SAAHJ General
Meeting
Oct. 15, 2005
Casa Blanca Grill
Members and guests in attendance, per
sign-in sheet: Edward Leal, Luis Mercado, Ernie Villarreal, Danny
Sanchez, Kris Rodriguez, Elaine Rodriguez, Vincent Bosquez, Nick Zuniga,
Nora López, Mary Anthony, Joe Sandoval, Ed Tijerina, Francisco Vara Orta
and Carol Schliesinger.
Call to Order/Welcome/Introductions
Joe Sandoval called the meeting to
order at 10:39 a.m. Introductions by all present followed.
Approval
of the July minutes/Secretary’s Report
Carol Schliesinger asked if there were any corrections
or additions to the September minutes. Ed made a motion to accept the
September minutes as submitted; Teresa seconded.
Treasurer’s Report
Nora López reported the following account balances. Operating fund--$7,106.29, Scholarship
Fund--$63,435.05.
Old Business
Donation Request from The
Rattler
Joe mentioned the Board had discussed this issue and
decided to leave the decision to the general membership. Dino Chiecchi
asked for more information on the request including history of donations
and amount requested. Nora said they needed both operating fund and
equipment. She suggested the organization do a collection to help out the
newspaper, adding that she knows Francisco is serious, dedicated and professional.
Teresa said it would be a good idea to support The
Rattler because this is in the organization’s line of work. Nora
thinks we can keep the donation anonymous. Carol suggested we should draft a
policy with guidelines. Nora suggested setting aside some annual funds for
causes that the organization would like to support.
Dino said he is in agreement with helping students, but
not institutions. Ed explained the
paper doesn’t have many ads to generate revenue. He also said if the
organization gives a donation, it would need to come from the operating
fund. Joe agreed with Nora in considering these types of requests on a
case-by-case basis. Ernie suggested we set a limit of how much to give every
year and stay within it.
Teresa made a motion to donate the funds needed to buy a
camera to The Rattler. Nora suggested telling the students the funds
are to buy the camera. Dino suggested the organization buy the camera
directly for them. Dino made a motion to award The rattler the
camera they requested. Luis seconded. Joe said he would talk to Francisco
and tell him about the decision. Dino mentioned he knows good places to buy
cameras.
Nora suggested the organization not give more than $500
per group, with an annual limit of $1000 to be decided on a case-by-case
basis. Nora will draft a policy to propose to the Board.
Awarding method for scholarship funds
Dino suggested the organization award any scholarship
funds directly to the students, since giving it to the college might result
in financial aid taken away from the students.
Luis added that the National Hispanic Fund gives
scholarships directly to the student. Ed said he talked to the
Association’s CPA and that if we award the funds directly, the
Association has to fill out a number of additional forms and also the funds
become taxable income for the student. Dino said he would like to talk to
an IRS rep, and if everyone is in agreement he will research the issue in
more detail. Ed added he feels strongly that the Association not change the
method currently used. Joe asked Dino to look into it some more and present
his findings in writing to the board for further discussion.
Distinguished
Speakers Series Update
Ernie said The
Westin Riverwalk Hotel couldn’t accommodate the expected audience of
150-200 guests. He’s still awaiting response from The Plaza Hotel.
The Crowne Plaza staff has been very accommodating. The cost for each plate
would hover around $25, which would be the expected prize for members and
$35 for non-members. Making the website ready for guests to register online
is one of the main priorities. An engineer from Texas Public Radio has
offered to do this work pro-bono.
Carol is talking to the people at OLLU regarding the
website and phone lines to be used for the event registration. The
committee is also coordinating for volunteers to work the registration
table at the event. Carol provided
the committee with a timeline to keep all tasks organized. Dino asked what
were common prices for these types of events. Ernie gave a range of prices
and descriptions. Joe asked to research The Bright Shawl as a possible
location, since it might solve the difficult parking situation associated
with downtown hotels.
Ernie thinks there will be more non-members than members
in attendance. He added that the greatest benefit for the Association would
be the exposure, rather than financial results. Nora suggested asking if the public
access channels will air the event. Ed asked about signage for the
Association at the event and Carol mentioned there is a podium sign, and
the committee is looking into getting a media wall banner.
New Business
Webmaster
Carol explained the concerns/needs related to a
Webmaster have been taken care off. Carol is able to make minimum updates
and an IT staff member from OLLU is uploading the updated pages.
Indian journalists
Joe announced a group of reporters from India visiting
San Antonio would like to meet with media who work in other languages other
than English. Members were encouraged to attend on 10/19 from 9-10 a.m. at
the International Center.
Annual Scholarship Gala
Joe announced the
Association needs a volunteer who is willing to chair next year’s
gala. Members interested need to contact Joe.
Gridiron
Nora explained that the SPJ has organized this for the
past 20 years, but membership is really low. There were conversations of
having this year’s Gridiron be the last one. Other suggestions were
to partner with other journalists’ organizations. The main needs are
for volunteers to help participate and sell tickets. This year it drew
about 500 guests and raised about $4500 in profits. A partnership would
help sell more tickets and benefit more organizations. The SPJ asked if the
Association would be interested in helping promote the event and sell
tickets. Nora asked the membership if she should continue these talks. Dino
said we should really give more credit to the SAAHJ for their involvement
in the event planning. The general consensus was to proceed.
Announcements
Mass Communication Workshop – Hosted by Texas
State University on Oct. 20 from 12-1:30 for students. Journalists are
invited to attend and talk to the students. Members interested in attending
can call Nora to carpool.
Media Mixer - To take place Nov. 2 from 5:30-7:30 at El
Mirador Restaurant in the King William district. For more information
contact Ed Tijerina.
Next meeting
Our next meeting
is scheduled for Saturday, November 19 at Edwards Aquifer – 1615
N. St. Mary's Street.
Adjournment
The meeting was adjourned at
11:24 a.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Carol Schliesinger
SAAHJ
Secretary
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