Board of Publications Meeting Minutes: September 3, 2024

The Board of Publications Chairperson, Katie Frederick, called the September 3, 2024, meeting to order at 9:00 PM, ET with a welcome and review of the agenda.

Board members present: Katie Frederick, Jeff Bishop, Cheryl Cumings, Bel Collins, and Zelda Gebhard. Ex-Officio members present: Sharon Lovering, ACB Braille Forum Editor; Deb Cook Lewis, ACB President and Scott Thornhill, ACB Executive Director.

The August minutes have not yet been distributed. They will be considered for approval along with the September minutes during the October meeting.

There were no guest comments.

Katie thanked those who contributed blog posts during the end of July and the month of August. If anyone would like to submit a post, send it to [email protected].

Blog Editors

September – Cheryl and Bel

October - Jeff and Zelda

The October issue is soon to be out the door. Working on formatting issues as far back as 1973. The articles have been fascinating to read.

Katie suggested that we might do a “throwback” article about former articles to highlight the archived issues.

Leadership Meetings will be March14 -18.

Editor’s Report - September 2024

Statistics

September 2024

Braille distributed: 464
Cartridge distributed: 332
Large print distributed: 1,203
Email to be distributed: 5,509

October 2024

Braille to be distributed: 464
Cartridge to be distributed: TBA
Large print to be distributed: 1,203
Email to be distributed: TBA

Deadlines for the Next Issues

November-December 2024 – theme: all things gifts; deadline: September 23, 2024

September’s Table of Contents

President’s Message: Services for Seniors with Vision Loss: Now Is the Time, by Deb Cook Lewis

Older Americans Act Update and a Request, by Doug Powell

A Message from the Executive Director, by Scott Thornhill

Advocacy in Action, by Claire Stanley

2024 Conference and Convention Wrap-Up, by Janet Dickelman

Introducing the Scholarship Recipients for 2024-25!, by Denise Colley

Jamaica’s Convention Adventure, by Jamaica Miller

Thank You from the ACB Auction Committee

2024 ACB Membership Committee Convention Seminar, compiled by Ardis Bazyn

Turning the Page!, by Cachet Wells

ACBDA Launches Patricia LaFrance-Wolf Memorial Fund

BEP Hosts American Council of the Blind for Special Tactile Production Tour, by Tracy Garrett

Speak-Up Skills: Have Yours Got Rusty?, by Hannah Fairbairn

Responding to the Letter to the Membership in the June ‘Forum,’ by Michael Byington

Leadership: Some Personal Reflections, by Mitch Pomerantz

Affiliate News

Here and There, edited by Cynthia G. Hawkins

As I write this, I’m working on the October issue. I aim to have it out the door by Friday.

I continue to put together the Dots and Dashes newsletter. The next issue is September 9^th; after that, the 23^rd. If you have items for Dots and Dashes, I’d like to have them in hand by this Friday, September 6^th.

I’m still working with the archives/history committee on preserving and digitizing old recordings and documents from ACB events and identifying people in photos. Some of the work involves digitizing board minutes. Another part of the work includes cleaning up and modernizing old issues of the Forum to current large print standards and organizing them on our SharePoint drive. I finished 1972, and 1974 through 1979. I’m working my way through 1973 now. By the end of this year, I aim to be in the 1960s.

I continue to record the Washington Connection, and some of the other boxes on our phone system, such as the national convention box, the scholarship information, and the state convention box. I updated the Washington Connection on August 27th.

I am also responsible for the ACB Job Connection. Jobs came pouring in during and after convention from a variety of sources, including NIB, South Texas Lighthouse for the Blind, and other places. This month, APH sent in one job announcement, and the federal government sent several, in different agencies. I updated the Job Connection on August 26th.

Sharon Lovering, Editor

November-December – Gifts - the Good, the Bad, the Ugly received or given, accessible or not, most memorable, best or worst. Deadline: September 23, 2024

January - Audio Description Gala Wrap Up, Diversity among describers and AD in your community or Goal Setting deadline November 20th

February – Stories about love and proposals

March – Spring into Action, Get up and Get moving

April – MCAC, a celebration of diversity; a fresh start

May – Older Americans, AAVL

June – All things convention

Katie and Zelda attended the ACB Next Generation Board meeting on August 12 to present the Hollis Liggett Braille Free Press Award to the NextGen Publications Committee.

Greg Lindberg and his committee have accepted our invitation to present at the Communicator’s Gathering on September 13. Perhaps we could hold the next one in November or January.   

We welcome suggestions of topics for future gatherings. It was suggested that perhaps we could talk about alternative ways, besides newsletters, affiliates could use to pass information to their members such as podcasts.  Perhaps Rick or someone else from ACB Media could talk about the support available for hosting.

Rick was not able to attend the meeting. He did send an email to the BOP list about the status of the convention podcasts. The podcasts of the virtual, pre-Jacksonville content have been posted to the convention podcast feeds that correspond to the tracks. The podcasts from Jacksonville will be posted in the next several days. Once they have all been posted, a directory will be published that will include links to this and last year’s conventions.

Thanks to all who are working to make all this content available.

Deb asked when we would be available to meet with her for an hour or hour and a half. We decided to meet on Friday, September 27 at 10 AM Eastern.

Zelda also brought up the email we received about the BOP awards and how we present them.  We will decide on a timeline and who should present. We need to confer with Deb once we have chosen the recipients and decide who is the appropriate person to present. We will commit the process to writing.

Next BOP Meeting: October 1, 2024 beginning at 9:00 PM, ET.

Respectfully submitted,
Zelda Gebhard, Director
ACB Board of Publications