Interview participants concurred that trust, respect, and appreciation must be developed over time and that having the same people involved over a longer period of time helps create and maintain a culture of trust. The length of board terms was one example given. The longer the term (or the number of terms allowed), the more the board member’s knowledge grows thereby increasing trust and the continuity for maintaining that culture of trust. In addition, previous experience on committees before joining the board meant that people already had interaction with the executive director through committee work. Therefore, they knew the executive.
