TEI-C Board Meeting 2020-04-16

via Zoom

Attending

  • Kathryn Tomasek (KT)
  • Christiane Fritze (CF)
  • Hugh Cayless (HC)
  • James Cummings (JC)
  • Luis Meneses (LM)
  • Martina Scholger (MS) (16:15)
  • Pip Willcox (PW)

Absent

  • Gimena del Rio Riande (GRR)

Action items

  • JC to liaise with Kay Walter on the virtual conference logistics
  • PW, GRR, CF to send send written statements on the vote via email to Chair
  • KT to send quarterly update on BODs activities to TEI-L
  • KT to contact Julia Flanders with regard to TAPAS Support / TEI Repository
  • KT and PW to draft and circulate for comments a proposal on covid19 support
  • KT to send the covid19 support proposal to TEI-L form all/Chair.

Agenda

  • Meeting Procedures and Other Announcements
  • Discussion about the TEI2020 Members’ Meeting in Lincoln, Nebraska, US
  • Vote on Changing election terms for Board and Council Members (KT)
  • Updates
    • Strategic budget allocations (KT)
    • TAPAS Support / TEI Repository
    • Finding a Webmaster
    • Conference documentation
    • Ticketing System for Board actions (CF)
    • Website: structure and content (HC)
    • Internationalization strategy (HC, GRR)
  • Any Other Business

Minutes

  • Meeting Procedures and Other Announcements
  • Discussion about the TEI2020 Members’ Meeting in Lincoln, Nebraska, US
    • The Board discusses the options for the TEI Member's Meeting in fall 2020 with regard to global Covid19 desease lockdown.
      • 1) Will this be outright cancellation, just not happening this year, or should we consider any virtual in-kind replacement for the community?
      • 2) Another option is of course postponement, i.e. that TEI2020 merely becomes TEI2021 still held in Nebraska if they are willing. TEI2021 would then become TEI2022, etc.
      • 3) JC believes the TEI Consortium's status under US law means it is a requirement that it have an AGM (= Annual General Meeting), elections etc. Are we going to move the AGM and elections entirely online? Are there any other legal requirements that might be affected?
        • HC notes that the only requirement under US law is that we hold at least one Board meeting per year.
      • 4) The answer to #3 should be understood before we start to implement the change of term lengths.
    • MS asking what technology should be used:
      • suggestion: Adobe Blue Jeans
      • PW: zoom, with break up rooms, 1.000 people at the same time in a zoom session
      • KT: prefers only one session at a time, no parallel sessions
    • question on time (because of time zones)--ask people to record talks and link to them from a single place, perhaps with password
    • PW: networking aspect is the most important and would be missing
    • DH2020 is planning some version of virtual conference, as a reference point
    • CF: question of whether people would be willing to make proposals for fully virtual conference, also question of productivity during traumatic periods
    • PW: could make the call very open
    • HC: virtual poster session, feedback mechanism
      • PW: thinks on the audience
      • Virtual Poster session: PDF and extra zoom link  for each poster
    • Logistics has to taken up with Kay Walter
      • JC to liaise with Kay Walter on the virtual conference logistics
    • KT: we take care of having a business meeting
    • JC: If Nebraska wants to shift for a year, Newcastle is willing to shift also for one year
  • Vote on Changing election terms for Board and Council Members (KT)
    • we need an unanimous vote, as GRR is not here, we need her vote written
    • Is there anyone with arguments against the proposal?
      • PW: noted concerns of those on the TEI-L mailing list who spoke against three year terms. Board discussed these and felt the benefits outweighed any disadvantages.
    • Council is working on language
    • Council has its voting meeting on May 1. This means the Nominating Committee can send out the email requesting nominations on May 4.
    • Vote: Chair proposed, Pip seconded this, PW, JC, CF, KT voted yes.
      • HC: must be written statements.
      • Thus, we take the “vote” as a straw poll.
      • Updates--short quarterly report from the Chair to TEI-L.
  • Strategic budget allocations (KT)
    • If we’re not doing an in-person conference, no need to make a decision. Discuss this at the May meeting.
  • TAPAS Support / TEI Repository (KT)--KT to do this.
  • Finding a Webmaster
    • MS: discussed it in the Infrastructure group (IG). The IG went through all tasks Luis is doing at the moment, coming up that a lot of tasks is doing the infrastructure group now. What we really need is a webmaster taking care of wordpress and something like a Communications Officer, (a good part of the content is outdated and not well structured).
    • Mailing lists, server things should be in the Infrastructure group’s responsibility
    • return to this in May
  • Website: structure and content (HC)
    • postponed
  • Internationalization strategy (HC, GRR)
    • postponed
  • Ticketing System for Board actions
    • Luis Kanboard (CF)
    • KT: Run as a test, see if it works
    • self hosted system might need resources to maintain the system
  • Any Other Business
    • Possibility of offering low levels of funding to people whose small research projects are affected by Covid-19. Need to be careful not to run out of funds, given likely lowering of income this year and next in light of reduced institutional and personal finances because of the shutdown. Process could also present difficulties. Decision: to bear it in mind in case the situation changes but not to do anything immediate.
    • Proposal to send a message of support to the community about Covid-19. KT and PW to draft and circulate for comments, then send to the List from us all/Chair.