Board Meeting Notes 5/20/2014
Posted: Thu May 21, 2015 9:39 am
First I want to extend an invite to anyone who reads this, especially in the Huntsville area to come to these public meetings. I've been attending ASSEC meetings (off and on) for over 4 years now and I've seen some of you there but I think alumni need to be there especially when discussions like yesterday come up.
Yesterday the Business Committee met and discussed several subjects. First the financial picture at the center looks very good. They have almost $1.5 million in cash in the bank (as of yesterday) and the reservations continue to look strong for the remainder of the summer. Current projections show that this trend should continue for the rest of the season and the CFO seems to be on the ball. This makes me feel really good because he seems to be getting better at getting his projections nailed down which means if a financial crisis is looming he has a good chance of catching it before it happens.
The board discussed marketing efforts such as offering up endorsements. Recently the center has made Nikon the official camera of U.S. Space and Rocket Center and the board members seem to want to do more of that for trade or cash. This item was taken as an official item to explore and report back on.
Another item added to the research list is a paid alumni association/membership program. Much like universities they board wants research on offering an organization that campers are immediately invited to join upon graduation. During this whole discussion not single staff member in the room, including development leads, made NO mention of the work the AAB has been doing nor the fact that members of the AAB had brought forward a proposal in the past. After the meeting had ended I briefly escaped my minder and got to talk to a few board members and made mention of the fact some of the alumni had the same idea. I'm one person, who according for former board members the USSRC management have flagged me as someone who doesn't have the best interest of the center in mind, so this is where I ask other alumni to come forward and take an active role directly in the ASSEC meetings. Believe me when I say that the ASSEC members take note when people attend and while there is no public comment portion of the meeting the ASSEC board members often come by and talk to me and I'm sure they would love to speak to you guys and hear your ideas and frustrations (if any).
One other note that I heard during the meeting was that the center staff were looking at possibly modifying the camp costs in the future to a cost+plus structure. Where you would pay a base price for a camp and then pay for add-ons. Example given was Advanced Space Academy.
Camper would pay a base price (let's say $900) and then they would be given the opportunity to add on items like the UAT for an additional price. The rational behind this is that the center has a different cost basis for a camper that does not dive in the UAT versus a camper that doesn't. AND it came out yesterday that the center cannot give the board an actual break even point for each camp program because of various deltas between what each camper actually does. This could be good or bad. The good would be that it could reduce the actual base price of the programs which would help parents get over the sticker shock of the programs (especially if you are outside of the southeast and have to pay travel costs). The bad news is lots of parents hate the whole add-on structure because kids often feel they aren't getting the full experience. How would scholarships be handled? I look forward to hearing what the staff and board discuss in the coming months. This is yet another area where alumni need to be offering their experiences DIRECTLY to the board and not through the center's filters.
So when is the next meeting? FRIDAY is the quarterly meeting of ASSEC. Most of the 18 members of the commission will be there and it would be great to have any other alumni there. If you are interested let me know via PM or give me a call at 256-990-0033 and I'm happy to give the details and.. RULES for attending.
I'm also going to be at the Biergarten tonight (May 21) - would love to have dinner with anyone!!! Use the same phone info and let me know if you are going to be there.
<<Edited to reflect the committee name to Business Committee>>
Yesterday the Business Committee met and discussed several subjects. First the financial picture at the center looks very good. They have almost $1.5 million in cash in the bank (as of yesterday) and the reservations continue to look strong for the remainder of the summer. Current projections show that this trend should continue for the rest of the season and the CFO seems to be on the ball. This makes me feel really good because he seems to be getting better at getting his projections nailed down which means if a financial crisis is looming he has a good chance of catching it before it happens.
The board discussed marketing efforts such as offering up endorsements. Recently the center has made Nikon the official camera of U.S. Space and Rocket Center and the board members seem to want to do more of that for trade or cash. This item was taken as an official item to explore and report back on.
Another item added to the research list is a paid alumni association/membership program. Much like universities they board wants research on offering an organization that campers are immediately invited to join upon graduation. During this whole discussion not single staff member in the room, including development leads, made NO mention of the work the AAB has been doing nor the fact that members of the AAB had brought forward a proposal in the past. After the meeting had ended I briefly escaped my minder and got to talk to a few board members and made mention of the fact some of the alumni had the same idea. I'm one person, who according for former board members the USSRC management have flagged me as someone who doesn't have the best interest of the center in mind, so this is where I ask other alumni to come forward and take an active role directly in the ASSEC meetings. Believe me when I say that the ASSEC members take note when people attend and while there is no public comment portion of the meeting the ASSEC board members often come by and talk to me and I'm sure they would love to speak to you guys and hear your ideas and frustrations (if any).
One other note that I heard during the meeting was that the center staff were looking at possibly modifying the camp costs in the future to a cost+plus structure. Where you would pay a base price for a camp and then pay for add-ons. Example given was Advanced Space Academy.
Camper would pay a base price (let's say $900) and then they would be given the opportunity to add on items like the UAT for an additional price. The rational behind this is that the center has a different cost basis for a camper that does not dive in the UAT versus a camper that doesn't. AND it came out yesterday that the center cannot give the board an actual break even point for each camp program because of various deltas between what each camper actually does. This could be good or bad. The good would be that it could reduce the actual base price of the programs which would help parents get over the sticker shock of the programs (especially if you are outside of the southeast and have to pay travel costs). The bad news is lots of parents hate the whole add-on structure because kids often feel they aren't getting the full experience. How would scholarships be handled? I look forward to hearing what the staff and board discuss in the coming months. This is yet another area where alumni need to be offering their experiences DIRECTLY to the board and not through the center's filters.
So when is the next meeting? FRIDAY is the quarterly meeting of ASSEC. Most of the 18 members of the commission will be there and it would be great to have any other alumni there. If you are interested let me know via PM or give me a call at 256-990-0033 and I'm happy to give the details and.. RULES for attending.
I'm also going to be at the Biergarten tonight (May 21) - would love to have dinner with anyone!!! Use the same phone info and let me know if you are going to be there.
<<Edited to reflect the committee name to Business Committee>>