May 14, 2023 ZA Board Meeting Minutes

Members in Attendance: Heather Steele, Daniel Lockley, Alex Weeks, Janis Weeks
Members Absent: Chris Halaska, Cloud Petayi, Maria Minnaar Bailey, Mandy Walker-LaFollette, Tendai Muparutsa, Jacqueline Fallon
Non-voting members in attendance: Claire Jones, Asher Lockley

Quorum

There were not enough board members present to constitute a quorum; therefore, no board votes were taken.
At the next board meeting, we will review board membership with an eye to potentially reducing the number of members.

Review Agenda (All)

April Minutes/Synopsis

Already approved by email.

Treasurer Onboarding

Heather has been added to the email group.
Alex will provide Heather the OCCU login info. Because of the bureaucracy involved, she will not be added to the account but will have access to Bill Pay and other features needed for her role as Treasurer.
It was noted that Zimfest occasionally makes payments by paper checks.

Coeus Global Background Checks

Coeus sends an email to when a monthly invoice is ready. Invoices are prepared only for months when there are charges. To limit access to personal information, only Alex, Claire and Janis currently have login privileges.
It was decided that the above admins are responsible for downloading invoices and sending them to Heather for payment. The version of the invoice that contains no personal information will be sent.
[Post-meeting addendum: Alex showed Heather how to use OCCU online banking and they paid the current Coeus invoice.]

D&O/Liability/Sexual Abuse Insurance Update [Alex, Janis]

It is time to obtain a quote and coverage for liability insurance to cover the Festival. Janis will send the relevant info to our insurance agent.
Coverage should run from Wednesday through Monday of the Festival.
Policy should be in place by July 1.

Zimfest Drum Set Purchase Update [Claire]

The purchase was made. Drums are with Dana Moffett, who will bring them to Zimfest

COVID Policy Review [Claire]

Meeting attendees discussed the 2023 Zimfest Covid safety policies. For 2023, Zimfest currently does not require vaccinations but does expect masks in indoor spaces.
Claire shared the current OSU Covid policies, which do not require masking but recommend it for “those at higher risk.”
Due to lack of a quorum, the board could not vote on revising the Zimfest policies. We will review the Covid Safety policy at the next meeting.

2023 Zimfest Update [Claire]

Registration and volunteer signups opened May 1 for members, May 4 for all.
As of May 13:
- 138 registrants
- 79 workshops w/345 spots sold; 4 full
- 61/174 rooms rented (all singles gone, only 1 RV reservation); 63 meals or plans bought
- 180 concert tix sold
- 43 of 141 volunteer shifts filled
Committee is working on posters, t-shirt designs and possible new product this year – lightweight hoodies.
Very few vendor apps thus far (normal). The 2021 Virtual Marketplace page is being updated. Plans are to have it be an ongoing resource as long as we have a volunteer willing to work on it once a year.
Concert schedule confirmed, readying to send contracts and agreements.
Residential Services Agreement signed; University Events MOA sent back to contract review office.
Volunteers now working on local publicity, hopefully sponsorship.
Gretel Baumgartner (Corvallis) and Hazel Reninger (Philomath) have volunteered to help/host Zimbabwean guests including bus/shuttle pickups.
There is an urgent need for a person with desktop publishing expertise to help with the Festival handout. Alex agreed to do this if no one else is available.

Credit/debit card payments at Zimfest [Janis]

The evening concert desk has been using a Square device with a magnetic stripe reader to accept non-cash payments.
For 2023, the Square could still be used or Gary Spalter suggested we consider Zettle, a payment device associated with PayPal that he will begin using at Kutsinhira Cultural Arts Center.
It was decided to stick with Square. Janis will order a new reader that accepts taps and chips. We can consider Zettle in the future if it works well for Kutsinhira.
The job description for the Zimfest booth manager is written to accept only cash payments at present. In an email conversation regarding use of Square or Zettle, Claire suggested we leave the Booth on a cash-only basis for this year and collect information on Kutsinhira’s Zettle device vs. Square to decide which to use for the next Zimfest.