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March 2020

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Agenda item: Draft Code of Conduct
by Bruce Williams March 20, 2020

March 20, 2020

Agenda Item: The Foundation is taking a public and aggressive stance against all forms of discrimination and all forms of harassment. The updated Tenets of the Foundation was the first in a series of steps, all of which will be discussed by the Board of Directors before being voted into effect These three steps are designed to make all of our instructors and students feel (and be) safe with the actions of others at Foundation courses, and I believe will be effective in preventing such actions from occurring at Foundation events in the future. The first step was the Tenets of the Foundation (now published on the Foundation website). This second step is a code of conduct which outlines the behavior expected of Foundation Faculty of Discussants, non-Faculty members speaking at every course, and their signature and acknowledgement will be an annual requirement, to be coordinated by course directors and the Office of the CEO. The draft code of conduct is presented to the BOD, and this item is proposed by myself, and is seconded by Dr. Jey Koehler. We will have a 7-day period of discussion, during which a free flow of thoughts toward anything that has not been addressed, as well as thoughts on wording changes may be discussed. Following this, a second draft will be circulated for an enactment vote. The finalized code of conduct will become a public document and circulated on the Foundation website, listserv, and social media. The third step (which will be submitted for Board Discussion at a future date) is currently in development. This will involve development of a reporting system available to students and faculty at Foundation courses. It will allow for anonymous or signed reports of potential infractions and inappropriate behavior at Foundation activities. These reports will be forwarded to a committee composed of 4-5 members of our Board for investigation and potential action against Foundation faculty or attendees which may preclude them from future interaction with the Foundation. It should be stressed that the scope of the code of conduct applies to those only in service to the Foundation and events at Foundation courses. It is not the purview or responsibility of the Foundation to investigate individuals for actions outside of the scope of Foundation activities. Members of the Board are welcome to discuss the attached DRAFT Code of Conduct for a period of seven days, and discussion will end on 20 March. Thank you everyone for your attention to this and please stay safe during this difficult time. bruce

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Board Agenda item - Update of "Tenets of the Foundation"
by Bruce Williams March 2, 2020

March 2, 2020

Here is a bit of new business left over from the November Board meeting. Before the meeting, I received the following email from Tony Ross: “I request this matter be mentioned at the next board meeting. The website needs an upgrade. > An example is the “tennets” section. It is worthy, but biblical-like and plain wrong in places. See the first tennet. > Best wishes, > Tony At the Board meeting it was agreed that we needed to update the “Tenets of the Foundation” and the “Facts of the Foundation”, and i volunteered to work on this task. The original “Tenets of the Foundation” are available at: http://www.cldavis.org/membership_tenets.html <http://www.cldavis.org/membership_tenets.html> - (for your comparison - and not reprinted here to avoid confusion). They were originally penned by Sam in 1970 during the incorporation of the Foundation and while his writing does have a touch of the “biblical” as Tony points out, there is something to be said with maintain some links with our past, so i am loathe to rephrase much of the original text. However, if you compare this draft with the original, you will see that there are some significant additions in terms of the first paragraph (thank you for yeoman work on that bit, Paco), as well the addition concerning gender, sexual preference, and sexual identity (long overdue.) Any redundancy in the tenets is for emphasis. The proposal before the Baord is to replace the tenets currently on the Web site with this updated version. This item is seconded by Foundation President Paoo Uzal There will be a period of discussion for 1 week. bhw Tenets of the Charles Louis Davis and Samuel Wesley Thompson Foundation (These tenets were established by Dr. Samuel Thompson at the time of the Foundation’s creation in 1970 These tenets have changed a bit over time, but they are as valid today as they were when Dr. Thompson put his pen to paper.) The Foundation rejects all manifestations of discrimination <https://diversity.ucdavis.edu/confront-and-reject-all-manifestations-discri…>, including those based on race, ethnicity, gender and gender expression, age, disability, nationality, sexual orientation, citizenship status, veteran status, religious/non-religious, spiritual, or political beliefs, socio-economic class, or any of the other differences among people which may be excuses for misunderstanding, dissension or hatred. We recognize and cherish the richness contributed to our lives by our diversity. We take pride in all our achievements, and we celebrate our differences. The Foundation does not espouse nationalism. The only reason that The Foundation does not have members in certain countries of the world is simply that we have not received a membership application from an eligible individual or organization within a particular country, or a request to conduct a workshop there. The Foundation's membership records do not carry any information concerning a member's race. Registrants attending our educational programs represent all races. The Foundation’s membership records do not carry any information concerning a member's ethnic background. If you attend any of the educational programs of The Foundation, it is evident that those members in attendance come from a diversity of ethnic backgrounds. The Foundation does not endorse or tolerate any form of bias against gender, sexual preference, or sexual identity. All Foundation members are embraced equally and treated with respect. The Foundation is nonsectarian. The membership records of The Foundation do not carry any information concerning the religious preference of a member and does not tolerate any bias against any religion or lack thereof. The Foundation is apolitical. This is a requirement of our designation as a tax-exempt, non-profit, operating, private, educational foundation by the government of the United States of America. The Foundation is a non-profit organization. The only means The Foundation has of supporting its many educational programs is from annual dues contributed by Individual Members, Corporate Members, and Institutional Members; registration fees charged for some of its seminars and symposia; dedicated contributions made by Patrons and Members; and contributions made by Members and Affiliate Members for publications. The Foundation does not use professional solicitors to raise the funds it needs. The Foundation does not pay any consulting firm to manage its administration or programs. The Foundation relies entirely on volunteerism and has done so very successfully for over many years. Every cent that our members pay in dues or fees is utilized 100% in support of current programs and services.

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