Dave Rolsky Nomination for TPF Board

Dave Rolsky is our next nominee to join the Perl Foundation board. Dave is well known in the Perl community, for his [extensive contributions to CPAN](http://metacpan.org/author/DROLSKY) and for his frequent conference talks and classes. If you'd like to know a little more, he conveniently posts his [resume on-line](https://www.houseabsolute.com/resume/) on [his website](https://www.houseabsolute.com/). Below is some additional information on how Dave feels he can contribute to the board: * Why do you want to become a member of the TPF Board? > I have a lot of nonprofit experience and I think I can help with TPF's mission because of that. I was a co-founder and board member of a local animal advocacy group for about 19 years, and during that time I helped with fundraising, event organization, administration, and pretty much everything else. * What existing TPF initiative(s) are most important to you and why? > For me, the most important programs are conferences and Perl 5 core maintenance fund programs. Conferences are vital for having any sort of Perl community. The maint fund is crucial in order to make sure that the Perl 5 core continues to advance. It's a tough code base to work on, so we need to support the people who can do that work. * What goals would you like to see TPF pursue in the future? > I wonder if there's room for additional fundraising. There are many more companies using Perl than are represented among the existing sponsors. That said, this sort of fundraising can be quite challenging and time consuming. > I'm also interested in the potential for other sorts of Perl promotion and outreach programs. For example, maybe some sort of targeted grants aimed at producing high quality videos, etc. Following our recently established process, this post will allow for constrictive public input on Dave's nomination for two weeks, after which the board will vote.

Comments (7)

I've known Dave for a long time, had several meals with him, and talked extensively about non-profits and advocacy institutions. His resumé excludes the particular(non-technical) advocacy organization that he's been involved with for years so I won't disclose that. But, it's a controversial subject that most people aren't disposed to support. He is able to speak eloquently and succinctly about it in a way where I can understand his view without the usual rancor most people expect from the conversation. Raising money for that non-profit is a much harder task then I expect from any advocacy of The Perl Foundation.



Also, know that there are really just two duties of a board member on a US non-profit: review and approve executive compensation (not an issue here) and approve the budget (also not a huge issue here). Besides that legal duty, board members of non-profits are often assigned a "give-get" number: give or convince others to give that amount. I don't know how TPF handles that, but Dave has the reputation, work experience, and skill to handle some large numbers there. He correctly identifies that responsibility in his application.



I like Dave. I know he's done a lot for Perl and has a lot of experience in organizing events in and outside of the Perl community.



However, there's no mention of Perl 6 in his additional information. I find that disappointing. I think The Perl Foundation also has an obligation towards Perl 6. To appoint a board member that seems to ignore Perl 6, gives the wrong signal, in my opinion.



Dave Rolsky did a lot for Perl specially his useful modules which i am using on production and he is the best candidate for this position .



i hope if there are addional room for raise funding Perl projects which can cover the gap with different python libraries which missing on Perl like sklearn ,tenserflow or not updated long time .



i have suggestion that Perl foundation should identify such critical projects and suggest them as ideas for their grants .



I disagree. Not everyone on the TPF has to be gung-ho on Perl 6. Dave has stated what his focus is on in his comments and his focus is good, in my opinion. I don't think it gives any kind of "signal" at all.



He has, as you have said, done a lot for the Perl community. I see zero reasons not to put him on the board.



Just to clarify brian's comments, the "controversial" non-profit he references is Compassionate Action for Animals (CAA). I am a co-founder of the organization and I was a long-time board member until I retired from volunteering there at the end of 2017.



CAA's mission statement is: "Compassionate Action for Animals encourages people to cultivate empathy for animals and move toward a plant-based diet."



I don't think this is actually all that controversial. While most people in US (or anywhere else) aren't vegan, surveys consistently show broad majority support for animal welfare causes, and our approach at CAA was (and still is) definitely on the softer side of the animal rights movement.



Not everyone on the TPF has to be gung-ho on Perl 6

​THE PERL FOUNDATION IS DEDICATED TO THE ADVANCEMENT OF THE PERL PROGRAMMING LANGUAGE THROUGH OPEN DISCUSSION, COLLABORATION, DESIGN, AND CODE.

So you are implying that every current member of the boardgung-ho about Perl 6? I think quite a few board members would not find themselves in that description. Remember:I think most board members are remaining neutral as to which version of Perl they prefer. Which is why I mentioned the lack of vision about Perl 6 in Dave's comments.

I'm in favour. Dave's energy will be a useful contribution.

