My chapter just had our elections today, and we nearly shrank our board by two members. While there were a few admittedly good arguments for it, mainly that putting somebody in a position they don’t want and won’t do are likely to sink the board because they will still be expected to do their duties. However, I believe the benefits of larger boards GREATLY outweigh the drawbacks.

Here’s my main point: large boards allow for more people. Duh. Anywho, that means two things to me. First, it allows more people in leadership positions, and second, it often gets more people into the chapter.

First for the leadership, I’ll tell a personal anecdote. (Warning: hasty generalization fallacy) My first board position was as my chapter’s Sopher. In my chapter, the Sopher has historically been simply the chapter’s photographer. When I was first nominated, our at-the-time Godol, now long since graduated, told me that if I took the job and didn’t actually do it, it wasn’t that big of a deal, because the photography duties could just be given to the Mazkir.

That statement convinced me to take a chance on being on board, because I knew if I hated it I wouldn’t really be hurting anybody. After that, I eventually became my chapter’s S’gan and now Region’s Maz/Giz, which I doubt I would’ve done if it weren’t for the small position of Sopher. While obviously not every freshman nominated for a small position like Sopher are going to go on to higher, more important positions, is there truly a risk in offering the opportunity?

For the second point, it kinda works the same way. Potentially that if somebody is on board, they are more likely to attend general events. I think that because they have a position of leadership, they feel more invested in the chapter. If they feel more invested in the chapter, they are more likely to attend events. Obviously, higher attendance is something every chapter is striving for. 

In summation, I believe that bigger boards are healthy for chapters. They allow members to show off leadership potential with low risk. They may lead to increased attendance. All in all, positions like Sopher, Orechet, and Mekasher are healthy for chapters. Plus, if nobody wants the position, there’s no reason you can’t just not have them for a term.