Minutes of the Council Meeting 
at AERA in New Orleans 

Below is an update/reporting from a meeting that took place in New Orleans during AERA. Please keep in mind that these "minutes" are based on my notes/recollections. Thus, I encourage others who were there to add to/ or clarify this update.

In attendance: 
Donna Breault, Kris Sloan, Daron Doyles, Patrick Slattery, Susan Finley, Jim Henderson, Louise Allen, Susan Edgerton, Rebecca McElfresh. 

Program Chair, Kris Sloan, raised issues related to the parceling of slots to the various strands. Feedback was sought as to how to proceed
with a fair and representative process which fully incorporates as many diverse voices as possible. Group discussed the parceling of slots to the various strands in accordance to the overall percentage of proposals that are received. 
Also, special mention was made of the historical connection with ABER. The question was raised, should ABER expect a larger percentage of slots due to its "joint" status with C&P? There was general agreement that creating a system of numerical sameness between the strands may not be the most fair, just means by which to parcel out the presentation slots, especially for ABER.

  

Issues of presentation space were also discussed. Kris Sloan has requested from Donna and Daron a layout of the available spaces *on-site*. After this review, discussions for *off-site* presentation spaces will be finalized. Possible sites include local coffee shops, churches, the Decatur square, and schools (after 3pm). 

A deadline date for the return of proposals to the program chair was set at July 30th. The deadline for proposals is June 15th, thus strand chairs should expect to receive their proposals no later than June 20th. 

Registration issues: ISU will be handling credit card processing for a *add-on* fee of 3.5%. This 3.5% will be added on to the cost that is paid by conf. registrant and *will not* be picked up by C&P. Question was raised: Should we list this on our web page? 

Clarification issue related to registration: Group came to a consensus understanding that daily registrants do not receive copies of the book. 

Location issues: The group discussed the location of next year's conference. There was general consensus that for the sake of continuity, and our professed commitment to local-level engagements, the council should consider making a two year commitment to Decatur. 

Programming issues: Questions raised by Susan Finley concerning the scheduling of presentations/performances. Please help me here, Susan. The issue concerned whether or not we should schedule evening presentations/performances? 

Community Building: The group discussed efforts to network with local progressive interest groups. 

General Sessions: Group discussed the importance of scheduling "Town Hall" type sessions/meetings. the stated purpose of these meetings would be to foster community building, especially mindful of school-based practitioners. Group discussed possibility of scheduling one Town Hall meeting at a local school. One suggestion including a re-counting of the history of C&P in an early Town Hall meeting. 

Accessibility: Issues related to making the conference as accessible as possible for school-based practitioners. One person suggested asking teachers for feedback on the accessibility of language. The following wording was suggested to be added to the Call For papers: "How will you presentation create a democratic, participatory space for your session participants?" 

Issues of Size: Many present felt that there is the very real possibility that a greater number folks will want to attend this year's conference than we can accommodate. Kris has asked Daron to talk with the Holiday Inn to see what their size limit is. The group suggested that the council be open to the idea of capping registration, especially since there might be a greater number of local, daily registrants.