C*UUYAN Pre-GA Meeting
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Facilitators would like to acknowledge that we are exactly where we need to be in the process, because it’s where the group has arrived.
Opening reading from Liz
Reflection on being in a place where we can ask the kind of questions we’re asking.
Agenda review:
Process check in
Covenant building
Report-back from the group that stayed late last night.
Invitation to check in about how you’re feeling about the process, please share
MM – felt frustrated and adrift until the informal later meeting
RS – felt confused at the start, after the late meeting & the hashing out & explanations feeling better
Building a Covenant
An agreement on how we will be together in this space
• Care of self
• Own experience (speak from)
• Volume (sound)
• Eye on the goal and the sacred community- we are on the same team
• Not on different sides (We’re here for a goal, even if we disagree on the details)
• Active listening
• Need respect for each other, the process, etc.
• Talking order to be respected
Report-Back from the informal discussion
Represented by Heather Concannon, Jess Halperin, Rachael Stevenson
The question – what’s the value of having a continental volunteer org. serving unaffiliated YAs
Gaps where the 3 groups who spoke yesterday didn’t fill the visions articulated yesterday.
Accountability, advocacy were the big gaps
Who is accountable to young adults and making decisions about YA needs? Holding the YAM office and the district staff accountable to YAs instead of them making decision about what YAs need without asking.
Ideas
• Not to get rid of C*UUYAN but turn it into more of a task force of people we can call upon to help with the young adult work that needs to be done
• Use connect UU frequently and thoroughly
• Create a YA advocacy committee; be at the forefront of the work
• Merge C*UUYAN with CYF, become more of a powerhouse. Utilize more UU camps and conferences
These ideas can be combined, not exclusive to one another
There is a lack of resources, how do we mine our community for those resources?
Calling on people to help on the projects that need resources
A central group of young adults
Jon Craig- young adult advisory committee. Aggregation of information and dispersing that info.
Talking about CYF and C*UUYAN was less about the funding and more about the process of decisions and business. There was a lot of energy about accountability and it should be a big part of what goes on.
Scott McNeil – CMAC facilitator, bring folks in to create ideas and help nudge the YAM office into doing things in a way that affects and helps people involved in CM. 8-10 people.
Ellen Carvill-Ziemer – Supervising and advising. How to represent the diversity of YAs and experience. Is there some way that each congregation, YA group, CM can get a ballot for the advisory committee?
Send a letter to ministers, etc., so that it at least brings up the subject for the congregations once a year.
Katie Tyson – there were differences in opinion about the potential merge of C*UUYAN and CYF. CYF take over cons, a deeper merge, etc.
Karina Leppik – is there a way to collaborate with CYF to fill the loss/space that Opus left?
Opening up the question to the group – what is it that a continental young adult volunteer body can do that no one else can?
Sherry Warren – Start with an open mind, not necessarily the answer you want to come to.
Robin Darling – what I see that is not served by all the other groups (could come under the purview of CYF but doesn’t yet) the intensity of getting to a continental event. The drive that people bring to coming to the continental level. Level of emotional intensity, yes it can be self-serving to have the conferences, but there will be something missing to not have the continental effort to put on a continental retreat.
Focus on conference planning
Kim Tomczak – there is also something exciting about getting people together together from all around the country doing this work.
Elka Ladd – there is something amazing about continental effort, and it provides more advocacy than CYF can do.
Natty Averett – keep the intent and spirit of C*UUYAN but let the logistical support come from people who are better able to provide it. Where there is concern about the perspective of YAs let the continental body provide it.
Example?
Interacts with 3-4 people a month that went through YA stuff at church but aren’t involved in the religion really, more into the social aspect and fellowship. Not UU specifically, or who identify as UU but don’t want congregational involvement.
Q – online access, events, a way to connect?
Is that something that only a continental body can provide?
Karina Leppik – Yes- it falls outside of the scope of the UUA. Catching people that aren’t’ affiliated, who describe themselves as UU but don’t fit in.
Robin Darling – continental camaraderie for people who move around and can’t stay in one congregation
The continental in-person relationships that only a continental body can provide
Tom Bozeman – Sunday mornings don’t appeal to me at all, circle worships do. Online worships appeal even less, cons fill in the gap
Could a really awesome YA group fill that?
Yes and no.
Elka Ladd– one of the things that concern me about the possible merger is that CYF needs to be accountable in a way that isn’t in place yet. A clear structure of accountability for the CYF to be accountable to young adults at large
Process moment – answering the small question, then the next bigger question, then it gets bigger and sent to people who will provide the real details.
Liz Weber – adding to Tom’s comment. In the same local/regional group as him, love it, but get a lot more out of it because of experiences on the continental level.
Jess Halperin – a lot of people here get a lot out of the continental stuff, but there are a lot of people who are more fed by district, etc., and they’re not here because they are fed. They exist and maybe don’t need a continental group.
Ellen Carvill-Ziemer – don’t want to give anyone too big of a task (by being the only one that feeds/fills a need)
C*UUYAN doesn’t have to be the one that creates the resources but could/should be the one that disseminates.
Hearing that some people get a lot out of the continental conferences
Continental Volunteer Organization body to help maintain the focus on developing expertise in circle worship. We need people trained in circle worship, capacity building for it. Not just training in the sermon sandwich
Being at the table in the conversations so that it stays on the table
Hearing primarily liaison aspect, a critical nexus.
Ryan Novosielski – if opus/concentric is the young adult version of GA can GA be that? Pledging as a commitment to a congregation. Lots of wants but not always the commitment to provide
Kim Tomczak – we need to maintain a voice in the biz at GA. We all need to go out and advocate, momentum gets lost. Take home whatever we come up with.
Anthony Severe- what could be handled by GA YA caucus, not doing a separate little conference within GA (didn’t work). In 2002 the YA caucus decided not to speak for all YAs because we’re a small sampling of young adults at GA (other commitments as delegates & other identities).
Their area examples of where people contact the YAM office and they get referred to the SC.
Lifting up the personal connections between people from around the country
Tomoko Takano– YAM office is good at general resources. CYF is accountable to its members first and foremost, not necessarily to all YAs. CYF is a community, C*UUYAN is a community too. CYF is self-selected more so than C*UUYAN. A community that can reach across districts/nation, etc. Critical part – supporting bridgers.
Transitory nature of being YAs even more so in the bridging age/group. Resource of Community, not just knowledge. Support needed during periods of transition that isn’t provided anywhere else.
Elka Ladd – more trainings need to happen, at all levels. Trickle-down effect of the energy that comes out of the trainings.
Lyn Cox– hearing that people really value the connections they make at the continental level. Ministers and DREs get a lot out of similar connections made at professional gatherings
Clear common values and common goals – clarity of purpose will be important
Don’t limit yourself to staff that are dedicated to YAs. There is a new UUA staff person who is dedicated to resources for worship. Lifespan faith development curricula, etc., let’s broaden our idea.
Natty Averett– clarification on our overall goal in the question we are bringing up. Who we want to do it for, not yet talking about the nuts and bolts.
Andrew Mertz- We do need to work on what it is that we want, don’t need to worry about exactly how yet. What is our vision?
Jon Craig – something we can do (that’s not GA) is a spiritual retreat. Something we can’t do is raise money, have been at the whim of the YACM office.
Raegan Bricks– just because we haven’t doesn’t mean that we can’t. It could be part of the vision
Allison Palm – this is the real value of a continental organization. Getting people in the room to talk about what we want. Something C*UUYAN has tried to do but hasn’t necessarily been able to get a representative sample
Ellen Carvill-Ziemer – continental body can’t necessarily do the bridging best, but could kick people into doing it better/right.
What an organization needs to do is make sure there are communities. Opportunity for community building, a need for training, advocating for such things to happen.
Let’s remove ourselves from what you want the outcome to be, and decide how we can develop the charge to go to AN outcome.
The question is: what do we need to do next to get to an outcome.
Elandria Williams– this is about power, the UUA is an institution. The challenge is how to transform the institution to give us what we need. Let’s be honest about what we’re really fighting for. We are grown; we can do it for ourselves. We are stuck in this box, how do we transform
How do we make ourselves strong? The conversation is about multigenerational congregations in UUA, let’s jump in there and tell them they’re not fulfilling our needs. The YAM office is doing 75% less than they were 2 years ago. How do we think about what a base of YAs across the continent, how do we find out what the others need too.
Matt Meyer – the group last night put forward some ideas, none of them are whole but there are some models that we could move forward with. Holding up advisory committee. Should we put forth proposals?
One idea is to elect an advisory committee, but want to hear what are some other options of how to accomplish vision.
Suggestion – small group discussions? Open space technology thing? Would b e easier for some to go into smaller groups
Chris – popcorn-style brainstorming
Robin Darling – sensing that some people in the room that want to talk about an advisory role, others seem to be concerned about the spiritual conferences, should the outcome be two outcomes?
Two clearly different needs, will be hard to work them out all together today
Three things: Power/advocacy, Networking, communities.
Jess Halperin – three different: what an advisory group would do, what we ask from the institution, structure.
20 minute brainstorming in these groups, then come back.
Greg Buckland– Jess’s suggestion sounds like they could be part of the power group.
Would like to leave today having charged a smaller group of people with tasks to accomplish over the next year.
Reagan Bricks– this is part of the principle for the group
Natty Averett- process suggestion, 3 components, small group for each, report back, then pull out the charge from those groups.
Clarification of the 3 groups – spirituality, networking, power/institution/advocacy.
Elandria Williams– we should think about what advocacy means, it could be limiting to call it advocacy.
Call it accountability instead of advocacy
Proposal –
Divide into 2 groups: vision around serving spiritual needs/spiritual event, other talking about networking, power, advocacy?
More energy for 2 groups
Confusion – we agreed that the HOW is going to get sent out
If there is a group about a spiritual event they should come up with logistics of the outcome. Perhaps come out of the room with a different task force
2 Breakout Groups
Back from breakouts
Acknowledgement of different individual strengths, the visioning is as important as the “getting stuff done”
Give the chance for all to be heard
Annual Spiritual Event Group
Decided to create a task force of 3-5 people to be elected this afternoon, to create a spiritual event that is affordable.
Paid facilitator with volunteer co-chairs, task force would decide how to raise the money
Task force could be part of CYF
Committee of 5 but could just elect 3 today, depending on interest & ability of people here.
Convener of the task force would be chosen from among those elected/selected.
The facilitator of the conference would be chosen later on
The task force is empowered to find out what is necessary to make the retreat happen.
Is this a committee that makes it happen, or are they finding the ones to make it happen?
The task force can become the committee later on, doesn’t have to. Will charge people with making it happen.
Proposal:
We propose the creation of a task force whose goal will be creating structures to implement an annual Young adult Continental Spiritual retreat.
The Conference Task Force will be composed of 5 members, at least 3 of whom will be appointed during our business meeting today. Once assembled, the task force will self-select a Convener from among them.
The annual young adult continental spiritual retreat should seek to be financially independent, sustainable for volunteer leaders’ energies, and accessible, utilizing a series of consistent sites around the US and/or Canada.
During the next 1-2 years, the Conference Task Force will be responsible for reaching out to ally organizations to decide whom best to be in relationship with to institutionalize a consistent and sustainable annual retreat.
We recommend to the Task Force seek resources and funding to create a permanent paid staff position for a conference facilitator. Funding possibilities may include: Grants, membership dues from an ally/parent organization, conference registration fees, or seed money from C*UUYAN.
We charge the Task Force with beginning a conversation with the Church of the Younger Fellowship about formalizing a relationship between the CYF and the future conference planning body and staff.
We further charge the Task Force with being in consistent communication with all other Continental Young Adult entities.
The Conference Task Force will determine whether they would like to plan the first retreat themselves, or solely work to create a future planning committee.
Who is the task force reporting to?
There is no sponsoring body, at this point. The goal is to develop associations and make the conference sustainable in the best way, whoever the task force associates with.
Could be CUUYAN, could be CU2C2
Next GROUP (larger break-out group)
What would a Continental Volunteer Body do?
• Resources are available – not making them but helping to develop and publicize.
• Monitor online community possibilities
• Events feed SOME leaders – is a body that could help that happen
• Develop expertise in circle worship in a range of ways. (office, seminaries, GA workshops)
• NOT taking on too much.
• Maintain voice(s) at GA
• Accountable to constituents across districts
• BRIDGERS? (across geographies – local groups aren’t gonna work?)
• Resources? – money, time, community
• Critical nexus – clarity of purpose
• Not limit advising to people who directly work with YACM (lifespan faith development, worship resources, Spiritual retreat
• Raise money???
• Organization NOT a community?
• Power to hold institution responsible to YA interests and ministry
NEED:
- needs assessment group: Keeping vision/goals accountable and current
• Inventory/study/survey – as professional as possible – programming and needs
- task force: (include but not limited to)
• Represent with/to affiliate organizations
• Specific (yearly?) covenants – keep them accountable – with groups/committees/offices who work with young adults
• Membership development (outreach)
• Identify allies, both within congregations and larger scale
• Empowerment with power structures on all levels
• regular information dissemination
Suggestion that the task force be accountable by giving regular updates
Assessment – getting surveys out through grad students helping to disseminate to various identity groups
Possibly hire a professional who has experience with needs assessment
Discussion about the task force being elected or appointed, but also to gather a larger group of dedicated volunteers who are accountable to the task force.
Disucssion
Spritual annual event that is sustainable financially and geographically stable – paid position to work with task force (figures out how to have annual conference) – committee of CYF? Or other organization/group
Next steps:
Relationship to UUA?
Create advisory board/task force
• Include volunteers and then have internal elections
• Office, CYF, district staff, YRUU, DRUMM, ARE…
• Some specific delineation of tasks
Two task forces
• The two task forces shouldn’t be combined (assessment and conference) because there are different skills and needs.
• The annual spiritual retreat might not need to come out of the volunteer organization, so to combine the two would be to conclude that the retreat should be organized by the CVO
• We see different outcomes so to achieve those outcomes different group need to be in chare of them.
• By separating we’re keeping the option of joining if necessary, but merging them from the outset is a foregone conclusion.
• Concern with the two task forces: The spiritual need is to have a conference AND we need to decide what to do with ourselves
• Concern about merging them is that the conference planning might overrun the assessment.
• All trying to serve young adults, the conference serves a specific need
Natty – we have come to a point this week to decide that we don’t need one big org to do everything. If a task force is creating a conference the other task force includes that in the inventory of what is going on and the needs assessment.
Discernment from UUA has happened with youth, but nothing even close for YA. The needs assessment-type task force can be the ones who do it or push the UUA into doing it, or work together with the UUA. A decision that has been made previously (or an opinion shown) is that the UUA doesn’t really support conferences well, so having a separate conference task force seems like a good way of doing it
Structures can’t necessarily be a real voice for young adults, the power/accountability task force can look for a way
Having a separate conference task force is a way to be targeted and not loose momentum. Not necessarily a value judgment saying we value conferences over other things.
Pause for agenda review – supposed to be at lunch in a few minutes
What does the SC need from a business meeting (planned for 1-3 pm)
Section 11 of the C*UUYAN bylaws
Dissolution
Section 5.3
Business meeting at concentric has the explicit power – may amend bylaws and elect officers
May review C*UUYANs work over the previous year
Quorum
Process discussion – shorter lunch and more discussion? Yes
Back at 12:50
Lunch break
Schedule for the rest of the afternoon: conclude conversation on task forces & charge for the task force. Then take 30 minutes for appointments of steering committee vacancies.
2 task forces:
-spiritual event
-power (with subtask of needs assessment)
all could be under the umbrella of the CUUYAN SC
Dissolution?
a move towards changing or dissolving CUUYAN, but since we can’t dissolve let’s look at how we want this to look then decide what C*UUYAN should look like in the coming year.
Though we can’t officially dissolve we can still effectively dissolve?
“Emergency mode”
open steering committee meeting including everyone here, can’t change bylaws and elect officers.
We can decide what C*UUYAN will do for the next year.
Lyda Adair– as a rep of the BOT,
C*UUYAN is a sponsored organization of the UUA (& BOT) they can pass a resolution to dissolve C*UUYAN as necessary.
Though we don’t have quorum this is a good sized advisory body to give input to the board. They want to do what’s necessary for the group. Lyda can take information and recommendations to the board if that is necessary, wants to be of service as the liaison.
Robin Darling– the only thing we need to go into the business meeting is to decide on what CUUYAN wants to do. As a group of adults who has come together with an idea we can go forward wth a task force without the official sponsorship. We don’t need permission, we are allowed to decide to task ourselves with needs assessment, etc.
Erik Kesting – YA office won’t be voting should be clear what the role is. Should the meeting decide to ask the board to dissolve C*UUYAN we should consult with a lawyer about the bylaws. YAM office can find a lawyer to consult with.
Katie Tyson– agrees with Robin. As for deciding whether or not to dissolve, would rather put on hold, not dissolve until the task force decides what to do.
Karina Leppik– we need help but we’re not sure where to go to get the help. Evn if we put CUUYAN on hold the steering committee can still be an oversight board, can help identify people to help.
Bart Frost– focus on getting the task forces together, CUUYAN and SC should ocme later. We’re mixing things upright now and should separate. Task forces should work with SC but should be its own thing.
Jess Halperin – we’ve been doing a lot of visioning but not sure we understand what a visioning task force would do for another year.
Task force is not necessarily for more visioning, they will discover the HOW. The visionng has been here, the task force will be charged with how the vision happens.
Confusion about why we’re talking about CUUYAN in the context of the task force(s)
Read the C*UUYAN mission statement.
Natty Averett – where we were coming to without reading the mission statement was to look at things without a previous framework. We could decide to suspend a lot of the doing, but notmake it so that they are overseeing, just consulting. We could suggest the role of the SC be tasked with working with the task force, but just as another YA constituency.
Elandria Williams – that’s why the CPC got split from the CUUYAN SC.
Karina Leppik– If C*UUYAN does do other things than the continental conferences, as the liaison to the UUA BOT not sure who she’d be accountable to.
PROCESS
Conference task force proposal is read:
We propose the creation of a task force whose goal will be creating structures to implement an annual Young adult Continental Spiritual retreat.
The Conference Task Force will be composed of 5 members, at least 3 of whom will be appointed during our business meeting today. Once assembled, the task force will self-select a Convener from among them.
The annual young adult continental spiritual retreat should seek to be financially independent, sustainable for volunteer leaders’ energies, and accessible, utilizing a series of consistent sites around the US and/or Canada.
During the next 1-2 years, the Conference Task Force will be responsible for reaching out to ally organizations to decide who best to be in relationship with to institutionalize a consistent and sustainable annual retreat.
We recommend to the Task Force that seek resources and funding to create a permanent paid staff position for a conference facilitator. Funding possibilities may include: Grants, membership dues from an ally/parent organization, conference registration fees, or seed money from C*UUYAN.
We charge the Task Force with beginning a conversation with the Church of the Younger Fellowship about formalizing a relationship between the CYF and the future conference planning body and staff.
We further charge the Task Force with being in consistent and transparent communication with all other Continental Young Adult entities.
The Conference Task Force will determine whether they would like to plan the first retreat themselves, or solely work to create a future planning committee.
Discussion:
Can we add a statement that the task force come back to the larger group on a regular basis and report on their activities.
It’s ok to have concrete items in the visioning process. Thinks the proposal is ok the way it is and still be called visioning.
This is a wording thing – where they are in creating a committee maybe they could have an annual reatreat to ensure there is someone to plan
Add transparency language to the second-to-last paragraph?
Greg Buckland – Assumption here that we’re going to charge them with holding a conference in 2009, can we make that official or leave that up to the task force to decide?
Karina Leppik- Should be left up to the task force.
Andrew Mertz– many task forces have specific end dates, that is an option. Exist for 1 year or two years, or until a conference happens.
Greg – could say the task force’s end date is when the first conference happens
Natty Averett- There is wording that encompasses that. Should be self-governing
Rachael Stevenson – is the goal of the conference to get quorum to disband C*UUYAN?
No
The board can also dissolve it, so quorum isn’t the only way if that’s decided
Can we decide to go forward with this as a group of young adults or does it need to be part of the steering meeting?
The authority is vested in us as a body of people
Bart Frost – move to send back to the committee or ratify the changes now and have language clarified later on
In order to really ratify and clarify the process of how we’re planning on making the decision
Poll, are we ready to pass or not pass this?
Not clear – timeline
Elka Ladd- piece about spiritual needs on a local and district level is not being met by these groups. A lot of people here are the people who are fed by opus, there are people who aren’t here for the same reasons that Opus isn’t accessible.
Karina suggests that we have some things that we seems to be happy with, and that we can send the proposal out to be wordsmithed and brought back to the CUUYAN meeting
Robin – this conference task force isn’t tasked with meeting the needs on the local and district level, there are other people who are doing that. It’s just trying to plan an annual continental spiritual retreat for the people that need that sort of thing. The way it has been proposed is more realistic than trying to feed the folks who aren’t here
Mary Manchester – trying not to steer the conversation,
• Strong suggestion for where we go from here – we appoint (using Instant Runoff Voting today) 3 SC members; facilitator and 2 at-large, GA liaison will be elected at YA caucus. Current SC members will continue to be so until the end of GA
• The job of the SC can be to make sure a business meeting happens (where there is quorum)
• Solidify the charges of the task forces from what we’ve come up with here
• Possibly request the board take on the charge of an appropriate task force (similar to the task force on youth ministry). Board can have the committee on committees come up with the task force because they have more reach/resource. Task force will be accountable to the board. If the board doesn’t want to do it we will need to find another solution. There is a lot of talk about who trusts the board and where the UUA is going. If we want to empower ourselves in the eyes of the insitution we need to work with the institution. To get trust perhaps we have to give trust.
• Doesn’t feel comfortable appointing people to the larger power/needs assessment task force entirely from within this room, we should draw from a bigger body to do that.
• Hope we can elect people to the steering committee that can direct that process.
Elandria – I believe in both/and, rather than either/or. What does the Board have to give? They’re volunteer too. What has the staff done, what has the board done, what else is needed. We as the YA folk involved can get through the process a bit better when we hear what the board is up to.
Want to get past advocacy and accountability because there are things we can do to help congregations . figure out what we have to give. You gather for a reason, not just to have a gathering. The spiritual cons are to get something out of them spiritually.
Natty- address concern about spiritual needs. It came up everywhere, in all groups, there is a lot of interest in doing an event. It’s different than continual and core spiritual needs, which are important and big too. The larger task force would also look at spirituality too, not necessarily just the one event. We have to figure out the task force first. We cant have it all be everything we all need it to be by the end of this meeting, but
Greg- echoes Natty. The task force is too big for us to build right now, but moving forward we can charge the SC and the BOT to help build the task force.
Lyda speaking as BOT liaison –feeling that our task force is a request to do discernment like the Youth process, but reminder that the youth process isn’t exactly successful at this point either. Hesitant to bring the same model to the board. There is no better time to come up with a basic plan than now, this is a good group. Energy changes, energy has dissipated, by next year thing will be different and weird. Sometimes there is no one else who canmake a decision. You have a part to play here, thinks there should be a simple plan by the end of today.
Board wants to have something for YAs and be in collaboration too.
Justine Urbikas – there is a huge distinction between competency of the youth process and what might come out of this today.
Karina – what we have done so far is get a semblance of a vision of what we want. Fairly comfortable with the idea of a task force, want the goals to be solidified. Not sure all the help we need is in this room, where do we go to get the help we need, to fill the holes that may be in the room.
Lyda – if we appoint 3 people here, the committee on committees could come up with 2 more people, seems reasonable. As far as going into a long process the board may not affirm that at this point. We need some staff help, and there may be some tension there but we need some experise.
Ellen – mary’s suggestion goes against some of the things this process has come up with. Looking more like a rebirth and we want it to be born again in a way that fulfills our needs. Appointments with the expectation that the task forces will assess their strengths and gaps and fill the gaps as needed. Assess what kind of structural changes need to be made
Rachael – process point, it’s 2, if we need to appoint SC and task force let SC appoint SC then us appoint task force.
Clarify – the whole group can appoint the new SC members
Elandria – there are a lot of people here who have a lot of experience in YA ministry and CM, let’s tap them. Seem to do things by popularity a lot of the time, let’s really look at skills. Maybe we can write out what the skills need to be before we appoint.
Jess – loosing sight of what the task force is going to do, can we clarify/remind
Heather Concannon- hearing two things:
Appoint a task force that has gaps and let them fill them
Or try and appoint a complete task force.
PROCESS –
What can we all agree on?
Should we have at least one task force? Check
This isn’t an official business meeting, we haven’t done consensus previously in the meeting. We’re just doing yes and no, no official consensus.
We need to explain our decision making process no matter what it is
• We need consistency (means to ends). CUUYAN does consensus
• Preference and principle –even if it doesn’t have all the nuances you like and you can still agree with the principle.
• It is important to listen to all the concerns
Staff roles
Call for consensus about task force:
Consensus met
Will ask all three questions and take an opinion poll
The purpose of the one large group task force?
• Heather Concannon– goal of the task force to appoint or create a commission to do needs assessment for YA
• Task force will also be doing recruitment, outreach, lines to other structures
• Advisory group to professionals who work with YAs in any capacity to promote ministry to and with young adults on all levels
• Task force that makes sure that needs assessment happens and the results inform futher work to and with UU YAs. To be a space for individual networking.
• Task force will ensure needs assessment happens and make sure there is an advisory role for YA & CM professionals
• Needs assessment as a subcommittee of the larger task
Call for consensus about a task force to be formed: (structure TBD)
Consensus reached with 1 stand-aside
Tom doesn’t feel we have the time to determine structure but wants to move forward
Jess – worried because she wants to run for leadership but doesn’t feel she can personally take responsibility for some of these things. Concern for the work we need to do and who can do it
Voting was not about the specific needs or the task force, details will come later in some form.
The task force will be charged to decide what is necessary
Endpoint? Timeline, 1 year, 2 years? Until the money runs out?
Taks force can be 1 year, needs assessment will probably take longer
Consensus for having 1 year timeline:
Reached
No comments from the body
What is the relationship of the task force to C*UUYAN SC?
How are we deciding who is on it?
Ruh-roh!
Let’s lay out the task forces and see who is interested in which
Katie –
Karina suggestion – Let’s determine who will facilitate and they will go forth and populate the task force
Spiritual conference task force –
Add transparent
Consensus has been reached
Elka stands aside, for the reasons she stated previously.
STAFFING the task forces-
Electing/appointing 3 people today for the conference force
Electing/appointing facilitator for the bigger task force who will then go forth and populate the TFs
Preference for more than one decided today
If there are two there might as well be three.
How are we dealing with specific stakeholders to be on the task force?
Leaving it up to the committee to decide which stakeholders are represented.
Are we ready to elect 3 each to the two TFs?
Consensus reached
Concern about phrasing. Claear that we are appointing the 3 to decide who will convene the task force today, then all go forth.
Does this sound like what everyone would like? Check
SC needs to go forward and appoint/elect their own members
Thanks from Raegan to Andrew, apologizes to the group for not participating as much as originally intended.
Can we appoint the members of the task force at the same time as we do SC members?
Not realy comfortable with that, because if someone isn’t appointed to one position they can do another
Suggestion to go to SC appointments first then go on to task forces.
Explanation of instant runoff voting
Ranking of preference of candidates
What are the positions?
2 at-large positions, for 1 year
1 faciliator, for 1 year
These are for 1 year appointed terms because we are in “emergency mode” according to the bylaws b/c don’t have quorum.
There are 5 positions –
3 changing here, GA liaison will be elected by the YA caucus, then Andrew is the carryover.
What will the SC do this year?
Facilitating, networking, building relationships,
There will be some sort of relationship to the task forces.
Can act on behalf of this body to ensure the task forces are doing their jobs.
Nominations for Steering Committee
Speeches (2 min each)
Q&A (5 min total)
How does the room feel about doing all 3 at once? Word
Liz for facilitator – accepts
Natty for at-large – accept
Julia for at-large -respectfully declines
Sadie for at-large -accepts
Linnea for at large – accepts
Liz Weber – for facilitator. 2 years as an at-large on the committee, experience at the local and district level. Vision to have relation with task forces. Continue the journey of figuring out what to do with C*UUYAN money. Look into invensting savings so we can be financially ine
Linnea Huston – at-large. from metro NY, came to C*UUYAN in 2005, biz mod in 2007. Has been quiet today and trying to be aware of different values and goals. There has got to be a way to find commonality among us. Wants to see How we can keep going
Natty Averett– at large and also interested in being on the big task force. Involved in local UU YA group, community organizing. Chair of community outreach for job. Looks at subcommunity and assessment. Comanager of women’s union, treasurer of multicultural hall. Amnesty international, feminist majority org. planned parenthood. Looking at the whole of YAs
Sadie Kahn-Greene– running for at large. DRE, was the coordinator for BUUYA. Kind of likes the slate without her, good mix. Stepping down because of that
Natty – can she be on SC and the task force?
More interested in convening the task force than being marginally involved in TF and an at-large on committee.
Natty withdraws, Sadie re-nominated, accepts.
Take it to a vote!
Task force on power and services, task force on spiritual conference
Natty for power and services – accept
Ellen CZ – declines
Elandria for power and services – accepts
Charlotte quandt for conferences – accepts
Robin D for conferences – accepts
Jess for power and services – accepts
Heather for conferences, power and services – accepts for power and services
Betty Jeanne for power and services – declines
Tomoko for conferences – declines
Karina for conferences – declines
Matt McHale for conferences – accepts
Power and services –
Natty – see previous speech
Elandria
Jess – excited to be involved in any way the group sees fit. Stepped back from UU leadership while in college, just graduated. Did a lot of work as a youth, has trained trainers. Logistical experience, goal-oriented
Heather – 3rd year at simmons, women’s studies and social justice. In the CM group, int other YA groups. Interested in being involved, not necessarily the main convener
Conferences –
Matt McHale – YA caucus a couple of years, worship coordinator for concentric, does conf planning for work. Really getting into worship a lot at church
Robin Darling – involved since 2002, was co-chair for ConCentric, district stuff. Really into sustainability and accessibility
Charlotte Quandt – very involved in DRUUMM, administrator for a nonprofit. Energetic new, ready to go
Questions -
Personal time commitments?
AR/AO experience?
Matt – full time job, church worship commitments, has ARAO experience on the local level and did it at college.
Robin- almost full-time job, summers off. Helping plan a con at the end of the summer. Has a lot of UU AR/AO experience, has work still to do. Courses on cultural diversity at work.
Charlotte – full time job, flexible schedule, 4 year old. Lots of AR AO through DRUUMM & other
Natty – listed a number of organizations in her speech that are almost all AR & AO related. Many small time commitments piled together, there is flexibility. Flexible job, stepped down from another job because of a desire to get more involved in UU power structure. Pretty good at time management.
Heather – full time student, president of CM group. Commitments for the fall free time is scattered throughout the week. ARAO experience through Opus, ARE conference in Feb.
Jess – unemployed, just graduated. Will move to DC soon and wants to get a job for the least amount of time that will still pay rent. Takes commitment seriously, will make the commitment. Went to ARE conference and is interested in a more sophisticated analysis of AR work and being an ally.
Official Results
SC candidates elected as presented
Liz Weber as facilitator, Linnea Huston and Sadie Kahn-Greene at-large
Task Force
Conferences: Robin Darling, Matt McHale, Charlotte Quandt as presented
Power and Services (the only contested election): Natty Averett, Elandria Williams, and Jess Halperin as the 3 definite members. Heather Concannon is open and welcome to be considered for the task force.
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