Wikipedia:Meetup/NYC/Election 2024

WikiWednesday Salon
When and Where
Date	Wednesday, September 25, 2024
Time	6:00 pm – 7:00 pm (Open Hour); 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm (Wiki Salon);
Location	Hybrid - Online & at Prime Produce, 424 W 54 Street

Wikimedia New York City invites you to attend its 2024 Annual Election/Members Meeting, a special WikiWednesday held on September 25, from 7:00 pm - 9:00 PM ET. No experience of anything at all is required. All are welcome!

As part of the Members Meeting, we will also focus on the Wikimedia NYC Strategic Plan, our Financial Report, and Annual and Monthly event teams for the coming year.

All attendees are subject to Wikimedia NYC's Code of Conduct.

Details

Date: Wednesday, September 25, 2024
Time:
- 6:00 pm – 7:00 pm (Open Hour)
- 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm (Wiki Salon)
Location: Hybrid - Online & at Prime Produce, 424 W 54 Street!
This month's facilitator is Pharos.

How to connect online: To join just follow this url: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85212519478

If you have not used Zoom before, you will be prompted to download its launcher program. It works on PC, Mac, and Linux. If necessary, you can also connect through Zoom's iOS or Android app, which you can find on the zoom.us website. As a last resort, you can also dial in by phone, calling (646) 876-9923 and enter the meeting ID (852 1251 9478). Please keep in mind that if you dial in by phone you will be able to listen, but will miss all visuals.

Agenda

Welcome

WMNYC Code of Conduct + Zoom etiquette
Introductions
Welcome session

Annual Meeting

Wikimedia NYC Strategic Plan
Financial Report
Annual and Monthly event teams for coming year
Wikimedia NYC Elections (polls open until 8:00 pm!)

Recent/upcoming events

Wikicurious: Editing to the Beat: Saturday September 21
Wikidata Day 2024: Saturday October 26

Election FAQ

What is the Members' Meeting?

The Members' Meeting is when the WikiNYC community votes to elect a new Board of Directors.

How many people will be elected to the WikiNYC Board?

This meeting will fill three elected seats, half of the elected seats on the board. Once in place, the six elected board members (including the three still serving from last year) can appoint up to five more, for a total of up to eleven. Elected board members from now on serve a term of two years, and appointed board members a term of one year.

How are officers selected?

There are four standard officer positions: President, Vice-President, Treasurer, and Secretary. Nominees may indicate interest in serving in one of these roles, but the board members will decide on these appointments internally.

What are the responsibilities of being a WikiNYC board member?

The WikiNYC board is responsible for the overall governance of the organization. Some legal details are available in our bylaws. The board manages finances, keeps track of membership, develops and implements strategic priorities, engages in annual planning processes, applies for grants, writes grant reports, maintains communications with the Wikimedia Foundation, holds monthly board meetings, handles issues regarding the code of conduct, pursues or facilitates events and relationships that further our goals, and works with accountants, lawyers, consultants, and any other relevant professionals whose services the organization requires. Not every board member is active in all of these areas, but nominees should expect to be involved with most of them to some degree. Despite a long list of responsibilities, it is not a full-time commitment. Separated from the volunteer activities any WikiNYC member can participate in, most board members probably spend an average of about 5-10 hours/month on official duties, with somewhat more time for officers.

If you want to learn more about people's experiences, reach out to one of the current board members listed on our Meta page.

Are board members compensated for their time?

No. This is a volunteer board.

Do I have to divulge my real name?

At this phase, you are welcome to just use your Wikimedia username. However, board members do have their real names and usernames published publicly.

Who is eligible to be an elected board member?

Nominees must:

be dues-paying members of Wikimedia New York City (contact infowikimedianyc.org if you're not sure if your membership is current)
live primarily in New York or the greater New York Metropolitan Area
nominate themselves on this page by 11:59 PM (Eastern Time) on September 18. Note that this is a week before the meeting to ensure voters sufficient time to read about the candidates.

How do I vote?

You must be a dues-paying member of Wikimedia New York City, having renewed in the past 12 months (since Sep 2023)
Register to join at wmnyc:Membership
Voting will be online, via emailed ballots from the ElectionBuddy service
Poll will be open for the 48 hours from 8pm September 23 to 8pm September 25
Contact infowikimedianyc.org for any membership questions, to conform your status, and to ensure your ballot is sent to your preferred email

How do I nominate myself?

Edit the Nomination page and copy the template there. Paste it in a subsection under the "nominations" header underneath. Change the subsection heading to be your username. Note that some of the questions have word limits. For fairness, we will be checking the word count and truncating statements that go too long.

Nominations

Bob Kosovsky

Username

kosboot (talk)

Have you been on the WikiNYC board in the past? If so, when?

I've been on the board continuously for about 7 years

Describe your involvement with WikiNYC in the past. If you were a board member in the past, please also include a summary of the contributions to chapter governance you're most proud of. [500 words max]

During the pandemic I held the position of treasurer (a position I've temporarily resumed). Most importantly I was involved in creating WMNYC's Strategic Plan.

Why do you want to join the WikiNYC board? In what ways would you be most interested to help? [500 words max]

As a long-time board member I feel that I can make help WikiNYC grow in becoming more present in local NYC life and become more effective in reaching our local goal as well as the overall goals of the Wikimedia Movement.

Which, if any, of the officer positions align with your skills and interests? (President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary). This is just to gauge interest; the elected board will decide who should be in which position. Answers like "none of the above" or "I'd prefer to wait and see" are acceptable.

As WikiNYC is scaling up I would prefer to relinquish the treasurer position to someone more experienced in dealing with finances. I am still most interested in modifying and implementing the Strategic Plan'.'

David Hecht

Username

Wileycount (talk)

Have you been on the WikiNYC board in the past? If so, when?

I am currently finishing my first term on the board, as a one-year appointee.

Describe your involvement with WikiNYC in the past. If you were a board member in the past, please also include a summary of the contributions to chapter governance you're most proud of. [500 words max]

I have been quite involved in the chapter for the last year and a half, first hosting some events at Prime Produce, and then joining the board to serve as Secretary. I’m very proud of helping to make WikiWednesdays and Hacking Nights occur consistently in Hell’s Kitchen, as well as hosting or supporting other WikiNYC events, such as the Climate Editathon, Community Gardens Editathon, Wikiday, and Wikicurious. I was particularly glad to lend my support and experience with the production of Wikipedia Day–most memorably in the cutting of the WikiCake! (see: Commons Category: Spherical Wikipedia Logo Cakes)

I’m also very excited about helping to expand the reach of the chapter and facilitating access to Wikimedia projects to new communities, especially those historically underrepresented in the editor ranks.

As part of the Board, I’m very proud of helping to implement the strategic plan, specifically in being part of the hiring and onboarding process for the new Executive Director. Building on the intensive work of the hiring committee, I was honored to help move through the final decision process and push the chapter ahead in pursuing its mission.

Why do you want to join the WikiNYC board? In what ways would you be most interested to help? [500 words max]

It was quite gratifying to be a part of the board in the last year. I felt like my skills and experience, in areas such as organizational design, nonprofit operations, event planning and production, and facilitation, were relevant and valuable to the board’s work. My continually deepening engagement with the Wikimedia community, in NYC and beyond, has been the source of much inspiration, knowledge, and positive experiences.

Most importantly, I am excited about the impact I can make in both supporting the existing community of editors and contributors, and expanding the reach and awareness of the importance of the work of WikiNYC to new participants. In that vein, I’m very excited to continue to support the work of Pacita Rudder, our new ED, who is bringing a new level of operational and organizational energy and experience to bear and pursuing a vision of growth and increased impact of the work we do. This is part of the pursuit of progress through our strategic plan, as well as an important goal for the coming years—I’m very excited to help achieve that.

Which, if any, of the officer positions align with your skills and interests? (President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary). This is just to gauge interest; the elected board will decide who should be in which position. Answers like "none of the above" or "I'd prefer to wait and see" are acceptable.

In the past year, I’ve served as Secretary and have generally been comfortable in the role. I have also been supported in that role by other members of the Board, and have likewise supported other members of the board, reflecting a collaborative and supportive approach to governance that I hope to maintain and perpetuate.

Giancarlo Mainardi

Username

^Complex/_Rational

Have you been on the WikiNYC board in the past? If so, when?

I was elected to the board in September 2023 and am finishing my one-year term.

Describe your involvement with WikiNYC in the past. If you were a board member in the past, please also include a summary of the contributions to chapter governance you're most proud of. [500 words max]

I have regularly attended WikiNYC meetups since summer 2022 and served on the board since last fall. Most of my board work involved maintenance of chapter documentation and helping with organization of several events, in particular Wikipedia Day 2024 and Wikicurious WikiNYC Civic Hall. I have also been a co-facilitator at several events, such as our semi-regular WikiWednesdays. At Civic Hall, I was one of several "Wiki-coaches" for newcomers and am happy to help with outreach and expanding our chapter's prospective member base. Recently, I also joined the board's Strategic Planning Committee; we are working to devise a new short-term plan for the direction of our chapter.

Why do you want to join the WikiNYC board? In what ways would you be most interested to help? [500 words max]

Following this year's successes, particularly the hiring of our executive director and robust event programming, I would like to continue in strategic planning and as a facilitator at chapter events; these are the areas I feel are most aligned to my skill set. As part of strategic planning, I am interested in working with quantitative metrics to measure our progress, and ultimately working with the board to determine our longer-term direction and goals.

Which, if any, of the officer positions align with your skills and interests? (President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary). This is just to gauge interest; the elected board will decide who should be in which position. Answers like "none of the above" or "I'd prefer to wait and see" are acceptable.

I am inclined to leave the officer duties to more experienced individuals, and instead focus on strategic planning and facilitating events, though I am open to assuming officer duties (potentially the vice president role) at the board's discretion. (statement amended 20 September following an offline meeting)

Molly Stark Dean

Username

mollystarkdean (talk)

Have you been on the WikiNYC board in the past? If so, when?

No

Describe your involvement with WikiNYC in the past. If you were a board member in the past, please also include a summary of the contributions to chapter governance you're most proud of. [500 words max]

My work with Wikipedia started with my appointment to the board of Women Do News, an organization promoting digital gender equality for women in journalism. I host monthly flash edits that teach journalists how to edit on Wikipedia. My real Wiki-journey started with WikiCon North America. I saw how well-run the event was and wanted to help out. I started with knowing a local baker who could make a rad cake. And then, like most Wikimedians, I became a chronic volunteer ready to help wherever I could for Wikipedia's birthday.

Why do you want to join the WikiNYC board? In what ways would you be most interested to help? [500 words max]

The power of WikiNYC is contagious: the people I met on the WikiNYC board uphold the Wiki-tradition of being chronically curious and detail-determined. I've lived in New York City since 2007 and I'm always looking for more ways to become involved with my local community. Q train 4 Life!

Which, if any, of the officer positions align with your skills and interests? (President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary). This is just to gauge interest; the elected board will decide who should be in which position. Answers like "none of the above" or "I'd prefer to wait and see" are acceptable.

My skillset is media relations and event/food organizing. I trust that the board will assign me where I am needed most, aligning with my area of expertise.

Abbad Diraneyya

Username

عباد ديرانية (talk)

Have you been on the WikiNYC board in the past? If so, when?

No

Describe your involvement with WikiNYC in the past. If you were a board member in the past, please also include a summary of the contributions to chapter governance you're most proud of. [500 words max]

Since moving to NYC one year ago to get a master's at Columbia, I've been participating in Wikimedia NYC events on a near monthly basis. I attended events like governor's Island Wikinics, prime produce edit-a-thons, and Wikipedia's birthday celebration. I also gave a presentation on WikiData Day in ~~April~~ October, and have been planning to launch a Columbia University Wiki club, although the pressure of my degree has so far delayed that. Hopefully still happening some time!

Why do you want to join the WikiNYC board? In what ways would you be most interested to help? [500 words max]

I'm interested in joining the Board because I have a deep yet diverse Wikimedia experience that I hope to contribute. For the past 15 years, I've contributed to various Wikimedia projects, co-founded and led a user group, and worked at the Wikimedia Foundation.

I've been editing Arabic Wikipedia for over 15 years, contributing over a thousand articles. The bulk of contributions are in the form of featured content, of which I wrote about 100 articles in Arabic.

In 2014, I co-founded the Wikimedians of the Levant user group and was elected as its leader for five years. During this period, the user group grew into 100 active members, contributed to 3,000-4,000 Wikipedia entries annually, employed permanent staff, and established an annual budget of 25k USD.

From 2019 to 2023, I was a member of the Wikimedia Foundation's 2030 Strategy Teamm, in the capacity of a Knowledge Manager. This role gave me a deep insight of the various problems and nuanced contexts of the multitude of wiki communities around the world, as well as deep awareness of the strategy's development and impact.

As part of Wikimedia New York's board, I hope to be able to voice and apply what I learned from these vastly different Wikimedia roles and experiences. I enjoyed participating in many of the chapter's great events in the city, and I believe there's a lot of room to grow on campuses and beyond. During my time as a Wikimedia affiliate leader, community growth has always been my focus, and I strongly believe it's an aspect that I would be able to add lot in here, should I join the Wikimedia NYC board.

Which, if any, of the officer positions align with your skills and interests? (President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary). This is just to gauge interest; the elected board will decide who should be in which position. Answers like "none of the above" or "I'd prefer to wait and see" are acceptable.

I'm open to the Secretary role since it aligns with my existing experience an past roles.

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Details

Agenda

Welcome

Annual Meeting

Recent/upcoming events

Election FAQ

Nominations

Bob Kosovsky

David Hecht

Giancarlo Mainardi

Molly Stark Dean

Abbad Diraneyya

Sign up

Regrets

Possible

Likely attendees