Official Press Release
For Immediate Release – July 6, 2020
Contact Person:        Andrew L. Smith

(601)573-7163 or (601)446-3060

Minority Supervisors Caucus to Hold Virtual Annual Meeting

The Mississippi Association of Supervisors Minority Caucus (MAS-MC), in consideration of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, announced on June26 that it will transition its 2020 Annual Meeting, scheduled for August 19-21, 2020 in Jackson, to an entirely virtual meeting.

The MAS-MC Executive Committee changed the meeting to a virtual event based on recommendations from a staff and member working group.

The virtual meeting, which is free to MAS-MC members, will offer registrants access to influential speakers relevant to the county government  and local elected officials profession and the highest quality programming with a revised schedule to accommodate members’ locations and time. The virtual meeting will include governance and business meetings, the Annual Community Legends Awards presentation, virtual networking opportunities, and more.

“For the first time in MAS-MC history, we are offering this entire capstone event as a complimentary member benefit, which will enable even more local government officials, perhaps some for the first time,” said MAS-MC president, Supervisor Bobby Bolton.

The MAS-MC Executive Committee agreed to change the meeting format based on the recommendation of a staff and member working group which carefully studied options ranging from having an in-person meeting as usual to holding an all-online event.

The working group identified, analyzed and considered the impact of various factors that would influence the decision to hold an in-person meeting in Jackson, starting with the current State of Mississippi social distancing and many local community restrictions that have been put in place.

Other factors included travel limitations and self-quarantine orders for travelers along with additional Covid-19 guidelines that are expected to remain in place throughout the summer.

“The health and safety of attendees and staff remains the primary concern of the MAS-MC,” said MAS-MC Executive Director Andrew Smith. “The decision to go virtual will allow us to give our members the best possible meeting experience while guaranteeing everyone’s well-being. We also expect that many of the innovations incorporated into this year’s meeting will be added to future in-person meetings.”

More details on the event will be released in the next few weeks. Information on schedules and registration can be found at www.mas-mc.org.

“While we will not meet in person this year in Jackson, I am pleased that we will nonetheless gather together to continue our important work,” said Smith. “The Mississippi Association of Supervisors Minority Caucus will present our Annual Meeting this year with a fresh, new approach to our always informative and inspiring event that so many of us and other look forward to.”