President's Report for PRCSA AGM 28 January 2007 Submitted by: Catherine Dickinson Introduction It continues to be a great pleasure and an honour to serve as the President of the P.R. Community and Student Association. I find it to be a great privilege to continue to be involved in this organization, to see it grow and evolve. Sadleir House continues to flourish as a student and community space, largely due to the dedication, care and hard work of Jill Staveley, our Convenor and Dwayne Collins, our Steward without whom, none of this would be possible. The work that they do is the heart of what allows this building and what happens inside it to be so successful, and as a result I often find myself as President watching from the sidelines in awe at the things that they are able to produce with the limited resources that we have as an organization. As a result, many of the things that I am most excited to report about the house or are most proud of as a result of the PRCSA's work over the last year are their projects and their successes, which I will refrain from elaborating on here. Section I - Master At the previous general meeting of the Association, I reported that the Board of Directors had been developing a position of House Master that was intended in many ways to parallel the position of College Master as it has existed within Trent University's residential colleges. (A description of the Master's position follows this report.) After an extensive search, the Board of Directors is pleased to announce the appointment of Robert Lightbody to the position of Sadleir House Master. Robert is a member of Trent University's first class, a former president of Peter Robinson College Cabinet, and has also previous served on the Trent University Alumni Council and the Trent University Board of Governors. He is a partner in the law firm Lech, Lightbody and O'Brien in Peterborough. His appointment will begin 1 February 2007 and will be for a term of two years. Section II - Fundraising and Stewardship As part of our stewardship efforts, directors and staff have been working on launching a quarterly newsletter that would be posted on the Association's website, but that could also be sent via email or in hard copy to members and friends of the house who are geographically farther away. Since the beginning of the project, we have seen a desire on the part of those who have an affection for it to keep abreast of the goings on here, and our challenge has been to find an effective way to do so. The newsletter is envisioned as part calendar of events, part news and with bits of interesting stories and nostalgia intertwined. Once the newsletter has been established and it may also become a vehicle for the Association to reach out when there are larger projects to undertake that require financial assistance. The Association is tremendously fortunate to have many friends who assist us in a variety of ways from donations of labour, time, expertise and money; we cannot depend on any of this to be volunteered, nor can it be taken for granted. Section III - Board Involvement The Association's Board of Directors acts primarily as a governance & policy board, leaving the day to day operations and decisions of the facility to the capable staff of the house. Unfortunately directors have expressed that this structure makes them feel distanced from the activities of the house itself and that they find it difficult to become more involved in other aspects of the project without feeling as though they are overstepping their role as directors or stepping on the toes of staff. It is my hope over the next year to work with both directors and staff to find interesting and appropriate ways to involve the Board more in the day to day operations or special events of the facility. Section IV - Thanks and Gratitude As I have indicated throughout my report, the work of the PRCSA is not that of one, or even a few people, but that of the many, many people and groups who give their time and energy to this organisation to make it the vibrant and exciting place that it is. I would like to thank the following people for their contributions over the last year, as well as those that I may have accidentally (and regrettably) missed. Thank you! Sean Arthur Ashburnham Paint & Wallpaper Marisa Barnhart Darryl Bennett Dave Blondel Molly Blyth Constantin Boundas Ken (Solo) Brown Ken Brown, CA Charlotte Paint & Wallpaper Sara Chartrand Barb Chisholm Dwayne Collins Derek Newman-Stille Ruth E. Dickinson Scott Douglas Richard Eberhardt Nick Ferrio Erik Hanson Julia Harrison Alena Heitlinger Bill Herault John Hillman Ruth Hillman Harry Hobbs Matthias Kom Jordan Mack Helen Markellos Chris Mather Derrick McIntosh Ian McLachlan David Morrison Yvonne Lai Tom Miller John Milloy John K Muir George Nader Susan Newman OPIRG - Peterborough Laurel Paluck Ryan Perks Laura Perry Jesse Phillips Evan Prentice Kathleen Ramsay Reboot North Kathleen Ramsay Joan Reeves John Reeves Tim Rivers-Garrett Kate Rowley Joan Sadleir Richard Sadleir Joan Sangster Deb Scott Sue Schappert SSFC Museum Management & Curatorship Program Linda Shisko Robin Smith Jill Staveley Sara Swerdlyk Christine Symons Tom Symons Richard Taylor Trent Central Student Association Trent Radio Trent University Archives Trent University Faculty Association Trent University Women's Centre Chris Vyn Helen Wallis John Wadland Andrew Wernick In particular, I would like to thank those members whose term on the Board of Directors will end at the close of this general meeting for their involvement, their thoughtfulness, their care and their time: Manuela Lefranc, M.J. Milloy & Christopher Allen. We thank them for their service and hope they stay close. Respectfully Submitted, Catherine Dickinson, President & Chair Sadleir House Master Position Description The appointment as Sadleir House Master shall be for a period of two years with possible renewal subject to the decision of a Review Committee of the Board of Directors. The Master provides leadership in the academic and cultural life of Sadleir House and in that capacity shall: * Foster & facilitate an environment that allows for the pursuit of academic life at Sadleir House; * Work with the Sadleir House Steward to plan and implement the annual Darryl Bennett Lecture and be ultimately responsible for the selection of the Darryl Bennett Fellow; * Take a leadership role and, working with the Sadleir House Steward, plan and implement academic and cultural events; * Be encouraged to pursue, when possible, visiting scholars, writers, artists and other such persons and to pursue possible partnerships with Trent University Colleges in that regard; * Develop and make recommendations to the Board of Directors on the bestowing of academic honours. * The Master should ideally be a scholar of high regard with a commitment to bridging the gap between academic and community life.