Michael Shea Stepping Down as Chief Ambassador

by Daniel Matteson, Director of Communications

21st November 2019

As some of you may have already heard, Michael Shea (The Prefect) has submitted his resignation as the Chief of the Ambassador Corps and plans to step down from the role by the end of the year.

Michael has been a core volunteer in our community since 2014, beginning as a tournament director in Atlanta, where he has directed over 100 events in five years, including a Trek Masters, a United States Nationals, and a North American Continental Championship (with one more on the schedule for 2020). He has worn numerous hats within our organization, having been a forum moderator, a playtester, a volunteer for Art, for Creative, for Writing, and for Design - having worked on five Second Edition expansions, with another three in the works for upcoming release.

Michael became an ambassador for the Cardassia region in 2014 and became Chief Ambassador in 2018 after the resignation of Jeremy Benedict. As Chief Ambassador, Michael welcomed many new or returning volunteers to the Ambassador Corps, including our first online Ambassador. He revived the Ambassador Gift virtual promo program as well as additional ambassador incentives and rewards with a plan in place to expand the program to encourage activity within regions. He also supported the creation of official event signage, such as the CC-branded banner that was unveiled at this year's North American Continental Championship.

I'll let Michael talk more about his upcoming plans and his reasons for stepping down.

"With the new year will come a new set of commitments. I am finishing up my PhD in Political Science, with the goal of defending my dissertation in August of 2020. I am teaching more, and I'll be spending the first quarter of 2020 in Taipei, Taiwan doing field work. These commitments will mean I will have to dramatically scale back my involvement in the CC. It is primarily for that reason that I am stepping down as Chief Ambassador. I will not be taking on any new design commitments for the foreseeable future, and the time I have to devote to art, creative, testing, writing, and running events will also decrease, though I hope to still contribute when I can. I still love the game. I'll still be around and playing. But, for the next year, anyway, just in a far more limited capacity."

"I assumed the post of Chief Ambassador with ambitious goals. While I am proud of what the Ambassador Corps has accomplished in the last year and a half, as so often happens the realities of life and constraints on volunteer time means that some of those goals remain as yet unaccomplished. But, I hope that together we ambassadors have laid a suitable foundation for the next Chief Ambassador to build upon. I leave the post with no regrets, and it has been a privilege to serve as your Chief Ambassador."

As for the vacancy, I am hoping to get this filled by the end of the year to make the transition as smooth as possible. I'm looking to officially open the position to applications in the next one to two weeks. Before I do that, I'd like to have a small search committee in place to assist with the application and interview process. If you are interested in participating in the selection committee, please send me a PM at OKCoyote within the next few days.

Though I am saddened that Michael is stepping down, I'm also gratified to know he will remain a dedicated player and volunteer within the community. Please join me in thanking him for his service to the community, congratulating him on his upcoming life changes, and wishing him all the best.

And from one Cardassian to another, a hearty For Cardassia!

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