The Chapter Anatomy Committee met in a Skype chatroom at 2:00 PM Pacific time, Tuesday, November 10, 2009, with Elesia Ashkenazy presiding. Andrew De Carlo and Melanie Yergeau were present. A draft Chapter Handbook put together by Andrew De Carlo was discussed. Meg Evans reviewed the transcript, made comments by e-mail, and prepared the meeting minutes.

Melanie Yergeau suggested that in the section on chapter leadership, it would be helpful to clarify when a person would need to be approved by or vetted by the Board of Directors, as well as how to remove a person if that ever became necessary. She offered to compose additional material for the handbook addressing that point and stated that a person who would represent ASAN publicly, such as a co-leader or officer, should be vetted.

With regard to meeting locations and scheduling, Melanie Yergeau offered to contribute university-specific suggestions. Elesia Ashkenazy agreed with Andrew De Carlo that quiet, private, temperature-controlled meeting spaces usually were preferable; however, Melanie Yergeau pointed out that these considerations might have to be balanced against issues of accessibility, such as parking and transit routes. Andrew De Carlo stated that it should be up to each chapter to decide its preferences as to a meeting place but that the handbook should address concerns that might come up.

Elesia Ashkenazy raised the question of whether there should be standard names for chapter leadership. Many different terms are currently in use, including chair, coordinator, director, and president. Melanie Yergeau mentioned that different terms might be needed in the university context.

Elesia Ashkenazy asked committee members to contribute quotes on leadership for the handbook.

Melanie Yergeau said that she will prepare a template and instructions for chapter constitutions, based on the ASAN-OSU constitution.

The committee then discussed chapter rules and whether the handbook should contain some examples of rules, or whether it should consist simply of guidelines for creating rules. Andrew De Carlo said that he would look at the rules of the Portland chapter and perhaps choose a few of them as examples.

Andrew De Carlo suggested that a series of handbooks might be helpful, with the first handbook on chapter organization to be followed by another handbook on mobilization and outreach. This second handbook would include sections on (1) letter writing and document preparation; (2) alliance-building, including media; (3) policymaking; (4) protesting; and (5) social media outreach -- not necessarily in that order. Perhaps a third handbook might address other issues. Melanie Yergeau asked whether the handbooks would be sent to new chapter leaders piecemeal or all at once. Andrew De Carlo responded that it might be best to do it in stages because problems could arise if a new chapter started talking to the media immediately.

Elesia Ashkenazy asked how the information might best be packaged for effectiveness. Melanie Yergeau suggested preparing a brief overview, which Andrew De Carlo described as an executive summary. Elesia Ashkenazy agreed with this idea and said that it would help to keep new leaders from becoming confused or overwhelmed. Andrew De Carlo said that he will prepare an executive summary and an overview of the second handbook, while putting the first handbook into finished form.

The committee members discussed how meetings usually go in their chapters. Elesia Ashkenazy said that Portland meetings begin with greetings and announcements, a brief statement of the meeting's agenda as previously announced by e-mail, and a few minutes for sharing of individual interests before discussion of the main topic starts. Although the group does not function as a support group or a place for therapy, sometimes personal matters are shared. Squeeze balls and other small toys are provided, and members wear name tags. After a break, an open discussion begins, followed by an informal winding-down time. Andrew De Carlo said that the New England members also wear name tags, unless the meeting is small, and that an agenda is sent to the members in advance by e-mail. Discussion usually starts right away, with time limits on each subject if necessary to make sure of getting through all the items on the agenda. The New England chapter also has an active discussion list. Melanie Yergeau said that the Columbus group has a regular meeting time of one hour every two weeks, that the agenda is announced by e-mail, and that the meetings always begin with introductions before discussion starts. Meetings include delegation of tasks and always end with discussion of matters not on the agenda, so as to encourage more participation by all members.

Elesia Ashkenazy raised the issue of how to best accommodate members with a wide variety of support needs, such as sensory differences that can conflict, and suggested that the handbook should discuss this point.


COMMENTS FROM MEG EVANS:

Here's my leadership quote: "A leader should be inclusive enough to make everyone feel comfortable about being part of the group."

There are good quotes to be found in a recent series of posts by autistic blogger Clay about respect and leadership. Although the posts are presented to readers as advice given in a Navy leadership course, they are in fact a short story written by Clay, and the course leader and participants are entirely fictional.

I agree with the proposal to separate the handbook into a series, and I volunteer to prepare examples of what to say at protests from a positive "what ASAN is for" perspective, as previously discussed.