NAOBI, Inc. - Words from the President

From the President's Playbook -- August 2009

2009-11-28T17:07:00.000-08:00

FROM THE PRESIDENT'S PLAYBOOK

Fellow NAOBIans,

Got your running shoes on?
Be sure to check out my speech about who we are as NAOBI, Inc. and
Running with the Vision.

Go to: http://www.youtube.com/antoniogoodwin
"The Shoes Were Made for Running!"

1. ELECTIONS! ELECTIONS! ELECTIONS!

We are in election time! Unfortunately, we are not in compliance with our
Bylaws because the slate of candidates with their credentials has not been
distributed to the membership 60 days prior to the annual business meeting,
nor have procedures for absentee voting been sent 60 days prior to the annual
business meeting.

We have a solution:

All full members in good standing will receive an email with the details of a
special business meeting to take place on Saturday, October 3 at 6pm PDT,
7pm MDT, 8pm CDT, 9pm EDT. We must have a quorum, 2/3 of the full
members in good standing (meaning full members who were members at
least 90 days prior to the the Annual Business meeting which is scheduled
for October 4, 2009) must be on the call. Here are the instructions:

1. Once you receive that email, please respond immediately that you will be
on the call.

2. You will receive call-in information.

3. You will receive a letter of interested candidates for the officer
positions to be voted on this election year.

4. During the phone conference on October 3, 2009, Saturday, a member must
make a motion to recognize the letter of interested candidates as the
"official notification of the slate of candidates" AND must make a motion
to waive the 60 day requirement on both the distribution of the slate of
candidates 60 days prior, and the procedures for obtaining and mailing
absentee ballots. This waiver is for the 2009 election only.

5. We will have roll call of the callers for the vote.

6. Then end the call with the announcement of the motion vote.

A. ANNUAL BUSINESS MEETING

The annual business meeting is scheduled for October 4, 2009.

We must have a quorum, at least 2/3 of FULL MEMBERS must be on the call
for any business to take place. ALL members, please be sure to be
on the call. It will be a great call! Nominations will be taken
from the "floor" during the conference call, we will introduce committees
and their chairs and talk about what the committees do. You will hear
from your Board officers, who they are and what they do.

The call will be one hour or less.

Look forward to "hearing" you there!

B. OFFICES TO BE ELECTED THIS YEAR

1. Vice President
2. Treasurer
3. Southern Regional Representative
4. Mid-Western Regional Representative

Check out the bylaws to find out what's required.
Go to:

http://www.naobi.org/images/downloads/naobi_bylaws_june2006.pdf

2. PARLIAMENTARIAN

This is the second announcement of our Parliamentarian.
Ty Blake-Holden from Long Beach, CA, has been serving in this capacity
for several months. He has years of experience working with Robert
Rules of Order and serving as parliamentarian during his undergraduate years.
Be sure to welcome him aboard. He has been doing a fantastic job!

3. NEW ADHOC COMMITTEE -- CHAPTER AUDIT COMMITTEE

I have established a new committee to develop the NAOBI, Inc. Policy on
Chapters. This committee focuses specifically on Chapter Audits --
Processes and Procedures.

The committee will outline, in detail, the steps and requirements for a
chapter to be considered an Active NAOBI, Inc. Chapter (in line
with the Bylaws.) These processes and procedures will be employed
starting January 2010.

We are looking for committee members from each region and each
active chapter.

The committee chair is Valerie McMillan. Valerie is from North Carolina
and is the NAOBI-NC president. She also has served as the Chapter
Liaison during when that position was extant. As of January 2009,
that position was discontinued.

Valerie will serve well in the position as the Chapter Audits Committee.
Please contact her to express interest in joining the committee at
ValerieTerp@yahoo.com.

4. NAOBI, Inc. at RID 2009

Our time at RID was an amazing success!

A. We were able to meet with several Board members, the President
of RID, Cheryl Moose, and tthe Executive Director, Clay Nettles.
Both RID and NAOBI renewed its commitment in partnership and
to developing more local ways that the NAOBI-RID partnership can
be expressed. Ideas and substance are forthcoming!

NAOBI, Inc. had it's first RID Conference exhibit booth this year in
Philadelphia. It was an amazing success.

A. We sold out of T-shirts and had 8 orders more. Moreover, with
membership applications, all T-shirts sold 8 more orderd, plus a
3 hour fundraiser of NAOBI, Inc. badges, we made over $3000.00!

B. We had 39 new and renewing members

C. We had two early registrstions for the upcoming NAOBI, Inc. Professional
Development Conference in June 2010.

D. Thanks to the following people for volunteering to help manage the
table: Dr. Rodney Smith, Dr. Pamela Furline, Rita Andrews, Marcus
Woods, Lisa Weems, Persis Bristol-Dodson. You all were god-sends
and NAOBI, Inc. is the better for your having been there and given
the donation of your time, energy and efforts.

E. Thank you Brenda Terry for the phenomenal job you did on the video
highlighting the excitement NAOBI, Inc. conferences offer.
That video was played continually during our time at the exhibit
booth, but also seen by several hundred people at one time at the
RID closing ceremonies and was well-received! Kudos!

5. COMMITTEES

A. Educational and Professional Developement Committee

Looking for a strong leader for our Educational and Professional
Development Committee. Is that you?

Are you interested in having a direction and an influence in the
heart of this organization? Do you have the skills to lead and
to help in writing curricula?

The Educational and Professional Development Committee is formed to
write the NAOBI, Inc. Leadership Curriculum and to develop workshops
sponsored by NAOBI, Inc. The Leadership Curriculum will be designed
to train all NAOBI, Inc. officers, including chapter officers. Its
design will become the NAOBI, Inc. Standard.

We need someone who can rally the troops in that role. Are you that
person? Who do you know?

Please email me at President@NAOBI.org for any questions or comments.

B. Technology and Communications Committee Chair

Are you someone who loves being online? Do you love to work on
websites, develop them? Or maybe you simply enjoy technology,
working with it, learning about it and staying current!

NAOBI, Inc. is looking for you. We have a vacancy as the TCC chair.
The TCC Chair runs everything electronic, digital, and internet
as it relates to NAOBI, Inc. The chair, also maintains and develops
how-to instructions related to both the communications of NAOBI,
and the internet.

The chair and the committee make sure that NAOBI, Inc.´s website
is updated regularly, maintains a policy for posting and updating
information, maintains email accounts, and revises and updates
webpages, and so on.

All members are encouraged to apply: Full, Student, Individual and
Organizational.

6. NAOBI, Inc. CO-SPONSORED WORKSHOPS TO TAKE PLACE IN ALL FOUR REGIONS

"NAOBI, Inc. EMPOWERED! Leadership Training for Interpreters"

This workshop will take place in each region and will be co-sponsored
by one or more chapters in each region. The dates are: Oct. 3, Nov. 7,
Dec. 12, Jan. 23.

The specific chapters will let you know when it´s coming to your region.
That information will also be placed on the NAOBI, Inc. website within
the next week for Oct. 3.

Be sure to attend and bring at least one other friend!

CEUs will be offered! (.7 CEUs) The workshop is from 8am to 4pm.

7. FIRST TIME NAOBI, INC. BOARD RETREAT AND LEADERSHIP INSTITUTE

Announcing the first ever Annual NAOBI, Inc. Board Retreat and Leadership
Institute.

Date: Oct. 16 to 18, 2009
Where: The Sheraton Crescent in Phoenix, AZ. This location is also
our 2010 Professional Development Conference site!

At this Board Retreat and Leadership Institute we will be planning to take
the vision higher for next year. We will do team building excersises and
talk about the basics of leadership, particularly as it relates to NAOBI.
We will do hands-on vision building and goal setting for the 4th quarter of
this year and for all of next year.

This Retreat/Leadership Institute has "success" and "impact" written
all over it!

Board memnbers, Committee Chairs, Chapter Presidents and Chapter Officers,
be sure to let me know if you have questions. We want to see you there!!

8. VISION

Quote: "If you don't know where you are going, how do you know you
are not already there?" Write the vision; make it plain!

To listen to our Vision, go to:
http://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WzPjpQ6Q
To read our Vision, go to:
http://www.naobi.org/html/aboutus.htm#ob

Your Fellow NAOBIan,
Running with the Vision,

Antonio

************************
Antonio Goodwin
President, NAOBI, Inc.
www.NAOBI.org
************************

From the President's Playbook -- June 2009

2009-11-28T16:53:00.000-08:00

FROM THE PRESIDENT'S PLAYBOOK

Fellow NAOBIans,

Every round goes higher!

1. UPCOMING EASTERN REGIONAL CONFERENCE

I'm excited to be able to participate in the Eastern Regional Conference
on June 12 -- 14, 2009. I've been invited to speak at the opening.
I hope you can join us; it promises to be quite an exciting, fun, and
inspirational time the entire weekend.

The work that the three chapters have done in putting on our first
chapter-partnered (3 different chapters) regional event is fantastic!
Kudos to them!

2. EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT VIRTUAL ORGANIZATION

A. What about those membership cards?

Great question: as we move in to the 21st Century, we are interested in
setting up automated systems. Because we are a virtual organization,
manually processing membership cards works against our efficiency and efficacy.

Also, because we are not at a level of membership that would responsibly
suggest paying a company to control that process, we are forgoing
membership cards at this time.

Instead, be on the look out for your renewal or welcome letter from the
membership chair. That will have all the information you need as a member.

B. Automation

We are currently working on automatically generating your membership cards
so that when you enroll online, your membership number (ID) and
your type of membership will also be automatically generated and sent to you
online for you to print out.

The benefits of this is that we save the organization time, money, effort and
unnecessary energy. In so doing, we invest in the longevity and the
sustainability of the organization. A process will have been put in place
irrespective of an individual having to man the entire process!

Onwards and upwards, NAOBI, into the 21st Century!

3. ELECTION DAY IS COMING!

It's time to get ready to vote!

Are you someone who can Run with the Vision?
Do you know someone who has new, fresh and exciting ideas?
Do you know someone with experience in leadership and "followship?"
Are you someone who loves NAOBI, Inc., and the ideals that our organization
represents?

Then, NAOBI, Inc. is looking for you!
The positions for this year are

1. Vice President
2. Treasurer
3. Southern Regional Representative
4. Mid-Western Regional Representative

Check out the bylaws to find out what's required. Go to:
http://www.naobi.org/images/downloads/naobi_bylaws_june2006.pdf

Any questions about nominating procedures or voting procedures, expect
to hear from our Nominating Committee Chair. That committee is responsible
for running NAOBI's voting procedures. Contact the Nominating Committee
chair Robin Lamour at Nominations@NAOBI.org

4. CORRESPONDING SECRETARY

We have found a corresponding secretary!
Please welcome Erica West as our new Corresponding Secretary. She will start
officially in her appointed capacity on June 14, 2009.

Please continue to use CorrespondingSecretary@NAOBI.org.

5. COMMITTEES

I'm looking for a strong leader for our Educational and Professional
Development Committee. Is that you?

Are you interested in having a direction and an influence in the heart of this
organization? Do you have the skills to lead and to help in writing curricula?

The Educational and Professional Development Committee is formed to write
the NAOBI, Inc. Leadership Curriculum and to develop workshops sponsored
by NAOBI, Inc. The Leadership Curriculum will be designed to train
all NAOBI, Inc. officers, including chapter officers. Its design will become
the NAOBI, Inc. standard.

We need someone who can rally the troops in that role. Are you that person?
Who do you know?

Please email me at President@NAOBI.org for any questions or comments.
We'd like to have the committee up and running by the end of the second
quarter (the end of June).

6. NAOBI, Inc. 2010 Professional Development Conference

Just a teaser: We will be making the announcement of date and location for the
2010 Professional Development Conference within the next several weeks.
We are ready, set, go!!! Trust me, you're going to love it, but even more,
next year's conference will be off the charts!

7. VISION

Quote: "If you don't know where you are going, how do you know you are not
already there?" Write the vision; make it plain!

To listen to our Vision, go to:
http://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WzPjpQ6Q

To read our Vision, go to:
http://www.naobi.org/html/aboutus.htm#ob

Your Fellow NAOBIan,
Running with the Vision,

Antonio

************************
Antonio Goodwin
President, NAOBI, Inc.
www.NAOBI.org
************************

From the President's Playbook -- May 2009

2009-11-28T16:39:00.000-08:00

FROM THE PRESIDENT'S PLAYBOOK -- MAY 2009

Fellow NAOBIans,

We've hit the ground running since the new year began.
It's been a whirlwind getting the wheels of our 21st Century organization
turning, but the fun never stops!

I'm a firm believer that every round goes higher. So, below are some updates of
what's been going on at the start of this quarter:

1. NEW NAOBI ADDRESS

As you saw in a previous FYI, we have a new address. We also have a new
telephone number. As soon as it's up and running, we will make it known.

2. EFFECTIVE AND EFFICIENT VIRTUAL ORGANIZATION

We are fast becoming the virtual organization of the 21st century that we
should be. To that end, we are streamlining our processes, making sure that
communication can happen as quickly as possible via online or electronic means.

The best way for us to do that is our website! It's a great website that we are
updating on a regular basis and we are in the process of making it even better.

Instead of quarterly general membership conference calls that can sometimes
last up to two hours, we can accomplish the same transparency and
openness online: more efficiently! We have an email system and an outstanding
website that gives all our members access to important data.

If you'd like to email any questions to the Board, send them to
CorrespondingSecretary@naobi.org.

For a listing of all your Board members' email addresses, go to
http://www.naobi.org/html/board03-04.htm.

More ways we are becoming an effecient 21st Century virtual organization:

A. We are cleaning up our databases to enable to you renew your
applications online and hopefully have automatic renewals set up for your
convenience.

B. We are posting more information about what each region is doing and
coming up with ways to interconnect our chapters for effective and efficient
communication.

C. We finished a semester long project of looking for ways to move us
ahead in an efficient and effective way on the web. We will keep you updated
about ways in which we institute change to enhance our organization's use of
it's web and electronic media.

3. ELECTIONS ARE UPON US

It's time to get ready to vote! We need 100% participation. Be sure to check
your bylaws or contact your regional rep if you want to know more about the
process.

We are looking for folks ready to "Run with the Vision" --

1. Vice President
2. Treasurer
3. Southern Regional Representative

Check out the bylaws to find out what's required. Go to:
http://www.naobi.org/images/downloads/naobi_bylaws_june2006.pdf

Expect to hear from our Nominating Committee Chair. That committee is
responsible for running NAOBI Inc.'s voting procedures. If you have any
questions, feel free to contact the Nominating Committee chair Robin Lamour
at Nominations@NAOBI.org

4. CORRESPONDING SECRETARY

We are looking for a Corresponding Secretary starting in June 2009. Currently,
Jennifer Getter is resigning for personal reasons, effective June 1, 2009.
Please thank Jennifer for her work heretofore.

Who do you know who is often on the computer, is gung-ho about
seeing NAOBI succeed and it's membership knowing about it successes,
and who would love to get involved on the national level. The person
also should be organized!

Please send your referral to President@NAOBI.org. Or if you yourself are
interested, let me know: let's talk! The Corresponding Secretary is an
appointed position, supported by the Board.

5. COMMITTEE APPOINTEES

Who are your committee chairs are. Join them in their endeavors of making
NAOBI a morestellar organization, email the
CorrespondingSecretary@NAOBI.org

A. Technology and Communications Cmte -- Marcus Woods,
Webmaster@NAOBI.org
B. Membership Cmte -- Tiresheka Carto, MembershipC hair@NAOBI.org
C. By-laws Cmte -- Christine Dudley
D. Nominating Cmte -- Robin Lamour, Nominations@NAOBI.org
E. Awards Cmte -- Glendia Boon
F. Century 21 Efficiency Cmte -- Dr. Rodney Smith
G. Educational and Professional Development Cmte--
ARE YOU INTERESTED?
H. Conference Planning Cmte -- Dr. Rodney Smith

6. VISION, VISION, VISION "Running with the Vision 2009-2010" Empower.
Educate. Excel.

Be sure to listen to the vision again or re-read the vision.
We are working on setting up a video tape of it being signed and maybe even
establishing a VLOG. It will happen! Be on the lookout.
In the meanwhile to listen, go to:
http://www.audioacrobat.com/play/WzPjpQ6Q

To read it, go to: http://www.naobi.org/html/aboutus.htm#ob

Let's Run with the Vision!

Antonio

************************
Antonio Goodwin
President, NAOBI, Inc.
www.NAOBI.org
************************

2009-02-14T20:23:00.000-08:00

IT'S A NEW DAY

Barack Obama, an African American, is President of the United States of America.

This historic occasion is not lost on us as American Sign Language interpreters. We get it. As sign language interpreters who support the work of felling racial barriers, and who understand the nature of multiplicity, multiculturalism, multi-ethnicities, and multi-lingualism, we recognize this grand phenomenon – the swearing of a President who is Black/African-American.

I have heard people say that this day would not come, at least not in their lifetimes. That statement suggests little optimism, little hope and no belief in the consciousness of the American people as a whole.

We interpreters who are Black/African-American and our allies have heard a similar retort in our field: will RID (the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf) ever swear in a president who is Black/African-American ? "Not in our lifetime." Will we as
interpreters move beyond stigmas placed on groups because of skin color and
lowered expectations of skill-level? "Not in our lifetime." Will skills ever
be assessed without an inherent racial bias or latent racial discrimination:
"Not in our lifetime."

CHANGE HAS COME TO AMERICA,

If you are a Black/African-American interpreter or a NAOBI ally who believes the "Not in our lifetime," I invite you to put on different thinking cap just like the majority of Americans who voted in last year's election.

Change came to the USA because of years of struggle and effort.

What we saw on Tuesday, January 20, 2009, was the culmination of many years of efforts. We can thank the Reconstructionists for their work; NAACP and its supporters; every playwright who placed a Black/African-American character in a public office; every TV show and every film who had a President of the United States who was
Black/African-American. We can thank every actor who played such a role. Even
more, we can thank every Black/African-American person who campaigned and won or
lost any local, municipal, state or national election. We can thank every current and former mayor and governor who are Black/African-American. We can thank Bill Clinton for the numbers of African-Americans he appointed to top federal positions. We can
thank George Bush for appointing persons like Colin Powell and Condoleeza Rice
to the top position in Foreign Affairs.

Because of the abovementioned, it is not odd to see a person who is
Black/African-American in the highest office in America, dare I say the world.

CHANGE HAS COME TO THE SIGN LANGUAGE INTERPRETING FIELD

Change comes to the Sign Language Interpreting field because of years of struggle from many of our predecessors, and will continue because of our current efforts.

Because of the forebears of the National Black Deaf Advocates who allowed Black/African-American interpreters to meet (and form NAOBI) during the NBDA conferences; because of people like Leandra Williams who served on her state level in RID; because of Anthony Aramburo and Johnathan Webb who currently serve on the national level of RID; because of agency owners and top ranking interpreters who are Black/African-American like Kathleen Taylor, Jolinda Greenfield, and Myisha Blackman, we are seeing change in the interpreting field.

As the nation elected a president who is Black/African-American, we moved beyond questions of race and color. For NAOBIans and its allies, we get to move beyond the pessimism of "Not in our lifetime." Our focus can be on creating an inclusive space for partners and allies. We can focus on moving beyond suspicions of racism and discrimination, albeit sometimes warranted. Instead, we can return to what we were taught growing up: to be twice as good. Where we are weak, we make ourselves strong. Where we are strong, we make ourselves confident.

FRESH PERSPECTIVES

As President of the National Alliance of Black Interpreter, Inc., I have
the best interest of NAOBI and its allies at the forefront of my mind. The following questions are some that I'm thinking about, and I look forward to you thinking about them with me:

How do we create and organization that has longevity and sustainability in a multicultural, multilingual environment?
How do we maintain our relevance in the 21st Century?
How do we define ourselves as interpreters who are Black/African-American and
what role does that definition play on our skill sets as interpreters?

How do partners and allies define their role as they support the mission of NAOBI?

I'm a firm believer that NAOBI brings a fresh perspective to the interpreting
field and we have a treasure chest of offerings. I'm looking forward to
bringing into the interpreting field new, fresh, and exciting faces of persons
who are Black/African-American. As a group, Black/African-Americans in general are virtually untouched as resources for expanding and growing the interpreting field. NAOBI can lead in that process of reaching out to the Black/African-American community and letting people know about this lucrative and unbelievably fulfilling career.

I'm looking forward to NAOBI leading the way as it relates to advocacy. How do
interpreters support each other and ban together to make sure we are treated
fairly by corporate agencies in terms of salaries and working conditions? As
the tide rises, all ships rise, too. Our consumers are better off, we interpreters are better off, and we have a field that is better off.

NAOBI, in this 21st Century, should lead the way in creating interactive spaces
and dialogues -- social networks -- for interpreters who are
Black/African-American and their allies.

Change, indeed, has come to America, and NAOBI is smack dab in the middle of
creating that change in the interpreting industry. Stronger partnerships with
industry organizations and agencies, as well as outside supporters and allies
will help us to create powerful, significant, and meaningful change in the
interpreting arena. That change looks like growth, expansion, advocacy,
support, partnerships that work, efficiency, and technological savviness on a
personal and organizational level.

Here's to relevance, significance and meaningfulness.
Here's to longevity and sustainability.

Please share your comments!

Please click link below to view Antonio taking the oath of office
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Jq6oyhX5sw

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