March 11 2013 board meeting minutes

March 11, 2013, board meeting minutes

Attendance: Eric Lyttle, Phil Rudell, Beth Gianforcaro, Sharon West, Jennifer Monnin, Chuck Nelson, Julanne Hohbach

Call to order: 12:20 p.m. without a quorum

Financials: Phil updated the chapter’s financials including an incoming $150 check from national for chapter dues and an expense of $85.35 paid to Eric to cover flowers sent to former chapter president Katy Waters. As of March 11, the chapter’s checking account contained $7,814.06.

Membership: Board member Doug Haddix has submitted his resignation following a promotion that will add to his duties at work. There was a discussion about possible replacements for Doug’s position, as well as other potential openings on the board.

Founders Day: After comparing the costs of at several venues, the committee (Sharon, Jennifer and Chuck) recommended holding this year’s event at the Fawcett Center on the Ohio State campus. The OSU Golf Club and Fawcett were the final two sites under consideration and the costs for both were similar. The board will need to vote online to finalize the decision. There was also a request for nominations for annual awards.

Ohio SPJ Awards: The board discussed the situation regarding the preparations for this year’s contest, including the lack of communication between the coordinators and the board regarding the choice of an online platform. Eric said a conference call was being arranged to discuss the issues.

New Business
Tax-exempt status: Chuck clarified to the board that the chapter’s federal tax-exempt status is as a 501(c)(6) non-profit organization, not a 501(c)(3) as we had believed. The chapter is operated as a subordinate entity to the national organization and inherits that group’s status. This means we cannot tell individuals or companies they can qualify for a tax write-off for donations made to the group. It also means don’t qualify for an exemption from state sales tax, which has been done in the past.

Twitter account: Chuck said the chapter’s new Twitter account has been established at @CentralOhioSPJ.

Sunshine Week: Eric suggested we run links on our website to stories related to Sunshine Week.

SPJ Regional: Sharon said she would be attending the SPJ Region 4 event in Dayton. The board was unable to formally authorize payment of her expenses.

Adjourn: Meeting adjourned at 1:10 p.m.

Online voting

On March 15, an online vote was held to determine the venue for Founders Day. Eric made a motion to choose the Fawcett Center as the site; Chuck seconded. Beth, Phil, Jennifer, Rick, Julann, Chuck, Eric, Tom, Sharon, Karen and Chelsea voted in favor. The motion carried.

On March 27, an online vote was held to authorize Sharon to sign a contract with the Fawcett Center for Founders Day and authorize Phil to cut a check for a deposit on the event. Chuck made the motion; Rick seconded. Chuck, Chelsea, Jennifer, Nicole, Julanne, Rick, Sharon, Phil, Eric and Beth voted in favor. The motion carried.

Submitted by Chuck Nelson