Board of Directors Meeting
MINUTES
18 January 2010
Minnetrista Cultural Center
11:30 AM – 2:30 PM
In attendance: Janna Bennett, Betty Brewer, Kat Burkhart, Stephanie Dilk, Tiffany Hatfield,
Modupe Labode, Ron Newlin, Jennifer Noffze, Jeannette Rooney, Lisa Simmons
Call to order by Kat Burkhart
I. Secretary’s Report (Jennifer Noffze)
Approval of minutes from 16 November 2009 meeting
II. Treasurer’s Report (Ron Newlin)
Distributed: Balance Sheet (as of 12/31/09), Budget vs. Actual (through 12/31/09)
and Profit and Loss Statements (from 7/1/09 through 12/31/09). Balance Sheet
shows $15,745.13 in the checking account and the endowment is back up at
$31,800.04.
Tiffany explained that the $3,000 expense allotted to the 2009 conference was not
incurred due to AASLH paying all initial expenses and then deducting the amount
later from AIM’s share of the revenue. Tiffany also shared that this was a record
amount of revenue for an AIM conference.
Ron said that the 2009 grants exceeded the expectations, due to the Clowes grant
awarded for the eTapestry software. Tiffany shared that the IAC grant allotment of
$1,800.00 has been received via direct deposit into the checking account.
Committee budget requests are due in March for approval at the May budget vote.
III. Coordinator’s Report (Tiffany Hatfield)
Annual Report—Tiffany is finishing work on this. Sue Bratton has offered to assist
with the layout. After discussion, the board decided to send a postcard to the
membership notifying them that the Annual Report and IRS Form 990 are posted on
the website. The postcard should also note that there will be exciting changes
forthcoming with AIM and a “Save the Date” for the 2010 conference.
Conference—the dates are August 8 and 9, 2010 in Bloomington. Tiffany expects
to launch the RFP/session proposals within the next two weeks. Tiffany is working
with Lisa on the plans for the Sunday networking opportunities.
Arts Day—Kat and Tiffany will be at the AIM booth talking to legislators and
distributing the Directory on January 26, 2010 from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM.
Membership—115 renewals sent in November with 47 second notices sent (50%
response rate). Out of an expected $10,000 in membership in revenue, AIM has
received around $5,000.
IV. Team/Committee Reports
Advocacy—Kat stated that AIM has a continued presence at the State Arts Day and
she reminded everyone of Museum Advocacy Day (March 24/25) in Washington
DC—Kat plans to attend. Discussion followed on IMLS funding and the
partnership between libraries and museums.
Network—No report.
Resources/Training—Modupe is working on two tentative workshops focusing
on Integrated Pest Management and Exhibits. These workshops will likely be
scheduled for May or June. Lisa distributed a tentative schedule for the 2010
conference in Bloomington. The focus for Day 1 (Sunday) of the conference is
“Networking” with topic discussions at various restaurants with moderators—AIM
will not pay for the lunches but will coordinate the topics, moderators and locations.
For the Sunday evening event, Tiffany and Lisa would like to organize the museum
tours into subject areas—i.e. science, art and history. Lisa discussed two possibilities
for the keynote speech: Eleanor Olstrom (Noble Prize winner in Economics who
has a specific interest in supporting small, private organizations) and Dr. James
Madison (IU History Professor whose recent focus is Hoosier community activists).
Tiffany and Lisa are still working on the conference theme. The EMP (Emerging
Museum Professionals) group will be launched at the conference. On Thursday, 21
January, Lisa will meet with the Alliance of Bloomington Museums. Lisa will post a
“Save the Date” on AIM’s Facebook page and the Indiana Museum People site. Lisa
also shared that the Bloomington Convention and Visitor’s Bureau is taking care of
the name tags and they may help with poster design. Kat asked Lisa to send an RFP
to Lily Library and the IU Archives—encouraging a library/museum partnership.
Tiffany will look into the conference possibly offering Continuing Education Credits
to librarians—may garner more registrants. Modupe suggested that AIM host a
small welcoming reception at the beginning of the conference for new
attendees/members of AIM to help get them oriented.
Sustainability/Futures—Janna shared that Stephanie has offered to join the LongRange Planning Committee. Ron shared that Stephanie has also offered to assist
with the financial audit—a decision was made to conduct an audit during the first
half-hour of the budget meeting in the spring.
V. Old Business
Board Makeup Decision--The board decided by consensus that a person may chair
a committee without serving on the board. A board liaison for each committee will
report to the board on the committee’s activities. Much discussion followed
surrounding how to attract people to serving on the board without overwhelming
them by providing them with support and job descriptions. Modupe stated that
most students are not trained for professional volunteering—Tiffany believes that
AIM may be able to assist with that in the future (possibly with a graduate intern
position with AIM). Tiffany and Janna will work on job descriptions for committee
chairs/members and it will be available at the next board meeting. The four
following chairs need to be filled: Nominating (most critical), Fund-Raising,
Membership and Media/Marketing. Kat also stated that at the next annual meeting,
AIM will request a change in the by-laws to reduce the amount of members. Ron
also encouraged AIM board members to engage in social outreach—perhaps by
attending one of the Indiana Historical Society’s “In Your Neighborhood” meetings.
New Contract for AIM Coordinator—Janna asked if anyone had any questions
about the updated position description (new title “Executive Director”). The new
contract will start with the fiscal year in July. Motion to approve the amended job
description was carried.
Indiana Museum People Evaluation—Ron shared the history and philosophy
behind the site. Everyone believed that the site was a positive and effective
communication site for AIM.
VI. New Business
2010-2011 Budget Overview—Ron asked for the board members to think of what
they would like for next three years. Specifically, what does AIM want to do and
what do our members want us to do. Ron would like to see AIM set our budget
goals based upon growth of the organization. Ron projects that AIM will have a
small surplus next fiscal year.
VII. Breakout Discussion by Teams
Adjourned at 2:35 PM.