BOARD OF DIRECTORS MYRNA LOY CENTER/HELENA PRESENTS JUNE 26, 2000 MINUTES The board of directors of the Myrna Loy Center met Monday, June 26th in the Myrna Loy Center. Present were President Bob Anderson, Leigh Bohn, Chip Clawson, Ellen Alborn, Toni Broadbent, Hattie Jo Lehman, Peter Bovingdon, Allen Lefohn, Alan Nicholson, and Ali Sheppard. Also present were Virginia Niccoluci, Betsy Bauer, Ed Noonan, and Phyllis Lefohn. Not present were Tim Speyer, Martin Holt, Michelle Allen, and Bev Gibson. The minutes of the June 5th meeting were approved with corrections with Leigh Bohn making the motion and Chip Clawson seconding it. The motion carried. Ed presented the Interim Administrators report. He thanked everyone who helped out while he was gone on vacation. He described the summer Saturday Block Party that will be held on July 8. All events are free and the highlight of the afternoon will occur at 3:30 PM when everyone is invited to "Give Myrna a Great big Hug." Helena High's X-Cel Class is helping to coordinate the event, which is sponsored by TARGET. A Special Event Performance at 8 PM for the Myrna Loy Center by Montana Logging and Ballet will occur. As part of the Block Party, following the Special Event Performance, an outdoor movie "Smoke Signal" will be presented. Ed indicated that the Lila Wallace check would probably be in the mail by July 14. He plans to meet weekly with groups about the MLC and the need for the Arts in Postmodern life. Local and regional artists will be a key emphasis, but national performers will also be emphasized. He will continue to arrange meetings with key individuals and groups involving the Executive Committee and/or interested Board members. Meetings with Grandstreet and the Civic Center are planned. He discussed the need for writing two NEA Grants reports. The MLC has an extension until August 31 to submit the reports. The Helena Symphony moves into the MLC the weekend of July 1. The Montana Arts Council is holding up the grant until the MLC gets the budgets for last year and this year in on their budget sheets. This will be done by June 30. A new Cultural Trust Grant for operating expenses needs to be written by August 1. Ed is pursuing the identification of the following: film intern; establishing on-going relationships with the Helena TV Coalition; in-Center Art Education; new approaches for Art Plus leading to MAC arts education grant; phones for Symphony, Internet, and setup of new Visa/mastercard terminal; and data base decisions for the MLC computers. Ed said that the lock on the front door would be changed soon by Burdick Locks at no charge to the MLC. A new key will be issued to those requiring a key. All Seasons Maintenance has been routinely visiting the MLC and performing continuing maintenance. Bob Anderson presented the Executive Committee's recommendation for its slate of officers: President: Bob Anderson Vice Presidents: Leigh Bohn (business) and Chip Clawson (program) Treasurer: Ellen Alborn Secretary: Allen Lefohn Following a short discussion, Alan Nicholson moved to establish a second vice- president position and divide the responsibilities of business and program between the two vice presidents. Ellen Alborn seconded the motion. The motion carried. Alan Nicholson then made a motion to accept the slate of officers and Peter Bovingdon seconded the motion. The motion carried. Bob Anderson then presented the suggested committees with recommended chairpersons for next year: Executive: Officers Finance, chair Ellen Alborn Fundraising, chair, Toni Broadbent Program, chair Chip Clawson Board development and human resources, chair Bev Gibson Building, chair Martin Holt A discussion then took place concerning the chairperson for the Fundraising Committee. Toni Broadbent indicated that she would be willing to serve as chair until August 31. It was suggested that Michelle Allen be recruited as a co-chair or if she did not wish to serve, the Board would have to recruit another individual. The Board agreed to this approach. The Board discussed a vigorous campaign to solicit assistance from the community on participation on all committees, except for the Finance Committee. It was agreed that specifically trained persons should participate on that committee. New board members were encouraged to participate on the committees so that efficient transitioning can occur within the board. A motion to adopt the committee structure and chairpersons was made by Chip and seconded by Ali. The motion carried. The Board agreed that a press release would be generated that announced the new board members, committees, and a solicitation for possible new board members. Leigh Bohn presented the Finance Committee report. Bills are being paid and the $28,000 Letter of Credit to Valley Bank will be paid this week. The Board is still awaiting a response from Allen Lenhardt's attorney regarding the severance package. Allison Collin's attorney has returned the keyboard and monitor to Kim Beatty along with detailing the passwords for the ProTix computer system. The Board discussed the need for press releases and agreed that 3 press releases would be issued on various topics. The releases would occur in June, July, and August. Virginia Niccolucci summarized the Fundraising Committee activites. The MLC has raised $191,458 as of June 23. Of this amount, $162,998 is in cash and the remaining amount of $28,460 is in-kind donations. Al Lefohn will modify the web page graphic to emphasize that $162,998 is the current amount and that $200,000 in cash is the goal. A quarter page add will soon appear in the IR that presents a Progress Report. Virginia asked for comments on the draft ad within a few days. There is still interest in pursuing the Bob Morgan print but planning has been placed on hold for the moment. Betsy Bauer discussed the Major Donor campaign. She presented a list of the major donor that will be contacted during the first phase of the campaign. She presented a list of the outlines the visitors might wish to follow and the handouts that should be provided to the potential donors. July 7 is the deadline for the first round of meetings to be completed. Leigh Bohn discussed the current status of board recruitment. Michelle Allen has agreed to join the Board. Alan Nicholson made a motion to have Michelle Allen as a board member and Leigh Bohn seconded the motion. The motion carried. It was indicated that Michelle Allen is willing to work on grants and fundraising. Alan Nicholson emphasized that the board should make an effort to recruit fundraising individuals for future board positions. He indicated the wish to encourage philanthropic individuals to join the MLC board. Ed Noonan presented a summary of the planning activities. He indicated that there will be a shift into the long-term planning analysis. He and Leigh Bohn were currently working on a budget. Al Lefohn presented the status of the web site and the ProTix computer situation. The number of visits to the web site has been increasing steadily. The most popular web pages are the Events, Fundraising, and Film pages. He then presented the printout copy of some of the names and addresses that were downloaded from the ProTix computer system. Al summarized the conversations that had occurred between Prologue and him regarding software support. Following a lengthy discussion about the status of the Board using the ProTix computer system, it was moved by ? and seconded by Ellen Alborn that we continue the assessment of the Prologue computer software for 3 months, beginning on July 1 and ending on September 30. At that time, the Board will receive a recommendation from Al Lefohn on how best to proceed to establish a working ticket and data management system. Ed Noonan discussed the staffing situation for the film program. He proposed that the projectionist be hired for $8 per hour as a full-time position. In addition to running the movie program, Les will be responsible for writing grants. He will be responsible for mounting an aggressive film marketing campaign. After a short discussion, Alan Nicholson moved that Ed be authorized to negotiate to hire Les Benedict at ¾ time and review the situation within a 3-month period to assess whether the job should be converted to a full-time position. There is a one-year probationary period for the job and the position will be reviewed by July 1, 2001. Leigh Bohn seconded the motion. The motion carried. Ed Noonan indicated that he would shortly develop a budget for the period July 1, 2000 - June 30, 2001. A motion was made by Leigh Bohn that the board hire Ed Noonan at $33,500 as the MLC full-time Interim Administrator beginning on August 1, 2000 until June 30, 2001. The probationary period will be 6 months. Toni Broadbent seconded the motion. The motion carried. It was suggested that Jim Nys, personnel consultant, be asked to review the job description. Bob Anderson handed out a draft of the revision of the by laws and suggested that the board review the suggested revisions prior to the next board meeting. Al Lefohn volunteered to speak at the Montana Logging and Ballet performance on July 8 to thank the sponsors. The next meeting will occur at the Myrna Loy Center on July 17th at 7 PM. The meeting was adjourned. Approved (date): ____________________________________ 1