I've had both governing and advisory boards. In every
case we required board members to rotate after two consecutive terms. In
one case, I was rather disturbed at the creative thinking board members
developed to try to circumvent the process. (This was a very chaotic
board.) The option of standing for election/reappointment after the first
term provides an opportunity for either the organization or the person involved
to opt out. In the case of the advisory board, particular members were
sometimes asked to stay on longer. This was done through the mayor's office as
the mayor appointed these board members.
Often with the rotation or even just with the election of
officers, history and momentum can be lost. The flip side, of course, is that
the organization can become stagnent if you do not rotate board members. I
can recall one experience where the organization simply could not move forward
because a founding member clung to control. It would not have been
expedient to remove him from office. Change in that case came too
slow.
I would encourage you to look broadly but carefully for board
members. Some history of working with this individual could be very
useful. A person who has come from the ranks (volunteer in some
capacity) will have a commitment to the organization (hopefully). On the
other hand, the advise that you want to retain the involvement of board members
beyond their service to the board is good, too. A good board member can be
retained through other committee involvement and may, after a few years off the
board, be willing to serve in that capacity again. You certainly don't
want them to simply disappear but you don't want them to continue to attend
every board meeting once their term expires
either.