EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES

Date: Wednesday, September 30, 2014
Time: 5:30PM EST
Location: AvaCon Grid – Board Zone Region

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Jane Haniefy
Absent: Kathey Fatica
Quorum present: Yes

AVACON STAFF

  •  Personnel:  Discussed the new personnel that joined the 3D Content Creator team.

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

State Registration Updates

  • Virginia:  Waiting for certified copy of MA Articles of Organization in order to file the VA foreign nonprofit corporation registration.
  • Texas:  Paper filing for registration is in progress.
  • Florida: Dept of Revenue Reemployment Tax – Chris sent a copy of our IRS determination and opted out of coverage for our one employee, who is also an officer of the company.
  • Ohio – BWC: Letter confirming registration and security access.
  • MA – Dept of Revenue: Certificate of Exemption ST-2 received

Workers Compensation Insurance – Brown & Brown

  • Policy & Invoice:  Chris completed the application and sent all necessary documents, and the invoice has been paid.
  • Bond for Ohio Unemployment Insurance: Underwriter has requested a current balance sheet to proceed with the bond.

Bank of America Business

  • Change of Officer Signing Card:  Chris sent the meeting minutes regarding change of officers to Joyce, Joyce will send the other required information.

IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGY ALLIANCE

  • Press release approval:  Chris approved the Press Release Neil sent, Joyce will make a post about OSCC.
  • Formally joining ITA:  Is there any additional paperwork that needs to be completed to formally join the ITA?

AVACON STAFF

Growing the AvaCon Team

  • Director of Development Position:  Still open.
  • 3D Content Creator:  Hire more?  Volunteer only?
  • Web Development Engineer: Still open.
  • Marketing & Communications: Need to re-open

AVACON PROGRAMS & EVENTS

OpenSimulator Community Conference 2014

  • MOU Pending: Chris sent the updated MOU Crista for signature
  • Keynote Speakers: Having trouble getting confirmation details, Chris will ping again.
  • Load test costs: Discussed reimbursing Justin for costs of load tests, need documentation for accounting purposes.
  • Crowdfunder Campaign: Joyce to update
  • OSCC13 Conference Proceedings: What is the status?  Did we make a decision about an offer to last year’s sponsors?  Not one other single sponsorship has come in..

Federal Consortium of Virtual Worlds

  • Website: Chris now has access to the administrative side of the website and will put up the basic information.

Metaverse Cultural Series 2014

  • Status of schedule: Next event is scheduled for Saturday, October 11, 2014 – Tuna Oddfellow

Free Virtual Land for Social Good Organizations

  • Status of program: No update this week.

Meeting adjourned at 7:24PM.  Next meeting is scheduled for October 7, 2014 at 6:00 PM.  Meeting minutes submitted by Clerk (Interim) Jane Haniefy.

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES

Date: Wednesday, September 17, 2014

Time: 5:30PM EST

Location: AvaCon Grid – Board Zone Region

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica, Jane Haniefy

Quorum present: Yes

WELCOME NEW MEMBER

Welcome Jane Haniefy

  • Appointment as Clerk (Interim):  Chris Collins in her capacity as President appointed Jane Haniefy to serve as interim Clerk until a special election can be held.

IMMERSIVE TECHNOLOGY ALLIANCE

Presentation to ITA Meeting

  • Joyce gave a presentation on Tuesday:  Talked about AvaCon’s mission and our interest in standardization.

Membership in the Organization

  • AvaCon will become a member of ITA:  Opportunity perhaps to lead a working group on standardization

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

Workers Compensation Insurance – Brown & Brown

  • Policy & Invoice:  The policy came in the mail today as well as the invoice which can be paid online.

Workers Compensation Insurance – Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation

  • Managed Care Organization (MCO) Selection:  Must make a selection for AvaCon’s MCO by 9/21/14 .

Chris Collins made a MOTION to select Sheakley UNICOMP for our MCO in Ohio.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Bank of America Business

  • Change of Officer Signing Card:  Joyce to get from branch
  • ACH Credit MA and FL:  Joyce to talk with bank branch about ACH Credit for MA and FL
  • We need to send Karan Nowakowski, the Small Business VP the following to help us sort the Change of Officers paperwork:

Meeting adjourned at 6:58PM.  Next meeting is scheduled for October 30, 2014 at 6:00 PM.  Meeting minutes submitted by Clerk (Interim) Joyce Bettencourt.

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES

Date: Wednesday, September 10, 2014

Time: 5:30PM EST

Location: AvaCon Grid – Board Zone Region

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica

Quorum present: Yes

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

Workers Compensation Insurance – Brown & Brown

  • Policy & Invoice:  Policy and invoice were being sent to HQ address, nothing yet received.

Workers Compensation Insurance – Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation

  • Managed Care Organization (MCO) Selection:  Must make a selection for AvaCon’s MCO by 9/21/14 . Discussed the various options and their “report card” scores.

Chris Collins made a MOTION to select Sheakley UNICOMP for our MCO in Ohio.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Bank of America Business

  • Change of Officer Signing Card:  Joyce to get from branch
  • ACH Credit MA and FL:  Joyce to talk with bank branch about ACH Credit for MA and FL

Membership Nomination

  • Membership nomination:  Kathey Fatica made a MOTION to nominate Jane Haniefy as a member of the Executive Board.  Joyce Bettencourt SECONDS the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

AVACON STAFF

Payroll Processing

Time Tracking

  • Discussed the current time tracking process and how to make it easier to use.

AVACON PROGRAMS & EVENTS

OpenSimulator Community Conference 2014

  • MOU Pending: Chris sent the updated MOU Crista for signature
  • Keynote Speakers: The third keynote speaker has yet to confirm, Chris will ping her tomorrow.
  • Gold Sponsor – IVECG: The invoice has been paid.
  • Crowdfunder Campaign: Joyce to update
  • OSCC13 Conference Proceedings: In progress.

Meeting adjourned at 6:58PM.  Next meeting is scheduled for September 17, 2014 at 5:30 PM.  Meeting minutes submitted by Clerk (Interim) Joyce Bettencourt.

 

 

 

AVACON, INC.
2014 ANNUAL CORPORATE MEETING
EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
Date: Saturday, August 30, 2014
Time: 9:00AM EST
Location: AvaCon Grid – Board Zone Region

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica

Quorum present: Yes

AVACON ANNUAL OFFICER ELECTIONS

2014 Officer Nominations

    • President: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins
    • Vice President: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins
    • Treasurer: Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica
    • Clerk (Interim):  Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica
  • NOMINATIONS FROM THE FLOOR:  Nominations from the floor may be taken prior to voting.

Chris Collins made a MOTION to nominate Joyce Bettencourt as Clerk (Interim).  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

2014 Officer Elections

RESULT OF ELECTIONS – The results of the 2014 Annual Officer Elections is as follows:

  • President: Chris Collins
  • Vice President: Joyce Bettencourt
  • Treasurer:  Kathey Fatica
  • Clerk (Interim):  Joyce Bettencourt

AVACON ANNUAL CI POLICY REVIEW

  • Annual Conflict of Interest (Directors):  All officers completed the annual Conflict of Interest form.

AVACON ANNUAL BUDGET REPORT

  • 2014 Budget Report: Chris Collins presented the most recent 2014 budget.

AVACON ANNUAL COMPLIANCE CALENDAR

  • Annual Compliance Calendar: The Annual Compliance Calendar was reviewed:

AVACON STATE EXPANSION UPDATE

Workers Compensation Insurance

  • Ohio:  Ohio is a monopolistic state, you can only register and obtain Workers Comp through their state website.  This has already been done, there’s an initial fee of $10 and then it will be based on payroll.
  • All other states:  Brown & Brown offered coverage for $755 per year for all other states.  Full policy and invoice will be sent to 8 Billings Road and is payable on receipt.

California

  • Registration Status:  Registration accepted, original documents received. Every foreign corporation must file a Statement of Information with the California Secretary of State within 90 days after the filing of its initial Statement and Designation and annually thereafter during the applicable filing period.
  • Exempt Status:  Waiting for copy of S&D document, required for Exempt filing.
  • Taxes, UI, other CA Taxes:  Cannot register until more than $100 has been paid to a CA employee in one quarter, as soon as that happens, must register within 15 days.  Discussed UI benefits selection choices – pay premium or reimbursable method.

Chris Collins made a MOTION to elect the Reimbursable method for Unemployment Insurance in the state of CA.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Florida

  • Registration Status:  Registration accepted, original documents received.
  • Exempt Status:  Application submitted, waiting for result.
  • Taxes, UI, other FL Taxes:  FL does not have income tax, but still has other requirements like Reemployment Tax (FL’s version of Unemployment Insurance).  Registration has been submitted, waiting for result.

Chris Collins made a MOTION to elect the Reimbursable method for Unemployment Insurance in the state of FL.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Kentucky

  • Registration Status:  Registration accepted, Certificate of Authority Received.
  • Exempt Status:  Application submitted, waiting for result.
  • Taxes, UI, other KY Taxes:  Registration has been submitted, waiting for result.

Chris Collins made a MOTION to elect the Reimbursable method for Unemployment Insurance in the state of KY.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Ohio

  • Registration Status:  Registration accepted, License received.
  • Exempt Status:  Application submitted, waiting for result.
  • Taxes, UI, other OH Taxes:  Registration completed.

Chris Collins made a MOTION to elect the Reimbursable method for Unemployment Insurance in the state of OH.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

New Jersey

  • Registration Status:  Registration submitted, have not yet received a response.
  • Exempt Status:  Waiting for above.
  • Taxes, UI, other NJ Taxes:  Waiting for above

Chris Collins made a MOTION to elect the Reimbursable method for Unemployment Insurance in the state of NJ.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Rhode Island

  • Registration Status:  Registration accepted, Certificate of Authority Received.
  • Exempt Status:  Registration Accepted.
  • Taxes, UI, other RI Taxes:  Registration has been submitted, waiting for result.

Chris Collins made a MOTION to elect the Reimbursable method for Unemployment Insurance in the state of RI.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Meeting adjourned at 10:59 AM.  Next meeting scheduled for September 10, 2014 at 5:30PM.

Minutes submitted by Interim Clerk, Chris Collins.

 

 

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
Date: Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Time: 5:30PM EST
Location: AvaCon Grid – Board Zone Region

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica

Quorum present: Yes

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

State Business Registration Status

  • Applications have been completed in all states where we have a current volunteer:  CA, FL, KY, OH, NJ, RI.
  • Following successful registration, will need to apply for exempt status and solicitation permit/license in each state, as well as resolve questions about UI and Worker’s Compensation Insurance.

Payroll Service

  • Intuit Payroll Service  was selected as the provider, direct deposit payment and state filing is included in the monthly fee.

UCF Contract

  • Contract Status:  All paperwork has been completed, first kickoff meeting scheduled for Monday, August 26, 2014 at 4PM EST.

Annual Officer Elections

  • Nominations for each office have been received, and pending nominations from the floor, the 2014-15 ballot is:
  • President:  Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins
  • Vice President:  Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins
  • Treasurer:  Kathey Fatica, Chris Collins
  • Clerk (Interim):  Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica
  • Annual Corporate Meeting & Retreat is scheduled for Saturday, August 30, 2014.

AVACON STAFF

Growing the AvaCon Team

  • Filling open positions temporarily on hold during UCF contract startup phase.

AVACON PROGRAMS & EVENTS

OpenSimulator Community Conference 2014

  • MOU Pending: Chris is waiting on signed MOU, the other party is currently out of the country, should be returning at the end of August.
  • Gold Sponsor: Received registration details for their vendor system, all information completed.
  • Crowdfunder Campaign: Joyce to update.

Metaverse Cultural Series 2014

  • Status of schedule: Next event scheduled in September.

Meeting adjourned at 6:53PM. Next meeting scheduled for August 30, 2014 at 5:30PM.

Minutes submitted by Interim Clerk, Chris Collins.

 

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
Date: Wednesday, July 16, 2014
Time: 5:30PM EST
Location: AvaCon Grid – Board Zone Region

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica

Quorum present: Yes

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

Risk Management & Federal Regulation Compliance

  • HR Manager:  Position has been filled.

Chris Collins made a MOTION to appoint Jane Haniefy as EEO Officer.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

UCF Contract

  • Contract Status:  Fully executed copy of the contract has been received.  First planning meeting to be scheduled for end of July.

AVACON STAFF

Growing the AvaCon Team

  • Director of Development Position:  Position offer was declined, will go back to the application pool.
  • 3D Content Creator:   Position offer was accepted, initial start date will be determined after discussing with the candidate.

AVACON PROGRAMS & EVENTS

OpenSimulator Community Conference 2014

  • MOU Pending: Chris is waiting on signed MOU.
  • Gold Sponsor: Payment still pending.
  • Crowdfunder Campaign: Joyce to update, need to discuss timeliness of responses

Metaverse Cultural Series 2014

  • Status of schedule: Joyce to update

Meeting adjourned at 7:02PM. Next meeting scheduled for July 23, 2014 at 5:30PM.

Minutes submitted by Interim Clerk, Chris Collins.

 

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
Date: Wednesday, June 18, 2014
Time: 5:30PM EST
Location: AvaCon Grid – Board Zone Region

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica

Quorum present: Yes

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

Risk Management & Federal Regulation Compliance

  • Risk Management Plan:  Additional policies must be adopted for the risk management plan and compliance
  • Annual Compliance Schedule:  All legal, financial, statutory, and organizational compliance requirements must be added to the Annual Compliance Schedule
  • Records Retention Policy:  Governs the length of time documents and records must be kept for compliance.

Chris Collins made a MOTION to adopt the Records Retention Policy.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Equal Opportunity Employment Policy

  • As a federal subcontractor, we are required to perform several functions to be in compliance.
  • Required to post the Equal Opportunity Employment is the LAW! poster in a conspicuous place frequented by employees.
  • Required to appoint an Equal Opportunity Employment officer who is responsible for receiving complaints and overseeing investigations into complaints.

Chris Collins made a MOTION to appoint Kathey Fatica as the AvaCon EEO Officer.  Joyce Bettencourt SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

  • Required to include standard EEO language on ALL job postings or advertisements:
  • AVACON IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.  All employment decisions at AvaCon are based on business needs, job requirements, and an individual’s skills, knowledge, abilities, job performance and other appropriate qualifications, without regard to race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, ancestry, disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, age, sexual or affectional orientation, veteran status, gender identity and expression, or any other characteristic protected by law. AvaCon is committed to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Executive Order 11246, and any other laws or regulations relating to equal employment opportunity.
    • Joyce to update all job postings with this language.
  • EEO blurb must be added to AvaCon official letterhead.
  • AvaCon must have an Equal Opportunity Employment policy.  http://avaconinc.wikispaces.com/Equal+Opportunity+Employment+Policy

Chris Collins made a MOTION to adopt the Equal Opportunity Employment Policy.  Joyce Bettencourt SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Anti-Sexual Harassment Policy

Chris Collins made a MOTION to adopt the Anti-Sexual Harassment Policy.  Kathey Fatica SECONDED the motion.  The motion passed unanimously.

Changes to Biographical Data Form

  • In order to be in compliance with federal reporting requirements, changes needed to be made to the Biographical Data Form.  We cannot ask that this form be completed until the decision has been made to hire a person

General Liability and Directors & Officers insurance

  • Application Submitted received a quote - more information requested

Contract Under Consideration

  • Contract Review:  Heard back from Mindy with our questions
    • 8% F&A rate was approved
    • We are a first tier subcontract, which means we are required to comply with all federal regulations relating to first tier subcontract awards. (Various)
  • SAM/CCR:  SAM registration has been completed.
  • Legal Services: Joyce can follow up on the SL Bar Assn. lead.
  • Work Breakdown Plan: Joyce to update

AVACON STAFF

Growing the AvaCon Team

AVACON PROGRAMS & EVENTS

OpenSimulator Community Conference 2014

  • MOU Pending: Chris sent the updated MOU for signature
  • Gold Sponsor: Sponsor agreement signed and executed, invoice sent for payment
  • Crowdfunder Campaign: Joyce to update, need to discuss timeliness of responses

Metaverse Cultural Series 2014

  • Status of schedule: Joyce to update

Meeting adjourned at 6:59PM. Next meeting scheduled for July 9, 2014 at 5:30PM.

Minutes submitted by Interim Clerk, Chris Collins.

 

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
Date: Wednesday, June 4, 2014
Time: 5:30PM EST
Location: AvaCon Grid – Staff Zone Region

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica

Quorum present: Yes

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

Risk Management

  • Risk Management Plan:  No update this week

General Liability and Directors & Officers insurance

  • Application Submitted to Corcoran & Havlin Insurance Group:  Chris spoke with the broker, he is still working on our quotes.

Contract Under Consideration

  • Contract Review:  Discussed the contract and various options.  SAM/CCR registration is still pending and the contract cannot be signed until this is completed.

Kathey Fatica made a MOTION to postpone voting on the contract until we have secured D&O Insurance.  Chris Collins SECONDED the motion.  The motion was passed unanimously.

Meeting adjourned at 6:59PM. Next meeting scheduled for TBA at 5:30PM.

Minutes submitted by Interim Clerk, Chris Collins.

 

 

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
Date: Wednesday, May 28, 2014
Time: 5:30PM EST
Location: AvaCon Grid – Staff Zone Region

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica
Quorum present: Yes 

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

Risk Management

  • Risk Management Plan:  Chris talked about updates to the Risk Management plan and additional requirements to meet industry standard guidelines, including:
  • Volunteer Agreement & Waiver – http://avaconinc.wikispaces.com/Volunteer+Agreement+%26+Waiver
  • Standard Signature for all employees – http://avaconinc.wikispaces.com/AvaCon+Branding
  • Board needs to review bylaws and other key items annually or bi-annually to ensure they are up to date, Chris will compile a list/schedule.
  • Annual evaluations should be performed for all employees, including board members.  We need to determine what the evaluation looks like and when it will be held.

General Liability and Directors & Officers insurance

  • Application Submitted to Corcoran & Havlin Insurance Group:  Chris completed the insurance application and sent information to the broker.  Current status, waiting on a quote.

Contract Under Consideration

  • Contract Review:  Chris completed the SAM/CCR registration and all related certifications.  She also requested a meeting but hasn’t yet heard back on availability.
  • Legal Services: Joyce has been investigating legal resources that might be available to AvaCon.  She is adding links to resources to the Trello entry.  She’s also contacted the SL Bar Association to see if anyone in that group provides any legal services.
    • We should develop an Impact Statement, ie here are the things we’ve accomplished and the impact we’ve had.  Chris suggested having Michelle and Alan help develop a pamphlet or brochure.  It might be easier if we were further along the “professional services” organization path, ie MFS.
    • Somewhat an aside, but there are capacity building grants and funding, ie Taproot Foundation, match you with certain services and people resources. http://www.taprootfoundation.org/
  • Work Breakdown Plan: Joyce copied the Statement of Work provisions containing the work descriptions and the general timeline to a Google Doc.
  • Next Steps: Joyce will continue working on the breakdown doc, Chris will follow up regarding meeting times.  Next Wednesday at 4PM is still the best time.  We will wait to make a decision on the contract until we’ve had a chance to discuss the timeline.

AVACON STAFF

Growing the AvaCon Team

  • Discussed Open Positions:  Chris reviewed job descriptions for three new open position postings, for Director of Development, Web Development Engineer, and 3D Content Developer.  Board approved posting all positions which will be posted on AvaCon website, via social media channels, LinkedIn, and other non-profit job post forums.
    • Joyce will post these to LinkedIn, Idealist, and other locations.

Meeting adjourned at 7:02PM. Next meeting scheduled for June 4, 2014 at 5:30PM.

Minutes submitted by Interim Clerk, Chris Collins.

 

 

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
Date: Wednesday, May 21, 2014
Time: 5:30PM EST
Location: AvaCon Grid – Staff Zone Region

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica
Quorum present: Yes 

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

Contract Under Consideration

  • Contract Review:  Discussed contract under review and various questions and concerns, Chris will schedule a follow-up meeting for discussion next week.

General Liability and Directors & Officers insurance

  • Application Submitted to Corcoran & Havlin Insurance Group:  Chris completed the insurance application and sent information to the broker.  Current status, waiting on a quote.

Risk Management

  • Risk Management Plan:  Chris introduced the draft Risk Management Plan in progress and discussed the process and next steps to complete the plan.  We will hold a separate Board meeting dedicated to risk management in the upcoming weeks.

AVACON STAFF

Growing the AvaCon Team

  • Discussed Open Positions:  Chris reviewed job descriptions for three new open position postings, for Director of Development, Web Development Engineer, and 3D Content Developer.  Board approved posting all positions which will be posted on AvaCon website, via social media channels, LinkedIn, and other non-profit job post forums.
  • Employees vs Contractors vs Volunteers:  Chris reviewed key differences between the three types of positions and ramifications of each classification.
  • MA Labor Laws:  Chris reported on her findings regarding MA requirements for Workers Compensation Insurance and Unemployment Insurance.
  • Payroll Service through Intuit:  Chris completed the process to sign up for the Intuit Payroll service through Bank of America.  We qualified for three months of free service while we’re learning how the system works.

AVACON ACTIVITIES & EVENTS

OpenSimulator Community Conference

  • Fundraising Plugin:  Chris reported that the issues with the fundraising plugin have still not been resolved, and as a result of the delay, her recommendation was that we move forward with an alternative payment process.  Upon demonstration and review of the alternative (PayPal) method, it was agreed we should move forward without the plugin.
  • Sponsorships:  Chris and Joyce discussed both the Crowdfunding Campaign levels and Sponsor levels.  Chris will tweak some of the language prior to the announcement about the conference.

Meeting adjourned at 7:02PM. Next meeting scheduled for May 28, 2014 at 5:30PM.

Minutes submitted by Interim Clerk, Chris Collins.

 

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
Date: Monday, March 10, 2014
Time: 6:00PM EST
Location: Skype

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica (absent)
Quorum present: Yes

 

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

Bank of America Changing Officer Signatures

  • Corporate Signature Card:  Joyce will call to find out how to proceed to change signing authority.

General liability and Officers liability insurance

  • Joyce is working with Corcoran & Havlin Insurance Group:  She is in the process of completing the forms they sent for review.

GuideStar Company Profile

  • Updating GuideStar’s company profile:  Joyce mentioned the need for us to update our profile on GuideStar - http://www.guidestar.org/organizations/27-2428600/avacon.aspx – since that is an important place for people to look up whether a company is legitimiate or not.

AvaCon Policies & Documents

  • Standard Contract Language:  Chris drafted language for a Standard Contract that would be used in the event that AvaCon hires a Contractor or Consultant.  Standard contract language reviewed and discussed.  Chris Collins makes the MOTION to adopt the Standard Contract for AvaCon.  The motion was SECONDED by Joyce Bettencourt.  The motion passed unanimously.
  • Purchase Order Request:  Chris drafted a form for a Purchase Order Request that would be used in the event that an employee of AvaCon needs to request processing of a Purchase Order.  The Purchase Order Request form was reviewed and discussed.  Chris Collins makes the MOTION to adopt the Purchase Order Request form.  The motion was SECONDED by Joyce Bettencourt.  The motion passed unanimously.
  • Purchase Order Form:  Chris drafted a form for a Purchase Order that would be used in the event that AvaCon needs to procure small quantities of office supplies, equipment, or other goods and services.  The Purchase Order form was reviewed and discussed.   Chris Collins makes the MOTION to adopt the Purchase Order Form.  The motion was SECONDED by Joyce Bettencourt.  The motion passed unanimously.
  • Purchasing Procedures Policy:  Chris drafted a Purchasing Procedures Policy that would govern all purchasing and procurement activities.  The Purchasing Procedures Policy was reviewed and discussed.Chris Collins makes the MOTION to adopt the Purchasing Procedures Policy.  The motion was SECONDED by Joyce Bettencourt.  The motion passed unanimously.
  • AvaCon Employee Handbook:  Chris drafted an AvaCon Employee Handbook that governs the conduct and responsibilities of AvaCon employees.  The AvaCon Employee Handbook was reviewed and discussed. Chris Collins makes the MOTION to adopt the AvaCon Employee Handbook.  The motion was SECONDED by Joyce Bettencourt.  The motion passed unanimously.

Meeting adjourned at 8:02PM. Next meeting scheduled for March 17, 2014 at 6:30PM.

Minutes submitted by Interim Clerk, Chris Collins.

 

EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES
Date: Wednesday, January 6, 2014
Time: 6:00PM EST
Location: Skype

BOARD MEMBERS

Attendance: Joyce Bettencourt, Chris Collins, Kathey Fatica (absent)
Quorum present: Yes

 

AVACON BUSINESS ITEMS

Bank of America Changing Officer Signatures

  • Corporate Signature Card:  Joyce will call to find out how to proceed to change signing authority.

General liability and Officers liability insurance

  • Joyce is working with Corcoran & Havlin Insurance Group:  She is in the process of completing the forms they sent for review.

GuideStar Company Profile

  • Updating GuideStar’s company profile:  Joyce mentioned the need for us to update our profile on GuideStar - http://www.guidestar.org/organizations/27-2428600/avacon.aspx – since that is an important place for people to look up whether a company is legitimiate or not.

AvaCon Advisory Board

  • Invitation Draft Email:  Joyce is working on the draft email.
  • Chris touched base with Justin: He’s onboard and will be back from vacation in mid-January.
  • We’ll move ahead with contacting the people on our lists.

FINANCIAL

  • Bank Balance & Transactions Review:  Reviewed bank and basic 2014 budget, completed transaction log for 2013.

Taxes & IRS Stuff 2014

  • 2013 Bank Ledger Spreadsheet Updated:  Chris completed the ledger for 2013, Joyce uploaded receipts and clarified charges.
  • 2013 Bank Statements Downloaded:  All bank statements from 2013 have been downloaded from the bank site and uploaded to our AvaCon docs.
  • 2013 QuickBooks File:  Chris and Jane reviewed how to enter payments and vendors.  Chris and Joyce discussed accounting for the PayPal transactions and BoA transactions, probably best to just never keep a positive balance in PayPal.
  • 1099-MISC:  Waiting on the forms from the IRS to complete.

Payroll Service Options

IT RELATED

  • AvaCon Website:  The refresh of the AvaCon public website was completed in December and so far the feedback has been very positive!
  • AvaCon Grid:  Chris got the server provisioned from Limestone Networks, hostname grid.avacon.org.  Chris also met with Michael and discussed contract negotiations, he is amenable to working as an independent contractor for a certain base amount and then if we hold special events, we would pay additional services for him.  Chris will work on drafting the contract.
  • Wikispaces Wiki:  Have we applied the TechSoup discount license for non-profits to Wikispaces?
  • Results of the MailChimp Email Campaign - AvaCon New Year’s Update:
  • Sent:  2226
  • Opened:  577 (27.7%)
  • Clicks:  193 (6.3% of sent, 18% of opened)
  • Bounced:  142 (8.5%)
  • Unsubscribes:  13
  • Abuse Report: 6

STAFF ISSUES

  • Welcomed Jane Haniefy (Sine Whatever) – Jane will be assisting with bookeeping, payroll, and administrative/HR functions.
  • Welcomed Michael Cerquoni (Nebadon Izumi) – Michael will be assisting with setting up and helping run a new AvaCon grid running OpenSimulator.
  • Social Media Manager:  We have an applicant for the SMM position, Chris will forward her the link to the application and set up an interview for Wednesday next week.
  • WebDev:  Joyce will touch base with Beth to find out her status and interests, we definitely want to move forward with the MFS website soonish, but not sure Beth is interested in that level of development.
  • Discussed Project Management/TimeTracking software:  Chris investigated a plethora of project management tools a few months ago and didn’t find any packages that seemed worth either the money or the overhead to administer or run the system.  Joyce is interested in investing some too to see if we can find something that might meet our needs.  For now we are trying out Trello as a To-Do list manager:  http://trello.com
  • Scheduling First Staff Mtg of the Year:  We’ll wait for a bit to schedule the first meeting of the year until we see about the SMM position.

METAVERSE FUTURE SOCIETY

  • Membership Stuff– Renewed the domains http://metaversefuture.org and http://metaversefuture.com, to redirect to the .org
  • We can talk about this idea with the advisory board.
  • Need to re-send the link to the MFS feedback survey to get more responses:

AVACON EVENTS

Metaverse Cultural Series 2014

Opensim Community Conference 2014

  • Crowdfunding plug-ins or sites:  Indiegogo has the best non-profit terms, and there’;s the plugin Joyce sent.  We need to circle back around with Overte and schedule the next meeting.
  • Side note what if AvaCon could organize crowdfunding for the metaverse?  AvaCon as the IndieGogo of the metaverse crowd…  Could those donations even be tax deductible?  We’d need to investigate that.

Meeting adjourned at 9:17PM. Next meeting scheduled for February 3, 2014 at 6PM.

Minutes submitted by Interim Clerk, Chris Collins.