr, chair, Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ Board of Directors
Olivia Nelligan, CFO and chief strategy officer, Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥
Jay Debertin, president and CEO, Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥

Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ Foundation Rural Community Grant Voting

Attendees at the 2024 Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ Annual Meeting voted for their favorite finalist in the Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ Foundation rural community grants program to celebrate nonprofit organizations that help keep rural America thriving. Live voting at the meeting determined which of three finalists received a $15,000 grant, a $10,000 grant and a $5,000 grant. Watch videos describing the finalists' projects below and read about the voting results.

Balaton (Minn.) Fire Department
Jamestown (N.D.) Parks and Recreation
Lane County (Kan.) Community Foundation
A group of men and women sitting around a table

Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ New Leaders Forum

Young farmers and ranchers are nominated by their cooperatives to participate in the Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ New Leaders Forum where they learn about the cooperative model, develop leadership skills and discover how they can advocate for agriculture and cooperatives.

New Leaders Forum participants are invited to stay for the annual meeting and forum registration is completed in conjunction with annual meeting registration.

If you are a young cooperative owner and would like to be nominated for future forum participation, contact the CEO or general manager of your local cooperative or email newleaders@chsinc.com.

Watch for future owner events

Annual meeting procedures

  • Annual Meeting Members Committee

    The Board of Directors announced a pilot year for a new Annual Meeting Members Committee. This committee combined the core responsibilities of the previous Rules and Credentials Committee and Resolutions Committee, streamlining and modernizing those responsibilities to bring greater value to Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ and its members.

    The committee consisted of 16 members, two from each director representation region. Core responsibilities of the pilot committee were as follows:

    • Discuss and provide input on top Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ public policy issues
    • Recommend rules governing member meetings for full membership vote and consider future rules revisions
    • Oversee delegate credentials, including presenting the credentials report for full membership vote
    • Oversee electronic voting processes
    • Review credentials of floor nominees who have not previously declared

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  • Director elections

    The following were elected to the Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ Board of Directors for three-year terms. No director elections will be held in regions 1, 2 or 5.

     

    Region 3

    Trent Sherven, Ryder, N.D.

     

    Region 4

    David Kayser, Alexandria, S.D. (reelected)

     

    Region 6

    Russell Kehl, Quincy, Wash. (reelected)

     

    Region 7

    Chris Edgington, St. Ansgar, Iowa

     

    Region 8

    David Beckman, Elgin, Neb. (reelected)

  • Rules of order
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  • Voting procedures

    Every owner’s voice matters in Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ governance.

    • Absentee online voting for director elections was available for members who could not be at the annual meeting in person to cast their votes. As in the past, members were not able to vote remotely during caucuses. Members must either vote in advance electronically or attend the caucus in person to vote in director elections.
    • As was done at the 2023 Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ Annual Meeting caucuses, ranked choice online absentee ballots were used for director elections in regions with more than two candidates.
    • Absentee members were able to vote online during the annual meeting general session on any procedural motions brought forward during the meeting.
    • Mobile electronic voting technology was used for all owner governance actions at the 2024 Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ Annual Meeting. This proven technology for secure, real-time voting is efficient, removes the possibility of misinterpretation inherent with handwritten paper ballots and allows results to be available quickly.
    • Direct questions related to voting procedures to Megan Bern, Ä¢¹½Ö±²¥ corporate secretary.