[APA-InfoTech Leaders] APA-IT DIVISION: 2007/01/26th Meeting Minutes

[Tjiong, Judy]

Harsh,  

Thanks for the minutes, I need to clarify that I may be going to the
conference( I didn't say I wasn't going did I ?), I haven't got the green
light yet, but certainly would like to help with the booth planning or any
activities needing support.

 

Judy Tjiong 

Department of Planning and Land Use
San Diego County
5201 Ruffin Rd Suite B
San Diego, Ca 92123
(858) 495-5481 
(858) 694-3373 fax 

________________________________

From: apa-infotech-bounces at list.planning.org
[mailto:apa-infotech-bounces at list.planning.org] On Behalf Of
pi at spatiallink.org
Sent: Thursday, February 08, 2007 11:36 AM
To: APA-InfoTech Division Leaders
Subject: [APA-InfoTech Leaders] APA-IT DIVISION: 2007/01/26th Meeting Minutes

 

***

Information Technology Division of the American Planning Association:
Executive Committee Meeting Minutes

 

26th January 2007 [1:00 - 2:00 EST]

1-888-245-4141

X 394006

 

Attendees

1.	Ken Snyder, Chair
2.	Jennifer Evans-Cowley, Vice-Chair
3.	Harsh Prakash, Secretary/Treasurer
4.	Judy Tjiong, Division Coordinator
5.	Robert Smith, Telecommunications SIG Chair
6.	David M. Simpson, Research Chair
7.	Christopher Steins, Past Chair

 

             Ken called the meeting to order shortly after 1:00 and brought
up the meeting agenda for review:

1.	APA-IT Division Elections: Chair, Vice-Chair and Secretary/Treasurer
(next steps and timeline)
2.	Nominating Committee (need 3 people not in elected positions to help
facilitate the nomination and election process)
3.	Appointed Positions: Communications Chair, Research Chair,
Telecommunications Chair, Education Chair, Policy Chair and Newsletter Editor
will remain appointed positions (next steps and timeline)
4.	Membership Retainment and Recruitment (plans for calling expired
memberships, presenting at APA, Planetizen Banner)
5.	APA 2007: Recruiting volunteers for -

	a.	Getting the printed version of the newsletter ready to hand
out at the conference
	b.	Assembling a booth committee to design, equip and identify
people to tend the booth
	c.	Identifying a Reception Committee to prepare for our business
meeting, reception, and awards ceremony

6.	Next Steps/Next Meeting 
7.	Other

 

             David asked for a count and Harsh confirmed the presence of a
quorum.

 

             Ken asked the members if the appointed positions should continue
as-is. Judy asked whether the inactive members were still interested in their
responsibilities. Harsh agreed with Ken on sending personal emails to the
inactive members to find that out.

 

             Harsh then asked about interest in the elected positions.
Jennifer expressed her willingness to continue in her elected position if the
other members were satisfied with her duties. Robert too expressed his
willingness to continue at the pleasure of the membership. Ken in turn
expressed doubt over his commitment for the entire duration of his elected
position- 2007 to 2009. Jennifer and David advised him to focus on the
current election and "run as necessary".

 

             Jennifer then asked if there were any openings to bring in some
fresh blood. Ken repeated his intention to send personal emails to the
inactive members like Joe DiStefano, Policy Chair, to ascertain if there were
any such openings. David said that although he has not been actively involved
of late, he planned to redo the benchmark survey. Ken informed him about a
student in Wyoming who may share a similar interest. Judy added that since
she would not attend this year's annual conference in Philadelphia, she would
not be as active as their Division Coordinator as last year. Harsh asked if
she would be interested in assuming the role of their Policy Chair. Judy
replied by saying that she is currently unaware of its entailed
responsibilities and would need more time to decide. Ken suggested emailing
about the electable and appointed openings to the entire mailing list to
generate competition. Both Jennifer and Harsh agreed with his suggestion.




             Then Ken brought up the task of getting 3 nominations for their
Nominating Committee. David volunteered to be on that committee. Robert
suggested that these nominations should also be opened to the entire mailing
list to generate competition. Ken agreed with his suggestion and asked David
to play the lead role on this committee by sending him an email requesting 2
other nominations.

 

             After this discussion, Harsh asked if the members felt that his
Secretary/Treasurer position be divided into 2 positions- Secretary and
Treasurer, like some other divisions. Ken asked him to continue as-is if he
felt that all his responsibilities could be met by 1 position. 

 

Motion:

Harsh asked the members if they could think of any new position that could be
created. After discussion, the group decided on creating the role of a
Membership Representative. Ken passed the said motion while David seconded
it.

 

             Finally Ken suggested 2007/02/09th as the deadline date for
accepting statements for all positions. He asked Chris to email him
descriptions of the positions from past year. Harsh informed the members that
the electable positions required current memberships with APA, but that
requirement may not be applicable to the appointed positions.

 

             Then Ken brought up the issue of APA's Petition Rule which
prohibited the use of electronic devices for submitting votes. Chris
confirmed this current restrictive requirement for mail ballots. So Ken
suggested that the members amend their bylaws to circumvent this prohibition.
Chris shared his experiences as Past Chair while dealing with a similar
circumvention. The members agreed to amend their bylaws and seek the
necessary votes in their next newsletter. Jennifer expressed her confidence
in getting these necessary votes.

 

             Chris offered his idea of using SurveyMonkey.com for voting. On
voting, Harsh said that the APA ID be used to verify member status for all
votes submitted. Ken suggested that the Division Roster can also be used for
verification. Finally Ken suggested the following deadline dates:

1.	2007/02/22nd: Voting through SurveyMonkey.com
2.	2007/02/23rd: Result verifications and announcements

 

             Chris also offered the use of Planetizen.com and its newsletter
that reached over 15,000 subscribers to help the division retain and recruit
members.

 

             Later, Jennifer briefed the members on the 2007 Award
Competitions. She informed them that the number of nominations was
considerably lower compared to last year- Infact the "B est Use of Technology
for a University Urban and Regional Planning Program" category had received
no nomination . Chris offered her the use of Planetizen.com's banner
advertisements to help spread the word. Jennifer replied that the extended
deadline had already expired, but she would consider his suggestion for next
year. She and Chris also discussed how invitation emails need to be worded
appropriately to avoid being looked upon as spam. Ken shared his experiences
using Google Docs for such collaborative editing.

 

            Finally, Ken adjourned the meeting.

 

Respectfully recorded

Harsh Prakash

Secretary/Treasurer

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