Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, February 13, 1994 TAG: 9402130104
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: D-6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LESLIE TAYLOR STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Trouble "is a common occurrence with local humane societies," says Dennis White, a director at the Colorado-based American Humane Association.
The Roanoke Valley agency has been no stranger to trouble over the years. The latest in the SPCA's turbulent history occurred last week, when members called for the resignations of some of the organization's directors in response to the dismissal of three top animal shelter employees.
"Sometimes board members have different agendas. You start to have dissension within the system," White said.
"There should be a clear message about what the mission is, of what the goal is and how to achieve those goals."
A typical cause of strife is the absence of a clear plan, White said.
"Some board members do their own thing without going through a process," he said.
The 117-year-old association near Denver is the national federation for animal-care and -control agencies. The association provides resources to assist local humane societies, including SPCAs.
Organizations have turned to the association to help mediate internal problems, White said.
"We offer those services in the form of a retreat," he said. "We require the board to be present along with key staff members. We do some preliminary work to find out anonymously what the problems are and come up with a plan to resolve those problems.
"It may end up that some board members choose to leave the organization because it doesn't fit in with the person's needs. Or it may strengthen the organization."
White declined to cite specific problems at humane societies elsewhere. When told of the Roanoke Valley SPCA's troubled history, he said resolution could take some time.
"It's deep-rooted," he said. "It may take a series of meetings to resolve those problems."
Waine Tomlinson, a Roanoke Valley SPCA member, acknowledged that many humane societies have internal problems.
"But never as consistently and seriously as this one does," Tomlinson said. "It's because we can't seem to find a middle-of-the-road board. We go from one extreme to the other - from irresponsible to insensitive and autocratic. The whole problem could be solved if we could just find a board that is middle-of-the-road politically."
by CNB