Midwest Archaeological Conference

Minutes

2005 Annual Business Meeting

Midwest Archaeological Conference
October 22, 2005
Crowne Plaza Hotel, Miami Room
Dayton, Ohio
Submitted by Bonnie Styles, President Elect for Susan Martin, Secretary

Officers and Executive Committee Members Present:
Lynne Goldstein, President; Bonnie Styles, President-Elect; William Lovis, Editor; Jan Brashler, Editor-Elect; George Milner, Executive Officer; Mark Seeman, Executive Officer; Tim Baumann, Treasurer-Elect; Robert Jeske, Treasurer

Call to Order and President's Report
President Goldstein called the meeting to order at 4:50 p.m. Goldstein noted that several errors had been made relative to the elections. No nominations were submitted by the membership, and the call for nominations in the Midcontinental Journal of Archaeology listed the wrong number of vacancies (two). According to the bylaws, the ballot should have been mailed out prior to the business meeting. Goldstein noted that only one Executive Committee position is open, i.e. for the position being vacated by Mark Seeman. She requested that the membership suspend the bylaws requirement that the election be held through a mail ballot issued to members prior to the annual business meeting (Article II, Section 4) so that the elections could be held later. She indicated that there is a nominating committee who will put together the ballot. Bill Green made the motion to suspend the bylaws, and Cheryl Munson seconded the motion. There was no additional discussion, and the motion passed unanimously. Goldstein indicated that a mail ballot would be sent to the membership.
Nominating Committee
Goldstein indicated that the nominating committee includes John Kelly (Chair), Cheryl Munson, and Bill Green. Goldstein instructed members to contact the nominating committee to submit names for the open Executive Committee position. She noted that the bylaws require that call for nominations be posted in the journal. She indicated that the Executive Committee recognized that this is not an efficient way to handle the elections, and the organization will find a better way to call for and circulate nominations in addition to the journal posting.
Secretary's Report.
Goldstein indicated that Sue Martin was not present at the meeting and that Bonnie Styles was taking the minutes.
Treasurer's Report
Robert Jeske distributed a written report. Jeske reported that there are 416 MAC members. He noted that the bank statement indicated that the organization has $800 more than he thought. The difference may be because he missed dues payments submitted through PayPal. The beginning assets were $13,058.64. The total earned income for the period from 10/18/04 to 10/18/05 was $13,883.96. The total expenditures were $15,028.24. He noted that the organizations is now free of the debt to the University of Iowa and is still solvent. He noted that AltaMira Press still owes MAC at least $4,000 in royalties. The press has the right to take library sales and sales outside the MAC 10-state region. MAC gets 10% or $4,000 whichever is greater. Jeske noted that his tenure as Treasurer was done as of this meeting and that he was handing over the reigns to Tim Baumann. Tim will institute a new accounting system using SPORG. Jeske thanked the 2005 meeting organizers—Bob Riordan, Lynn Simonelli, and William Kennedy. He noted that the meeting will realize a $4,000 profit, and the MAC portion will be $2505. The last four MAC meetings have been profitable. The 2005 Budget estimated an annual loss of $2470. There was an actual gain of $8009, with $4315 encumbered, for an estimated total gain of $3694. Jeske indicated that the annual gain will probably be about $1000 less and should be around $2600-2800. According to the 2006 Budget estimate, there should be an annual gain of $1714. He indicated that MAC should have about $15,000 in the bank, which would buffer the organization in case of a failed annual meeting. He concluded that MAC is in good fiscal shape. However, he argued that the organization needs more members. There will be about 420 members after the annual meeting, but the organization needs about 500 to maintain the annual meeting and put out the journals.
Editor's Report
William Lovis noted that this report was his last as editor of Midcontinental Journal of Archaeology (MCJA) and that Jan Brashler was replacing him as the incoming editor. He distributed a written report. He noted that at one point he had no manuscripts for the journal, but now the journal is on schedule. He indicated that he has the page proofs for the next issue of the journal, which should be out in November. The issues have become substantial, and Brashler may want to reduce the page length of the issues. He noted that staff members at AltaMira made major improvements to the journal—such as, better cover stock, addition of color on the cover, and other design changes. He requested that members send additional suggestions for changes to Brashler. He further indicated that there are not enough articles submitted to sustain a quarterly, and that MAC needs to stay with the two-issue structure for the time being. He thanked the over 70 individuals who had served as referees for the journal. He also thanked Megan McCullen, his editorial assistant. He noted that MAC cannot run a journal on the existing budget and that Lynne Goldstein at Michigan State University (MSU) had provided institutional support for telephones, editorial assistance, express mailing, and office space. He indicated that MAC owes MSU thanks for their support, and that Grand Valley State will be providing similar institutional support for Brashler. He noted that there were sufficient manuscripts to fill both 2006 issues. He indicated that any questions after November 1 should be referred to Brashler. He recommended that the AltaMira and MAC Web sites be updated to reflect the change in editors.

Tom Emerson noted that it is possible to go online and print out MCJA articles for free. Bill Green indicated that there is a URL where articles can be downloaded and that this was part of a marketing strategy. Cheryl Munson noted that it is important for members to know that they can download articles. Green suggested that making back issues available increases the desire to gain access to current issues. Jeske indicated that a similar situation exists for American Antiquity.
2006 Annual Meeting
Goldstein reiterated that the 2006 Annual Meeting will be held at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign (October 12-15, 2006). A contract had been signed with a Holiday Inn.
2007 Annual Meeting
Goldstein noted that the 2007 Annual Meeting will be held at Notre Dame (October 4-7, 2007), with Mark Schurr as organizer.
2005 Student Paper Competition
Jarrod Burks indicated that the competition selection committee (Jarrod Burks, Bob Genheimer, and Linda Whitman) selected two students as the winners of the student paper competition—Kelly Arnold of SIU-E and Christine Boston also of SIU-E. Numerous publications were contributed for the award and will be sent to the students at SIU-E.
Thanks to 2005 Annual Meeting Hosts
Goldstein thanked the Dayton hosts (Wright State University and the Dayton Society of Natural History) for organizing the conference and making everyone feel welcome. Bob Riordan announced that 276 individuals registered for the conference. Bill Kennedy announced that there would be a reception in the hotel from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. and that the banquet would run from 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. Bill Green thanked outgoing Editor Bill Lovis, outgoing Treasurer Bob Jeske, and outgoing Executive Committee Member Mark Seeman for their service.
Adjournment
Goldstein called for a motion to adjourn the business meeting. Bill Lovis made said motion. Tom Emerson seconded the motion. The meeting was adjourned at 5:25 p.m.