Meeting Minutes
GENERAL BODY MEETING
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 2020
MEETING MINUTES
Attendees: William Alexander, Colleen Bayus, Rebecca Borghi, David Burns, Andre Burton, Pete Ciarrocca, Z. Selin Hur, Beth Leon, Jana Sestili, Kevin Zedack
- Officers’ Reports
- President—Andre Burton
- Recent Events -- Interview with Kaitlyn Caulfield
- This virtual event took place on October 28.
- There were 40 individuals who registered; of the registrants, 19 participated.
- Kaitlyn agreed to become an honorary member of the Chesapeake & Potomac Pitt Club. She looks forward to joining future events.
- 2020 Holiday Party? Andre posed this question to the membership: Is there an appetite for a virtual holiday party, or should the Chesapeake & Potomac Pitt Club forgo a party in 2020?
- The general consensus is that the club should do a service project to support the regional community. A complementary social media campaign can encourage Pitt Alumni to support a charitable cause.
- Selin mentioned that Horton’s Kids is actively working to deliver food to families. Comfort Cases continues to operate and needs resources.
- Selin, Beth, and Colleen expressed a willingness to work together on this joint service and social media project.
- Marketing Campaign Plan for Membership
- Andre confirmed that the development of a marketing campaign plan to increase alumni engagement with the Chesapeake & Potomac Pitt Club has been completed. He thanked the club leaders who provided suggestions for the plan.
- Andre seeks to launch the campaign at an opportune time. Next year may make more sense when the pandemic has been mitigated.
- Andre also seeks club volunteers to participate in promotional videos to enhance the effectiveness and reach of the campaign.
- Treasurer—Pete Ciarrocca
- Website: Pete shared an update about the newly revamped club website. He invited executive committee members to send their biographies and photos to him---for publication on the website.
- Photo Gallery: Pete will continue enhancing the club website by adding a photo gallery in the weeks ahead.
- Committee Reports
- Community Service—Z. Selin Hur
- Selin reiterated that the club can continue collaborating with Horton’s Kids and Comfort Cases in this virtual world.
- Young Alumni—Kevin Zedack
- Kevin promoted an upcoming young alumni networking event, virtual cocktail making class, that will take place on December 17 (7:30 PM – 9:00 PM). He alluded to forthcoming communications being released by the Pitt Alumni Association.
- Member Forum -- Pitt Alumni Association Guidelines for Clubs and Councils
- Selin shared a power point presentation from the Pitt Alumni Association that contains guidelines to enhance the success of regional clubs/chapters.
- Meeting attendees briefly reviewed the content on the PPT slides. Jana Sestili, a senior staffer who works for the Pitt Alumni Association, provided background and context where appropriate.
- Andre mentioned that he served on the task force committee that crafted the guidelines. The Chesapeake & Potomac Pitt Club is well ahead of many of the clubs across the country. The intention of the guidelines is to enhance the experience for club volunteers without being too prescriptive.
- Challenges: Meeting attendees talked through potential challenges that may arise as a result of the task force recommendations.
- Pete pointed to data sharing between the Pitt Alumni Association and the Chesapeake & Potomac Pitt Club as a matter that needs to be resolved.
- There is value to the Chesapeake & Potomac Pitt Club maintaining a VIP membership---not dues collection---for the execution of impactful club events. Of note, it’s expensive to host events in the Washington, D.C. region.
- Pitt Alumni Association funding is an issue. How much funding can the club expect? Jana recognizes that this is a concern and agreed to circle back with Andre after speaking with Nancy Merritt, Vice Chancellor for Alumni Relations.
- Jana will confirm a time for the PAA and the Chesapeake & Potomac Pitt Club to continue a constructive dialogue.
- Adjournment
