Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout09.01.2022 Museum Board MinutesMinutes of the September 1, 2022 Museum Board Meeting Oshkosh Public Museum ■ 1331 Algoma Boulevard ■ Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 Page 1 of 5 Minutes of the September 1, 2022 Board Meeting (Approved at the October 6, 2022 Board Meeting.) The September meeting of the Oshkosh Public Museum Board was held Thursday, September 1, 2022, in the Sawyer Library of the `Museum. President Loiacono called the meeting to order at 4:00 pm. President Loiacono moved the introduction of new alternate Vicky Redlin to right after roll call. The roll was taken by Administrative Assistant Theresa Books. PRESENT AT ROLL: President Gabe Loiacono, Vice President Becky Matzke, Secretary Connie Drexler, Board Members Dana Stolley and Jean Thierman, Alternates Tiara Cavett and Vicky Redlin, and Oshkosh Area School District Board Vice President Barb Herzog EXCUSED: Board Members Carol Fenrich and Jim Hoffman, Superintendent of Schools Bryan Davis ALSO PRESENT: Director Sarah Phillips, Assistant Director Anna Cannizzo, Marketing Coordinator Kate Stel, Durow Registrar Emma Eisner, and Administrative Assistant Theresa Books taking the minutes With Board member Hoffman absent, Mr. Loiacono appointed Ms. Redlin. With Board member Fenrich absent, Mr. Loiacono appointed Ms. Cavett. President Loiacono introduced new Board Alternate Vicky Redlin. She shared that she retired from Winnebago County Parks about a year ago. She has served on several City Committees and Commissions including the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee, Landmarks Commission, and Public Arts and Beautification Committee. She is a life-long resident of Oshkosh. During many summers of her elementary school years she took art classes at the museum; these memories remain special to her. The Board then went around the table to introduce themselves to Ms. Redlin. Director Phillips then introduced Durow Registrar Emma Eisner. Ms. Cannizzo noted that she was an intern at the Museum during the summer of 2018 and a collections volunteer in 2021. Ms. Eisner further told about her experience and training. She graduated from UW-Milwaukee with a graduate certificate in Museum Studies and earned a Master’s degree in Anthropology. She was the Curator of Exhibits at the Waukesha County Historical Society and Museum prior to coming on board at the Oshkosh Public Museum (OPM). The Board welcomed her to the Museum. There were no citizen statements to the Board and none were received. Minutes of the September 1, 2022 Museum Board Meeting Oshkosh Public Museum ■ 1331 Algoma Boulevard ■ Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 Page 2 of 5 Consent Agenda items included: A. Minutes of the August Board Meeting B. September Bill List C. Receipt and Filing of Quarter 2 Reports of Funds held at the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation MOTION: Adopt Consent Agenda (Drexler; second Thierman) CARRIED: Yes (6) Cavett, Drexler, Herzog, Matzke, Stolley, Thierman (Abstained: Loiacono, Redlin) Discussion and vote on receipt of an anonymous donation that the Museum received was next on the agenda. Director Phillips reviewed that the amount of the donation is $131,359. It has been received and deposited in the Membership Fund. As is Board policy, 10% is to be deposited into the Museum’s Endowment Fund held at the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation. Director Phillips recommends the Board wait to decide on the use of the donation until City Council makes their final decisions on Museum Operating budget requests that are before them for consideration. The Board discussed it. When discussion was complete, President Loiacono asked for a motion. MOTION: The Board receive the donation, leave it deposited in the Membership Fund, with 10% to be deposited in the Museum’s Endowment Fund held at the Oshkosh Area Community Foundation. (Matzke; second Stolley) CARRIED: Yes (8) Cavett, Drexler, Herzog, Loiacono, Matzke, Redlin, Stolley, Thierman Presentation and vote on the Museum’s Membership, Collections, and Durow Fund budgets was next on the agenda. Board members received copies of each of these budgets overseen by the Board about a week ahead, for them to have time to review them. While the Operating Budget is governed by City Council, Director Phillips shared that the Operating Fund has stayed stable. This budget does not fluctuate much from year to year. An important thing of note is that she is requesting a budget enhancement for an education position. This person would be in charge of building a robust program reaching out to educators within Oshkosh and in the region. The person would reach out to the Oshkosh Area School District (OASD), to universities, parochial schools, homeschools and public schools in other cities. Superintendent Davis calls this position the missing link for the City of Oshkosh and the Oshkosh Area School District. He and other OASC leadership understand the need for a dedicated full time staff member. If Council approves the Curator of Education, that person will start at the Museum around the 2nd quarter of 2023. In review of highlights of the Membership budget, it is recommended to maintain Tanya Schmidt as an Education Assistant. As Curriculum Coordinator of the OASD, she is an excellent connection with the school district. She played a large roll in having the 3rd grade classes have field trips to the Museum. In addition to putting the History Kits together, she helps Museum staff make connections to curriculum for exhibits such as People of the Waters, and now Manufacturing Victory. Director Minutes of the September 1, 2022 Museum Board Meeting Oshkosh Public Museum ■ 1331 Algoma Boulevard ■ Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 Page 3 of 5 Phillips greatly appreciates that the School District is allowing Tanya to work some hours at the Museum each week. Additionally, the Membership budget includes a seasonal grounds worker, funds to fortify the Durow Registrar position to be full time, and money for the Education Coordinator for the second half of the 2022-2023 school year. For these few personnel positions it is recommended to budget money from the Kitz Bequest, which is being held by the City in a separate fund. An outline of what that fund has already been used for, and what amount remains, was provided to the Board. Because the markets were down for investment income, Director Phillips is not recommending any expenditures out of the other various Museum Funds and Trusts, such as the Behnke, Bray, etc. Ms. Herzog expressed concern about using soft money for personnel positions; though she is not against any of the recommendations. Ms. Thierman expressed that each year the Museum has had to cobble money together from various Funds and Trusts to cover an additional full time position. Director Phillips explained the position requested in the operating budget/ budget enhancement, if approved, would be funded through budget allocation rather than soft funds. The requested Curator of Education position would require knowledge of both museum education methods and formal school systems. In early conversations between City Manager Mark Rohloff and Director Phillips, it was stated that one of her tasks would be to increase schoolchildren’s visits to the Museum. A direct result of not having a staff member dedicated to education outreach was the significant downturn in student field trips and attendance. By not providing opportunities to create relationships and core memories with young visitors, the Museum has missed a generation’s-worth of our constituent visitors. Adding to the case for this position was the announcement that all 3rd grade OASD classes will now be required to visit the OPM as a mandated field trip supporting the social studies curriculum. Over 650 students, teachers, and chaperones will be coming to the OPM for learning opportunities; this new requirement makes a dedicated professional staff person paramount to supporting this need and growing the relationship with OASD. Council will vote on operational budgets on November 9th, 2022. Due to the immediate need for educational staff, Director Phillips has requested an Education Coordinator as a part-time, limited-term employee (LTE). This position would be soft-funded for a specific period of time (more on this in the Director’s Report). The Collections and Durow budgets were presented to the Board. When discussions regarding budgets were complete, President Loiacono asked for a motion. MOTION: The Board approve the budgets as presented. (Matzke; second Thierman) CARRIED: Yes (8) Cavett, Drexler, Herzog, Loiacono, Matzke, Redlin, Stolley, Thierman Minutes of the September 1, 2022 Museum Board Meeting Oshkosh Public Museum ■ 1331 Algoma Boulevard ■ Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 Page 4 of 5 President Loiacono then requested Director Phillips present the Director’s report. Director Phillips began with an update on the cement work at the front entrance of the Museum. The early stages of this project were delayed because of weather, then again recently due to staffing. As of this week though, good progress has been made on the cement work both the stairs and the ramp. Director Phillips noted that as cement and masonry work is completed, handrails will be added to both sides of the entry (on the stairs and ramp leading to the front door). Work on the garden wall masonry will also be completed in the coming weeks. Weather may play a part in the timeline for this work, as repairs must be done in stages and allowed to completely dry before the next step begins. This is Winnebagoland is entering its final stages of fabrication and content development. Staff are waiting for the last components of the lighting. Director Phillips noted that currently, over 105 artifacts will be on exhibit, illustrating the rich history and importance of recreation in the region. She noted that the updated interpretive content includes information on the historical practice of activities, now considered recreation, such as hunting and fishing. Approaching content from a cultural lens also offers the ability to contextualize how different populations participated in sports. Museum visitors will explore a number of different recreational activities and leave with a greater understanding of the shared experience of these activities today. Regarding the exhibition Manufacturing Victory: The Arsenal of Democracy Director Phillips noted that it will arrive for installation in late September. She was pleased to report that as of this Board meeting, the Museum has received approximately $25,000 in sponsorship funds from local community organizations. This was mostly due to the excellent outreach of Ms. Stel. Museum budgets for exhibition rental, shipping, marketing, and public programming are supplemented by the generosity of these exhibit supporters. To make Manufacturing Victory even more impactful, a local component on the first floor will feature Museum collections specific to Oshkosh and the Lake Winnebago Region. Curator of Exhibitions Emily Rock is working on this. It will highlight community stories to enhance the national story being told in the exhibit. Ms. Thierman asked if there are final figures available as to how the Mears exhibit did; such as how many visitors and income from admissions and store sales. Ms. Stel reported that the staff has a meeting planned to debrief regarding details of the Mears exhibit in the coming weeks. Director Phillips then reported that staff are in the process of hiring a part-time Visitor Services Associate. Interviews were conducted earlier this week, and an offer was extended yesterday. The offer has been accepted, with a start date and additional details pending the required background check through Human Resources. Minutes of the September 1, 2022 Museum Board Meeting Oshkosh Public Museum ■ 1331 Algoma Boulevard ■ Oshkosh, Wisconsin 54901 Page 5 of 5 Director Phillips then reiterated the good news that the Oshkosh Area School District (OASD) third- grade classes are now required to take a field trip to the Museum as part of their history studies. Over the coming months Museum staff will host close to 650 students, teachers, and chaperones in our galleries. Because of this there is an immediate need for a staff member to handle all the planning and presentations for the groups. To meet this need, Director Phillips has requested approval for the Museum to hire a LTE Education Coordinator for now through the school year. There is no additional money needed in the budget for this, as there was money budgeted in the Membership fund for staff that is remaining. Director Phillips anticipates the request will make its way through approvals relatively quickly. The request for the Education Coordinator does not supersede the enhancement requested for a Curator of Education in the 2023 Operating Budget. This LTE, if approved, would ensure we could meet immediate needs, and allow a smooth transition into a formal education program as it is developed. That concluded the Director’s Report. President Loiacono requested the Auxiliary report. Auxiliary President Holly Eichman reported that the programs for the 2022/2023 year have been finalized and the booklet for the members has been sent to DPI for printing. The Gala committee is meeting on a regular basis to plan the Gala scheduled for Friday, November 18, 2022. That concluded the Auxiliary report. Ms. Stel thanked the Auxiliary for contributing to the Museum for the purchase of an American Girl doll and other American Girl items for door prizes for an upcoming youth program “My Doll and Me” will relate to the Manufacturing Victory exhibition. There will be crafts, games, and learning. Details are on the Museum’s website (oshkoshmuseum.org) and in The Muse. With no other agenda items, Mr. Loiacono asked for a motion to adjourn. MOTION: Adjourn (Herzog; second Cavet) CARRIED: Voice Vote The meeting adjourned at 5:07 p.m.