June 13, 2005

A regular meeting of the Board of Directors of the Capital Area Archivists was held on Monday, June 13, 2005 at the Daughters of Charity DePaul Provincial House in Menands, New York.

Board members present: Susan D’Entremont, John Diefenderfer, Rachel Donaldson, Jean Root Green, Chris Hunter, Amy Rupert, Amy Schindler, Emily Southworth, Bonnie Weddle and Geoff Williams.
Guest: Emily Southworth’s boyfriend (no name given)

Susan D’Entremont, Secretary, called the meeting to order at 3:40 pm.

1. Approval of Minutes of February 22, 2005 Meeting
Minutes were approved.

2. Membership
Chris Hunter, Membership Chair, reported that CAA has 35 members who are current in their dues. We have 98 people on our mailing list, and in the past we have had 51-77 paid members each year. It was agreed that the Board needs to take steps to increase paid memberships. One problem is that CAA does not have an official membership year, so there is no specific date for reminders to be sent. Several people suggested that the next mailing indicate whether or not the recipient’s dues are paid (perhaps with a dot on the mailing label for paid members) and include a notice and renewal form. Most people simply do not realize that they have not paid. Another suggestion was that people not be allowed to join the potential future CAA listserv unless their dues are paid. Chris will work with Amy Schindler and John Diefenderfer, Newsletter Editor, to follow up on these suggestions.

Chris Hunter also suggested sending a welcome letter to new members. The Board agreed this was a good idea, so Chris will begin doing this.

3. Financial Report
Brian Keough, Treasurer, was unable to attend the meeting. He submitted a report to Amy Schindler, which she distributed. The checkbook balance on February 16, 2005 was $1,468.89. We received $30.00 in dues and spent $45.00 on printing and mailing. The balance as of June 13, 2005 was $1,453.89. At the previous board meeting the question of interest was raised. Amy reported that the CAA account does not earn interest. CAA is not being charged any fees for the account, which more than offsets the loss of interest.

4. MARAC/NYAC/CAA Meeting Wrap-Up
Amy Schindler reported that the final report on this meeting has not been completed, so she was unable to report on the exact earnings. From the preliminary numbers, it is likely that CAA will make slightly more than the $250 CAA donated to the meeting. Amy gave thanks to all who helped with the meeting. Amy and Geoff Williams reported that evaluations of both the local arrangements and the program were good.

5. Capital Region Archives Dinner 2005 – CAA Sponsorship
Rachel Donaldson and Susan D’Entremont reported that the 2005 Archives Dinner will be held on Thursday, October 6, 2005 at the Italian-American Community Center on Washington Ave Extension in Albany. The speaker will be Jim O’Toole of Boston College, formerly of the University of Massachusetts at Boston and the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Boston. He will be speaking on ethical dilemmas that face archivists and records managers, especially related to access to records.

The Dinner Committee would like to keep the cost of the tickets at $30, which will be difficult if the dinner includes a bartender and pre-dinner appetizers. The Archives Dinner Committee has approached CAA about underwriting some of the dinner. After discussion a motion was approved that CAA will pay up to $150 for the Archives Dinner. Once Rachel has a better idea of the exact costs of the dinner, the CAA Board may vote to raise this amount. All agreed that this vote could be done via email since the initial idea had already been approved.

6. NHPRC Update
Bonnie Weddle reported that the House T-THUD Subcommittee will be marking up the National Archives budget this week. Although it is likely that the Committee will restore some funding for the National Historic Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC), it may not restore all of it. If this is the case, New York archivists are urged to contact Senators Clinton and Schumer to ask them to restore full funding for the NHPRC. Also, anyone in Rep. Sweeney’s district is asked to contact him as soon as possible to express support for NHPRC funding. For more information on this issue, Bonnie recommended that people visit www.savearchives.org or SAA’s web site at www.archivists.org. Amy Schindler reminded the Board that CAA sent a letter to the New York congressional delegation in April in support of the restoration of NHPRC funding. (Secretary’s note: On June 15, T-THUD voted to restore NHPRC funding at $5.5 million for grants and $2 million for administration.)

7. Future CAA Programs
Amy Schindler thanked John Diefenderfer and Amy Rupert for organizing the evening’s program on religious archives. Good attendance is anticipated.

Amy Schindler suggested sponsoring a fall event on working with donors because a workshop on the same topic had to be cancelled at MARAC. Geoff Williams suggested “The Care and Feeding of Donors” as a title. Susan D’Entremont volunteered to serve on a panel. Other suggestions for speakers were Rebecca Rich-Wulfmeyer of the Albany Institute of History and Art and Gloria Bartowski of the State Library. Susan D’Entremont agreed to recruit people for the panel. The program will be held in early November. Suggested locations are CDLC, the Schenectady Museum, and The College of Saint Rose. Emily Southworth noted that fall archives classes at the University at Albany are likely to be held on Tuesdays at 4:30 and Wednesdays at 7:00, so it would be best to hold the program at other times. Emily will notify Phil Eppard about the program once it is set up and ask him to encourage students to attend.

8. Other Business
Amy Schindler suggested setting up a CAA listserv. The Board voted to allow Amy to investigate and set up a listserv if feasible.

Geoff Williams announced that a hands-on Disaster Preparedness workshop will be held in Cicero, NY on June 17. Cost is $15. Let Geoff know by June 15 if you plan to attend.

9. Adjournment to CAA Annual Meeting at 4:25

Respectfully submitted,
Susan D’Entremont