Nearly 80 years after it first took form, the Glen Lake Association (GLA) is making a change.

Today (Monday), the organization is launching a search to find its first-ever executive director. The shift in structure is a response to mounting challenges for the nonprofit and the watershed it protects, including an uptick in lake traffic and the growing threat of invasive species.

“The variety and the volume of traffic entering our watershed is just growing tremendously,” says Stan Kryder, president of the GLA Board of Directors. “With the volume of traffic to the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, and the volume of tourists coming into the area, we’re just seeing so much activity on our lake. And then, when more boats and craft come into our watershed, it increases the risk of invasive species coming into our waters, too.”

Those factors, plus the departure of a “significant employee” last year, prompted the GLA to do some soul searching and figure out how to proceed.

“Internally, we decided that we need somebody on these challenges full time, who is thoughtful and experienced and can help us,” Kryder tells the Leelanau Ticker. “Because the truth of the matter is, at the end of the day, we're volunteers, and we're doing the best we can, but we need a professional.”

Founded in 1945, the GLA has a mission of “preserving and protecting the water quality, natural resources, and quality of life in the Glen Lake/Crystal River Watershed through leadership, education, and collaboration.” The nonprofit’s staff and volunteers work across the 46-mile watershed to monitor water quality, respond to invasive species threats, operate the lake’s lone boat wash station, and educate “those who live, work, or play near the water” on how they can protect the health of the lake.

While GLA does have a small number of staff members, the organization has historically relied on dozens of volunteers to keep its gears turning. As Kryder notes, though, recent years have pushed that operational structure to its limit.

In the fall of 2023, for instance, GLA went into red-alert mode after detached pieces of the invasive plant Eurasian watermilfoil (EWM) were found floating in the water near the lake’s only public boat launch. It wasn’t clear if the pieces came from another lake via an unwashed boat or if they were from a plant growing in Glen Lake. GLA spent much of 2024 conducting extensive searches of the lake to find the answer.

The association ultimately found no evidence that EWM had established a foothold in the watershed, but it was a close call at best – especially since many Michigan lakes, including the nearby Lake Leelanau, have dealt with big EWM infestations. Kryder hopes bringing an executive director on board will position GLA to respond more quickly and effectively to comparable threats in the future.

According to the job listing, the new executive director “will play a critical role in building upon and strengthening the GLA’s foundation – organizationally, operationally, and financially – to ensure it can continue to fulfill its mission in an increasingly challenging environment.” The executive director is intended to “serve as the face of the GLA to the public,” and to “champion” the organization with members, volunteers, local businesses, government agencies, donors, “and other watershed stakeholders.” The year-round, full-time position carries a salary range of $85,000 to $105,000, along with benefits.

While the GLA is looking for a candidate with experience (and a college degree) “in marketing, communications, nonprofit management, or a related field,” Kryder says he’d love to find someone with background in invasive species work.

“I don't think we have to have a pure scientist, and I don't think we have to have a pure administrator/business person,” Kryder says. “I think we're fairly open-minded with respect to the skillset. But it would definitely be helpful for the person to have some science background.”

One thing the GLA is pretty set on? Hiring someone who has “knowledge and ties to Leelanau County.”

“There’s a real sense of community in the county and in our watershed, and we want to make sure we do everything possible to preserve that history, that knowledge, and that camaraderie,” Kryder explains. “We’re a group of small towns on a peninsula, and we want to make sure we’re respectful and mindful of the history of collaboration amongst the communities and amongst the lake associations. I think hiring someone that has that background or knowledge would be very helpful.”

The GLA relied on precisely that type of local camaraderie to prepare for its first executive director search. In the leadup to this announcement, Kryder says GLA “had very productive, very collaborative discussions with Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes,” another organization that recently broke with tradition to hire its first-ever executive director.

GLA is accepting applications for the executive director job until December 18. Per Kryder, the board intends to review applications and conduct interviews “throughout the winter months,” with hopes of “having a candidate selected by the March/April timeframe.”

“We want to give this new person the opportunity to have a whole summer to get to know people, to get their feet on the ground, and to really get entwined into the organization,” Kryder says.

Photo credit: Rob Karner, watershed scientist for the GLA.

CORRECTION: Kryder says the GLA has in fact identified an established EWM colony in Little Glen Lake since The Ticker last reported on the topic in August. More information about that infestation can be read here.