Every year the messengers of the Kentucky Baptist Convention Annual Meeting elect a president, first vice president and second vice president.
Messengers vote, but do they know what these officers do?
According to the KBC’s Constitution and Bylaws, the president:
• Is a member and the chair of the KBC Mission Board
• Has the authority to call special meetings of the KBC Mission Board
• Is a member of the KBC Mission
• Board the year after his term
• Is an ex-officio member of every KBC committee
• Names the chair of each KBC committee
• Fill committee vacancies that occur between June and October
• Selects three members of the Committee on Committees
Most of the meetings are in Louisville at the Kentucky Baptist Building, which means a president may spend a lot of time traveling to meetings.
The president is also responsible for naming the members of the search committee if the office of the executive director-treasurer should become vacant. Fifteen members from across the state are required for the search team. A majority of the Administrative Committee members must agree with the names submitted, but the president, acting as the chairman of the Mission Board, submits the names to the committee.
The first and second vice presidents are members of the Mission Board and stand in for the president as needed. This is true of the three Mission Board meeting throughout the year and at the Annual Meeting.
They are also ex-officio members of the Committee on the Annual Meeting. The primary work, though, is that of flexibility as they are to be available to the president for any role that may be necessary.
Candidates for these offices are usually pastors, though they aren’t required to be. The only stipulation is that a nominee must be a member of a KBC church in good standing. Nomination announcements begin in early to mid-summer and are open until the call for a vote at the Annual Meeting.
The president, first vice president and second vice president may serve multiple terms, but may not serve them consecutively.
Brandon Porter