Audio and minutes: NCPR Executive Council meeting, Tuesday, March 10

The quarterly meeting of NCPR’s Executive Council, which acts as the station’s community advisory board, was held Tuesday, March 10, 2020 starting at 12 noon via conference call.

If you want to share comments with the Council, email [email protected], call 877-388-6277, or post questions/comments below in this post.

Archive audio of the March 10 meeting

Minutes of the meeting

Meeting Minutes: North Country Public Radio Executive Council Meeting, Tuesday, March 10, 2020

Roll call

• Present via conference call: Linda Cohen, Ann Adams, Cali Brooks, Mark Dzwonczyk, Rod Giltz, Andy Gustafson, Robert Keller, Alan McLeod, Christopher Robinson, Marion Roach Smith, Julia Kaplan Toce, Margo Ernst. NCPR Staff: Lizette Haenel, Jessica Lawrence, Mitch Teich, Doyle Dean

Chairperson welcome

• Call meeting to order
• Approval of minutes from last session
  • Motion to accept: Ann Adams, Second: Marion Roach Smith. All in favor, none opposed or abstained, motion accepted.

Station Update

• Coronavirus Update: Concern for the station is 1) on college campus, spring break is upcoming with students traveling home and away; and 2) station is in facility owned and managed by Canton/Potsdam Hospital, may at some point be unable to work from the station.  Ad-hoc remote tech group has been formed to plan for such an instance where the physical station may be unusable, and now most on-air operations can be run from remote locations, fundraising software operates in cloud.  This could be all functional as soon as the end of this week, to go into operation with only a few hours’ notice.  Additionally, house owned by SLU 1/8 mile down the road with ample space and a good set up for potential remote station site.
• Personnel updates:
  1. Director of Audience, Programs, and Outreach: Bonnie North arrives on Thursday. Mitch’s former cohost from Milwaukee!  Was chosen from a strong field of applicants.  She is a great cultural fit for the station (from NH, worked in Vermont Public Radio, has 20 years of public radio).  Solid ideas about programming.  Great deal of on-air experience. Listeners and donors will find her approachable. She had an ability to speak honestly and authentically with people from a variety of walks of life.
  2. New reporter/producer on board: Julia Richie, had been working freelance with podcast unit and as a reporter and editor at KUER (Salt Lake City), also background in radio and print reporting in North Carolina. Has done a spectacular job in the past month, went to Cornwall to report on the cruise ship there, and she has a keen interest in politics and will play vital role in political coverage in coming months.
  3. Operations/Development Associate: Have finalized salary and job description, should begin recruiting this week.  This position combines an on-air person with someone who can do front-office work, a radio generalist (which is more of a rare bird these days).
• New shows
  1. NC Bookmarks: The quarterly book show has become a monthly show. Has gone well.
  2. First Person: New interview show hosted by Mitch. Finding interesting people from area who might get missed.  These two shows are airing in place of the early broadcast of Fresh Air, which on Fridays airs reruns.
  3. The Thread: Taylor Haskin has been taking over for the Jazz at the Ten Spot spot, weaves jazz through different genres with narration.
  4. Sound Opinions (from WBEZ): Has replaced Studio 360 for now (PRX stop distributed), a trial run. Arts, pop culture, music in discussion format.  Has gotten some good responses so far. Wednesdays at 9:00pm.
• Facilities updates
  • Station storage/meeting space (Lizette)
    • Gaining a large conference room, music library/smaller meeting space, audio studio for interview space, non-public bathroom facility, archive space and inventory storage, lounge (for overnights as needed).
    • Cost is being absorbed by the hospital, they are doing the work including new carpets, painting, drop ceiling, creating walls for audio studio, putting in a door, removing old air conditioners. Station will have a minimal new cost related to new broadcasting.
    • Not a long-term replacement for new station space or new broadcasting equipment.
• Formalizing speaker program
  • Mitch would like EC Members to help find him once place that would be advantageous to speak to, such as Rotary, Kiwanis Club, libraries, Chambers of Commerce, business event. Already planned events with BOCES Superintendents, one in Malone, and a library in August.
• Fundraising updates (Lizette)
  • Overview: Overall fundraising is very strong, individual numbers of donations is up from last year, we are $51,000 ahead of FY19. We had a successful fall campaign, despite some technical issues.
  • New Friends Campaign: February, successful campaign.  Had 118 donations, including 46 new donors, 8 resurrecting expired accounts, 12 making additional gifts, and 52 renewing.  62 people got the specialty limited edition t-shirt.
  • Future Fund: concluded last year, didn’t hit goal but was extremely successful. Several three and five year gifts are still being renewed, one ten year commitment; bulk of money will be in by end of this fiscal year, that is $135k. It is being spent over the course of the next five years in declining amounts.
  • Upcoming Spring Campaign: March 23 through April 7, predrive messaging will start next Monday.  Thank you gifts will be reusable bags, early bird prize drawing ($250 gift card to whatever local garden centers).  Updating the program guide.  Keeping abreast of coronavirus situation and stock market, understanding that the drive may have to be postponed or reorganized.
    • Collecting testimonials for use throughout the year. If anyone wants to help record a spot, contact Lizette.
    • Changing current vendor for matching gift program to Double the Donation, will allow it to be more effective, allows contribution to happen at time of donation.

• Underwriting update (Jess)
  • Going very well. There were quite a few cancelations last year, including Vermont Coffee Company which was a big hit ($10k).
  • Growth with live-stream/podcast underwriting.
  • Contact Jessica with local business ideas. 

• Scene Up North/Multimedia Update (Doyle)
  • Launched ncpr.org/watch last year, focusing on stories that benefit from visual.
  • Mitch: It’s a necessity not luxury to be multimedia and being in many spaces, we aren’t just a radio program anymore.

• Strategic Plan Update (Mitch)
  • Has assembled strategic plan committee, chaired by Mitch. Looking for consultant to help jumpstart the work.
  • Timeline: Draft document by end of 2020.

• Executive Council Transition (Linda)
  • Linda is transition off EC, need to find new chair. Role is not onerous involves occasional conversation with Mitch and a bit of planning for the meetings, it could be a more involved role.
  • Will be looking for 2-4 new EC Members to replace Linda, Rod Giltz and Cathy Pircsuk who are all term limited. Will be losing representation from Plattsburgh and Old Forge, and also may want to highlight regions where we don’t have current members. Will announce recruitment on air, have an application online.
    • Members from SLU cannot be on EC in their own right. Sarah Johnson will be stepping down replaced by Jessica Lien (?).
    • Margo say that EC needs to get more involved, needs to be invested in the station and the role should be viewed as an honor. Can look at major donors, those who contributed to the future fund, underwriters for potential new members with ideas and strategies for engagement
  • Also perhaps it is time for a culling of the EC members, checking in with people who have not been participating to see if they would like to continue on the counsel.
  • Bob Keller asks what term limit is: Each term is 3 years, members can serve three terms.

Public comment

• From [email protected]:It is a cruel irony that people of the NCPR listening area have never needed a reliable source of fact based news more than they do right now, and yet, many of our local news outlets are struggling just to survive.

  Our people here are older, whiter, more isolated, and more traditional in many ways.  Increasingly, we are struggling to fit in a world that is rapidly changing all around us.  These are confusing and perhaps upsetting times for many of us who are lucky enough to find  reliable information and comfort from the news and programs delivered to us by NCPR.  I am among those who thank you for that.

  Now, I would urge NCPR to go further.  We need a north country forum where your audience can candidly, and calmly,  discuss the existential issues of our time and our area.  We need a place to build workable strategies and coalitions that will help us face the future here with hope rather than discord.  If we will work together, I believe that NCPR can lead us to a better future.  I hope you will.

  Thank you for considering my comments.      Louis  Curth

  • Mitch responds that the station is eager to be a convening space to discuss ideas. Have had challenges to developing a forum in the past because it has turned into a place for trolls, no moderator.  But would be a great thing for the North Country.
  • Ann says physical distance makes it difficult for physical convening, perhaps online is more feasible.
• Marion says she went to a Howl in Canton and it was fabulous. Next one is 3/20 in Saranac Lake.
• Bob Keller called into the station during the weekend because of dead air on Boonville transmitter, no one answered at the station. Lizette says that leaving a message is helpful because it is checked by multiple people, leave a phone number.  Also shoot an email if that happens.  There is a process in place for handling this.

Upcoming Executive Council meeting dates:

• Thursday May 14, 2020 1:00-2:30 pm (corrected)
• Thursday, July 16, 2020 12:30-2pm at SLU (subject to change)

Members of the NCPR Executive Council:

• Linda Cohen, Old Forge, NY (chair)
• Ann Adams, Dekalb Junction, NY
• Cali Brooks, Lake Placid, NY
• Mark Dzwonczyk, Nicholville, NY
• Mike Erickson, Brant Lake, NY
• Margo Ernst, North Hudson, NY
• Rod Giltz, Plattsburgh, NY
• Andy Gustafson, Old Forge, NY
• Hannah Hanford, Saranac Lake, NY
• James Howard, Morrisonville, NY
• Robert Keller, Boonville, NY
• Alan McLeod, Kingston, ON
• Stephen Meier, Queensbury, NY
• Cathy Pircsuk, Watertown, NY
• Susanna Piller, Plattsburgh, NY
• Christopher Robinson, Potsdam, NY
• Julia Kaplan Toce, Thousand Islands Park, NY

Ex-officio members representing license holder St. Lawrence University

• Sarah Johnson, Canton, NY
• Paul Redfern, Canton, NY
• Marion Roach Smith, Troy, NY

The governing board of North Country Public Radio is the Board of Trustees of St. Lawrence University.