The May membership summary shows that the Society grew by 299 members over May of 1996, putting our current membership total at 33,964. This marks the 15th consecutive month that the Society has shown growth over the previous year. A large part of this growth is due to the increased retention rates that our chapters are experiencing. Currently, nearly 90 percent of our members are renewing their memberships. This is the best retention that we have experienced since the 1950s.
Extension continues to play a significant role in our growth.
So far, we have chartered eight new chapters in 1997, the latest being Muscatine, Iowa. Additionally, we have 15 working licensed chapters and more than 70 other extension sites moving toward licensed status in the Society. While the growth continues, the recruiting has slipped quite a bit. Let's not let that happen to someone else. The first 100 or so that are drawn are assigned in alternating seats along with the Society VIPs.