From the SFRA Executive Committee
Post-SFRA Executive Committee Meeting Notes
Sean Guynes
06 July 2021
Attendees: Gerry Canavan (president), Sonja Fritzsche (vice president), Sean Guynes (secretary), Hugh O’Connell (treasurer), Keren Omry (immediate past president)
- New Exec Composition: Development, DEI Officer, “At-Large” Membership
a. We will need to rewrite bylaws and poll membership
b. DEI Officer
i. Someone in charge of making sure EC has a “diverse” perspective and who is in charge of a DEI committee that makes decisions and suggestions
ii. Verdict: a good idea to add to EC, will explore specifics in a follow-up meeting
c. Development Officer
i. Someone in charge of bringing in money for SFRA
ii. Keren suggests it’s difficult to see how “feasible” it is, esp. given how difficult it is to find people to take on positions like the Treasurer
iii. Hugh suggests making this a “board-appointed” position, rather than an EC position, someone who could work on this for more than just a short term
iv. Verdict: not to be added to EC but will begin looking for someone to appoint
d. At-Large Members
i. Voting members who represent some portion of the SFRA community, but don’t serve a more specific role, e.g. Treasurer
ii. Keren suggests that our organization is quite small and there might be enough voices already on EC; we have business meetings to get people involved; and we are generally transparent as an organization
iii. Verdict: Will discuss more with a stakeholder group - Conference Standing Committee
a. This is a great idea as one of several committees that work in tandem with the EC - Next Steps
a. For a soon-to-happen discussion with a stakeholder group:
i. DEI officer
ii. At-Large Members of EC
iii. What committees would be worthwhile to get membership involved and feeling like they have a stake in SFRA? - Polling the Membership?
a. A Google form or Google doc (or both) that allows people to comment on our plan, and then propose a final decision and put forward a vote on any by-law changes. - Shorter stuff:
a. Elections
i. Keren is having difficulty finding volunteers to be voted on for the treasurer position; she has reached out to several candidates
ii. For VP, one candidate has come forward, and Keren has considered others
iii. Several names were discussed and suggested by the EC
b. Award Committees
i. An email will go out soliciting volunteers for award committees
c. SFRA Review
i. Ian is gathering materials to present to us on peer review and a journals platform hosting solution
ii. It was suggested that a stronger embrace of SFRA Review’s role in the organization would lead to greater feeling of participation from the membership, since the Review works with dozens of scholars each year
d. Website Migration
i. This will be happening at the end of 2021, as we transition away from Wild Apricot and to a new TBD web hosting platform
SFRA Review 