Minutes for Steering Committee Meeting, May 8th 2009

In Attendance: Matthew, Adam, Sara, Robyn (minutes), jes, Duncan (chair), Heather, Alisha, Simon, chris

Regrets: Emily, Brendan, Bonnie, Corvin , Jennifer

1. Report from Programming Committee
• difficult for program committee to move forward without a theme
• Melt This” proposed as a potential theme: issues of the economy, boarder crossing, environment, conference/symposium
• capacity building for local groups – support through skills in popular education or theatre
• global outreach using technology
• evaluation criteria for proposals, diversity of T.O. communities in steering/programming committee
• proposal for “Melt This” as theme, from programming committee to steering committee

“Melt This” discussion:
• provides lots of potential for imagery/graphic
• how do we proceed with the decision-making process?
• 11 or 12 members of both programming and steering committee are in favour of “Melt This” as theme—unanimous consensus among those present at May 8th steering committee meeting

• provisional decision to make “Melt This” the theme of PTO 2010, major objections should be raised within a week of the minutes being posted

2. Heading to Minneapolis
• Simon, Duncan, Stephen, Corvin
• 8 hours of volunteer work, shadowing conference organizers to learn structure of conference
• 1 hour facilitated discussion at end of conference (Sunday and/or Monday?)
• Duncan and Simon remaining for post-conference wrap-up

Questions from steering committee that members will take to Minneapolis:
• internal processes around scholarships/bursaries, criteria for workshop evaluations
• success they’ve had drawing groups both locally and nationally
• how does the conference balance pedagogy with the theatre?
• how they specifically overcame obstacles they faced?
• how details (like food, accessibility, youth) were dealt with?
• place of the conference – did things happen outside of the central location? (reflecting on our own ability to facilitate travel around Toronto)
• Simon notes that in the pre-conference promotional material there is very little about the Twin Cities community
• how does AGM fit into conference? Does the issue of membership and leadership have any greater clarity with “new generation” of PTO members? How does the election process go?
• if there is a surplus, does it come to this conference? What does Minneapolis have to offer us? $500 speaker’s fees
• how does conference apply for grants? Do individual steering committees apply, or does PTO apply? –chris: we are responsible for 95% of the budget
• how has Minneapolis mobilized their local communities for the conference? When does that mobilization start?
• how many international people in Pop Ed are attending Minni, and funding for that?

3. Final Session at PTO 2009 (on Sunday and/or Monday)
• Corvin (and chris) designing structure for session
• could Deb Barndt co-facilitate on Sunday?
• ask Brendan and Emily how the PTO 2008 session went?
• lots of feedback regarding PTO 2009
• did PTO 2009 ask us for Sunday or Monday? chris had assumed we were asking about Monday. Are they asking us for both? Do both sessions exist?
• Simon will send message for clarification from PTO

4. Finance
• chris will have draft budget for those going to Minneapolis conference
• who would we be applying under officially for grants? Catalyst centre? Symposium?
• we have to take Symposium into account in PTO 2010 budget. Importance of continuing dialogue between Symposium and conference organizing.
• meet with granting officers re: pre-conference, outlining local participants, festival concept throughout conference
• institutions committing to registering their members. How do we entice organizations to do this?

5. Space
• we need preliminary budget
• OISE thinks it’s problematic that we’re asking for 3 full floors for an entire weekend
• Daniel sent rubric where we must specify rooms and times
• can we use model from TCDI conference?
• can Adam get us U of T space?
• space committee/outreach should be talking to U of T theatre department
• OISE does not have outdoor space—but U of T has lots, can we find out how to book it?

Next meeting: June 5th, 3:30-5:30 at OISE Peace Lounge (7th Floor)
• We ask that all sub-committees commit to meeting before the end of May.
• Chair: ? Minute Taker: ?