JHR Minutes #20

Friday, August 31, 2007 @ Café on the Ave

Present: Nari Corley-Wheeler; Lily Le; Yuhei Miyauchi; Diana Archambault; Jacob Galfano; Sue Yang

Governance:

As per the group’s agreement, members were prepared to discuss the official position each wants to hold for the upcoming school year. It was reiterated that these positions are not concrete, but flexible; however, the purpose is to improve efficiency and structure, and to establish legitimacy for potential recruits.

Not all members were present, so please email j4hr@u.washington.edu if you have not done so already. Also, please continue to think about what your position means relative to the rest of the group (what responsibilities you’ll have, etc.).

Nari: President/Facilitator

Diana: Finance Director

Lily: Photographer/Chief Graphic Designer

Yuhei: IT/Web Manager

Jacob: Secretary/Documentarian

Trevor: Foreign Correspondent

Anthony:

Janice:

Rachael:

The group decided that it would continue to make decisions by consensus or vote, but that each position would have the authority to act within their areas of specialty without consulting the group if necessary.

For future meetings, be prepared to check in with the group about what work you are doing, even if briefly. This will keep all members informed and club activity transparent.

Newsletter:

The theme for the first issue of The Liaison (of the second volume) is Media & Human Rights. Because the group aims to publish and distribute this issue by the first week of the Fall Quarter, Nari established deadlines and important dates.

September 7: Rough Drafts due. Please submit to j4hr@u.washington.edu

September 9-14: Group editing (until Chief Editor is selected)

September 24: Newsletter printed and distributed

September 27: Student Activities Fair (Table*)

October 4: First meeting of school year (discuss next newsletter?)

*This is a volunteer opportunity! Contact j4hr@u.washington.edu

The group also discussed topic ideas for articles. If you are not on this list, please

contact j4hr@u.washington.edu with your topic (or rough draft).

Nari: Media landscape in China

Yuhei: Merit of Documentaries

Jacob: Community Radio movement

There are also other components of the newsletter that need volunteers (Spotlight on…, Resource Guide, HR in this Issue, Statistics). If you or anyone you know are interested in contributing, please contact j4hr@u.washington.edu or Lily Le (in charge of layout).

JHR Summit @ Toronto:

Jacob reported back on his trip to the annual Student Chapter Summit in Toronto.

He discussed the history of the organization and what it does in its international and domestic programs. This information will be presented at the first meeting on October 4; it is important for all members to be present.

The group managed without support last year, but with new human and material resources by way of the group’s new connection to the main office in Toronto and to student chapters across North America, the potential for creating meaningful work is infinite. This was encompassed at the summit in four ways:

Human rights reporting: Workshops and student chapter presentations

revealed new and creative ideas to report on human rights within a North American context. Groups worked with print media (local and national) and radio. An important issue raised was objectivity in reporting, and was perhaps the most valuable and challenging “lesson” of the weekend intensive. JHR UW ought to continue to challenge itself and navigate the obscure world that is human rights reporting, moving between advocacy and objectivity to find a sufficient balance.

Promotion & Recruitment: Several ideas were shared to promote and manage growth, from human rights workshops to other events like films and speaking engagements. Another group worked with a local high school, which is a wonderful way to bridge the gap between university and surrounding community, and to groom potential members.

Fundraising and Finance: A newer development at the main office is the need for accurate and disciplined reporting of finances (JHR must do so to keep its charitable organization status). Here are six simple rules:

- Create a bank account (check with university regulations)

- Report activity to main office by the 15^th of each month for the previous month

- Tax receipts are available for donations

- Set goals in advance

- 20% of all funds earned goes to JHR

- Be aware of other university regulations

A new stipulation requires that all money earned by JHR must be spent on local activity. That can include funding an applicant to the intern program (see below), sending a delegate to the next Student Chapter Summit, or any other administrative costs in day-to-day operations.

Speak Silence! is a coordinated campaign to raise money for JHR and its student chapters, and happens for six hours on November 2. A show of solidarity with those who do not have a voice in the media, it consists of three parts: promotion, vow of silence, and breaking the silence. Student chapters brainstormed ideas for each of these components, which will be available soon. From this compilation, the group can create its own plan.

Internship Program: JHR has created a new internship program for members who seek experiential opportunities to learn about journalism and human rights in real-world situations. For members seeking this type of opportunity, please contact j4hr@u.washington.edu for more information.

Powerpoint presentations of the summit and the JHR Student Chapter

handbook are available upon request: j4hr@u.washington.edu

Next Meeting: The first meeting of the school year will be at 6 pm on Thursday, October 4th at Suzallo Cafe. Please join us!

Tentative Agenda for Next Meeting: (bring sign-up sheet, JHR swag)

- JHR Overview: History & Program

- The Liaison: Distribute v2i1 and discuss next issue

- Discuss general timeline for upcoming year (important dates)

- Dues/Daily Ad $

- Student Advisor (UW/JHR)

- Speak Silence!

- Individual meetings:

o Yuhei: E-version of The Liaison (PDF & HTML)/JHR Website (TIG)

o Diana: Finance

o Lily: Protocol for next year