I am running for SE Division Vice-Director because I want to assure that the ARRL members in our division have an opportunity to choose who will represent them in this office. Honesty, integrity, professionalism, and dedication to amateur radio as a service is what I believe should be three characteristics of whoever occupies this office.
The ARRL, as the premier representative of the amateur service in the US, must operate with transparency to its members. Stewardship of the amateur service and representing the interests of ARRL members should be the primary function of the league and its Board of Directors. One area in which the league should take a steadfast stand is in protecting the right of amateur radio operators to install an amateur radio station, including antennas of choice, at the licensed location in their license grants. Because we operate in the public interest and in protection of life and property in times of infrastructure failure organizations with no knowledge of the amateur service and whose only concern is an idealized, narrow-minded fantasy of aesthetics must be subservient to the public service interests of the amateur service and the FCC.
One area on which the league should focus should be attracting younger people into the Amateur Service. Finding ways to cooperate with the public school system to establish radio clubs and use amateur radio in the classroom as a teaching tool should be one goal. School children will willingly learn if they have fun doing it. Reaching into the college and university system is another area where youth can be enticed to become amateur radio licensees. Many colleges and Universities require completion of a project by their senior class, and amateur radio can provide a unique and rewarding outlet for this activity.
One of my goals is to see the ARRL VEC expedite the processing of Amateur Service License grant requests. By using electronic filing methods with the ARRL Headquarters these grants can be delivered to the FCC in a matter of days or even hours as opposed to the week or more currently needed because of the use of the postal service and paper forms. Although some privacy issues exist with electronic filing, the technology currently exists to provide sufficient protection of applicant personal information.
Finally, in the Southeast US we annually go through hurricane season, but our amateur participation in ARES and RACES is far from what it should be. The ARRL needs to spearhead an attitude of service to the public on the part of amateur radio licensees so that the public will always have a line of communications out of any disaster area.
I have been licensed for 49 years and currently serve Broward County as the ARES Emergency Coordinator and the Assistant RACES Officer. I also serve as a VE for both ARRL and Laurel VEC’s and I am the VE team lead for the Gold Coast club. Many times I have presented in front of radio clubs on a variety of topics from practical skills to theoretical topics and personal and psychological subjects. I serve on the board of directors of the Gold Coast Amateur Radio Association, and the Boca Raton Amateur Radio Association. I also serve as an alumni advisor to the FAU Amateur Radio Club.
I hold a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering from Purdue University, an Associate’s Degree in Nursing from Broward College, a Bachelor’s Degree in Nursing from FAU and when I was medically forced to retire I was completing my Master’s Degree in Nursing Informatics at University of Phoenix.
Regardless of who you vote for in this election, please be grateful that you have a choice and can restore this office to its necessary level of professionalism and integrity.
73,
Jeff Stahl, K4BH
ARRL SE Division Vice-Director Candidate