Ĉeestas
Brandono SOWERS
Quintyn (Kuo) BOBB
Mateo BROOKS
Charlotte BURTON
Ruth (Margo) KEVESS-COHEN
Peggy DOLTER
Enrique HARO-MARQUEZ
Isabel GARDENER
Ŝneoro AGRONIN
Ne Ĉeestas
Fred MEYER III
Ĉeestas sen Voĉdonrajtoj
Amanda SCHMIDT
Izaak ZAWYRUCHA-MOORE
Kinen CARVALA
Bradford SMITH
Quintyn calls the meeting to order. The board candidates introduce themselves to the board. A quorum is declared. No changes to the agenda are proposed. The minutes of the previous board meeting are approved by acclamation.
Reports
President/VP
Quintyn reports that Google Analytics is now set up for the main Esperanto-USA website, which will provide more detailed information on website use. Additionally, an Esperanto FAQ page is being planned, which can be added to the website and linked via promotional materials, explaining important information about the Esperanto language. Information from the previous Google Drive folder, which had been shared to board members, has now been transferred to the new Google Shared Drive.
Central Office
Amanda reports that she has created a contingency plan document, in case something unexpected should happen to her, which explains necessary information related to the organization in such an event. She has also created a list of life members and is enacting plans to send out certificates to life members. As a part of this, she has been working with the membership committee to verify whether certain life members are still living or are deceased, including some for which no contact information has been found. Brandon speaks in favor of this improved communication with life members. Amanda is also sending the life members a thank you letter and is also planning a special reception for life members at the annual conference. Kinen recommends placing information in Usona Esperantisto to encourage life members to reach out to the Central Office, which Amanda agrees to include in the next issue of the newsletter.
Amanda announces that Brandon was able to negotiate a significant discount with Springly, and the onboarding process has begun. The initial phases of the roll-out should be available within a month. This new program will significantly reduce administrative tasks related to updating and tracking membership data.
Amanda reports on the Dulanda Kongreso, that 97 people have signed up for NASK and/or the DLK, with nearly 70 participants already signed up to the congress. Plans are going smoothly, and emails will be sent out to conference registrants, reminding them to check the website for updates. Other board members ask technical questions regarding DLK policy on minors as well as other procedural affairs.
Amanda reports on the grant readiness workshop, which the Executive Committee has been participating in. This is to support the organization in preparing to apply for grants from private organizations. Included in the planned grant requests are a proposal for grant requests in support of the Usona Bona Film-Festivalo, and one to support the creation of a teacher training program. Based on feedback from the grant readiness workshop, these proposals are being edited to request more money and plan the grants to take place over the time frame of a single year.
Treasurer
Matt reports on Esperanto-USA’s finances. The treasurer and the director of the central office have been learning more about the management of the brokerage account and the endowment accounts. The endowment accounts have been invested such that they are in low-risk investments which provide regular and steady income, regardless of market fluctuations. Matt discusses with the board the nuances of different investment management options which are available to the organization for various accounts. Overall, the treasurer’s report indicates that Esperanto-USA is continuing to function as expected. The board members and candidates take time to ask clarifying questions, which Matt is able to answer. Matt clarifies to board members where they can find bank statements and information regarding the financial reports.
Membership Committee
Peggy reports that the membership committee has been discussing a possible survey for members, and that members may be asked upfront what information they are comfortable in sharing via a membership directory. This will be added to a membership survey, which would be sent out to members prior to the directory being rolled out to the full membership. This survey is expected to be sent out by the end of May.
Old Business
No old business is on the agenda.
New Business
Status of Fred Meyer
Fred Meyer has missed three consecutive board meetings. As such, per the updated bylaws, the board must now discuss whether anything should be changed regarding the remainder of his term. Brandon recommends that, since Fred’s term ends this summer, he be permitted to serve out the remainder of his term. The board discusses this situation and various options. Matt suggests that, if this were the first or second year of a board member’s term when this happened, he would recommend removing that person from the board. Amanda, Quintyn, Matt, Charlotte, Brandon, and Kinen speak in the discussion.
Values Statement
The board reviews the draft Values Statement, which was drafted by the Values Statement working group. Brandon recommends that the board discuss the values statement further, such as via Slack, and that the draft statement be presented to the membership at ViA and then presented to the congress for a possible vote. The board discusses in more detail regarding the planning of ViA and publicity for it, as well as some procedural matters regarding publicity for upcoming events in general.
The meeting was adjourned.