Reports

President/VP

Quintyn presents administrative updates. The website has been updated, including for the film festival page, integration with our new online store, and working on adding meeting minutes as well as a page for the nominations committee. The wordpress platform allows multiple people to have editing access to specific pages, so Matt has access to the treasurer’s corner to update finances, and Chuck Mays is collaborating with Quintyn to create a community page to support people in finding Esperanto groups and events near them. Chuck Mays is working on this in his role as contact coordinator. Quintyn is also meeting with the nominations committee (but is not a voting member), which is working to create a charter and will work on a committee hub and hopes to have a tentative list of candidates to reach out to by mid-January, with a final list presented to the board and for publication by March. Quintyn will be stepping down as chair of the communications committee as soon as a replacement has been found. 

In review, the report also covered the importance regarding the approval of several policies to bring the nonprofit more into line with industry best practices. In review, the report also covered the importance regarding the approval of several policies to bring the nonprofit more into line with industry best practices.  These included a Whistleblower policy, a Conflict of Interest policy, and a Document Retention and Destruction policy, via Slack vote, with 7 votes in favor and 3 abstentions (Ŝneoro, Fred, Isabel). The board also voted in Slack to approve the Dulanda Kongreso 2025 Agreement.

Central Office

The bookstore has been made live, and several orders have already been made and processed. The film festival photos have been edited and sent out via email, and Esperanto-USA’s Form 990 was completed. Amanda speaks highly of the accountant, Harmon, who helped with that, and hopes that it can be completed without the need for an extension in 2025. Amanda has been working to get Esperanto-USA’s tax forms prepared, as well as communicating with UEA to understand how their accounting and order-tracking systems work.  Additionally, she is working to clarify and streamline rent payment for the UN office in New York, as well as meeting with Esperanto-USA’s bookkeeper and with Morgan Stanley to clarify investment and accounting needs. The LKK has chosen a location for the Dulanda Kongreso and is working on approving a contract. 

The proposed Prisoner Relations Committee met informally on Friday to discuss letters that have been sent to Esperanto-USA by prisoners. If prisoners reach out to Esperanto-USA seeking correspondence, rather than publishing such requests in the Bulteno, the Prisoner Relations Committee will handle such requests directly. 

The agreement with UEA about the New York UN office has been finalized, and the Membership Committee was given a list of lapsed members without a listed email address, so that such lapsed members will receive a call from the membership committee to inform them of the current promotion for membership dues. Several board members speak highly of Amanda and the work she has been doing for the organization.

Treasurer

The treasurer presents a Monthly Report to the Board, as well as a Quarterly Report for Q3. The Reed Trust distributions will be automatically deposited into the current accounts. Amanda offers to present a screenshare of accounts if needed during any meetings and expresses appreciation for Matt’s work as treasurer. For the 2025 Form 990, the Central Office will need an estimate of how many hours per week each board member spends working for the organization.

Executive Committee

The executive committee met, on November 3, 2024 and discussed investment accounts and strategies, as well as Slack participation. 

Old Business

Google Workspaces and Slack Administration

Quintyn presents administrative updates. Slack will continue to be used as a professional hub for E-USA business and committee participation. Inactive members and those not part of committees will be removed from the Slack workspace, in communication with committee chairs. Additionally, a Telegram group will be created to allow for two way communication with Esperanto-USA members to communicate with the organization and each other. This Telegram group will still contain multiple channels where members can discuss a variety of matters. 

As Google Drive becomes more and more heavily used and relied upon, Quintyn proposes that Esperanto-USA move all files to a Google for Nonprofits Workspace, as having a consistent file name structure and re-organizing the files to make them easier to find. This would allow the organization to set folder access based on membership in particular groups, rather than on an individual basis. Google Workspace allows for centralized file storage with consistent naming structures, making documents easier to locate and access for board members and committees. Role-based access controls improve transparency and accountability, ensuring that sensitive documents are only accessible to appropriate parties. By consolidating files in one platform, Google Workspace promotes sustainability through cost-effective nonprofit solutions and scalability for future growth. Amanda states that Pat Egan, our fundraising consultant, suggested the use of Verifyle to store sensitive organizational data.  Quintyn clarifies that Google for Nonprofits has more data storage space than Verifyle. 

New Business

Budget Discussion

Matt has shared a first draft of a 2025 budget. He explains the spreadsheet of the draft budget to the board. It is suggested that, based on the proposed draft budget, additional fundraising and grant writing is recommended. The draft budget does not include individual donations to particular funds, as such donations are not guaranteed nor within direct control of the organization itself. 

Prisoner Relations Committee

Peggy moved to formalize the creation of a working group, consisting of Amanda Schmidt, Peggy Dolter, Fred Meyer, and Charlotte Burton, to create a charge for a proposed Prisoner Relations Committee. Fred seconded the motion. Motion passes by acclamation.

Membership Directory

A printed membership list has historically been published annually and sent to all members. Several years ago, the requirement of a printed membership directory was removed from the bylaws. The Membership Committee has been discussing the possibility of discontinuing the use of a printed membership directory and instead modernizing to a digital one, and discussing ways to keep member information safe. A questionnaire would need to be shared with members, to determine what information, if any, each member would want shared with other members. A membership directory would not be shared with any members who are prisoners. Matt recommends that a membership directory software be chosen that can be integrated with Salesforce, if possible. Amanda suggests that, to save money on labor costs and to allow members to quickly and easily update their information, any membership directory be automated as much as possible. Quintyn recommends that updating a membership directory could be a job for the Contact Coordinator role. Charlotte suggests that any questionnaire sent out to members for updating a membership directory should be sent annually, to prompt people to update their preferences. Fred suggests that a membership directory be an important priority, and Amanda suggests that members should be informed by mid-December if a printed directory will not be sent. 

Executive Director Position Review

The Board enters executive session to review the position of Executive Director. 

The meeting concluded at 18:00 Eastern Time.