BJCP Members,
After much consideration, I made the difficult decision to resign as BJCP President effective Sept. 1, 2023. Per our bylaws, I notified the board of this decision last week. While I love this organization and our mission, my current time as President unfortunately came at a less-than-ideal time in my life. I have always been one to say if you can’t do a job justice, even if you have a passion for it, you need to let someone else do the work. This is that scenario.
As my professional career continues to advance, I have much less time to focus on hobbies, including the BJCP and homebrewing. On the personal side, I am currently navigating several difficult personal situations that are taking significant time and mental/emotional bandwidth. Given everything I have going on outside of the BJCP, I have not been able to give this role the time it needs and deserves over the past several months, and I don’t see that changing over the next year. I will serve out my term as a rep through June 2024, since that role requires far less bandwidth. I will not be running for re-election to the board next year, but I know there are several great candidates in the MNW region.
As current VP, Midwest Rep Sandy Cockerham is now serving as President until the board holds a new election per the bylaws. Sandy is extremely dedicated to the BJCP and I know she will do great. I believe that the organization is well on the path to recovering from the leadership turmoil we have faced, as well as the pandemic disruption. Assistant IT Director Andres Torres and his team are making good progress on our new IT system. Managing Exam Director Don Blake and the exam team are doing good work to stabilize the exam side, clear the pandemic backlog, restore exam grading times to prior levels, and manage a tremendous backlog of exams needing translation. I also feel that we have a board that values the mission of the organization with less focus on any single individual’s personal focus or ambitions. We have also started more discussion on the possibility of naming an executive director position to provide stable leadership for the organization moving forward.
We still have challenges to overcome as an organization, but I’m confident that the current board, with your support, can help us rise to the occasion.
Cheers,
Dennis Mitchell
Dennis Mitchell
BJCP Mountain-Northwest Rep