“Everybody has been very helpful in introducing me to all of the issues that I’m going to be looking at as executive director,” Duke told XBIZ. “I’m very excited to be working with this organization.”
Duke said she expected to learn the free speech issues after undergoing a sharp learning curve for the first couple of months.
“My plans are to become immersed in the issues that are facing the industry, but I’m not going to make any knee-jerk decisions,” she said. “My job is going to be to provide the membership and the board with solid information and to be a leader.”
The new executive director said she intended to continue the programs that have been working effectively for FSC.
“One of the things I’ll be doing right away is talking to board members and staff to get their input on what they believe are the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats there are for the industry and for free speech,” she said. “Our lobbying efforts and the legislative parts of what we do are definitely key, so we’ll be looking at maintaining that.”
Duke revealed that adding more FSC chapters nationwide was near the top of her agenda.
“We are a national organization and the more we can get people involved at a local level around the country, the stronger the organization will be,” she said.