[Artemisia] Fwd: [Announcements] Newsletter Production Stipends

[Belladonna]

My reaction to this is, "Hurray!" I'd much rather get an electronic Sage. Loch 
Salann already has an electronic newsletter option in the form of getting a PDF 
emailed to you. Perhaps other baronies do, too? Let's catch up with 1995, 
already, even if our pocketbooks are forcing us to do it.

I know my opinion may not be popular with some. And yes, even in this day and 
age, there still may be two or three people in the Kingdom without computers, 
Internet, or email accounts. But my opinion is that it's perfectly okay to 
choose not to have those things, but it's not okay to cry about the results of 
that choice. If someone chooses not to have Internet access, I think he or she 
is also choosing to take the responsibility for working a little harder to get 
information in other ways. One of the best ways to get information, anyway, has 
always been and remains to make a few friends in the Society. 


Besides, I think we're deluding ourselves if we think that very many people in 
our Kingdom still rely on (or even really use) the newsletters to get 
information. I get the Sage. Sometimes, I thumb through it. If I want to know 
what the upcoming events are or remember the details of one, I visit one of the 
group Websites or call up someone I know and ask about it.

I'm a Chronicler and happy to serve, but I feel like producing a newsletter at 
all anymore is something we do because it's required, not because it's needed. 
The Barony of Loch Salann's newletter has fewer than 25 subscribers. I believe 
the Sage's circulation is due largely to the fact that it's included with SCA 
membership. No offense to Hilde who does a truly marvelous job with it, but how 
many would really subscribe if you had to pay separately to get information you 
can find on the Web?

Belladonna






________________________________
From: Rachael Emborg <rachael.emborg at gmail.com>
To: List: Artemisia <artemisia at lists.gallowglass.org>
Sent: Fri, February 11, 2011 11:54:31 AM
Subject: [Artemisia] Fwd: [Announcements] Newsletter Production Stipends

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Leslie Luther-Fulton <janefalada at hotmail.com>
Date: Fri, Feb 11, 2011 at 11:43 AM
Subject: [Announcements] Newsletter Production Stipends
To: sca Announcements <announcements at sca.org>


Due to external economic conditions and increased overall costs facing the
SCA Inc., the Board of Directors and senior staff have been forced to make
over $250,000 in cost cutting measures to the 2011 budget in order to ensure
continued operations.



The largest recurring expense for the SCA at the corporate level is the
stipend payments made to the Kingdoms for publishing hardcopy newsletters.  As
our modern society moves increasingly away from hardcopy publishing to
electronic mediums, the costs of hardcopy publishing have increased
proportionally. Based on the need to curb these costs, and the responses of
the membership in the 2010 census, the Board of Directors believes it is
essential to the continued financial health of the SCA to transition the
organization away from paper newsletters. Accordingly, the SCA has initiated
a project to transition all kingdoms to e-newsletters, and is projecting
implementation by Jan 1, 2012. Until the SCA has the infrastructure in place
to support e-newsletters, the 2011 stipend amount provided by the corporate
level for production assistance will be reduced to cover only those aspects
required by the governing documents. This will reduce the overall stipend
for mailings and production by 60%. The Board of Directors greatly regrets
the necessity of making these changes to the stipend structure, but feels
that it is the best of an array of difficult options to execute its
fiduciary responsibility to the membership of the organization.