Governors' On-line Meeting - Minutes - Pt. 1

[Bob Armstrong]

Summary Minutes of Spring Quarterly Governors’ On-line Meeting

Thursday, April 8 @ 9:00 AM EDT – Wednesday, April 14 @ 9:00 PM EDT

# 1 – Present – 36/60 Governors ( 60 % )

Bob Armstrong John Coleman Ken Einarsson
Egis Zeromskis Ken Craft Les Bunning
Michael von Keitz Gordon Ritchie Simon Ong
Paul Leblanc Bill Evans Mark Dutton
Halldor Palsson Rick Pedersen Ilia Bluvshtein
Hugh Brodie Ellen Nadeau Jason Lohner
Chris Mallon Michael Barron Hal Bond
Gary Gladstone David Steer Patrick McDonald
Vlad Rekhson Garvin Nunes Fred McKim
Stijn de Kerpel Alick Tsui Lynn Stringer
David Lavin Eric van Dusen Mark Bluvshtein
Valer Eugen Demian Herb Langer John Erickson

Extent of Voting – A whopping 92 % of those attending voted ( 33/36 )!!!

# 2 – President’s Welcome

Initially given by V-P Stijn de Kerpel, in absence of Eric van Dusen, President. Eric later attended and addressed the meeting:

“ By now I have completely tried everyone's patience by only showing up to the cyber cafe tonight to give my message. As I was unable to get to the cyber cafe since last week, I should have delegated the position of chair to Bob Armstrong, as he is an expert on meeting procedures.

GL#4 should be distributed tomorrow where I am announcing my intention not to seek the position of president for next year's term. Except for carrying out my duties as Past President, I will not be volunteering in any other capacity in CFC activities, from the club level to the national level. I assure all of you that I will be playing in the Canada Open and I will chair the CFC AGM of the outgoing governors.

This year has been a huge learning experience and I have made several mistakes. I realize now that I spread myself to thin, hence, the retirement from chess volunteering for the time being.

As Gordon Ritchie well knows, I have many other commitments and from time to time I have not been able to carry out my duties as president and as tournament director at the RA Club. I have tried my best, but it has not been good enough in my opinion. In addition, I have had tremendous difficulty with dealing with a number of unreasonable members of the CFC and I have found those dealings stressful.

For those reasons, I simply cannot in good conscience run again for CFC President. “

# 3 – President’s Report

Finances

Regarding this year's financial report produced by the Treasurer, Maurice Smith, the CFC has run a small surplus. I urge everyone to examine the Budget carefully and pass along comments to Maurice Smith, who will bring those suggestions to the CFC Executive, for their final decision.

Contractors

FEN is performing well under challenging circumstances especially when the CFC website was under the Google warning.

Regarding EKG, Gerry Litchfield has been doing a tremendous job working diligently regarding office activities. I commend Gerry for working closely with the Vice-President, Stijn De Kerpel and the Treasurer, Maurice Smith. Unfortunately, I have to report that I have been quite disappointed with my dealings with Patrick Smale, President of EKG.

CFC Website

There has been no progress made regarding the website. I made the grave mistake of committing to carry out a public solicitation for the website upgrade. My professional experience is in high tech electronics, and I was unprepared for the complications of soliciting IT services. I will be conferring shortly with the Executive regarding the way forward regarding the website.

Olympiad Fundraising

As I have reported earlier, the two members of the Fundraising committee resigned due to other commitments. I approached David Cohen, but he also was occupied with other projects. All of the above people are from the Toronto area, and some of them are involved in organizing the 2010 Canada Open.

I believe I have contacted Gerry Litchfield regarding a mail out requesting donations among CFC members.

National Championships

As this is not a Zonal Year, I am not surprised that no bidders have come forward to organize the Canada Closed and the Women's Closed.

I have not been contacted regarding next year's national championships.

I do suggest that a motion be put forward that will establish a structure similar to the Ontario Chess Association, where the championships will rotate formally among the CFC provincial bodies. In that way, the CFC will be notified early which body will be in a position to organize the championships.


# 4 – Questions/Comments on the On-line Meeting Procedures

None

# 5 – Update on AGM Modernization

The AGM Modernization Subcommittee ( Bob Armstrong, as Chair, Chris Mallon and Jason Lohner ) have now agreed on a model developed by Chris. It will see the AGM take place at the Can. Open as usual, but the proceedings there will be broadcast in both audio and video, so it can be received by governors across the country on their computers. The not-on-site governors will be able to type in to the meeting text of their comments/questions/ etc., and they will be read out by the Secretary using the laptop, to those governors on-site. The Subcommittee will be posting shortly after this meeting, the proposed Mallon model, for public feedback. They hope to try, similar to this meeting, a small trial meeting sometime in May, with a few executive on site, and a few representative governors across the country. Chris Mallon will be asked to set up and carry out this trial meeting. He is considering as one option, using the model at the Ontario Chess Association Meeting on May 15, as the trial run.

# 6 – New CFC Website Update

Some background given was:

1. the current CFC website is old style, and was severely hacked , and put on Google's warning list. The volunteer information technology specialist who is working with Eric on this ( at least, at the time of last update ) advised that this old site is particularly vulnerable to hacking. The new sites have much better protection.

2. The CFC has been advised by those in website design that our current website, in terms of appearance, is long outdated. It does not give a professional image any longer of the CFC.

3. New websites come with many new advanced features not on our current old website.

4. There is some debate about what a new updated website should cost. One website specialists said that it could range from under $ 10,000 to over $ 20,000 for CFC to get what it actually needs.

Eric stated:

The whole procedure I had envisioned for the solicitation of the website re-design was too cumbersome and impractical.

I am also pursuing to other parties that may be interested in working on the website.

I am certainly disappointed with myself for letting down the CFC.

# 7 – Canadian Open Update – Michael Barron, Can. Open Organizing Committee & GTCL President

We have started extensive advertising campaign:
Canadian Chess News publishes our advertising since February,
it was included in April issue of Chess Life magazine,
many web sites have information about 2010 Canadian Open as well.

To promote Canadian Open we offered a free entry as an additional prize for one of the Grand Pacific Open participants - at organizers' discretion.
We're planning to offer the same prize for a few more major Canadian tournaments - please let me know if you're organizing such tournament.

We got confirmations from 5 GMs and so far have 32 registrants.

# 8 – Olympiad Fundraising Update

Eric advised that a couple of Fundraising Committee members have resigned. David Cohen, who has sometimes fundraised for the CFC on a commission basis was not available now. There will be a mail-out to all CFC members asking for donations.

# 9 – National Championships Still Outstanding ( 2010 Can. Closed & Can. Women’s Closed ) – Update

See President’s Report above.

Dontinued in next post

[Bob Armstrong]

# 10 – Discussion of Motion 2010-05 – Governor Activity Rule

Motion 2010-05 – Governor Activity Rule
Moved: Bob Armstrong; Seconded: Jason Lohner

There shall be added to CFC By-law # 2, a new section 23 as follows:

“ 23. Governor Inactivity Rule

Any governor, no matter whether provincial representative governor, or governor at large, including the Executive, appointees, etc., who does not vote, move/second a motion, or make a comment ( on a motion or generally ), in two consecutive Governors’ Letters, shall be removed from office, and their position shall no longer be part of a quorum until their replacement, if any. Should it happen that in a GL there are no motions for either discussion or vote, then that GL shall not be counted for the purposes of this section. Once removed, the Governor and his provincial body/appointing body shall be notified. A request that a by-election be held to fill the vacancy shall also be made to the provincial/territorial organization or that the appointing body appoint a replacement, for the balance of the removed governor’s term. "

Some felt that there had to be some penalty to non-participation by Governors – termination. But some saw the criterion in the motion as being too strict. There was also some discussion of what standard will be demanded if quarterly on-line meetings are adopted, like this one. Will zero tolerance be too strict – don’t appear for the meeting and you are terminated as a governor? A number of governors said “ zero tolerance “ would be too strict.

# 10A – Voting on Motion 2010-05 – Governor Activity Rule – Results

This motion, amending Bylaw 2, is considered a “ constitutional “ amendment: Because there is no legislation yet authorizing on-line voting, as we have done in this meeting, the vote must be treated as if it were a “ mail vote “ under section 3 ( b ) of Bylaw 3 ( it is not an “ Annual Meeting “ vote ):

BY-LAW NUMBER THREE OF THE CHESS FEDERATION OF CANADA
ANNUAL MEETING AND AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION

3. Any amendment or revision of these By-Laws;……………may be made,

(a) at any Annual Meeting of the Assembly, providing that a notice of intention to submit such matter to a vote has been received by the Secretary at least 30 days prior to the date of such Annual Meeting and has been transmitted by the Secretary to each Governor at least 14 days prior to the date of such Annual Meeting and that any resolution pertaining to such matter shall be approved by at least a two-thirds majority of the votes of those present and entitled to vote, including proxy votes.

(b) at any time through a mail vote of Assembly, providing that the exact wording of such proposed amendments or revision, or of the resolution to be passed by the Board through mail vote is submitted to each Governor at least fourteen days before the expiry of the time limit specified by the President for the receipt of the votes by the Secretary, and that at least one-half of the number of votes eligible to be cast has been received by the Secretary, and there is a majority of at least two-thirds of the votes cast in favour of the proposed amendment or revision or resolution.

Abstentions shall not be included in determining whether a two-thirds majority has been attained in (a) or (b) above provided only that the number of votes cast in favour must exceed the sum of the number of votes cast against and of the number of abstentions cast.
As such, it has to meet the 50% quorum rule. As well, it must have the enhanced majority of 2/3 of the votes cast.

Results of voting:

Eligible Voters – 60
Voters Present - 36
Votes Cast -29
View Poll Results: Motion 2010-05 Instituting a new " Governor Activity Rule " Should be Adopted.

Yes :
Alick Tsui, Bob Armstrong, Christopher Mallon, Herb Langer, Hugh Brodie, Ilia Bluvshtein, Jason Lohner, John Coleman, Ken Craft, Michael Barron, Michael von Keitz, Patrick McDonald, Paul Leblanc - 13 - 44.83%

No :
Bill Evans, Egidijus Zeromskis, Ellen Nadeau, Fred McKim, Garvin Nunes, Gordon Ritchie, Halldor P. Palsson, John Erickson, Les Bunning, Mark Bluvshtein, Mark S. Dutton, I.A., Simon Ong, Stijn De Kerpel, Valer Eugen Demian, Vlad Rekhson - 15 - 51.72%

Abstain :
Eric Van Dusen - 1 - 3.45%

The motion is defeated – it has met the quorum requirement 30 voters were required to be present ( since there are 60 governors ), and there were 36.
However the motion fails to meet the enhanced 2/3 majority requirement.

It must be remembered, however, that the votes taken in this meeting are only “ straw votes “, since there is as of yet, no Handbook section that allows this kind of “ on-line “ voting by Governors.
So the motion will still now go on to the next GL or AGM voting as already scheduled, to be voted on again.

# 11 – Discussion of Motion 2010-06 – Replacement of Tournament Playing Fee with Discounted Membership for First-time CFC’ers.

Motion 2010-06 on CFC Fees

- submitted on behalf of the Grassroots’ Campaign, a group of about 15 CFC members and former members ( named in the notes below ); filed by the mover, Governor Bob Armstrong, and the seconder, Governor Gary Gladstone; “ commentary “ by Bob Armstrong, Grassroots’ Campaign Coordinator, CFC Life Member & CFC Governor .

Motion : Moved: Bob Armstrong; Seconded: Gary Gladstone

First-Time CFC Member Introductory Discount –

Section 375 ( Tournament Playing Fee ) of Section 3 ( Motions Applicable to No Other Section ) of the CFC Handbook is deleted. Substituted for it is:

“ 375. An annual membership discount of 40% will be given for first time CFC members ( CFC will publish a rounded off figure for the convenience of organizers ). “

A number of points were raised:

1. the tournament playing fee is working, and should be kept – it encourages players to join tournaments
2. the new discounted membership will make all tournament players equal, and will generate CFC memberships.
3. the membership fee system is too complex, and a flat fee should be used.
4. in some parts of the country, the recent doubling of the tournament playing fee is leading players to take out full memberships instead of buying the TPF; in other parts, it is leading to more Non-CFC tournaments, so players don’t have to pay anything beyond the entry fee.

# 11A – Voting on Motion 2010-06 – First-Time CFC’er Discount - Results

View Poll Results: Motion 2010-06 Replacing the TPF with a First Time CFC'er Discount Should Be Adopted

Yes :
Alick Tsui, Bob Armstrong, Mark Bluvshtein, Patrick McDonald, Paul Leblanc - 5 - 16.13%

No :
Christopher Mallon, Egidijus Zeromskis, Ellen Nadeau, Fred McKim, Garvin Nunes, Gordon Ritchie, Hal Bond, Halldor P. Palsson, Herb Langer, Hugh Brodie, Ilia Bluvshtein, Jason Lohner, John Coleman, John Erickson, Ken Craft, Ken Einarsson, Les Bunning, Mark S. Dutton, I.A., Michael Barron, Michael von Keitz, Simon Ong, Stijn De Kerpel, Valer Eugen Demian, Vlad Rekhson - 24 - 77.42%

Abstain :
Bill Evans, Eric Van Dusen - 2 - 6.45%

Motion is defeated.

It must be remembered, however, that the votes taken in this meeting are only “ straw votes “, since there is as of yet, no Handbook section that allows this kind of “ on-line “ voting by Governors.
So the motion will still now go on to the next GL or AGM voting as already scheduled, to be voted on again.

Continued in Part 3

[Bob Armstrong]

# 12 – Discussion of Motion 2010-07 – Amending CYCC Rules

Motion 2010-07: (Moved/Seconded Michael Barron / John Coleman) To amend the CYCC rules to include the following:

"Canadian Youth Chess Championship is a qualifier to international youth chess competitions.
Top 3 finishers in each section are qualified for: 1) World Youth Chess Championship; 2) Pan American Youth Chess Championship; 3) North America Youth Chess Championship.

The motion attempts to increase the stature of the CYCC by increasing the prizes it offers. Others felt the system needed more flexibility, especially given juniors sometime changing age groups between the time of a CYCC, and the Pan-American YCC or the North American YCC. Some wanted the Handbook to refer to the fact that non-winner juniors could also attend these events, even if not “ Official Can. Representatives “.

# 12A – Voting on Motion 2010-07 – Results

View Poll Results: Motion 2010-07 Amending CYCC Rules Should be Adopted.

Yes :
Alick Tsui, Bob Armstrong, Ellen Nadeau, Fred McKim, Garvin Nunes, Gordon Ritchie, Halldor P. Palsson, Hugh Brodie, Jason Lohner, John Coleman, John Erickson, Ken Einarsson, Mark Bluvshtein, Michael Barron, Paul Leblanc, Simon Ong, Valer Eugen Demian, Vlad Rekhson - 18 - 64.29%

No :
Christopher Mallon, David Lavin, Gary Gladstone, Ken Craft, Les Bunning, Mark S. Dutton, I.A., Michael von Keitz, Patrick McDonald, Stijn De Kerpel - 9 - 32.14%

Abstain :
Ilia Bluvshtein - 1 - 3.57%

Motion Passes
Congratulations to Michael Barron ( mover ) and John Coleman ( seconder )

But a problem did develop with this motion. Voting started Sunday night at 9:00PM EDT. On Monday at 9:39AM EDT, the mover, Michael, and seconder, John, treated the discussion and input as a " friendly " amendment, and amended their motion so that it now read:

Motion 2010-07 ( as amended )

"Canadian Youth Chess Championship is a qualifier to international youth chess competitions.
Top 3 finishers in each section are qualified to become official representatives for:
1) World Youth Chess Championship;
2) Pan American Youth Chess Championship;
3) North American Youth Chess Championship."

But voting was not stopped on the original motion, and no amended motion vote was called. So the matter is referred to the Executive, to confer with Michael & John, to see if the amended motion can be deemed the one passed.

It must be remembered, however, that the votes taken in this meeting are only “ straw votes “, since there is as of yet, no Handbook section that allows this kind of “ on-line “ voting by Governors.
So the motion will still now go on to the next GL or AGM voting as already scheduled, to be voted on again.

# 13 – Discussion Only of Motion 2010-08 – Role of the President

Motion # 2010-08 – New Section of Bylaw 3, Duties of Officers, Section 4 - President
Revision #4, Dec. 22, 2009

Moved: Robert Armstrong Seconded: Ken Craft

That Section 4 of Bylaw 3 , Duties of Officers, dealing with “ President “ be deleted and the following substituted for it:

“ PRESIDENT

4. The President shall be the chief executive Officer of the Federation. He shall preside at all meetings of the Assembly of Governors, or of the Board of Directors, when he is personally present. He shall exercise constant active and general supervision of the Officers of the Federation, and the conduct of its affairs, with the exception of:

(a) Those matters which are reserved to the Assembly of Governors or the Board of Directors.
(b) Those matters which have already been delegated to Committees appointed by the Assembly of Governors.

Where there is no time for a major decision to be made by the governors, the president shall preside over a meeting of the executive to make such decision. The president will then bring that decision to the governors as soon as possible for review. Where there is no time for a major decision to be made by the executive, the president shall make such decision, and bring that decision to the governors as soon as possible for review. In other matters within his authority, where an immediate decision is not required, the
President will confer with other members of The Board of Directors. In any matter covered by his general authority and not coming within the duties specifically allotted to any other Officer or Officers, the decision of the President shall override that of any other Officer.
The President shall exercise constant and active supervision over the chief employee of the Chess Federation of Canada (commonly known as the Executive Director) if there is one, or over any office services under outsourcing contract.
The President must present a budget for the new fiscal year for approval to The Assembly of Governors, in consultation with the Treasurer, within 1 month of the start of a new CFC Administration. This budget must indicate a surplus for the upcoming fiscal year. The President will make best efforts to ensure that the annual budget is adhered to by the Executive Director or outsourcing contractee. “

The debate turned on the question of whether the Assembly of Governors was more like the shareholders of a corporation, or the Board of Directors. This goes to the question of who has final say over major decisions. The section on President sets out a view of the dividing line between the power of the governors, and the power of the Executive. Some want the governors to make all major policy and administrative decisions. Others say the assembly elects the executive which conducts the operations of the CFC, referring to the Governors only on major strategic issues such as acquisitions and divestitures, major capital investments, etc..

# 14 – Discussion Only of Motion 2010-10 – Role of the Treasurer

Motion # 2010-10 – Amending Section 8 of Bylaw 3 – Treasurer

Revision # 3, Dec. 22, 2009

Moved: Robert Armstrong Seconded: Paul Leblanc

That Bylaw 3, Duties of Officers, Section 8 – Treasurer - be deleted and that the following replace it:

“ Treasurer

8. ( a ) The Treasurer will be responsible for reviewing the financial records maintained by the Executive Director, or his/her equivalent, who shall:
i) keep the general books of the account of the Federation, in which shall be recorded all receipts and disbursements. He shall have the custody of such books of account and all bank books, cancelled cheques, vouchers, statements, and other documents pertaining to the general bank account or bank accounts of the Federation, other than banking resolutions touching the authority of signing officers, which shall be entered in the Minute Book, and retained by the Secretary.
ii ) from time to time, as may be requested by the President, furnish him with such information as to the financial affairs of the Federation, as he may desire.
iii ) Annually, as of the last day of the fiscal year, shall close the accounts, and shall prepare a Financial Statement of the Affairs of the Federation as at that date, showing all receipts and disbursements, under such groupings and classifications as he may deem desirable, together with a Balance Sheet showing the assets and liabilities of the Federation as of that date, and shall file a copy of these statements with the Secretary, over his signature.
iv ) file a copy of these statements also with the Auditor to the Federation, and shall submit for his examination, such books and records as the Auditor may require to effect an appropriate examination, and issue a Certificate in connection therewith.

( b ) The Treasurer will also be responsible for developing, in conjunction with the President, an annual budget, to be presented by the President for approval to the Assembly of Governors within 1 month of the start of a new CFC administration. ”

There was some debate on who should present the budget. Should it be the old administration, prior to the start of the fiscal year on May 1? The objection was that when the new administration is elected in July, the first thing they do is “ revise “ the budget, and then it may not be presented for months thereafter. The other option presented here is to let the new administration present the budget, even if it is 4 months into the fiscal year.

# 15 – Discussion Only on Motion 2010-11 – Role of the FIDE Representative

Motion # 2010-11 – New Section of Bylaw 3, Duties of Officers, Section 8D– FIDE Representative

Revision # 3, Dec.22, 2009

Moved: Hal Bond Seconded: Robert Armstrong

That there be added to Bylaw 3 , Duties of Officers, a new Section 8D dealing with “ FIDE Representative “, as follows:

FIDE Representative

8D. The FIDE ( Federation Internationale des Echecs ) Representative shall be an officer of the corporation and a member of the Executive, and shall:

i) be the official liaison between the Chess Federation of Canada and FIDE;
ii) be the FIDE Zone President for Canada
iii) deal with matters relating to the FIDE Americas Continent;
iv) if funding is available, at minimum, attend the annual FIDE Congresses;
v) work with the Public Relations Coordinator in dealing with mainstream media on chess promotion as it relates to FIDE issues.

Little debate – it was noted that the position requires a fair time and effort commitment. Also a question arose about our FIDE rep voting in the upcoming FIDE Presidential election ( expected to be between Kirsan Ilyumzhinov, incumbent, and Anatoly Karpov ( former World Champion ) ). In the 2006 FIDE Presidential election , the vote by Canada was an executive decision. In the past the Governors at the AGM have voted to give the FIDE Rep. specific instructions.

As far as FIDE is concerned though, the FIDE Rep is the Zonal President and doesn't necessarily have to answer to anyone lower except at election time

Continued in Part 4

[Bob Armstrong]

# 16 – Any Proposed Changes to Meeting Procedures Rules

An issue arose ( see Item # 12A ) where the mover/seconder of the CYCC Rules motion 2010-07, on Monday at 9:39 AM EDT, amended their motion due to a “ friendly “ amendment. But voting on the motion in its original form had already begun the night before on Sunday night at 9:00 PM EDT. The Chair did not catch this, and failed to cancel the original motion vote, and start a new amended motion vote on the Monday morning. So voting on the original motion continued until about noon on Wednesday, when the glitch was brought to light. So the chair ruled that the voting be continued on the original motion, to closing at 6:00 PM EDT on Wednesday. The matter will then be referred to the Executive, in consultation with the mover/seconder, to see if the motion passed, can be treated as the amended motion. The Governors’ Voting Modernization Subcommittee will be dealing with how to handle motion amendments, after the start of voting, in future, and will amend the procedures if required.

# 17A – New Business – Governors’ Letters Fixed Dates

It was felt that just as the new On-line Meeting rules fix the meetings quarterly, the GL’s should have fixed publication dates, given their past irregularity. There was a consensus that the online concept is much better than waiting for the GL - one suggestion was to see online meetings done bi-monthly and GL's done quarterly as a maximum. Others felt the quarterly meetings would be sufficient, with GL’s when needed – to communicate with members, to give on-line meeting “ summary minutes “, for Executive reports, for governors’ general comments to members, etc... Others wanted to eliminate GL’s totally.

# 17B – New Business – Tournament Coordinator

Motion # 1 - Amending Bylaw 3, Duties of Officers - Tournament Coordinator

Revision # 1, April 8, 2010.

Moved: Robert Armstrong Seconded: Mark Bluvshtein

1. That there be added to Bylaw 2, section 10, after the words “ FIDE Representative “, the words “ Tournament Coordinator “, and that the number “ seven “ be changed “ eight “ ( or “ nine “ if a Public Relations Coordinator position is also added ); and

2. That there be added to Bylaw 3 , Duties of Officers, a new Section 8A dealing with “ Tournament Coordinator “, as follows:

“ Tournament Coordinator

8A. ( a ) The Tournament Coordinator will help to develop and train tournament organizers and directors across the country.
( b ) The Tournament Coordinator will be responsible for soliciting individuals to bid on and organize major tournaments in Canada, including, but not limited to:

The Canadian Open Championship
The Canadian Closed Championship

( c ) The Tournament Coordinator shall have delegated to him/her by the Executive, their obligation under section 1201 of the Olympiad Regulations to appoint the Olympiad Coordinator. The Tournament Coordinator will then oversee and work with the Olympiad Coordinator re the National and Women’s Olympiad Teams. “

The main objection was that the current Executive should not be expanded by the addition of this position. The position could alternatively become a non-Executive Officer position. The Mover/Seconder agreed to withdraw from the motion in the light of this valid argument.

# 17C – New Business – Public Relations Coordinator

Motion # 3 - Amending Bylaw 3, Duties of Officers – Public Relations Coordinator

Revision # 1, April 8, 2010

Moved: Robert Armstrong Seconded: Michael von Keitz

1. That there be added to Bylaw 2, section 10, after the words “ FIDE Representative “, the words “ Public Relations Coordinator “, and that the number “ seven “ be changed “ eight “ ( or “ nine “ if a Tournament Coordinator position is also added ); and

2. That there be added to Bylaw 3 , Duties of Officers, a new Section 8C dealing with “ Public Relations Coordinator “, as follows:

“ 8C Public Relations Coordinator

8C. The Public Relations Coordinator will be responsible for promoting the image of the CFC and for promoting chess generally to the public. As such the Public Relations Coordinator will, among other things:

- work with chess clubs and organizers across Canada to raise the profile of the CFC and chess
generally;
- work with the editor of the Canadian Chess News E-newsletter to develop content that is club specific;
- work with the Canadian Chess News editor and celebrity chess commentators to develop paid content that raises the profile of the e-newsletter and the CFC and chess generally.
- deal with mainstream media to promote significant chess news, such as Canadian Chess Champions, a new Canadian GM, major tournaments like the Can. Closed, Canadian Open, Can. Women’s Closed, CYCC, etc., the various benefits accruing from playing chess and other positive aspects of the chess culture.

The main objection was that the current Executive should not be expanded by the addition of this position. The position could alternatively become a non-Executive Officer position. The Mover/Seconder agreed to withdraw from the motion in the light of this valid argument.

# 17D – New Business – Youth Coordinator

Motion # 2 - Amending Bylaw 3, Duties of Officers - Youth Coordinator

March 15, 2010

Moved: Robert Armstrong Seconded: Patrick McDonald

That there be added to Bylaw 3 , Duties of Officers, a new Section 8B dealing with “ Youth Coordinator “, as follows:

“ 8B. Youth Coordinator

The Youth Coordinator will be responsible for coordinating our participation in the World Junior Championship, the World Girls Championship, the WYCC, the Pan-American Junior and Youth Championships, the North American Junior and Youth Championships, the World Youth Chess Olympiad, and any other FIDE-related junior tournaments, and for finding organizers for the Canadian Junior Championship and the Canadian Youth Chess Championships, and for assisting the Provincial Junior Coordinators in finding organizers for the Youth Chess Championships, and any Regional Qualifier Youth Chess Championships.”

No comments on this motion.

# 17E – New Business – Executive Nominations Committee

By Bob Armstrong - “ The point of this topic, is that our AGM comes up in July ( only 3 months away ), and we are in the position we are always in - " Gee, I wonder who might come forward this year to run for the Executive ?". And with no formal process in place, we often don't know who is willing to stand until we are in the midst of the AGM itself. This seems like a pretty fragile and uncertain process.

So I would like to propose that the Governors form a specific committee of non-running governors, an Executive Nominations Committee, whose task it will be, to approach governors they feel would do a good job on the executive, and encourage them to put their names forward.

I would also suggest that the second mandate of this committee be to, if they feel they can, make recommendations to the governors of who they would endorse for the various executive positions, from among any declared candidates. This will not in any way determine who can run - all candidates can still run, but it may be that some will gain the endorsement of the committee.

I would suggest that we ask here for volunteers for this committee - I would suggest it be 5 governors. They can post here if they are interested in sitting on this committee, and will confirm they are not intending to run for any executive position for the coming year.

Lastly, if we have more than 5 volunteers for this committee, I suggest that the executive, by majority vote, with the President having a tie-breaking vote if necessary, select from among the volunteers, the 5 person committee. “

There was minimal support for the idea, and no objections. There were no volunteers. It was felt the Committee should go ahead and function, even if it did not get the official “ authorization “ of the Executive, when they were asked. Given lack of strong support, Bob Armstrong will not pursue this idea further.

# 17F – New Business - Topics Arising Out of GL # 4

GL # 4 was mailed out to all governors on Monday morning, April 12. The one topic raised was the lack of publication of the 2010-11 Budget, and the results of the budget vote. So a new item was started to vote on early posting of these items, rather than having to await GL # 5.

# 17F ( I ) – New Business – Voting for Early Posting of Budget/Vote Results – Results of Voting

The motion was moved by Chris Mallon, seconded by Bob Armstrong.

View Poll Results: The President should authorize the immediate posting here of the Budget Vote Results.

Yes : 13 - 86.67%

No : 1 - 6.67%

Abstain : 1 - 6.67%

Motion passed

Eric advised late into the meeting, that he would contact the CFC Secretary, Lyle Craver, to have the results posted on the Governors’ Discussion Board.

Continued in Part 5

[Bob Armstrong]

# 18 – Items for July AGM

Eric will be working on a business plan with the CFC Executive, which will be presented before the AGM so that Governors can make comments and then, it can be passed at the AGM this summer.

# 19 – Agenda Item Summaries

They were done by Bob Armstrong, Positing Secretary, posted to the appropriate agenda item threads for all to see, and comment on, and now appear here in these minutes.

# 20 – Concluding Address

Fellow Governors,

First off, on behalf of the CFC Executive, I would like to thank Bob Armstrong for organizing this ambitious project. I think we can see from the discussions/debates that this is the way meetings amongst Governors should be discussed in the future.

I would also like to thank all of the Governors who took the time to address the various agenda topics listed and for participating in this pilot project.

I would hope to see that the Handbook be changed to allow having motions being voted on just as if they were in the GL document itself. The timeframe on having decisions made (from months to weeks) will make governance even easier. As Bob has said in more than one email – it is time to move into the 21st century!

Warmest Regards,

Stijn De Kerpel
Vice-President
CFC