Well, we've apparently generated a bit of interest
from perspective members, so maybe it's safe to start
thinking about what to do next. As I see it, there are
three tracks we need to be paying attention to, and
should try to concentrate our efforts on one of them,
or perhaps break into working groups for each.
The first track is dealing with the Wikimedia
Foundation itself. That's a bit tricky because they
can sometimes become a bit more interested in debate
than in getting things rolling along :). Personally I
think we could have the chapter independent of their
approval (though we might need a name change if we're
forced to go that route), but on the other hand I also
(opining again) think that our *mission* should really
just stay focused on the promotion and improvement of
the foundation-run projects.
The second track is our legal status. Setting up a
non-profit is quite easy to do (just requires a small
infusion of cash, a set of bylaws, and a board of
members to sign the papers). However, I don't think we
should do that until we know where we stand with the
foundation (we can set up the paperwork, but we can't
submit them until we know what we're called).
The third track is developing our plans for doing
things, and doing them. It might be better to work on
this track until the first track gets straightened
out, since most of the ideas we can develop and/or act
on won't really be affected by where the other tracks
take us. Small, short-term projects (such as
scheduling another Wikimeetup where we can hold a
quorum on what tracks to follow) could be easily
arranged via irc, this mailing list, and the "Pretzel
Stand" on meta. It also wouldn't be a bad idea to run
a small fundraiser to raise whatever we'll need for
submitting our articles of incorporation when the time
comes (not to mention opening a bank account to keep
the money in). Medium-term goals --such as developing
informal curricula for outreach sessions-- can
certainly get started too. Long term projects like
making partnerships with non-profs, academic bodies,
and even state agencies can also be pursued (at least
we could translate and synopsize what the German
chapter did and see if we could do something similar
with the Commonwealth or even municipal governments).
It's all a lot to think about, but no there's time
like the present for making a start :).
-Johnny.
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