The WGI Board of Directors held its annual July meeting in Las Vegas, gathering over three days to focus on strategic planning, policy review, and fiscal decision-making for the upcoming season. The meeting included key approvals of budget allocations and proposals from the advisory boards for the Color Guard, Percussion, and Winds divisions.
Fiscal Year 2027 Budget Adopted
As part of its annual July session, the Board approved the 2027 operating budget, covering core functions including office operations, regional and championship events, and off-season initiatives. Prior to adoption, the Board evaluated several proposals with financial and safety implications to ensure alignment with the organization’s goals and participant experience.
Read below to see the results of those proposals.
Color Guard:
- Proposal #19 passed at the Color Guard advisory board meeting to require a 2/3 majority vote for future proposals to pass. This was ratified by the board, as it aligns with the current practices of the Percussion and Winds divisions.
- WGI Admin proposed a potential sixth site for Color Guard World Championships prelims to proactively address capacity restrictions in 2027. The decision was referred to the Board of Directors for approval, and, after careful consideration, was ultimately rejected. The venue failed to meet many of WGI’s standards for a competition venue. The board believes that addressing capacity limitations for our World Championships events is important, but they must do so while protecting the integrity of the WGI experience. Board members and office staff will continue coordinating to find solutions to maximize capacity for future WGI events.
Percussion:
- Proposal #4 aimed to implement a quad panel for World Class finals, doubling the current panel of judges for those events. This was passed by the Percussion Advisory Board and further approved by the Board of Directors at the recent meeting.
Winds:
- The Winds Advisory Board passed Proposal #2 to grant new winds groups a free registration for a regional and World Championships event. This is in service of the division’s mission to increase the number of competing groups at all levels of competition. This proposal was further ratified by the Board of Directors at the July meeting.
- Proposal #11 asked WGI to run an Ethernet cable from the front center of the floor to the back for all Winds finals events in UD Arena. After passing at the advisory board level, it was forwarded to the Board of Directors, who ultimately rejected it due to operational limitations.
- Finally, the Board of Directors concluded that WGI will hold a separate Open Class and World Class retreat ceremony for the Winds division in 2027. This aligns their operations with those of the Color Guard and Percussion divisions and serves as a testament to the division’s continued growth.
International Presence:
- After an incredible return to Costa Rica in 2026 for the WGI Latin America Championships, the Board of Directors authorized a continuation of the event in 2027. The office staff will coordinate with Admin from Costa Rica to ensure everything is in place for the next iteration of the WGI Latin America Championships.
ELECTIONS:
The meeting concluded with the election of the Executive Committee, which is responsible for the organization’s general business operations between full board sessions.
WGI congratulates the following individuals on their election for the 2026–2027 term:
President – Ed Devlin
Vice President – Michael Gaines
Vice President – Don Click
Secretary – Rosie Miller Queen
Treasurer – Kevin Shah
