Mid-Atlantic Marine Education Association Annual Board Meeting
Friday, November 1, 2013
12:00pm-4:00pm
VIMS, Gloucester Point, VA
Board Members
X - attending
President (Kathy Fuller) - x
Past‐President/Nominating/Membership/Web (Lisa Lawrence) -x
President-Elect (Sarah McGuire Nuss) -x
Secretary (Allison Besch) -x
Treasurer (Jackie Takacs) -x
Delaware Rep/Social Media (Chris Petrone) -x
North Carolina Rep (Andy Gould) -x
Virginia Rep (Carrie Bateman) -x
Washington, DC Rep (vacant)
Maryland Rep (Maria Madero) -x
Committee Chairs:
David Christopher (Archives/Standing Rules/NMEA 2014 Committee Chair/NMEA
Representative) -x
Carol Hopper-Brill (Grants/Mentoring) -x
Tami Lunsford (NMEA 2014 Committee Chair) -x
Ann McElhatton (Masthead) – not attending
Agenda/Business Items
Board Appointments (DC Rep and NMEA Rep)
Proxy options for MAMEA Board meetings
2014 Business/Membership Meeting Requirement Fulfillment
Board report template
Mini-Conferences/State Sponsored Events
Financial assistance for MAMEA members attending NMEA 2014
NMEA 2014
12-12:30 Lunch
12:30 pm Call to order by President Kathy Fuller
Action items in green
Motions in red
Discussion in navy blue
Officer Reports  President’s Report, Submitted by Kathy Fuller. Attended NMEA 2013
o
o
o
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Led the MAMEA chapter meeting with 22 people in attendance.
Promoted NMEA 2014
Beth Jewell was honored as the first recipient of the Johnette Borsarge Memorial
Scholarship
Scheduled an Osprey Banding trip for MAMEA members for Saturday, June 29 in the hope of
getting more members active throughout the year.
o 11 members attended (8 new/renewing, 3 current/lifetime)
Continued to serve on the NMEA 2014 planning committee advising from my experience on the
NMEA 2003 Conference planning committee and a local.
o Leading field trip committee
o Working with Maria Madero on a one-day student summit during the conference
modeled after the Youth Ocean Conservation Summit at Mote Marine Lab.
 Past President’s Report, Submitted by Lisa Lawrence
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Assisted President-Elect Sarah McGuire with the following planning elements of the 2013 annual
conference as a member of the Conference Advisory Team and the Conference Registration
Chair.
o Set up & management of online Call for Papers
o Set up & management of online registration
o Assisted with program schedule and conference logistics
 President-Elect Report, Submitted by Sarah McGuire Nuss
Annual Conference Report
As of October 10th (registration closes on the 18th),
# Registered 67 - plus invited speakers and special guests - Update – 84 people registered for
conference. Sally Lawrence assisted with several details.
 Day 15
 Full 52
Financial Information
The break-even point for the conference was 60 participants, so we should be in the black. We did have
to buy an ABC license for $55 for Friday night's dinner, (Sarah reported they did not have to buy this
license) which was not included in the original budget, but that should still be covered by extra
registrations. The Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in VA was a large supporter of
the conference - providing copies, décor, and swag at check in.
Friday night - Fiesta, invited speaker
Saturday - Plenary, sessions, book signing, auction all taking place at VIMS Waterman's Hall
Action Item: Mid‐Year Board Meeting Date: Can you all look at your calendars and come up with a few
weekends in April that you are available for the mid‐year board meeting? No decision on a location so
far, but we would like to get that date on the calendar soon. Discussion: April OK. Sarah suggests –
April 12, 2014 and no immediate conflicts mentioned. NSTA is first week of April 4/2-4/5. Mid-Atl Sea
Grant meeting, Spring break in public schools, Easter all things to look out for.
 Secretary’s Report, Submitted by Allison Besch
No report, but attending the meeting to take notes.
 Treasurer’s Report, Submitted by Jackie Takacs
From Jackie: “I will not have my report to you ahead of time. I am paying conference bills and have a
crazy timeline. I will email it to you the week of the conference and bring copies for the committee.”
Figure 1: 2013 MAMEA Working Budget - 11/1/13
INCOME
Approved
Actual
Difference
Memberships
$1,500.00
MAMEA Annual Conference
a. Registrations & Donations
b. Auction
$500.00
$1,200.00
6696.62
($6,196.62)
$1,200.00
$3,200.00
$8,314.41
-$5,114.41
TOTAL INCOME
EXPENSES
Accounting Service
Awards
NMEA membership
Plaques
Bank Charges
Board Expenses
Discretionary
Meeting
Travel
Bosarge Fund
Grants
Legal Consultations
Masthead
Mini-conference Support
Delaware
Maryland
Virginia
NMEA Rep
NOSB
Coaches Support
Award
Office Support
Supplies
Conference Call
Postage
Promotional Materials
PS Scholarships
Web Support
1617.79
$500.00
$90.00
$120.00
$25.00
$200.00
$300.00
$1,000.00
$500.00
$2,000.00
$300.00
$100.00
$1,500.00
$1,500.00
$450.00
$60.00
$100.00
$240.00
$100.00
$2,000.00
$1,500.00
$500.00
($117.79)
$500.00
(41.04)
(200.00)
(500.00)
(301.00)
$90.00
$78.96
$25.00
$200.00
$300.00
$800.00
$0.00
$2,000.00
($1.00)
$100.00
$1,123.50
(232.36)
0.00
(144.14)
(1,277.10)
$222.90
(60.00)
$450.00
$0.00
(39.99)
(9.92)
(44.00)
(640.00)
$60.01
$230.08
$56.00
$2,000.00
$860.00
$500.00
TOTAL EXPENSES
$13,085.00
($3,489.55)
$9,595.45
NET DIFFERENCE
($9,885.00)
$4,824.86
($5,060.14)
Passed around paper copy of working budget as of 11/1/13 (see Fig. 1 above). Not drastically
different from mid-year report because all expenses will be incurred in next 3 weeks (i.e. no
conference bills paid). $11682.28 in checking account BUT this does not include the conference
expenses. PayPal working well for the life member/double pay issue and also for scholarship
recipients being reimbursed. Biggest thing Jackie needs from this group: is there anything we want to
modify (in the working budget) for next year? Note the Scholarships and coupons for NMEA 2014
(coming out of CD). Discussion of strategic planning or leadership retreat, which was also mentioned
in the mid-year board meeting (2013). Board or general memebership? Doesn’t have to be in
Calendar Year 2014. David – NMEA is doing strategic planning. Tami – wait and see where NMEA is
going with it. David – no Bosarge fund next year. Kathy – Masthead line item? Keep? Jackie –
sometimes used for tech, software, or other items that may come up. Carrie – if States have money
left over in mini-grant, can she do another one? Response (Kathy/Jackie) – yes. Carrie – if so, is there
a time limit? Jackie – yes, do this by 12/31/13; mini-conference budgets do not roll over annually.
Action items: remove Bosarge fund line $500. Add NMEA conference – Line in budget NMEA 2014
$5000 for conference startup scholarship funds and groupons. Tami – so MAMEA members will get a
separate price and a separate website. USM will take the MAMEA member list and compare it to
incoming registrations to verify they get the MAMEA rate.
David – current budget estimates $3101 MAMEA cut. NMEA startup reimbursement is now $11,000.
Kathy – No MAMEA 2014 regional conference, so the Paul Standish Scholarships line is not needed in
the 2014 budget (see Fig. 2). 2013 proceeds will apply to the 2015 conference.
Figure 2: 2014 MAMEA
Budget
INCOME
Memberships
NMEA Start-up
reimbursement
NMEA Conference Revenue
MAMEA logo item
TOTAL INCOME
Approved
$1,500.00
$11,000.00
$3,101.00
$500.00
$16,101.00
EXPENSES
Accounting Service
Awards
NMEA membership
Plaques
Bank Charges
Board Expenses
Discretionary
Meeting
Travel
Grants
Legal Consultations
Masthead
Mini-conference Support
NMEA
Start-up
Scholarships
Groupons
NMEA Rep
NOSB
Award
Office Support
Supplies
Conference Call
Postage
Promotional Materials
Web Support
$500.00
$90.00
$120.00
$25.00
$200.00
$300.00
$1,000.00
$2,000.00
$300.00
$100.00
$1,500.00
$5,000.00
$5,000.00
$5,000.00
$1,500.00
$60.00
$100.00
$240.00
$100.00
$2,000.00
$500.00
TOTAL EXPENSES
$25,635.00
NET DIFFERENCE
($9,534.00)
Jackie – last year we ran a deficit of almost 10K, but that’s because we had a checking acct with $13K
in it. So right now we have a checking acct with $11K in it but we have to pay for this fall’s regional
conference.
Line item for PROFIT from MAMEA merchandise/logo items? Right now it’s $1000. That might be a
little high? Maybe more like $500. Swag ideas? Bottle opener. Dri-fit/performance/underarmour
style shirts.
MOTION: Carol – move to accept budget; Lisa second. All in favor, none opposed.
State Rep Reports
 Delaware Representative Report, Submitted by Chris Petrone. Discussion: Chris Petrone
will probably do another mini-conference the same as last year. Most likely 5/31/14.
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Attended the MAMEA Mid-Year Board meeting via telephone
Served on the MAMEA Nominating Committee
Delaware mini-conference “Hulls, Hops, and Horseshoe Crabs” was held on Saturday, June 8,
2013. Nine classroom teachers and 3 informal educators kayaked the Broadkill River, got a tour
of the Dogfish Head brewery, had dinner and a great Share-a-thon, then traveled to South
Bowers Beach, DE to watch hundreds/thousands of horseshoe crabs spawning. Lisa Tossey,
informal educator and NMEA Community Manager, was along for the mini-conference and put
together this fantastic video: http://vimeo.com/69140764. The mini-conference almost doubled
the DE MAMEA membership (from 9 to 16). Several new members will be attending the annual
conference; one of which will be on a conference scholarship. A recap article was submitted to
Masthead. Due to overwhelmingly positive response (including teachers driving from Virginia
and DC), I am planning on repeating the mini-conference on Saturday, May 31, 2014. Details
forthcoming.
MAMEA information (conference and membership) was displayed/distributed at
o MADE CLEAR Climate Science Academy at UD-Lewes, July 14-19, 2013
o Lewes Education Coalition “Day in Lewes” workshop – August 7, 2013
o Delaware Coast Day fifth grade essay contest winning teachers’ prize bags – October 6,
2013
Submitted “Delaware Update” to MAMEA Masthead for Spring, Summer, and Fall issues of
Masthead.
ACTION ITEM: Chris will volunteer to put together a board report template for – committee
chairs, state reps, and board reports (pres, etc). Open to discussion – should they look the
same? He will do this in advance of the April 2014 mid year board report. Chris will do this by
the end of March 2014 so there is a chance for comment.
 Maryland Representative Report – Kathy gave. Nothing to add. Not sure when 2014 miniconf will be.
Beth Schap is not able to attend the annual Board meeting on November 1, 2013. As a result, she
resigned from the MAMEA Board. Maria Madero (MD Representative-elect) was appointed by the
MAMEA president to the position of MD Representative effective October 9, 2013.
 North Carolina Representative Report, Submitted by Andy Gould
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Due to scheduling conflicts, a mini-conference won’t be possible this fall. There will be a NC
mini-conference in February or March of 2014. Currently looking into the following options:
o Greensboro Science Center & SciQuarium
o NC Estuarium
o Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center
I am considering making one of these locations a mini conference with meeting time to share
ideas and swap resources, and then visiting a second location as a smaller field trip in the Fall of
2014.
 Virginia Representative Report, Submitted by Carrie Bateman – thinking of January 2014 to
go whale watching. Trying to do 3/year.
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Mini Conference was held in August- 9 people attended the conference with several new
members joining our group. We went stand-up paddle boarding through Ecobeach tours in
Virginia Beach.
3 members met for an exciting baseball game at the Richmond Flying Squirrels in June.
Lots of opportunities for formal and informal educators throughout VA- all have been published
in the Masthead.
 Washington, DC Representative Report – DC Rep position is vacant. Some interested
individuals have been identified but no commitments. Trish Mace with Smithsonian and Bill ??
(both cancelled from conference). Discussion – Does the President appoint state reps or are
special elections held when a position is vacated mid-term? Do you formalize this procedure in
standing rules/bylaws (David)? Standing rules are Board governance policy and bylaws are
more formal. Replacement of officers should probably be in the bylaws. David consulted the
bylaws and it says that the President-Elect assumes the vacant office and any other vacancies
are to be filled by President. Is this fair (David – this bylaw is also badly worded)? No! Should
we change? Suggested change to Article IV Officers Section 2B. We are fixing the wording
(Kathy/Carol) tonight and put it out to the participants at the conference, who are voting on
this tomorrow. Tansferring this duty from pres-elect to past-president and fixing the wording.
The appointed person is serving out the rest of the term (i.e. NOT just until the next
conference). Lisa suggests that anybody could suggest. “Vacancies on the board will be filled
by the Past-President until a majority vote of the remaining board takes place. The person
selected shall serve out the remaining term of the vacancy.”
A discussion ensued about how to interpret/change this action by looking at rules/bylaws. For
the election nomination/voting timeline we need to address Standing Rule #201. We are
tabling this discussion until the midyear 2014 meeting.
Final amended bylaw wording: “Vacancies on the MAMEA board will be filled by the Past-
President until a majority vote of the remaining board takes place. The person selected shall
serve out the remaining term of the vacancy.”
Kathy - Motion to have the membership vote on this proposed bylaw as stated above. Seconded by Chris
Petrone. All in favor. Motion carries.**
** Results of the Membership Vote on 11/2/13 (notes submitted 11/4 by Kathy Fuller to Allison Besch
via email).
By-law vote
Article IV. Officers
From: Existing By Law wording
Section 2B. In the case of death, resignation, or inability to serve of an elected officer, the Presidentelect shall assume duties of the vacant office. Officers to fill any further vacancies shall be appointed by
the president.
To: Proposed revised wording
Section 2B. Unexpected vacancies on the MAMEA Board will be filled by the Past-President until a
majority vote to the remaining Board takes place. The person selected shall serve out the remaining
term of the vacancy.
Membership vote results: 61 for; 2 against – By law change approved.
Official 2014 Membership Meeting
At the NMEA 2014 business meeting MAMEA will present the 2014 MAMEA awards and give an update
on the 2013 grants program projects. Tami is contacting Susan Haynes (NMEA president) to ensure we
are on the schedule for the meeting. The awards application time line needs to be adjusted. Kathy will
alert Megan Ennes, Awards Committee Chair.
The official MAMEA membership meeting will be held in the Richmond, VA area, on Saturday, October
18th in conjunction with the regional NSTA conference. The meeting will be combined with an event
that will take place in the afternoon/evening, after the conclusion of the NSTA conference. The event
will have a small fee that MAMEA members will be able to apply for a small scholarship to cover the fee
only. No auction, awards, etc. will be presented at the event. The grants program timeline will remain
unchanged. President-elect, Dawn Sherwood, will be working on planning the event with the assistance
of the Board and others.
More bylaw discussion – what about sending a proxy to a board meeting? Lisa thinks there are state
laws about proxies depending on where an ORG is located. MAMEA originates out of VA so this will
have to be investigated. Action Item - DAVID will look into the VA bylaw rules and report back. Tabled
for now.
Due to renovations to the Department of Commerce Building in Washington, DC, the National Aquarium
in Washington, DC closed its doors to the public on September 30, 2013. As a result Bill Simpkins has
resigned from the MAMEA Board as DC Representative. A new DC Representative needs to be
appointed.
Closing remarks on State Rep reports from Kathy Fuller – thank you to state reps and they
should note their reports don’t have to be action oriented but keep us posted and keep the
reports coming.
Committee Reports
Archives Report, Submitted by David Christopher Nothing to report.
Awards Committee Report, Submitted by Megan Ennes.
No formal report. Both awards received nominations and have been reviewed. A non-formal educator
and classroom educator award recipient have been selected. Winners are Bill Dunn (teacher) and
Andrew Wilson (non traditional). Both have naval history and long MAMEA history.
Grants Committee Report, Submitted by Carol Hopper Brill 2 grant recipients – Maria (MD)
and Heather Mericle-Sherburne in VA.
1. Grants Review Committee for grant submissions includes: Grants Committee Chair, President, PastPresident, Treasurer, and reviewers identified by the Grants Chair.
2. The Grant award period remains 1 year only, Nov. 1 to Oct. 31; Final reports due = Nov. 30.
3. Results of the 2012/13 Grant:
a) Sarah McGuire has already submitted an article for the Masthead, fulfilling one of her
requirements
b) Her Final Report is expected and I will distribute the report to Grants Committee members via email. Once we accept the report, Jackie sends the balance 20% of the grant.
4. I extended the deadline for the 2013/14 grants to Sept. 30, and 2 grants were submitted, one
informal and one formal ed.
a)Reviewers include: Lisa Lawrence, Kathy Fuller, Sarah McGuire, Jackie Takacs and myself. Since
Kathy is associated with the Informal Educator’s proposal, Sarah McGuire is reviewing in her place.
b)As Chair, I will communicate any Committee’s requests for clarification to each applicant and assist
the applicants (as needed) address the changes to the Committee’s satisfaction.
c) Upon Committee approval, I will prepare short power point presentations to introduce the project
to the Membership at the Business Meeting.
5. After the MAMEA Conference, I’ll:
a) add profiles for the Grantees & descriptions of their projects to the website’s Grant Recipients
pages.
b) confer with grantee about appropriate local media outlets and issue press releases. This is to win
them some recognition and to get MAMEA some coverage as well.
c) Submit an article featuring the 2013/14 Grantee(s) to the November 2013 Masthead.
6. To better track the progress that Grantees are making on their projects, I try touching base with them
approximately quarterly. An e-mail or phone call just to see how things are progressing and if there
is any help they need.
7. Improvements to Grant Committee communication procedures:
a) I will test using a Doodle poll for recording the Committee Members acceptance of Grants and
Final Reports to assure all input is recorded in a single location. But committee members are still
encouraged to use the review forms for rating grant criteria.
b) I will develop a more formal checklist for tracking Grant award & distribution
c) I will establish early communications with the Grantees’ Fiscal Officer, as well as the Grantee.
d) I request that the Treasurer copies the Grant Chair when sending communications and allotment
checks to the Grantees’ Fiscal Officers so Grant Chair is better informed.
8. The availability of MAMEA Educational Project Grants will be advertised in the next 3 Masthead
Issues, with a deadline of September 15 (2014).
Facebook/Social Media Report, Submitted by Chris Petrone. Report stands. Twitter
hashtag is #MAMEA13. Post pics to MAMEA Facebook page also using #MAMEA13.
MAMEA Facebook Statistics (http://www.facebook.com/teachmamea)
 We currently have 196 people who “Like” us (up 15% since Mid-Year Board meeting report in
April), several of which are not located in the mid-Atlantic, but are active with NMEA and other
regional chapters.
 Our Facebook friends are 76% female and 22% male (previously 75.9% and 21.8%, respectively),
with the largest percentage of women falling into the 25-34 and 35-44 age brackets, at 20% and
21%, respectively. The highest percentage of men fall into the 35-44 age bracket with 6%
(previously 5.9%).
 In terms of location, our highest number of Fans (10) come from Wilmington, NC; with
Washington, D.C. and Baltimore, MD coming in second with 7 each. Virginia Beach, VA is fourth
with 6.
 Have posted relevant links, events, and status updates with occasional feedback.
 The two reining most popular posts (MAMEAns at Exit Glacier at NMEA12 and Happy Birthday
photo to President Lisa Lawrence) were ousted (handily) by the following tagged pictures:
 Photo of Terri Kirby Hathaway signing her book, “North Carolina’s Amazing Coast”
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=637781862916467&set=a.158739837487341.3698
8.123930644301594&type=1&theater
Reached/seen by 1,283 people; was Liked 74 times; Commented on 16 times; and Shared 5
times.
 Photo of MAMEA members at NMEA13 (after chapter meeting)
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=659475594080427&set=a.158739837487341.3698
8.123930644301594&type=1
Reached/seen by 857 people; was clicked on 154 times; and Liked 52 times
 Photo of MAMEA members with the NMEA pike (after NMEA13 live auction)
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=660163414011645&set=a.158739837487341.3698
8.123930644301594&type=1
o Reached/seen by 843 people; was clicked on 90 times; and Liked 49 times
MAMEA Twitter Statistics (@mamea78)
 14 followers (up from 10 since Mid-Year meeting). Not currently active—more of a placeholder
account.
MAMEA YouTube channel
 MAMEA now has a YouTube channel. It was set up in case we need to house the NMEA2014
promo video; however, the video is being housed on the NMEA YouTube and Vimeo channels.
Storify
 Chris compiled a Storify of “MAMEA at #NMEA13” which records all of the NMEA13 action
through the eyes of MAMEAns. Posts are either by or about MAMEA members. The Storify has
60 views.
Hashtags of Note
 #mamea13 – for all annual conference-related posts
 #MAMEAmini – for all mini-conference related posts
Comments
 Suggestions on improving the MAMEA social media presence are always welcome and
appreciated.
 Hoping to meet with people interested in advising/contributing to MAMEA social media at
annual conference.
 Masthead Committee, Submitted by Ann McElhatton. Kathy received a report at the last
minute. Allison asked what is the format history of the Masthead? It became a blog in Fall
2011 and Ann took over winter 2012/2013. 2013 had 595 views of online masthead. Big
months were Feb (97/267), June (54 visitors/127 views), September (23/52). Tami- always
sends Masthead to NMEA board, which accounts for some of the “opens”.
No report.
 Membership Committee, Submitted by Lisa Lawrence. Lisa will keep the membership
duties and officially pull it out of secretary role.
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158 current members (5 inactive members renewed through conference registrations)
o DC – 6
o DE – 12
o MD – 38
o NC – 32
o VA – 64
o Other – 6
+15 new members from conference registrations (=173 members)
 Mentoring Committee, “NOSB Competition Subcommittee”, Submitted by Carol HopperBrill
1. I am quite willing to continue assisting the Past-President by coordinating communications for the
MAMEA awards for regional NOSB competitions, a Mentoring Committee project. I help with
2 elements:
a) Offering up to 4 MAMEA memberships for teachers serving as new coaches for the 3 regional
competitions (Chesapeake Bay Bowl, Blue Crab Bowl, Blue Heron Bowl);
b) Offering MAMEA conference registration for the 1st place coach of each of these Bowls.
2. NOSB funding is severely reduced this year, but our 3 regional Bowls will be held this year at a barebones level. The Awards from MAMEA will be welcome. It is unclear yet whether NOSB will have funds
to support team travel to the Finals, winning teams may have to do fundraising of their own.
3. I will continue to work with the Regional Coordinators of the Bowls to acknowledge MAMEA as an
award donor for their Bowls and include the MAMEA logo if possible in their event program or sponsor
page.
a) Chesapeake Bay Bowl Coordinator: Chris Petrone (UDel Sea Grant)
b) Blue Crab Bowl Coordinators: myself and Victoria Hill (ODU)
c) Blue Heron Bowl Coordinators: Janelle Fleming (NC State Univ.)
4. I will provide certificates for the Bowl Coordinators to distribute at their awards ceremony, and follow
up with a “Welcome to MAMEA” e-mail to the award recipients. I submit the recipients contact
information to the MAMEA Secretary as soon as I obtain it so that their benefits can begin as soon as
possible.
5. I also ask the Bowl Coordinators to provide a photo of their winning team so that I can write an article
for the Spring 2014 Masthead.
6. For the winning coaches, I alert them when Conference registration opens and clarify with them that
their award is for MAMEA Conference registration fees only, no other expenses associated with lodging,
guest tickets or travel to the conference. I shared their information with the Conference Committee.
Bill Dunn of Bishop Sullivan Catholic School is expected to attend the 2013 MAMEA conference.
NMEA Representative Report, Submitted by David Christopher . NMEA has put out a call
for office management (Johnette and Sharon Walker’s position) of the National Office.
Looking internally but currently open only internally. Want proposals in by mid-Dec. Looking
for someone who works out of the home or as part of their existing job. Will provide a
similar amount of funding that was provided to Johnette but no exact number. Job
description is slightly vague. Moving website to yourmembership.com. There is basically a
lot of transition going on at NMEA. Discussing the “one membership” concept – NMEA gives
you automatic regional membership. Lisa has questions about record keeping – how will they
transfer membership info to the regional offices?
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I am willing to act as the MAMEA Rep to NMEA. However, if anyone wants the job that is fine
with me. One area of concern I have is that I WILL NOT be able to attend this summer’s board
meeting as I will be busy with other things.
Upcoming Chapter Rep phone meetings are:
o September 10, 2013
4:00 pm
Eastern
o November 12, 2013
7:00 pm
Eastern
o February 11, 2014
4:00 pm
Eastern
o May 13, 2014
7:00 pm
Eastern
Also there is the 2014 NSTA Share-a-thon and Board Meeting, April 2-3, Boston, MA
I endorse Chris Petrone’s request to use similar reporting forms as NMEA. This makes the reps
job easier when communicating things back and forth between MAMEA and NMEA.
NMEA is updating their website currently.
NMEA is using a new Web Conference software for meetings
There is a new NMEA Social Media/Community Manager – Lisa Tossey
 Nominating Committee, Submitted by Lisa Lawrence . Timelines for nominating are still
paper ballot timelines – nominations open (30 days) then close; nominees announced (30
days – can we lessen or eliminate this?); elections open (30 days) and elections close prior to
the chapter meeting at NMEA (no mention of how long prior).
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
MAMEA Board elections were held online for offices of President Elect, Secretary, and MD & NC
State Reps. Each office had one candidate running unopposed, but members were able to write
in candidates. 58 members voted and the results, as follow, were announced at NMEA 2013
Chapter meeting and in the Masthead. Numbers of members voting are consistent with past
years (56 in 2010, 35 in 2011, and 60 in 2012) but account for only 35-40% of the membership.
o President Elect: Dawn Sherwood
o Secretary: Carol Hopper Brill
o MD Rep: Maria Madero
o NC Rep: Andy Gould
We need a special election for DC representative to replace Bill Simpkins. We currently have 4
DC members besides Bill (see below) but 2 additional with conference registration. Only DC
members can vote and only one of the current members will be at the annual conference. We
can set up a special online election for the replacement 1-year DC Rep position.
o Emily Boyer (member since Oct. 2012; teacher at St. Johns College High School)
o Trish Mace (member since Feb. 2012; informal educator at Smithsonian)
o Pam Wasserman (member since Oct. 2012; work s for Population Connect)
o Terry Wood (member since Feb. 2012; teacher at J.C. Nalle Elementary)
 Scholarship Committee Report, Submitted by Sarah McGuire Nuss
We received 6 applications for scholarships to MAMEA - 2 NC, 3 VA, 1 DE. One of the NC applications
was not valid because the applicant had not paid dues and was not an active member. We offered to
allow the person to renew their scholarship in order to be considered, and it was mentioned to them
that I had to check into the limitations of how often you can receive a scholarship (had received one in
2011). After hearing that, the applicant withdrew their application before it was brought to the
board. Therefore, all of the other 5 applications were awarded. Some reimbursements were awarded
prior to the conference if the applicant registered online, and the rest will be given out in person at the
conference.
Action Item:
We need to vote on the rules of the scholarship - how often people are eligible to receive awards? This
has been discussed several times but is not in the official bylaws (well actually this is a standing rule).
Discussion – NMEA rules are every 3 years. MAMEA board thinks every other year is ok. Wording:
Members may not receive a Paul Standish scholarship in consecutive years. Carol Motion We modify
Standing Rule 208.2 adding item D which would read (see above in bold). Sarah second. All in favor,
none opposed. Motion carries.
Standing Rules Report, Submitted by David Christopher
 Suggestion for bylaw to allow proxy votes at Board meetings:
ARTICLE XI. QUORUM
Section 3: In the event a board member cannot attend a meeting. The board member can assign a
proxy to attend in their place.
o
This would need to be voted on by the membership.

We can hold a membership meeting at the NMEA conference to fulfill the obligation of
holding an annual membership meeting without a regional conference in 2014. Discussion business meeting during the chapter meeting. Sarah – mid year meeting in April and business
meeting in July at NMEA (this is not the same as a board meeting). Then you have to have
another physical meeting – a board meeting – in the fall. Mention MAMEA awards at NMEA
2014. Mention current 2013-2014 grants at NMEA. Don’t mess with grants schedule. A
business meeting at NMEA will be nice – 75 minutes while eating and bidding and selling raffle
tickets is doable. Sarah is president until the board meeting (including running the meeting)
and then Dawn becomes Pres. This will be in the middle of the NMEA conference, and Dawn
becomes Pres in July and helps organize the Fall meeting (in lieu of a full blown conference).
The board is reluctant to make a final decision without Dawn being present (today). The
conference advisory team (treasurer, past Pres, Pres, pres-elect) will discuss this. Include
awards chair (Andy Gould will stand in for Meagan on this) and meet here at 8am-9am on
Sunday. Action Item: Kathy will take notes and communicate to Allison.
 Website Committee, Submitted by Lisa Lawrence
Website statistics for 2013 were approximately half that reported for 2012. This is due to a change in
website statistics reporting software is pulling out the Internet search robot crawler visits from the stats.
Visitation for the last 12 months is: 14,117 page accesses during 6,595 visits. Website visitation peaks in
the two months preceding the annual conference.
The MAMEA list-serve (open to public not just MAMEA members) has 189 subscribers. Postings over the
past year decreased slightly from 63 messages last year to 51 messages this past year.
I set up a Shopify.com store for MAMEA in order to process online conference registration payments. It
creates a shopping cart that links conference registration to our Paypal account. This has been very
successful and I would recommend it for future registration needs. Fees are $14/month plus 2% per
transaction ($2.50 on $125 reg or $2.80 on $140). Paypal fees are $3.05 on $125 reg or $3.38 on $140
reg. For future conferences, we’ll need to add ~$7 per registration to cover Shopify & Paypal fees.
NMEA 2014 Website
The NMEA 2014 online Call for Papers form has been created. After testing by the conference
committee, it will be ready to go live to start accepting session proposals for 2014 conference.
http://www.nmea2014.com/
NMEA 2014 Report, Submitted by David Christopher. Tami had a long conversation with
Peter Tuddenham from the College of Exploration. He is interested in hosting an
“International Day” at the hotel on Monday, the day before NMEA – not part but adjacent.
Tami thought it was great but would talk about it on Sunday at planning meeting. MAMEA
board can help us out on auction items – esp outside of MAMEA range, always looking for
donors too, registration will go live in January. Registration goal is $450 but would like it to
be lower. Chris Petrone had a conversation with Maryann Sholl – marketing person for
NMEA 2015 (Newport RI) about what they need – page in program, etiquette in preconference stages.
Then discussed the scholarships for NMEA and how the $10,000 is split. 10 scholarships at
$500 (registration – Jackie – if registration goes to $450 then we can cover 12. Or we can
cover registration plus travel. Tami – how will scholarship recipients be held accountable to
attending? Jackie – put a hold on their cc and tell them the amt in full will be charge the day
after they fail to show)  put this in with NMEA notes. Any other questions about the
MAMEA support for NMEA? no.
The committee held its last planning meeting on September 14. The next planning meeting will be held
on November 3 from 9am to 1 pm.
Agenda
 Key Dates
o November - January (dates TBD): Call for presentations
o January – April (tentative): Exhibit Registration
o February 10 - April 30: Early bird registration
o March 15: Deadline for Traditional Knowledge, Expanding Audiences, and NMEA
member-only scholarships
o July 21: Pre-conference workshops and opening event at the U.S. Naval Academy
o July 22 - 24: Plenaries, concurrent sessions, and exhibits
o July 22: Evening event at the National Aquarium in Baltimore featuring Donegal X-Press,
a local Celtic rock band
o July 23: Conference banquet and auction
o July 24: Potential Boat Cruise
o July 25: Optional field trips & EdCamp-style “unconference”
 Conference Schedule (see separate sheet)
 Speakers
o Where are we?
 Henry Miller- present on history/archaeology/maritime, Monday night
 Edie Widder, former senior scientist at Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution
and co-founder of the Ocean Research and Conservation Association Tuesday
Morning.
 Mike Wysession, Chair for Earth and Space science writing team for the NGSS
Wednesday
 Rita Colwell, Chairman of Canon US Life Sciences, Inc. and Distinguished
University Professor both at the University of Maryland at College Park and at
Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. Former NSF
director- Thursday
 Registration
 We have confirmed USM will handle online registration, but will not be onsite.
 Concurrent Sessions
o Online application form complete


o To be opened following MAMEA
Youth Conference
o We will be have a conference strand for highs school students one day
Next Steps
o Should have quote for buses and A/V by November meeting
o We are beginning to select menus
o We are continuing to look into donors and auction items
o Working on Thursday night event after DC did not work out
Kathy moves to close meeting. Lisa and chris second. Meeting ends 3:55 PM.