Public Members
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What is a Public Member?
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"The public member’s role is to champion the public or consumer interest, bring new ideas and goals to the table, contribute an unbiased perspective, encourage consumer-oriented positions, and bring additional public accountability and responsiveness. The public member should have a track record of advocacy on behalf of the public interest, a basic understanding of certification and accreditation, and previous experience serving on the governing or advisory board of a business, religious or civic organization, or similar entity".
-Rebecca LeBuhn, MA, National Board of Certification and Recertification of Nurse Anesthetists
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I.C.E. Definition
A representative of the consumers of services provided by a credentialed population who serves as a voting member on the credentialing body with all rights and privileges, including holding office and serving on committees. The public member should bring a perspective to the decision and policy-making of the organization that is different from that of credentialed individuals and should help to balance the organization’s role in protecting the public while advancing the interests of the profession.
Example: CFP Board - Public Member Role Description
Example: MSNCB's Public Member Role Description
Webinar: The Role of Public Members
Additional Resources For and About Public Members
Click on the arrow below to see the resources.
I.C.E. Standards and Courses:
Articles and Interviews:
- Getting the Best from Your Credentialing Board Public Member By: Nancy Ahluwalia
- I.C.E. Handbook Edition 2 - Chapter: Public Members. By: Rebecca (Becky) LeBuhn and Cynthia Miller Murphy
- 'How a Public Member Played a Critical Role in an Organization’s Risk Management'. By: Kevin R. Keller, CAE, and Denise Voigt Crawford, JD, CFP Board | '22
- Serving as a Psychometrician and Public Board Member: A Q&A With Brett Foley, PhD | '21
- Millennials Having Fun and Making a Difference as Public Members. By: Rebecca (Becky) LeBuhn | Jan '19
- Public Member Spotlight: Thomas Hartsell, Jr., Public Member on the board of the Art Therapy Credentials Board, Inc. By: Rebecca (Becky) LeBuhn | Nov '18
- Public Member Spotlight: Edward Susank, National Board of Certification & Recertification for Nurse Anesthetists. By: Rebecca (Becky) LeBuhn | Sep '18
- ‘The Most Fulfilling Volunteer Role’: An Interview with Public Member Gloria Fabrey. By: I.C.E. Editor | Oct '18
- Message from the Chair: The Benefits of Public Members. By: Claudia Zacharias, MBA, CAE | Sep '16
- Tapping the Full Potential of Public Member: A Toolkit for Boards and Community Based Organizations. By: Citizen Advocacy Center | '09
- Regulatory Management of Chemically Dependent Healthcare Practitioners. A Forum Convened By: Citizen Advocacy Center | June '09
- Implementing Continuing Competency Requirements for Health Care Practitioners. :By Citizen Advocacy Center | '06
Webinars and Presentations:
Public Member Networking Opportunities
1. Connect Public Members Through Your Organization's Profile
I.C.E. Members can add their Public Member to your organizational profile so they can connect and access resources. For assistance adding a public member to your organization's profile, contact info@credentialingexcellence.org
2. Attend I.C.E. Public Member Network Quarterly Meetings
The Public Member Committee hosts quarterly networking calls for public members and other interested parties. Networking Calls are hosted on Zoom the second Tuesday of March, June, September, and December at 1:00 pm ET/10:00 am PT.
Save the Date for Future Events
Access Archive of Network Calls
3. Attend the I.C.E. Exchange
Public members play a critical role on certification governing boards. If the President/CEO of a certification organization signs up for a full conference registration, I.C.E. will offer one (1) complimentary registration to the organization’s public member.
Public members have several opportunities to gather as a group at the I.C.E. Exchange to share experiences and ideas, and to suggest topics they would like to see addressed at the next year’s Exchange.
Looking For a Public Member?
1. Post a job posting for a public member in the I.C.E. Career Center.
- Organizations seeking a Public Member can now post a job listing for a volunteer Public Member position within the Career Center.
- Individuals seeking a Public Member position are encouraged to upload their resume to the Career Center.
- This LinkedIn group is designed for Public Members to network, discuss related topics, and share resources.
- Both Organizations and Individuals are also encouraged to add a post to the Public Member LinkedIn page if you are looking for/seeking a public member/position.
Recognizing Public Members with the Ben Shimberg Public Service Award
2023 Ben Shimberg Public Service Award Recipient Tara Montgomery, Civic Health Partners
Tara is founder of Civic Health Partners in New York and Executive in Residence at the Saïd Business School, University of Oxford, focusing on trust in health leadership. Tara is a trusted change leadership advisor, academic practitioner, and social entrepreneur who connects the dots between healthy people and healthy democracies.She brings consumer and citizen perspectives to conversations about culture change in health care and other complex systems. Tara is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Board of Medical Specialties, where she chairs the Public Member Caucus.
View the I.C.E. Public Member Networking Call - Shimberg Lecture with Tara Montgomery Here
Learn about past award winners and access their lecture here.
About Ben Shimberg, and the Ben Shimberg Public Service Award
Ben Shimberg was an inspiration to a generation of consumer advocates because of his commitment to making credentialing and regulatory institutions accountable to the public. Ben believed appointing well-chosen public members, orienting them to their role, and supplying them with resources would serve that end. I.C.E. (then NOCA) gave Ben its Lifetime Achievement Award in 2000.
Ben was the first chair of the Citizen Advocacy Center’s Board of Directors until his death, when CAC established in his memory the Benjamin Shimberg Public Service Award to honor individuals whose careers and contributions exemplify the principles Ben stood for. It is no surprise that several I.C.E. leaders have received the award, including Denise Roosendaal in 2018.
Since 2004, CAC has presented the Shimberg Award at its annual meeting, an event CAC discontinued in 2020. Not wanting the award in Ben’s memory to fade away, I.C.E. welcomed the opportunity to present the Ben Shimberg award at its annual Exchange. Shimberg Award recipients also deliver a lecture at the I.C.E. Public Member Networking calls. The event is open to all.
I.C.E. is honored to support the Dr. Benjamin Shimberg Public Service Award, which recognizes an individual whose career and accomplishments support accountability and advance the public interest in professional licensure and certification. The award was created by the Citizen Advocacy Center, a networking and training organization for public members, in memory of Benjamin Shimberg, a giant in the field and CAC’s first board chair. Ben was a prolific author, renowned speaker, and a true believer that well-chosen, well-supported public members add depth and accountability to organizational decision making. I.C.E. thanks the Public Member Committee, who nominate and select the individual receiving
Shimberg Award: Nomination and Select Process
Nominations
Calls for nominations for the annual Ben Shimberg award shall be made via the I.C.E. Public Member Committee meetings and/or though any of the Committee’s communication channels such as its web page, email announcements, and conference presentations. Members of the I.C.E. Public Member Committee are not eligible to be nominated. Nominations can be made by anyone on the I.C.E. Public Member Committee; any current or past member of the CAC Board of Directors; or any prior recipient of the award. Nominations shall be submitted to the I.C.E. Public Member Committee leadership (chair; co-chairs; or staff) preferably by May 1 but no later than June 1 of the year in which the award will be made, and should include the name and contact information of the nominee, a brief description (not to exceed one page) of the ways in which the nominee’s work aligns with Ben Shimberg’s values and ideals; the nominee’s C.V. or resumé, and the submitter’s name and contact information.
Vetting and Voting
Upon receipt of any nomination(s), a subcommittee of the I.C.E. Public Member Committee shall review the submissions. The subcommittee shall be made up of 3-5 individuals including at least one person who was involved with C.A.C. leadership if possible (this role to be filled by Becky LeBuhn as of 2023) and 2-4 other volunteer committee members. They will review the submission(s) for accordance with the Shimberg award values and criteria. As determined by the subcommittee, any and all nominations that meet the values and criteria shall be put to a vote by the members of the Public Member Committee, where the majority vote wins; in the case of a tie, the Committee may choose to recommend two recipients for that year. The vote shall be conducted by July 1 of the year in which the award will be made.
Award Recipients
Upon completion of the vote, the chair or a co-chair of the Public Member Committee shall notify I.C.E. staff of the group’s decision and shall notify the recipient of the award. Recipients of the award will be recognized with a public award presentation – either in-person or virtually – at the annual I.C.E. Exchange conference. Shimberg Award recipients are also invited and expected to deliver a brief talk about public policy aspects of certification and regulation and the important role of public members, based on their careers and experience. The talk is delivered at an I.C.E. Public Member Network quarterly meeting (usually conducted virtually) and the recording is posted on the Public Member Community page on the I.C.E. website.
Timing of the notification of award recipient and public announcements shall be coordinated to meet I.C.E. meeting, conference, and scheduling parameters.
Shimberg Award: Values and Criteria
Values and Criteria
Ben Shimberg, widely considered the father of accountability in professional and occupational licensing, was a leader in testing, regulatory, and credentialing principles. His demonstrated commitment to protecting the public interest is remembered by honoring those whose professional careers meet the following criteria:
- Career within the occupational regulatory, testing, certification, and/or credentialing fields;
- Accountability to the public and public protection; and
- Commitment to the value of public members on regulatory and credentialing boards.
Past Shimberg Award Recipients