Attending: chris (chair-lite & minutes), Matt, Corvin, Deborah Barndt, Alicia Payne
Regrets: Robyn, Bonnie, Laura, Adam, Sara, Emily, Brendan, Stephen, Jenny, Simon, Duncan
1. Internal Communication, Capacity & Committees
· Chris thought that we had one representative from each committee who is a convenor (POST-MEETING NOTE: Below is the Committee list from March 31st, which is the only one the minute-taker can find. I’ve added Matt to the Programming. It is not clear who, if anyone, is a convenor or committee chair)
o Programming: Chris, Simon, Adam, Stephen, Sara, Matt
o Communications, Outreach and Media: Matt, Brendan, Robyn, Jes, Hartley, Corvin
o Funding/Finance: Chris, Laura, Margo
o Hospitality/Housing: Sara, Brendan, Emily
o Volunteers: Chris, Laura
o Space and Accessibility: Bonnie, Adam, Laura, Corvin
o Anti-Colonial: Emily
o Making it to PTO 2009: Robyn, Chris, Jes
· Deb Barndt suggested that chris might be able to get a Graduate Assistant at the Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University assigned to him to help out with the popular education classes as well as work on the PTO conference. A GA is a Master’s student who is paid to work 10 hours per week for Fall and Winter semestre’s (i.e. September through April). Chris said he would follow-up.
o (POST-MEETING NOTE: chris has been approved to post a GA job description for a popular education/PTO assistant position. He also learned that if there is a PhD student whose work aligns with PTO they could possibly be recruited, as part of their funding requirements, to assist with the organizing in May and June.)
· Reminder: all committees need to meet and consider appointing a committee chair/convenor (NOTE: reports can be sent to the list and/or posted on website)
· There seem to be some inconsistencies with the PTO list – ask Robyn to confirm that listserv response setting is defaulting to “list”
2. Outreach
· Matt and chris met with PARC (Parkdale Activity-Recreation Centre – 1499 Queen ST. W. - http://parc.on.ca/) and they were very enthusiastic to be involved including being a site that could host an event before and during the conference as well as willing to commit to sending someone to serve on the Steering Committee.
· Matt’s been in touch with Facilitating Inclusion (http://www.facilitatinginclusion.ca/), a Hamilton-based popular education group that is interested in being involved.
· Matt has contacted Clare Nobb’s at SOY (http://www.soytoronto.org/) a community development project designed to improve the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered youth. Clare thinks there would be interest.
· Deb mentioned involvement with the PARC Mural Project that is happening in Parkdale; Alberto Guevara, an instructor (and filmmaker) in the Community Arts Program at York University; Honor Ford-Smith (a professor at the Faculty of Environmental Studies and a popular theatre worker who ahs used Pedagogy of the Oppressed); Heather Hermant who teaches in the Community Arts Program; Community Arts Ontario (CAO) who have focused on developing a northern (Ontario) network of aboriginal artists (Deb could be a liaison with CAO); Sandra Laronde of Red Sky Theatre; Monique Mojica (working on a project called “Cocolate Women, Dreams and the Milky Way”); Michael St. George; Jumblies Theatre; Re-mix; Melanie Skene and Simon (Hamilton-based artist-facilitators), Blakka Ellis (A Jamaican theatre worker who has used Theatre of the Oppressed).
· Everyone should update information on the Google Docs
· Everyone should review outreach material that was sent out on list and is on blog: http://pto2010steering.blogspot.com/2009/06/outreach-prep-materials.html
3. Coordination
· We need to deal with the issue of coordination ASAP
· Recommended that it be an item at the August meeting
· Need job description
· Consider youth programming, employment money (unemployment top-up programs), Settlement Agencies, Youth Arts groups… all possible sources of funding/labour
4. Program
· We discussed some programming-related ideas:
o Bring your own venue (which we’ve spoken of in the past)
o Popular education post-conference
o Using World Café as a method for community discussions
o A PO/TO Workshop to put PO & TO in dialogue with each other
o Exploring possibility of unilingual workshops – which would have to promoted with enough time to recruit adequate participation of, for example, French speakers, Spanish speakers, et al.
5. Space
· Need to confirm that the space at OISE has, in fact been booked. We thought his had been done but Chris will e-mail Adam
6. Relationship with PTO – decision-making
- Deb asked about our relationship with the PTO Board and what, if any, are the differing visions for the conference. Deb described the Minneapolis conference as having challenged the interpretation of PTO by tapping into different communities as well as representing other kinds of arts practices. Chris summarized our history of communication with the Board (meeting with Ellie Friedland in January, response to Board questions, Simon’s joining the Board, Kelly’s most recent e-mails).
7. Next Meeting
· Friday, August 28 from 3:30 – 5:30
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