2017 Moderator Election

nomination began
Mar 20, 2017 at 20:00
election began
Mar 27, 2017 at 20:00
election ended
Apr 4, 2017 at 20:00
candidates
3
positions
1

On Stack Exchange, we believe the core moderators should come from the community, and be elected by the community itself through popular vote. We hold regular elections to determine who these community moderators will be.

Community moderators are accorded the highest level of privilege on our community, and should themselves be exemplars of positive behavior and leaders within the community.

Our general criteria for moderators is as follows:

  • patient and fair
  • leads by example
  • shows respect for their fellow community members in their actions and words
  • open to some light but firm moderation to keep the community on track and resolve (hopefully) uncommon disputes and exceptions

Every election has three phases:

  1. Nomination
  2. Primary
  3. Election

Please participate in the moderator elections by voting, and perhaps even by nominating yourself to be a community moderator!

Hi there. I'm James.

I'm a dry-lab PhD student looking at the biophysics of membrane proteins. I'm also interested in the wider scope of biology, and the surrounding scientific culture.

Key points.

  • I have the Steward gold badge and Electorate gold badge. Indeed, I'm far more involved than my reputation suggests.
  • I had the >3k mod privileges during beta. I understand that the heavy closure moderation approach needed from me then is not what we need now.
  • Despite my unexciting research area, I'm ranked #21 in reputation with ~173k impact.
  • A total of ~53 questions is unusual for top contributors here. I sympathise with the challenges involved in doing both Q&A well and can offer effective guidance on either.
  • If I have ideas, I readily share them in meta.
  • I've been an active user for 3 years 10 months.
  • I'm in the Singapore time zone. I would be available when no other mods are & wait time metrics could be reduced.

I am proud to be in this interesting, informative, and friendly community. My aim is to maintain that environment by filling the role of glorified janitor/mod.

Hi - My name is Chris, but I am using an alias given that one of the mods has the same name - AliceD it is!

My participation -

  • top reviewer in 4 of 7 categories;
  • 4k reviews;
  • 500+ answers;
  • active during graduation;
  • second in reputation;
  • active in meta and chat;
  • top badge collector;
  • ranking second in the related Cognitive Sciences stack;
  • proud owner of sportsmanship badge

My views in a nutshell
During graduation this site's moderation was fierce and that attitude enabled our graduation. I think we need to stay critical to urge the OP to improve their post. My motto, however, is:

Good answers can make the question.

Users should think out-of-the-box and write answers that fit within Bio.SE's conventions, but not let those conventions push them into harsh close-voting. This example received multiple rounds of closure but has been superbly received. See also here.

Hi I'm theforestecologist.

  • I study long-term forest change, and I have diverse interests/experiences in all things natural.

  • I'm a college instructor, so I adhere to effective pedagogical guidelines -- b/c we're all here to teach/learn!

I've been an active user on Bio.SE for almost 2 years:

  • Regularly comment & perform review tasks
  • Answers are thorough and well-cited to help serve as model for others
  • Increasingly more active on Meta (especially re: "best practices" & discussion tags) and chat.

I feel strongly that our community should be welcoming & friendly to users of any background or level of biology, so I make sure to include friendly/constructive comments whenever possible.

  • While I would emphasize quality control like current mods, I would really focus on providing constructive help in those instances. (Not that current mods don't already do this; I would just place added personal emphasis on this aspect of moderation).

Overall, I'd like to play a larger role in ensuring that this site's growth continues both effectively and according to our dedication to helping others learn in a friendly & welcoming community.

This election is over.