Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout05.05.2022 Museum Board Minutes Minutes of the May 5, 2022 Museum Board Meeting Oshkosh Public Museum ■ 1331 Algoma Boulevard ■ Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 Page 1 of 4 Minutes of the May 5, 2022 Board Meeting (Approved at the June 2, 2022 Board Meeting.) The May meeting of the Oshkosh Public Museum Board was held Thursday, May 5, 2022, in the Lecture Room of the Museum. President Loiacono called the meeting to order at 4:01 pm. The roll was taken by Board Secretary Connie Drexler. PRESENT AT ROLL: President Gabe Loiacono, Secretary Connie Drexler, Board Members Carol Fenrich, Jim Hoffman, Jean Thierman, Alternates Dana Stolley and Tiara Cavett, Oshkosh Superintendent of Schools Bryan Davis and School Board Vice President Barb Herzog standing in for School Board President Bob Poeschl Excused: Vice President Becky Matzke and Board member Rick Rego ALSO PRESENT: City Attorney Lynn Lorenson, Museum Director Sarah Phillips, Assistant Director Anna Cannizzo, Assistant Curator Katrina Achilli, Education Assistant Tanya Schmidt, Graphic Designer Daniel Fiser, Marketing Coordinator Kate Stel, and Auxiliary President Kathy Wuest With Vice President Matzke absent, Mr. Loiacono appointed Ms. Stolley. With Mr. Rego absent, Mr. Loiacono appointed Ms. Cavett. There were no citizen statements to the Board and none were received. Consent Agenda items included: A. Minutes of the April Board Meeting B. May Bill List C. Receipt and Filing of 1st Quarter Reports of Museum Funds at the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation MOTION: Adopt Consent Agenda Thierman; second Hoffman. CARRIED: Yes (8) Cavett, Drexler, Fenrich, Hoffman, Loiacono, Stolley, Thierman, Davis Next on the agenda was discussion of the Museum Bylaws and Handbook. Ms. Lorenson explained that she has been meeting with the City’s various boards and commissions to review their policies and procedures since the Common Council recently adopted some new rules. She noted that the School Board President is an ex-officio position on the Museum Board and therefore is an advisory liaison and not a voting member. [Correction after further research, the ex-officio positions on the Museum Board ARE voting members.] Mr. Loiacono noted that the Minutes of the May 5, 2022 Museum Board Meeting Oshkosh Public Museum ■ 1331 Algoma Boulevard ■ Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 Page 2 of 4 description of the Board position duties do not reflect what we actually do, so those duties need to be reviewed. Other items that need to be addressed include:  Remote participation guidelines added to align with the City’s  Update to add email correspondence as an option  Move meeting dates for holiday weeks Ms. Lorenson, Ms. Phillips and Mr. Loiacono will meet to review the documents and return their recommendations to the Board. Assistant Curator Katrina Achilli and Assistant Educator Tanya Schmidt then presented information to the Board regarding Museum Education/Outreach Programs. Family Discovery Days will be held the second Saturday of each month and will feature a make-and-take craft designed for children ages 5-10. This is a drop-in activity which is included in the price of admission. Ms. Achilli is leading this project. Each activity is tied to either a Museum exhibit or a community event, the first one to be planting peas. Nevitt Law Office is sponsoring the cost of supplies and marketing for Family Discovery Days. Ms. Drexler offered to donate Wisconsin Glo Professional Women’s Basketball tickets for participants. (Child ticket FREE with adult ticket purchase.) Ms. Schmidt presented a Social Studies Inquiry Box that she has created for 3rd grade classrooms to bring the Museum to the children. It consists of a wooden box with various items from the Fur Trading era, along with notes on each item and lesson plans for the teacher. Four Inquiry Boxes have been created for teachers to check out for their classes (2 each of Fur Trade, Early Peoples, Logging & Mining, and the Civil War). A check-out system and inquiry for field trips are to be added to the Museum website for this. Grant money through the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation supports this project. The Board expressed support of this project. Graphic Designer Daniel Fiser then presented information to the Board regarding brand identity. Logo changes are not being discussed at this time and the board agreed the current logo (created in 2013-2014) well represents the water, land, topography, and sky of the local area. President Loiacono then requested Ms. Phillips present the Director’s report. Ms. Phillips began by reporting that work on the 2023 budget has started throughout the city. CIP requests are due next Friday, May 13th. Preliminary operative budgets are due to the Finance office on August 12th. Regarding CIP budgets, new directions ask that departments forecast capital improvements over the next 10 years, versus the 5-year projections previously requested. Ms. Phillips is working with museum and city staff to evaluate projects that have already been part of the CIP presentations to prioritize each of them, as well as discussing potential new projects. Minutes of the May 5, 2022 Museum Board Meeting Oshkosh Public Museum ■ 1331 Algoma Boulevard ■ Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 Page 3 of 4 City leadership has also been asked to consider how staff time, operations, and CIP projects affect one another. During a meeting with City Manager Rohloff, he expressed his willingness to support the delay of certain projects to better balance staff well-being, fundraising capacity, and the quality of the product. Ms. Phillips, Mr. Rohloff, and City staff had a very earnest discussion about upcoming projects, and ultimately it was decided to reprioritize two of the exhibit projects. Ms. Phillips reported that staff will begin work on the redesign of the second floor gallery now occupied with Memories and Dreams, Grandmas’s Attic, and the log cabin prior to starting work on Deep Roots, Growing City. Memories and Dreams will be converted into a temporary gallery that will be a versatile space for traveling exhibits and other temporary installations. This will enable the Museum to have more of the second floor open and accessible while work on Deep Roots, Growing City occurs. Regarding city-wide strategic planning and Museum strategic planning Ms. Phillips reported that she and Assistant Director Anna Cannizzo participated in the city strategic plan workshop last week. Directors and managers from every department in the city were involved and worked collaboratively to review and critique current city goals, strategies, and objectives. The atmosphere was collegiate, and the facilitator set the tone of the day with exercises that explored different communication techniques and ways of understanding. The outcome was new understanding and insight into how departments might work together to accomplish goals for the entire city. Using those goals, Ms. Phillips will be drafting a department strategic plan for the Museum to help look intentionally at staff’s work over the next few years. Exhibit updates included the news that Helen Farnsworth Mears: Genius of Wisconsin is now open. There was great attendance for the opening event, with over 80 attendees. Feedback received on the survey included: “I really appreciated the talk that was given before guests viewed the gallery. In addition to hearing from the director, the talk gave good context to the exhibit. I would recommend that a similar thing be done for future exhibits on premiere night. Thank you to all the staff for putting together this exhibit honoring Helen Farnsworth Mears.” “Outstanding show opening. We really enjoyed it. Looking forward to more of these. “ Ms. Phillips reported that Sports and Recreation is moving along the scheduled timeline. Bids are open for professional museum-quality lighting for this gallery and will be opened on May 12th. That concluded the Director’s report. In conjunction with the discussion of Board participation President Loiacono presented Board members’ thoughts shared and gathered from a Google document. President Loiacono requested the Auxiliary report. Minutes of the May 5, 2022 Museum Board Meeting Oshkosh Public Museum ■ 1331 Algoma Boulevard ■ Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 Page 4 of 4 Auxiliary President Kathy Wuest reported that Pie on the Lawn is set for July 10th. Also, the May 13 luncheon will be held at the Roxy. That concluded the Auxiliary report. Next on the agenda was the election of Board officers for 2022-2023. President Loiacono asked for nominations for the three open positions. Mr. Hoffman nominated the three current officers to serve a second term. MOTION: The Board approve Mr. Loiacono for President, Ms. Matzke for Vice President, and Ms. Drexler for Secretary. (Hoffman; second Thierman) CARRIED: Yes (8) Cavett, Drexler, Fenrich, Hoffman, Loiacono, Stolley, Thierman and Davis With no other agenda items, Mr. Loiacono asked for a motion to adjourn. (Thierman; second Drexler) The vote was unanimous in favor and the motion was passed. The meeting adjourned at 5:15 p.m.