# Agenda & Minutes - February 26, 2024 *mediastudies.press Board Meeting* ## I. Agenda ### 1. Welcome new members ### 2. Annual Report - review * see [Annual Report](https://msp-docs.org/annual-reports/2023+Annual+Report) ### 3. Modern slavery policy * see [draft policy](https://www.mediastudies.press/pub/fu5bun26/draft?access=cc1ly2t9) ### 4. 2023 finances * see [Finances](https://msp-docs.org/annual-reports/2023+Annual+Report#4.%20Finances) ### 5. 2024 goals * see [Looking ahead 2024](https://msp-docs.org/annual-reports/2023+Annual+Report#3.%20Looking%20ahead%202024) ### 6. Board meeting and communication schedule * see below ### 7. Staff payment pilot study * see below *** # Additional Board items ## 6. Board meeting & communication schedule *For information and comment* ### Board Meetings * Semi-annually, in January and July * additional meetings called as necessary ### Board updates * Semi-annually, in April and October * A report of activities, with an email chain for comments and discussion *** ## 7. Staff payment pilot proposal *For vote* The long-term sustainability of mediastudies.press may depend on paying for the labor to run the press. Currently, the work performed by the staff (Director and Associate Director) is volunteered. Other labor-related work is already compensated, including copy-editing, graphic design, and translation. The main obstacle to paying staff is budgetary. Until the press’s revenues can reliably cover modest payment to staff, the prospect of such payments must be deferred. ### Assumptions * the press should pay its staff, in principle and for the sake of sustainability * the press may not be able to afford to pay its staff ### Proposed Staff Payment Pilot In order to assess the feasibility of paying staff, the proposed pilot will involve the careful tracking of staff hours and activities, over a three month period: * April, May, June 2024 The Director and Associate director will use time-tracking software to record time spent on press work. The tracking will include the nature of the work performed. At the end of the three-month period, a report will be prepared for the Board, with total hours, a breakdown of the work, and annualized projections of cost, with a tentative hourly rate of $25. The Board will review and discuss the report at the July Board Meeting, with the press’s finances in mind. Based on the Board’s review, a plan for staff compensation may be considered, or else deferred.