The Order of the Arrow, from chapter to national, is youth led. At each level there are officers, all under the age of 21, elected by the youth membership. They are mentored and guided by adult advisers.
Lodge & Chapter
Pellissippi Lodge is led by the Lodge Chief and his officer corps, along with the Lodge Executive Committee. The officer corps is comprised of the Lodge Chief, Lodge Vice Chief for Administration, Lodge Vice Chief for Program, Lodge Secretary and Lodge Treasurer. Each chapter elects the same five officer positions at the chapter level.
The Lodge Executive Committee, or LEC, is comprised of the Lodge officers, Chapter Chiefs and various appointed committee chairs. Adult members of the LEC include the Professional Staff Adviser, the Lodge Adviser, Chapter Advisers and Committee Advisers. While the adult advisers guide and mentor the youth leadership they are not voting members of the LEC.
Section
The Southern Region Section 6 (SR-6) is led by the elected Section Chief, Section Vice Chief and Section Secretary. Section officers are under the guidance of the Area Director, Section Adviser and Section Stqaff Adviser. Section officers are elected from eligible youth members at the annual Conclave. Section officers are responsible for organizing and leading the annual Conclave, Circle of Chiefs, section training and other events. The Section Chief also represents SR-6 at the annual national planning meeting in Dallas, Texas.
Region
The Region Chief is the youth leader of the Southern Region and is elected by the section chiefs from the region at the national planning meeting. The election is held following the election of the National Chief and National Vice Chief.
The Southern Region Order of the Arrow Chairman is the volunteer leader for the region and serves as the adviser to the Region Chief. The Region Chairman is appointed by the Chairman of the National Order of the Arrow Committee in coordination with the region director. The Region Staff Adviser is appointed by the National General Services Group Director.
National Order of the Arrow Committee
The National Order of the Arrow Committee, a support committee of the National Outdoor Adventures Committee, sets policy and directs the program of the Order. The National Chief, National Vice Chief, immediate past chief,
and immediate past vice chief, serve as youth members on the national committee, along with the approximately 50 Section Chiefs. The volunteer leader is the chairman of the national Order of the Arrow committee. The chairman is appointed annually by the chairman of the national Outdoor Adventures Committee. Members of the national Order of the Arrow committee are appointed annually by their chairman. The staff advisers to the national committee are the
director of the Order of the Arrow and the OA specialist. These individuals are national professional Scouters.
Because of the size and complexity of the program and the number of individuals who serve on the committee to deliver the program across the country, a steering committee has been created to manage the day-to-day affairs of the program. As a whole, the national committee meets semiannually; the steering committee meets two additional times during the year. Various members of the steering committee are in constant contact with one another to handle affairs of the Order on a daily basis. Members of the steering committee are the National Chairman, National Vice Chairmen, past National Chairmen, National Chief, and National Vice Chief. The director of the Order of the Arrow and the OA specialist serve as nonvoting members.
Section Cchiefs and national committee members participate in a national planning meeting held in late December of the year preceding the national conference. As their first order of business, the Section Chiefs elect a National Chief, National Vice Chief, and four region Chiefs.
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