FROM THE EDITOR

As always, submissions and ideas appropriate for this newsletter, and of course, constructive criticisms are all welcomed.

MEETING MINUTES
Denver:  September 17, 1999

Directors Meeting, 12:00 pm

            Present: Mark Mauthner (President), Anna Domitrovic (Treasurer), Anthony Kampf, Virgil Lueth, Virginia Mast, Marc Wilson and Jean DeMouthe.

President Mauthner called the meeting to order at 1:35 p.m. Virgil Lueth was asked to keep the minutes of the meeting in the absence of George Harlow (Secretary).

Treasurers report: Domitrovic distributed copies of the treasurers report.

            The agenda for the general meeting was presented and discussed.  Outlines for reports from the following committee chairs were presented:

            Computer Committee Report: Kampf reported the website is active and updated regularly. A new moderate-tech list server is available email sent to smmp@nhm.org will reach all SMMP members with email.

            Orphan Collection / Curators: Lueth reported no new orphans.  DeMouthe noted the California State collection is now under the jurisdiction of the Calif. State Department of Parks and Recreation. Kampf reported that a new curator position might be open for the position.

            Stolen Specimens: No stolen specimens were reported.

            Education Committee: Mast thanked the membership for the good participation in this shows mineral case, Sphalerites from around the world. She mentioned that ideas are needed for the Tucson 2000 show. The theme is Brazilian Minerals.

            Publications Committee: An action proposal was presented to the committee for review for the establishment of a permanent set of publications by the Society.

            No new business was brought up at this meeting.

            The directors meeting adjourned at 1:57 p.m.

General Meeting, 1:00 pm

            President Mauthner called the meeting to order at 2:05 p.m.  A roll call and introduction of guests started the meeting

            Minutes of the Tucson meeting on 12 February 1999:  A motion was made to adopt the minutes as printed in the newsletter and seconded. The motion was passed by unanimous vote.

            Presidents Report: President Mauthner discussed his objectives for the society as outlined in the recent newsletter concerning the benefits of membership. He solicited comments and advice from the entire membership. He stressed the adoption of a cooperative model over a service model for the society by decreasing emphasis on outreach and increasing internal programs.

            Treasurers Report: Domitrovic provided the semi-annual financial report as a memo dated 13 Sept. 1999. A checkbook balance of $2,825.88 was reported. A money market account was established last February with $5000.00. However, the bank did not deposit any money in the account until September. An explanation for the tardiness of the transaction is awaiting an inquiry by Domitrovic.

            Computer Committee Report: Kampf discussed the activity of the website and welcomed suggestions for its improvement. The newsletter and email addresses are present on the site along with recent job postings. A new medium-tech listserver is now available at: email sent to  smmp@nhm.org will reach all SMMP members with email.

Members can be removed from the mailing list by contacting Tony. A suggestion for inclusion of show listings and locations was presented.

            Orphan Collections / Curators: Lueth reported no new listings of orphaned collections or curators. DeMouthe noted the California State collection has been transferred to the Calif. State Department of Parks and Recreation. Kampf mentioned that a job opening for a curator for the California State collection was recently posted. Erickson reported additional funding for the Virginia Natural History Museum. A new curator, Jay Ague, was appointed at the Peabody Museum at Yale.

            Education Committee: Mast thanked the contributions of members to the SMMP mineral case highlighting worldwide sphalerites at this years show. She reported a record number of participants. A call for ideas for the Tucson 2000 (Brazilian Minerals) show was made. A discussion concerning the mandate for this committee commenced. Aspects of this discussion were postponed until later in the meeting.

            Publications Committee: Mauthner discussed newsletter distribution via email or snail-mail. DeMouthe, chair of the committee, presented an action proposal to the membership. In the proposal, the society would begin to publish two types of papers: (1) Peer-reviewed occasional papers intended to address collection issues and (2) Collection notes to provide educational tools for the public. Publications would be posted on the web page and hardcopies would also be available. Review of the papers would fall to the publications committee consisting of 3 to 4 members. An editorial board remained to be named and volunteers were solicited. The recycling of papers was discussed along with email linkage of the membership.

            New Business: No new business was presented.

            Announcements: Terry Huizing announced the establishment of a potential new museum in Appleton, WI, curated by Mr. and Mrs. Gene LeBarge. Jack Murphy stated he had extra pieces of South African kimberlite available to anyone who would like some. Dimitri Belakovskii thanked the membership for the donation of back issues of American Mineralogist to his museum. The call for other duplicate journals for donation to foreign members was made.

            The meeting was adjourned at 2:49 p.m.

Presented by Virgil W. Lueth, Director.

KEEPING TRACK OF YOUR DUES

Check with Anna Domitrovic if you are not certain whether your dues are current. The Societys dues for 2000 are $10.00 U.S., payable to our treasurer Anna Domitrovic, Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, 2021 N. Kinney Road, Tucson, AZ 85743. Any directory changes or additions should also be sent to Anna Domitrovic. Please also submit changes to Tony Kampf for the SMMP website.

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