Minutes
Annual Board Meeting
Urban History Association
January 3, 2009
Hilton New York, Concourse C
Presiding: Martin V. Melosi
The meeting began with the realization that so few board members had been able to attend that any official business (requiring a vote) should conducted electronically, as provided by the recent revisions to the by-laws.
With that decision, the board then continued to hold discussions on a number of topics.
Brad Hunt, very busy with final accounting for the conference, did not provide a membership report. However, Janet Bednarek noted that in the figures she had seen membership seemed to be up. She will contact Brad about a more formal report. That report can be e-mailed to board members in the new year.
In terms of finances, Janet Bednarek reported that the finances for the association were strong. Final numbers were not complete for 2008 as yet, due to continued efforts to finalize the accounting for the conference. However, it was clear that the conference would bring a return to the association of somewhere between $10,000 and $12,000. The checking account has a healthy balance. The Jackson Fund had been placed in a one-year certificate of deposit in early 2008. It is anticipated that the interest earned will more than cover the cost of the award. All Life membership payments continue to be deposited in a separate Life membership fund. Bednarek reported that she also hoped to continue to transfer some money from the checking account into that fund, which continues to be too small given the large number of life members in the UHA. As noted, the conference fund will grow by a healthy amount after this year’s conference. Once completed, Bednarek will send a full accounting of the general funds and of the conference in particular to the board members in the new year.
Bednarek, on behalf of Roger Lotchin, then reported the results of the nominations committee’s work and the election results. A total of 31 ballots were received. All candidates nominated received a majority of the votes cast. Therefore, Michael Ebner was elected as the UHA president for 2009 and Dolores Hayden as the president-elect for 2009. The new board members beginning a 3-year term at the beginning of 2009 are: Matthew Klingle, Laura McEnaney, Harold Platt, Timothy Gilfoyle, Margaret O’Mara, Andrew Lees, and Mark Rose. Bednarek will send an e-mail out in early 2009. It will formally thank the out-going board members and welcome the new. (NOTE: Sent 1/21/09)
The nominating committee in conjunction with the Executive Committee of the UHA had also nominated Janet Bednarek for a second term as the Executive Secretary-Treasurer of the Urban History Association. She has accepted that position and will begin a second term January 2010.
In old business, the board members present decided to have an electronic vote on the annual support for the National Coordinating Committee for the Promotion of History (NCCPH). The request from the organization usually comes to the Executive Secretary-Treasurer in March. Over the past few years the UHA has sent $350. Bednarek will contact board members on this matter in early 2009.
In new business, the UHA will not sponsor a session at the OAH conference in 2009 in Seattle. The board discussion that followed that announcement, though, emphasized the importance of continuing the practice of sponsoring sessions at the OAH and the AHA. To that end, the board asked Bednarek to begin finding volunteers to form a session to sponsor at the AHA in 2010 in San Diego. Board member Nancy Kwak stepped forward to take on that task. What remains is finding a volunteer to organize a session for the OAH in 2010 in Washington DC.
Martin Melosi then presented a report on the Fifth Biennial Conference. Overall, it was considered a great success. Kathy Brosnan will be writing a more formal report on the conference process so that the organization will have something of a guide for future conference planning. Again, though final figures are still pending, it was clear that the conference will result in a sizeable return to the association. Melosi stressed that such returns should be anticipated and part of conference planning in the future.
As for the Sixth Biennial Conference, Melosi has organized a site selection committee. That committee will identify the location for the conference in 2010. Ideally, it will also identify a possible site for 2012. Melosi strongly suggested that the organization begin trying to plan a couple of conferences in advance in order to avoid rushing at the last minute.
The board members present then had a short discussion about the newsletter. As one of the most visible rewards of membership in the UHA it is very important that a quality newsletter appear twice a year – March and October. Bednarek reported that Jeff Strickland, the current editor, was interested in stepping down. With that in mind, she had contacted Bell Clement about taking on the job. Clement had indicated that she was willing. Bednarek reported that following the conference she will begin working on the transition from Strickland to Clement. Emphasis will be placed a getting the newsletters out in a timely fashion.
Sage had approached the UHA with a proposal to link subscription to the Journal of Urban History and membership – i.e. joining the UHA would involve also subscribing to the JUH. If membership were linked, Sage would offer a significant discount on the price of the subscription. After a lengthy discussion on the pros and cons of this type of arrangement, the board charged Bednarek with devising a survey of the membership on this issue.
In items from the floor, Bednarek reported that Alan Lessoff had again volunteered to form the prize committees in 2009.
Discussion then turned to two possible revisions to the by-laws. The first would realign the terms of the president and president-elect to reflect the biennial conference schedule. The second would also look at revising the by-laws to change the scheduling/location of the annual business meeting and the board meetings. Bednarek will work with the board during 2009 on these possible revisions.
The meeting then adjourned at 9:15 a.m.