VRA Southeast Regional Chapter Meeting Minutes

August 3, 2007, 10:00a.m., University of Georgia

Present: Emy Decker (Chair), Mary Alexander (Secretary/Treasurer), Frank Jackson, Becky Baldwin, Barbara Brenny, Pat Cosper, Mary O’Neill, Christine Hilker, Mandy Mastrovita, Joanne Rathman, Kathe Albrecht, and Jennifer Tyner.

Call to Order: Chapter chair, Emy Decker, called the meeting to order.

Approval of Minutes: The minutes from the March 27, 2007 chapter meeting at VRA 25th Annual Conference in Kansas City were read and approved.

Treasurer's Report: Secretary/Treasurer Mary Alexandersubmitted the following. The treasurer’s reported on deposits made after the March meeting including membership dues for 2007, a gift, and a check from VRA President. The total in the chapter’s account is $310. This is in agreement with the bank statement received in July 2007. Sixteen members have paid dues.

Unfinished Business

VRA southeast Chapter Website Since the redesign of VRA webpage, chapter information can be added to the VRA site. Instructions for doing this have been received. Mary Alexander will design and add content to the VRA-SE web site as soon as possible. Members suggested pictures and minutes be posted.

New Business

a. Workshop Liason, San Diego

Workshops available at the San Diego annual meeting are in the planning stages and have not been announced. A chapter liaison will attend and bring back information to the group. This is usually the chair. Since Emy did this last year, she opened the opportunity to others. Barbara Brenny volunteered to attend the workshops.

b. Joint meeting with Mid-Atlantic Chapter in San Diego

Emy Decker spoke about the joint meeting with the Mid-Atlantic Chapter in Kansas City. She asked the group if they wanted to meet with the Mid-Atlantic Chapter in San Diego. Kathy Albrecht, the liaison from the Mid-Atlantic Chapter, commented that her chapter was in favor of the meeting. Southeast Chapter members were supportive of doing this. A dinner event for the Mid-Atlantic and Southeast chapters will be planned for the San Diego conference.

c. PayPal option for collection membership dues

This topic was discussed during the Mid-Atlantic chapter meeting. They are amenable to it. Their findings included that there is a small charge per transaction. A small part of the dues will cover this. Emy will investigate and communicate with Liz Gushee of the Mid-Atlantic Chapter.

d. 2008 Chapter Meeting (San Diego, CA and Birmingham, AL)

Emy will confirm dates as we get closer. We will be meeting as a chapter in San Diego. Dates for the meeting Birmingham were discussed. Friday, August 1, 2008, was agreed upon all that were present. The meeting will retain the same format as the today’s meeting (chapter meeting in the morning and presentations in the afternoon). Barbara Brenny will present information from the San Diego’s workshops. Various aspects of the meeting were discussed. UAB is an urban campus. Eating establishments are located off-campus. Members suggested topics of interest. These included learning how digital images are used in the medical field and a walking tour of architectural Birmingham including the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church, the site of the 1963 infamous Civil Rights bombing.

Announcements

The chapter will not meet during the SECAC conference in the fall since it is meeting in West Virginia, out of southeast region. People holding both SECAC and VRA memberships will meet informally during conference. There are sixteen members of the Southeast Chapter and thirty-seven listserv members. VRA-SE dues are $10 per year. Dues for 2008 may be paid at the San Diego meeting. Payment using PayPal is under consideration.

The meeting was adjourned at 10:30.

Respectfully submitted by Mary Alexander