Sari empowers Brian to vote as her proxy
Charities [Kale]
Light the Night
still working on coffee, farmers markets initiatives
upcoming Charities meeting
prize for Fusion room party [Lauren]
quiz about what ATC is associated with
can give out quizzes from Gaming at Fusion [Matt]
â–º motion to offer one AD membership (outside of cap) as raffle prize at Anime Fusion room party [Lauren, John/Brian]
vote passes with no objections
AD memberships on auction [Jayson]
question: since it's illegal to scalp outside of MN for event in MN, will auction be affected?
quick hits
grant opportunity [Jayson]
via his company, can apply for $250 annual grant given to 501(c) volunteer organizations
would be given to the LEG fund, but can’t be used on the applicant (i.e., himself)
question: do similar grant opportunities exist with other companies? [Lauren]
offer training for documentation [Matt]
will write proposal for Jayson; may progress to other Coordinators
asked to be CC’ed, if it’ll involve technology [John]
EDITfest [Lauren]
e-mailed staff to see if anyone is interested; will e-mail event organizer with results [Lauren]
Sari wanted to use FB and Twitter for giveaway [Brian]; no objections
Young Women’s Mentoring Program [Brian]
sent them a lengthy e-mail explaining opportunities, but that we don't hold seminars
passed along Ted’s e-mail
free event at MN Center for the Book Arts tomorrow
have not yet followed up with Dan O’Leary [John]
Detour [Jayson]
hotel for 2016
budget for 2015
Bloomington Sister City Organization [Lauren]
met with them at CONvergence [John]
do they have concrete plan of what they want in a co-sponsored event? [Brian]
will get more information
SOS [Heather]
Fusion is pre-empting work for SOS
Kotatsu still ongoing
made reservation at GPS for November Tabletop Gaming Night
Erick Hofer - ValleyScare event in November
Danielle McKay proposed collaboration with GPS for December winterfest in room 107
GPS newsletter goes out on November 15 [Lauren]
two ATC teams finished one-two (out of six total teams) in recent Scavenger Hunt [Lauren]
financials [Kim]
current balance: $187,823.97
- far behind last year’s registration pace, mostly due to lack of price hikes
- no groups have registered yet
- anticipate rush in December, before/around Christmas [Jayson]
LEG fund
- ATC match: $1,856.62, in addition to community fund contributions and community sponsorships
- after Richard Townsend’s account is settled, LEG fund will have balance of just over $1,900
sent Jayson reminder about AD budgets
confirm ratified vote approving $1,000 donation to David Mendez toward legal fees for saving his house
vote passes with no objections
will touch base with Kellic re: Furry Migration
inventory is almost done (Photography is last AD department who haven’t submitted theirs)
- equipment rental list should be ready for December board meeting
emergency equipment request from GPS [Lauren]
any available shelving/racks
willing to pick up at same time as Fusion
â–º motion to approve request
vote passes with no objections
adding late fees to equipment request form [Lauren]
based on experiences with PokéCon
grace period of one hour from predetermined time, $75/hour afterward
should revise form, as there are missing fields [John]
should also ask for deposit in advance [Heather]
change submission deadline from three to two months; allow for possibility of rush fee if request is made past deadline [John]
will write language into form, ask for vote via e-mail
anti-harassment policy
warnings section adapted from other anti-harassment policies, legal sources
any staff member is empowered to issue warning; up to Coordinator of pertinent ATC event to determine who can write report [Brian]
may be helpful for Coordinators to craft versions particular to their event based off these general versions [John]
question: will staff be required to sign document? [Matt]
up to Coordinator? [Lauren]
should be determined on ATC level [Heather] because we’re empowering ATC staff to make cease-and-desist statements [Jayson]
can be available to go over any questions about policy from staff at Detour meetings [Lauren]
question: how to track who has signed for any given ATC event, not just Detour? [Matt]
much smaller problem logistically (in terms of staff size) outside of Detour [Lauren]
question: are you requiring attendees to sign public version? [Matt]
don’t require signoff, just post in public space (e.g., program book, badge) [John, Heather]
checkbox on registration form? [Kevin]
in general sense, policy is stating that ATC is not allowing illegal behavior [Jayson]
policy is intended as guideline on a general level, not laws; attendees should not be required to sign off, still on fence about requiring staff [John]
for short public version, precedence of implicitness exists with photography statement on badge [Heather]
question: how many people on staff besides self have certification in sexual harassment training? [Matt]
does not apply in this case, as enforcement will be up to Coordinator [Jayson]
original intent is to verify understanding of expectation among staff, not to establish course of action [Rin]
question: what was precipitating event? [Matt]
no specific event [Rin]
response to incidents at other conventions [Heather]
statement that staff will sign to after reading policy: “I have read and understood Anime Twin Cities, Inc.’s anti-harassment policy and agree to abide by federal and state laws” [Rin]
anticipate hesitance for some staff to sign [Matt]
from professional experience, once an organization reaches a certain size, something like this policy is standard procedure to cover general liability from a legal standpoint [John]
signing a policy may be standard procedure for companies, but ATC isn’t a company of employees, it’s an organization of volunteers [Matt]
irrelevant distinction in this case, because ATC is incorporated, and it’s an organization that holds its participants to certain standards [Damarra]
at this point, almost all of staff is 18 or older; as such, they would’ve signed something similar for their respective jobs [Rin]
this would be part of the expectations associated with being a representative of Anime Detour [Rin]
people that he’s talked to feel that policy is portraying staff as creepers [Matt]
actually, this policy would protect them from the public eye [Heather]
question: why can’t this be signed when badges are picked up? [Matt]
misunderstanding arises from lack of dialogue on what constitutes harassment [Rin]
question: would this be applicable toward goods in the Dealers Room (e.g., yaoi, Cards Against Humanity)? [Matt]
policy is for targeted instances of harassment [John]
analogous to warning provided in advance of potentially offensive material [John]
e.g., warning of dick picture at art auction before picture is seen [Lauren]
can be extended to any level, but does not necessitate enforcement in every instance [Damarra]
huge difference between active harassment and passively offended [Rin]
policy basically empowers attendee to know where s/he can go to if s/he feels harassed [Jayson]
no action is promised beyond investigating report [John]
policy does not change current course of action for staff [Damarra]
agrees with spirit of policy, but finds language confusing [Matt]
more positive PR about policy at staff meetings? [Lauren]
policy currently on website is from 2007 [Lauren]
would like more department heads to be involved [Matt]
that’s why ATC has been announcing this at AD staff meetings, and anyway that’s more in Jayson’s purview [Rin]
policy should’ve been made more public [John]
question: what will response be if someone refuses to sign? [Matt, Jayson]
should be decided on the ATC level [Heather]
implementation of policy should be separate from policy itself [John]
question: should recording procedure be determined by ATC or pertinent Coordinator? [Jayson]
Coordinator [Damarra]
board sets policy, Coordinator determines form [Heather]
board should be aware of how Coordinator implements policy [Damarra]
â–º motion to vote on instituting policy with the understanding that Coordinators will meet to create a form for handling complaints that they will review with the board once they have determined their needs [Lauren, John]
vote passes with no objections
defer discussion of implementation of signing to next board meeting
will post policy on ATC website [John]
summary/explanation of policy as accompaniment [Lauren]
will e-mail to AD staff list [Lauren]
possible document for staff intake paperwork [Heather, Kevin]
components
proposed in response to incidents at other cons
at this stage, just looking for stop/go from board to draft this document for review
Active Advantage - search site for employers of potential employees’ criminal history (no details) [Jayson]
- $3 per search
- used by CONvergence at some point, also used by bigger conventions that require applications from would-be staff
whether background checks should be required is beyond the level of this proposed document [Heather]
reluctant to ask people to consent to background check [Heather]
want form to be general in nature [Damarra]
this is intended to be a very basic, very general form [Heather]
different forms for different positions? [Damarra]
bylaws stipulate expulsion of board member who has been convicted of a crime during his/her term, but do not prevent someone with a record to be voted in [Kevin]
MN does not have Romeo-and-Juliet laws; what about people who have statutory rape on their records as a result of this non-provision? [Matt, Rebecca]
- would not look good to public, regardless of how actual circumstances can be interpreted [Heather]
- previously mentioned rewording would work best in this instance, as it is less ominous [Lauren]
- should at some point consider degrees of offenses in deciding what’s acceptable and not acceptable [Jayson]
- adamantly opposes being in a position to pass judgment [Heather]
no objections to allowing Heather and Kevin to draft document
Rin’s replacement [Lauren]
solicit candidates via e-mail to staff list [Damarra]; ask for statement indicating interest due a week before the next board meeting (11/3) [Brian]
- will draft e-mail within 48 hours [Rin]
bylaws allow replacement to be appointed by board, and appointment is ratified at following Detour meeting by staff members as goodwill gesture [Lauren]
sad news via Anita Phoenix [Lauren]
father of Jessica (Girl Scouts Cookies vendor at AD staff meetings) passed away recently
send card as sympathetic gesture? [Damarra, Heather]
â–º motion to send card [Lauren, Brian]
vote passes with no objections
Andy will send card
next meeting
discuss Coordinators’ goals, define their responsibilities more clearly
would like to add Coordinator for Marketing [Lauren]
â–º motion to adjourn [Brian, Kevin]
vote passes with no objections