AI Goals

[erikamay]

bob a. mentioned this in the context of some other threads, and i wanted to tease this out specifically:

what are the stated goals for the coop? what are the desired outcomes for our activities and how does that feed into where we want to be in 6 months, 2 years and beyond?

i am thinking something along the lines of:
1. space - where are we in 2/3 years if the Hideout is no longer available to us?
2. finances - reserves, grants and dependable funding sources
3. community presence - what is the general public perception and what sort of programming and outreach are we offering.

e

[acrouch]

My goals for AI are world saturation -- improv for the masses, improv in every home and school, on every television and podcast. Improv websites generating fun and learning through the power of improv.

More immediately:

1. Either we find a way to continue at the Hideout -- I don't know if it's possible or not, or what it would require financially, but it's definitely worth looking into. Or we find a way of moving into another existing theatre -- which will probably be a tight squeeze at that point. Or we try to build/refurbish our own space, which is a really fun and really terrible idea unless we can trick someone into sinking a lot of money into it that they will never see ever again.

2. We should become professionals at earning and soliciting money with what we do. Grant writing, corporate gigs, classes, online pornography. Anything that we're capable of doing with the support of Austin Improv and are empowered to do because we're a part of Austin Improv, we should do. I have pipe dreams of publishing improv-influenced childrens' books and curriculums for educators using improv as the powerful tool that it is. If Austin Improv gets me closer to doing these things, I'd be happy to donate a percentage of said success.

3. I want to be working in schools in a serious way within the next couple years. After-school programs, working with teachers on their curriculums, bringing young people to the Hideout stage to perform. Empowering kids with improv.

I guess personally I want to be a part of something that I can care about. A community united in the struggle to do good in the world and make money doing it, not just a bunch of people who improvise as a hobby.

[arclight]

bob a. mentioned this in the context of some other threads, and i wanted to tease this out specifically:

what are the stated goals for the coop? what are the desired outcomes for our activities and how does that feed into where we want to be in 6 months, 2 years and beyond?

I'd add a 3-month plan in there as well, but I agree, we need to know what we want accomplished at each point and focus on concrete, measurable projects.

i am thinking something along the lines of:

1. space - where are we in 2/3 years if the Hideout is no longer available to us?
2. finances - reserves, grants and dependable funding sources
3. community presence - what is the general public perception and what sort of programming and outreach are we offering.

I'll address finances since our committees will soon realize their projects need funding to be successful.

Here are some possible funding sources:

• Donations
• Grants
• Endowments (large permanent funds that act as annuities)
• Benefit shows
• Membership dues
• Unrelated business income (merchandise, etc.)

My immediate questions are:

• do we have a treasurer? (and if so, who?)
• do we have a bank account?
• do we have a budget?
• do we have a d/b/a (doing-business-as, tax ID, business registration)? You generally need one of those to open a bank account.

With regards to the d/b/a and type of business we're operating, it's easier for people to donate money to non-profits if they can take a tax deduction on the donation. Also, there are funding sources (the city) that only fund non-profits. I'll make the assumption that if there was money to be made doing this, someone smarter than us would already be doing it. Similar organizations (Dad's Garage, SFIC, The Playground, etc.) are structured as non-profits.

All this convinces me that we will be more successful as a non-profit entity, so I've been looking into what we need to do to get non-profit status. The particular details are not so important in the short term; what is important is knowing the various ways you can get non-profit status and the restrictions placed on the organization (i.e. not making a profit.) Regardless of which path you take, you need to convince others (the state, the IRS, umbrella organizations) that you're organizationally viable. That means:

• Having a mission statement (so people know what you're trying to do)
• Having a budget (so people know you can handle money responsibly)
• Having a board of directors not involved in day-to-day operations (so someone can oversee the day-to-day people to make sure they're implementing the mission)
• Having bylaws (so the organization's structure is defined and the decision-making process is consistent and transparent)

This seems like a lot of uninteresting tedious bullshit but it's absolutely vital if you want the organization to survive and grow. For example, if we don't have a treasurer, how do we choose one and what are their qualifications and responsibilities? And who is the 'we' that does the choosing? The answer to that question is usually, "I don't know; let's check the bylaws."

Now, as far as concrete goals go, I think the mission statement is pretty much ready to go as-is, mainly because nobody has told me otherwise when I've asked (to recap: Promote improvisational theatre in Central Texas and develop sustainable performance, practice, management, and teaching skills for Austin's improvisational theatre community.) I might try to shoehorn outreach in there but I think that's covered under the 'promote improvisational theatre' phrase.

We need a better meeting and decision-making process than the current chaotic acclamation method because as we get into more contentious issues everyone will feel the need to express their opinion, leading to the long, useless, death-march meetings we all know and love. And presuming we do something democratic, it's not clear who gets a vote, what percentage of the votes are needed for something to pass, how many people need to be present for the vote to count (quorum), yadda yadda.

Again, this is tedious but it needs to be done so we don't waste valuable meeting time and so we all feel good about how decisions are made. We should sort that out in the next 2-3 months, have draft bylaws by 4/1 and a final copy by 7/1. In the immediate term we should settle on interim rules of order by 2/1 (list of voting members, quorum, rules of order - Sturgis', Roberts', etc.) so we can make decisions in the meantime.

Committees should have a 3/6/12 month plan by 2/1, a proposed budget by 3/1, and the coop should have an overall budget by 4/1. Once we know what we want to do, and how much things are expected to cost, we can set priorities based on our mission, manpower, & budget.

If we can do all that for a few cycles (a year) we should be in good shape for getting some form of non-profit status, or at least attract good people for a board of directors.

[Mo Daviau]

I would suggest getting an outside, nonimproviser person to be our treasurer. Maybe a business student or someone who would do things right on a volunteer basis? Maybe offer it as an internship at the business school at UT or St. Ed's.

[acrouch]

Erika May has stepped up for the moment to act as treasurer.

[valetoile]

I wold be interested in being involved with the non-profiteering. I'm currently secretary of another non-profit, and helped the organization gain non-profit status, so I know a little bit about the process. I think it's a good idea to have board members who aren't improvisers.

[erikamay]

agreed with the outside influence stuffs...i'm worked with several npos in chicago that had an outside board that came from all parts of the community, and they were a HUGE asset.

wrt my acting as treasurer/financial oversight, i'm good with finances (i was the bookkeeper for the hothouse in chicago - a not for profit international performance venue that features musicians and artists from traditionally marginalized groups - while in grad school at uchicago) and can see this role naturally transitioning into a role of business development and fundraising/grantmaking for AI. once there is a board in place, i will work with the board treasurer.

i will also work to maintain 100% transparency on the financial health and happenings of the organization with the community.

i can also definitely live without doing it, and will not be upset in the least if the consensus would rather have an outside finance person in the role.

just holla.
e