Talk:VI.I. Twin Pines Award (Pilot)

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Twin Pines Policy Proposal Name of Proposal: Twin Pines Award (pilot) Author: Marcia Maki (hoybr1@bsc.coop), Daniel Kronovet (vpet@bsc.coop) Astrological Sign: Cancer Brief description of proposal: Explain what this proposal is going to do for our co-op, what changes it will make. This provides new members the opportunity and incentive to learn more about the larger connections and structures of the BSC through a fun, engaging, educational, experiential, and social program. In brief, members will receive an “activity card” along with their Owner’s Manual during their house-level orientation. The card will have a list of activities on it, such as “Go to at least two councils.” or “Go to a workshop at another co-op.” Once members complete a certain number of these (currently six out of 11), then can turn the card in at central office and get the “Twin Pines” award (the Twin Pines is an international symbol of cooperatives). Currently, the incentive consists of: • A sticker and water bottle with the “Twin Pines” logo on it. • Entry into a raffle for one of three $250 rent credits. ETCom will hold a raffle at the end of the semester to give out the rent credits. Members who complete more than the minimum number of activities can qualify for additional entries into the raffle, creating another incentive to do more.Stakeholders: Who is affected? This can be all members, or certain groups like Kitchen Managers or Board Members. All BSC Members, various managers at unit level including social, house, president, and workshift, Chair of Committees, BSC President, and CO Staff Background/History: What previous efforts have been made to address this problem, if any? What inspired your attempt? Explain where you’re coming from. One of ETCom’s members in Fall 2011 raised the point that while some amount of education should be mandatory (such as orientations), the overall educational project is more effective when the process is a more voluntary and enjoyable one. Given that we had planned to include requirements in the pre-contract and house-level aspects of new member education, we wanted to make the other aspects as voluntary as possible. When designing this program, we began from the assumption that oftentimes first semester new members become absorbed into their respective unit and have little to no interaction with the larger BSC. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, but nonetheless the BSC is a large system that has all units working together. Without a basic understanding of the relationship between one unit and all the others, members will have only partial understandings of the workings of their own unit and may not be able to make the best governance decisions. We chose the format we did for a few reasons: • It is pretty low-cost beyond the cost of the prizes. The organizational resources needed to run the program are minimal–all we need to do is print and distribute the activity cards, and budget for as well as order and stock the prizes. Very little staff time is necessary to run the program, as it is almost entirely member-driven. • It is automatic and fits into our existing structures. The program doesn’t call for new events, but rather creates an incentive to participate in events that are already occurring. • It is member-driven. Members can complete the activities entirely at their pace and at their discretion, without any coordinating at the central level. • Many stakeholders stand to benefit. If successful, the program will lead to higher levels of member engagement with Board, with other units, and with the Central Office. Goals: Explain how you envision this policy working in practice. Will people years down the road know what you meant when you wrote this? Probably not. This is a good place to address any “intent” that isn’t captured in the policy text. New members will experience the many events the BSC has and network with the many members the BSC has. It is a fun way to learn the structuring of the BSC, which will ultimately lead to members with a more “global” understanding of the relationship among the units, among the various stakeholders of the BSC. Help address the following education topics as outlined in the Member Education Framework • Member responsibilities • Group decision-making procedures • The central level - unit relationship • Central-level programs, funding, support • Board structure and responsibilities • Where member rates go • Board Member accountability • Important central-level policies • Cultural Sensitivity • Safe Space We recognize that not all members will find all of these activities engaging, and that unlike all of us, not all members get excited about consent workshops and board meetings. The real aim of this policy is to get more members to walk through the door, at least once, and see for themselves if they like it or not. The incentive is there to get members to try things once, whereas before they might have never had a reason to try it at all. Whether they like it or not, whether they continue to explore the BSC afterwards, is entirely up to them. The best-case scenario for a member is that they find a fascination and passion for

the BSC as an organization, and is involved in a way they would never have been had this program not acted as a catalyst. The mid-case scenario is a member who goes to a few activities but isn’t hooked--we end up with a member who stays focused on their unit, but with a larger network of ideas that they can draw on. The worst-case scenario is a member who doesn’t give this a second look, in which case we’re back at the status quo, out the cost of a postcard.