MCPP Board of Directors Meeting January 2025 Minutes

Virtual Meeting, January 19, 2025, 9am-10:30am

Present: David Freiband, Karen Weber, Elizabeth Waiess, Marissa Keep, Linda Young, Eve Avrin, Carol Stratman, Robert Cohen, Shil Sengupta, Miriam Lorrain, Lisa

Larson

President: D. Freiband

• Freiband noted corrections offered by board members to pass along to Sengupta including specific corrections offered during current meeting.
• Freiband voted to approve the Minutes. Lorrain seconded. Board passes unanimously.

Treasurer: T. Frei

• Frei not present
• Freiband reviewed the finances for the organization. The Board will follow up in greater detail at next meeting.

Co-Vice Presidents of Programming: M. Lorrain and C. Desjardins

• In light of Desjardins suspending their work indefinitely, Freiband will follow up with Desjardins to clarify extent of this length and take appropriate next steps: (1) how to work in their absence, or (2) take steps to fill the position in case they are not able to return

• Lorrain and Fors have been in contact. Fors will present on Sun April 13, 2025. Both also discussed dinner for prior night which they decided will be an in-person event.
• Freiband plans on approaching the Foundation and see if it is willing to provide funds for the April meeting. This decision will have to be made prior to Lorrain’s advertising the talk.
• The Board discussed various approaches to advertise the event due to event coinciding with Passover. The Board decided to acknowledge the conflict,contextualizing the scheduling challenges for both MCPP and speaker.
•  Board decided that it would be optimal to have resolution on the funding from the Foundation by March 1, in order to allow sufficient time for correctly advertising the event (incorporating funding information).
• Lorrain clarified with Board timing of advertising the event.
• Freiband and Lorrain plan on following up with Robert Grossmark to follow up regarding missing title for his upcoming talk. This is needed in order for people to decide whether to attend the event, official title for the Grossmark talk in order to post on the website.
• Freiband and Lorrain also plan on following up with upcoming speaker for documentation (regarding expenses), in order for the talk to qualify for the Sophie Lovinger fund.
•  Freiband has found and been able to confirm strong roster of speakers through 2026 (with confirmed dates). His next step is to reach out to them tohave titles for the talks.

Co-Vice Presidents of Membership: Lisa Larson and Linda Young

• Larson and Young sent out letters to members. Approximately 2/3 have renewed. Young expressed confidence that it may be less relevant going

      forward for members to renew because of the filters provided by the MCPP website; signing up for any MCPP event automatically prompts members to renew their       

      membership. In addition, individuals cannot sign up to get CE credits for free at the MCPP conferences without being members in the first place.

• Weber confirmed that officially 64 individuals have renewed their membership so far.
• Weber plans on following up with the 29 previous people who have not renewed.
• Cohen asked if lapsed members are removed from the members’ email listserv (as a consequence of membership lapse and motivation to renew).
• Weber confirmed that she keeps the membership list up to date (based on these factors).
• Stratman added that she has reached out to key individuals who can directly advertise regarding MCPP to their students. She added that their feedback has been that MCPP needs to make clear how exactly it plans on having students be involved, something that can be taken up at our next Board meeting.
• Freiband suggested that Stratman coordinate with Young and Larson regarding this matter since they are in charge of membership.
• Keep confirmed that she sends MCPP fliers monthly to the ICSW, AAPCW, and WMHP listservs
• Keep plans on following up with these organizations and advertising no-fee attendance for students now that this policy has officially been confirmed by the Board.
• Lorrain plans on following up with EMU, whom she had previously reached out to.
• Keep plans on drafting a customized flier for students advertising no-fee attendance and share this with the Board, prior to this flier being sent out to students at various organizations. Freiband suggested that others on the Board who are advertising events use the language of the flyer that Keep finalizes (so that there is uniformity in the messaging to all programs).
• Cohen added that he can reach out to the Madonna graduate program where he is currently teaching.

Committee Reports:

Social Liaison: E. Avrin

• Taking over for Visiting Professor event for Robert Hooberman.
• Event will be Thursday March 20, 2025, at Mediterrano restaurant. $65 plate option. 
• Planning on “save the date” and to send it out to the MCPP community listserv.
• Avrin plans on following up with Weber and Robert Hooberman regarding exact wording for the advertising of the event.

Freiband plans on following up with Board members regarding their tenure on the Board, given that a majority of the terms are coming to an end after the current

calendar year.

Freiband motioned to adjourn the meeting, Larson seconded. Passed unanimously.

Meeting adjourned.

Next MCPP Board Meeting will be held virtually on February 23, 2025.