Speakers Bureau
Speakers Bureau Chair: Ruthie Paris
The LRA Speakers Bureau is funded in the annual budget from proceeds from the annual conference. It is a means of “giving back” to local councils in appreciation of their support and hard work in making the annual conferences such a success. Funds are disbursed as they are available from the yearly budget. It is possible that, in some years, all requests will not be able to be honored, but the funds from the Speakers Bureau are conceived as means for revitalizing a council’s program or for the council to be able to afford a program they might not be able to from their own budget.
Definitive guidelines are as follows:
- Local councils may receive up to $350 per year if requested, and each one of the districts is eligible to receive $800 per year if requested, as yearly budget permits.
- Districts must have the approval of their executive board to submit the request. The districts’ executive boards will be comprised of the district chairperson and the president or vice-president of each council. Each council and district director will have one vote on this board.
- The council president or district director will submit a request form (found on the LRA website) to the Speakers Bureau chair for speaker’s funds.
- The LRA Speakers Bureau will keep a resource directory of prospective speakers. Councils will not be limited to the use of these speakers. However, a résumé of a prospective speaker must be attached to the application if he or she is not in the directory.
- Anyone who wishes to be placed in the speakers directory must submit a résumé to the chair of the LRA Speakers Bureau.
- Funds for speakers will be forwarded 10 days to 2 weeks prior to the event unless an earlier date is requested. Checks will be made out to the speaker.
- A council/district may apply more than once in a fiscal year as long as they do not exceed $350/800 per year.
- For a council, the funds will be sent to the council president. For districts, funds will be sent to the district director.