As discussed in a previous article (see Don Petersen's "Chiropractic's 'Good Ol' Boys" Are at It Again" in the May issue), the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners (NBCE) was at a crossroads ... immersed in a power struggle reminiscent of many previous elections. At this year's annual meetings of both the Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards (FCLB) and the NBCE, the state licensing board delegates were presented with a choice: keep some of the old guard in place or infuse new blood into both organizations.
Ultimately, the FCLB delegates chose Keita Vanterpool, DC, as their new vice president. Dr. Vanterpool has been very involved in the FCLB for the past 11 years, serving as district III director and treasurer (the past two years). She also has the distinction of being the first African American female member of the NBCE board and only the third African American member in its 58-year history.
Dr. Vanterpool's election doubled the number of African American directors currently serving on the NBCE board. It also put her in a position to vote for two of the NBCE at-large positions. Her vote was also historic, as it brought the number of women on the NBCE board to four of the 11.
The current NBCE board is different from previous boards in a number of ways. As noted by NBCE CEO Norman Outz, DC: "I'm very excited about this board. The culture in the board room the last several years has been one of collaboration and commitment to NBCE. I'm proud of the many accomplishments of the NBCE and am looking forward to continued success."
Of note, looking at tenure, NBCE now has the youngest board since its inception:
- Dr. Otto: 10 years
- Dr. Côté: eight years
- Dr. McGinnis: four years
- Dr. Fedorczyk: three years
- Dr. Boghosian, Dr. Winkler and Ms. Driggers: two years
- Dr. Freihaut, Dr. Young and Dr. Jaeger: one year
- Dr. Vanterpool: just elected
In addition to being the testing agency for chiropractic licensing, the NBCE has the resources to help move the chiropractic profession forward, as it has with its recent funding of the airing of chiropractic's historic television commercial five times during this year's upcoming Tokyo Summer Olympics; and kickstarting a new Center for Collaborative Research for the chiropractic colleges at the RAND Center.
The FCLB and NBCE state licensing board delegates are to be commended for their decision to make history this year, rather than be influenced by political pressure. Clearly, the right people on the NBCE board can make a big difference in chiropractic's future.
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