New England Chapter Annual Report 2022

submitted by Memory Apata

Current Roster

2021-2022 Officers

  • Sandi-Jo Malmon, Chair (2022)
  • Lisa Wollenberg, Past Chair (2022)
  • Memory Apata, Vice-Chair, Chair-Elect (2022)
  • Brendan Higgins, Secretary-Treasurer (2022)
  • Brendan Higgins, Member-at-Large (2022)
  • Memory Apata, Newsletter Editor (2022)
  • Emily Levine, Archivist (unlimited)
  • Liz Berndt-Morris, Web Editor (2022)
  • Patrick Quinn, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Justice Officer (2022)

2022-2023

  • Memory Apata, Chair (2023)
  • Sandi-Jo Malmon, Past Chair (2023)
  • Terry Simpkins, Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect (2023)
  • Carol Lubkowski, Secretary/Treasurer (2024)
  • Emily Colucci, Member-at-Large (2024)
  • Jennifer Hadley, Newsletter Editor (2022)
  • Emily Levine, Archivist (unlimited)
  • Peter Laurence, Web Editor (Spring 2024)
  • Patrick Quinn, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Justice Officer (2024)

Note that the current chair will continue as Past Chair until 2024, and current Vice-Chair/Chair-Elect will continue as Chair until 2024 and then Past Chair until 2025.

List of Previous Goals and Progress Made

  1. Document Committee Membership (Organizational Excellence): The board will better document current and past chapter committee membership.
    • The board has maintained an accurate list of committee membership through the 2021-2022 appointment year.
  2. Identify a single location for the NEMLA Archives (Organizational Excellence):
    • The NEMLA Archivist (Emily Levine) has formalized agreements to move our archives to the Boston Public Library.
  3. Re-engage lapsed membership (Expand Membership): The board has sent personalized welcome emails to new and returning lapsed members.
    • We continued to give members the option to renew at our student/paraprofessional rate ($6/year) if they were facing financial hardships due to COVID.

List of Future Goals

  1. Improve access to information about the chapter (Goal 4: Strengthen Communication):
    • Although NEMLA officers and committee chairs are asked to make a report at each NEMLA business meeting, the structure and content of these reports varies widely. The board will implement a procedure for officers and committee chairs to report their goals and outcomes each year and establish timelines for goals currently in progress.
    • Goals identified in the annual report will be reposted on the NEMLA website to allow for greater transparency and accountability from the membership.
    • The board will review and organize internal documentation in our Google Drive to improve discovery.
  2. Improve on-boarding process for new board members (Goal 4: Strengthen Communication):
    • The board will meet remotely on a monthly basis for the 2023 fiscal year to support incoming board members and check-in on progress for 2023 goals.
    • A change to the by-laws has been proposed to allow greater mentorship for the incoming NEMLA Chair from the Past-Chair. Members will vote on this change in Fall 2022.
  3. Embed EDIJ work at all organizational levels (Goal 3: Cultivate Inclusivity):
    • With the guidance of the EDIJ Committee, craft goals at the leadership, committee, and individual levels centering EDIJ work. Report these goals out to the membership.
    • The Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Justice Committee discussed recommencing the Oral History project in August 2022. This is still in an exploratory phase with a focus on capturing oral histories of a more diverse cross-section of current and former membership. The Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Justice Committee will investigate collaborating with a reconstituted Oral History Committee.