Board Meeting Minutes 8-11-26

By Peter Bakija | September 10, 2026

WRFI BOARD MEETING NOTES (08.11.2026)

Attending: Amie, Joe, John, Peter, Niki, Marc, Talaya, Ben, Stephen, Andrea (notes)

SUMMARY

The meeting began with the election of new officers (President and Vice President). Discussion continued to financial and development issues, including new grant opportunities and the upcoming Fall Fundrive; and to recent personnel matters (both staff and volunteer), including the need to reinvigorate volunteers. Ben provided updates on ongoing technical considerations related to Rivendell, the Hungerford Hill project, and WINO. The meeting concluded with a call for continued recruitment to the board.

OFFICER ELECTIONS

  • Peter announces intention to step down as President effective at the end of the meeting. A round of thanks for his years of service in this role.
  • Marc expresses interest in stepping into the role of President.
  • Amie expresses interest in stepping into the role of Vice President.
  • Board unanimously approves new officers.

COMMITTEE UPDATES: DEVELOPMENT AND PERSONNEL

  • Opportunity to pursue grant funding is discussed. Discussion focuses on possible uses and community leaders with whom to connect:
    • Grant could support moving station to a new space.
    • John and Amie emphasize the importance of Ben (and others) nurturing community connections.
    • Tangential but important discussion of possible airtime for local leaders (both elected and campaigning) in the form of talk programming.
  • Niki provides update on Fall Fundrive planning, including training/meeting strategy and theme (“We are your amplifier—plug in!”). 
  • Ben describes plans to backfill currently vacant positions, to include minor reorganization of duties and weekly time commitment. Goal is to have all positions filled by mid-September.
  • Discussion of the program-coordinator position sparks conversation around whether an alternative to Rivendell would be a wise investment. Ben to explore options, with an eye toward the cost-benefit ratio of continuing to allocate resources (volunteer or paid) to a relatively labor-intensive open-source/free platform.

TECHNOLOGICAL UPDATES

  • The new Hungerford Hill installation needs some tweaks, which Ben plans to make as soon as possible.
  • Reports so far have been mixed, including reports of substantially diminished reception in Collegetown, but general consensus is that 88.1 coverage has improved on balance.
  • WINO (Watkins Glen) antenna placement is temporarily authorized until November. Ben noted that we can extend the temporary authorization if we can demonstrate progress toward the permanent solution.

VOLUNTEER ENGAGEMENT + BOARD RECRUITMENT

  • Several members of the board call out the need for more active outreach and engagement with volunteers, while also noting some recent successes (including monthly DJ meet-ups). 
  • Specific strategies mentioned include:
    • Regular volunteer meetings (slightly more formal than meet-ups, i.e., with agenda and leader)
    • Volunteer handbook (updates in progress, but needs to be actively socialized)
    • Advertising new positions and opportunities, including hoped-for expansions in local news/talk programming
  • Marc notes that meetings and handbook are opportunities to refresh volunteers on station policies and procedures, especially important given recent personnel issues.
  • Peter and Amie reinforce the importance of continuing to put out feelers for new board members, with a goal of having 11 members, most of whom are local to Ithaca.
Posted in ICR Board, ICR Board Meeting Minutes, WRFI News Staff