Letter To Region 8 Newsletters

RVC Region 8 Candidate
Michael Eager

American Mensa and Mensa International are conducting elections from April 15 to May 15. I’m running for Regional Vice Chair (RVC) of the Pacific Intermountain Region (Region 8) of American Mensa. Region 8 consists of eleven Local Groups, from Alaska to the northwest, Monterey County to the south, and Montana to the northeast. San Francisco Regional Mensa (SFRM) is the largest of these eleven Mensa chapters, with almost 1600 members. I believe that Local Chapters are the life blood of American Mensa.

The RVC serves two different roles: one is to support the Local Groups in the region, provide officers and members information about American Mensa, help the groups thrive and grow, and communicate their needs and concerns to the national organization. The other role is to serve on the American Mensa Committee (AMC), American Mensa’s board of directors, providing guidance and direction.

I’ve served in many roles in SFRM, from Editor, to RG Chair, to Local Secretary (most recently from 2010 to 2022). SFRM has been one of American Mensa’s most successful groups, with an excellent newsletter (the Intelligencer), a full calendar of activities, and well attended Regional Gatherings. I believe that I can bring my experience to support the other groups in our region. I’ve also been active in American Mensa, serving on several AMC committees and reporting on the AMC in the SFRM Intelligencer. I recently became a Life Member. I have friends in several national Mensa groups outside the US. You can find more about me on my website: https://mensa.eagerm.tech.

I’d like to give a pollyannaish pitch about American Mensa, but that’s not easy. I believe that Mensa has great potential. I’ve made many friends in Mensa, attended a host of interesting and engaging activities, and had an opportunity to improve my skills in leadership, organization, and in several other areas. Despite this potential, many chapters, especially the smaller ones, are not thriving. Membership has been declining ending with just over 48,000 members last year. (In 2010, membership was almost 10,000 higher.) American Mensa has not been successful at attracting new members (the goal for the past membership year, ending on March 31, was 51,000). We do essentially no advertising (and the occasional mention of Mensa on TV shows doesn’t make up for this). Many members say that they are not getting what they want from Mensa. Close to 20% of 2023 members have not renewed their membership for 2024 (although a significant number who procrastinate can be expected rejoin). Fiscally, American Mensa’s expenses have not tracked the decline in membership, contributing to the extraordinary 35% increase in dues. American Mensa doesn’t take advantage of the vast pool of talented members: of the 15 AMC positions in this election, only six are contested. Several of the candidates to serve on the board of directors of American Mensa have never held a leadership position within their local groups. The AMC seems more focused on internal issues, whether conflict with the former National Ombudsman or editorial revisions to the standing orders (our ASIEs), than with directing the organization and improving value to the membership. Support from the American Mensa national office doesn’t meet the organization’s needs, ranging from a website that hasn’t been updated for a decade to poor coordination and communication both internally and with the AMC. In many ways, American Mensa has been stagnant.

I’ve made significant contributions to SFRM as well as to American Mensa (for example, drafting the Local Group Charter and making improvements to the Bylaws). I would like to have the opportunity to work toward invigorating American Mensa and making it more of what our members would like it to be. Please vote for me for RVC of Region 8.