Meraki Meeting Minutes 12/1/15
Dave Grant facilitating
Attending: John Boynton, Dave Grant, Neil Sattin,
Chloe Urban, Julie Vohs, Diane Archambault
Lindy Ost, Dierdre Sulkameister, Jim Young, Martin Steingasser, Liz Farmer,
Mary Ellen D, Eva Goetz, Shelagh R, Liberty, Deb Grant
Agenda Items suggested:
financial accountability - Mellon
Financial question of what we are doing with extra money - Liberty
New Years Eve Dance
meeting norms - Dave Grant
partnering w/ outside organizations - Dave Grant
dne conference Jim is going
Issues re: email list - Dave Grant
First Aid Supplies - Martin Steingasser
Counseling Service - Martin Steingasser
Equity committee - Nev (not in attendance - would like to FaceTime conversation)
DJ issues - Chloe
Issue about ways to have conversations about issues that matter to the community - Neil
Having Meraki meetings after dance instead of during the week - Liz
Wizengamot -
free dance - John Boynton
extending dance hours - Neil Sattin
spring retreat - Diane Archambault
1st order of business: Welcome to new board
Meeting norms: no formal process for meetings - Dave proposes we start reading our minutes from the previous meeting.
Deb read highlights from last meeting
Suggestions:
organize meetings around old business and new business
conversation dovetails with how we generate agenda items
DO we want to have a more formalized way of generating agenda?
Suggested agenda items put onto a document in google drive?
Discussion was tabled for future meeting
Vote: Secretary or someone will start meetings w/ reading highlights of previous meeting
Outcome: Unanimous
New Years Eve committee - Deb G, Chloe, Diane A, Shelagh, Jim Y. Dierdre, Liz,
Thursday Night dances - Deb talked about the feeling that there is a little too much work for the small group who has been putting it on. Shelagh and Eva agreed to come early to help.
Deb asked that one or two other people become Mechanics Hall members so that they can lock up.
Vote: unanimous to add mechanics hall members - willing to stay late and help set up
Retreat - Diane reported on her conversation with Camp Waavus & Kieve. We had planned to have the next retreat the weekend of April 1 - which is early in the year for to expect good weather. She suggested we switch from Kieve to Wavus - and submitted available dates.
Proposed dates - April 8 & 10, 15 & 17, May 13-15, May 20-22,
Diane was given the authority to book the date that works best for the majority.
Diane will create a doodle poll and Julie will administer to the community to vote on a preferred date.
Dimensions of dance floor are 45 x 50 ‘
Partnering w/ outside organizations: Nev, Eva & Dave met in committee to formulate a plan about how PCD might partner with other groups/teachers. Dave read a statement formalizing PCD’s stance.
PCD encourages all forms of dance thru sharing on Facebook and table at dance
statement:
PCD encourages all forms of dance through sharing of announcements on our table and FB, and does not officially endorse or partner with individuals or organizations in hosting events, with the exception of offerings focused on safety arranged by invitation from the Meraki.
Lindy volunteered to maintain the table with dance offerings
Committee statement was voted on unanimously
Financial safety & accountability: Melon talked about the ways in which we move $ through the organization, ($30K a year) and suggested we need to formalize a plan for financial safety and accountability so that liability does not fall to John for such large amounts. Mellon will work w/John to come up with a policy to create safety and accountability. John talked about liability. Committee?
Melon, John, Dave G. Nev
Other financials - Free dance - At last meeting it was decided free dances would be held at the treasurers discretion when our monies fall in a range above a yet to be determined amount.
John does not want to be in charge of deciding when free dance will be offered.
After discussion it was proposed that free dances will be held at the discretion of members of the board? _ voted unanimously
John will bring information about the range we will use to determine when dance will be offered free -
Potential compensation for the treasurer was discussed - Topic will be part of ? about accountability
dave, melon, john, nev will be on committee
email list - membership 2016, 82 people - membership is in google, list in mail chimp must be updated.
Extended dance hours- Neil followed up w/Kristen at Avant who said we are welcome to have the space for an extra 1/2 hr - changes dance hours to 10:15 to 12:45. Chloe suggested we add the 1/2 hour to the end to give us space but do not announce the change.
vote yes - to rent the space for an extra 1/2 hr at the end
First aid supplies - Martin asked that we have a good basic set in one place that is easy to get. - Blair will organize the first aid kit.
Counseling service - Martin - suggests that it be a larger group - and not called Counseling. The group will be larger once we have dealt with appointing new people to the Wizengamot.
Deb will draft a script to be read by dj’s specifically addressing safety concerns.
Ways to have conversations about PCD issues with the community - Neil brought up that many of the conversations about dance happen outside of dance. (Examples: safety, hours etc). Since we don’t talk during the dance he suggested having regular potlucks to have conversations that need to happen about dance.
• salon style with a mixture of facilitated and free form conversation around a dance topic.
• Neil will elicit help to put an event on in January and wouldl ike permission to choose a date. Mixture of facilitated and free form conversation (requested by john).
Voted yes by majority
This topic intersects w/ safety dance topic which will be held in January on Martin Luther King weekend - when Deb DJ’s.
The topic also intersects w/ the possibility of holding some Meraki meetings after dance. - tabled until next meeting
DNE - Jim Young - will bring back info from DNE - asked if would we want to be listed as a dance new england event? It was suggested he go, get information and bring it back for Meraki to consider.
Wiz rotation - issues - found out we have only 4 members and we need 6. Wiz has not had meetings in a long time. It was suggested that is time to rotate the wiz. Neil will research Wiz responsibilities and facilitate a discussion on the Wiz at the next meeting
Date for next meeting - January 5, 7 pm at Melon’s House 186 congress Street.
Issues tabled to next meeting:
Meraki meetings after dance
Agenda and meeting formats
Issues on Agenda that did not get addressed
DJ issue - purchasing an ipad and Spotify subscription…
Issues to be reported on at next meeting:
financial range for hosting of free dances
Jim Young’s DNE meeting experience
Wizengamot duties, member rotation
Possible compensation for a financial person
Guidelines for Financial accountability and safety
