Feldenkrais Guild of North America 2014 Annual …Chase Money Market $ 99 $ 5,322 Wells Fargo Checking $ 210 $ 3,510 Regions $ 51,317 $ 52,683

2014 Annual Report Feldenkrais Guild® of North America

Feldenkrais Guild® of North AmericaRob Black, President

.........................................................................................2 Finance

Tom Pappas, FGNA ..........................................................................................6

North American Training Accreditation Board

Bonnie Humiston, Chair .........................................................................................7 Council of Regional Representatives

Jane Johnston, Chair ........................................................................................9 Feldenkrais® Educational Foundation of North America

Rob Black, President .......................................................................................11

Photos: ©2007, Rosalie O’Connor. Used with permission.

Tableof

Contents

2 2014

2014 was a year of intentional change, streamlining, and reducing unnecessary effort in order to build a sustainable future.

When the Board met with our newly hired Executive Director, Bruce Day in the fall of 2013, we charged him with accomplishing three priorities in 2014:1. Increasing member satisfaction2. Increasing public awareness of FGNA3. Achieving FGNA’s financial health and stability

Bruce leapt into the challenge with enthusiasm and guided the Guild to make many substantial changes, with the most prominent focusing on infrastructure. Changing infrastructure comes with its own set of challenges: there were periods of inconvenience and times when members saw no change, or experienced waits and changes in service. We are grateful to our members for their patience. So much was happening behind the scenes to maintain the basic operations while, at the same time, creating the new ways of providing services!

Increasing Member Benefits and Satisfaction

Professional liability insurance available as a benefit of PLUS membership! Starting in 2014, Professional and Trainee Full members of FGNA were able to receive professional liability insurance, often at a fraction of the costs they were paying previously. This is called PLUS membership. Insurance coverage is provided through the HPSO Professional Liability Insurance Program.

A Change in how member service is provided At the beginning of 2014 we hired a professional association management company, Virtual, Inc., to provide consistent and professional response to inquiries and member needs. The transition was not without its bumps, but Virtual was quick to respond, to have more resilient support for our members and the public.

New websiteAfter reviewing our options, we chose the Timberlake website platform, and its integrated association management system. This option significantly shortened the development time for the website and provided features that are a priority for members. Developing the website required countless staff hours, and we owe a great deal of appreciation for their efforts.

Members control their online informationThe new system allows members to update their information online. This option was carefully designed to meet our ongoing and future needs and to be populated with members’ prior information. At the 2014 Conference, members were able to begin logging into their profiles and make the modifications they desired.

Find a practitionerThe new website provides a robust practitioner search facility for the public. It allows users in the United States to be able to search by using radius criteria, an option that members had requested.

FGNA Rob Black, President

3 2014

Online fees paymentAnother request from members was to be able to pay fees online. Our earlier process was a slow, staff-intensive, paper-based system; the background processing was as complex as the proverbial Gordian Knot. (see: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gordian_Knot). In order to move forward with processing payments online, we needed three systems to integrate seamlessly: the basic website, the member information database, and the financial systems. We’ve been very pleased with the results, as 83%, or 5 out of every 6 practitioners, used this option to renew for 2015.

Member events onlineA further request by members was that they be able to post their own event listings online. Because Timberlake’s event module was not robust enough for our needs, a third-party service was found that integrated with Timberlake. This new service was made available to members in December 2014.

Video resources for using online tools With so much of member interaction now being online, there was a need to train members to use the new tools. Staff developed several “how-to” videos showing members how to update their profile, pay their fees, and create their online event listings.

Increasing public awareness of the Feldenkrais Method

A number of the member benefits listed above were also connected with increasing public awareness of the Feldenkrais Method:• Redevelopment of the FGNA website. The website has a fresh new look and has the capacity

to add new information quickly. The website became “live” on August 30, at the 2014 Annual Meeting.

• Member Events. Our new events area is robust and allows the public to find practitioners in their area and/or within a certain date range. Members also have much more control over the content of the events. They can change the text, add images, and attach pdfs that students can access before class.

International Feldenkrais Week. The Council of Regional Representatives (CORR) continued its work in 2014 of developing International Feldenkrais Week. Staff worked with them to publish events open to the public on the FGNA website.

Achieving FGNA’s Financial Health and Stability

Forgiving FEFNA’s debt Over the years, FEFNA had accumulated a significant debt to FGNA, which just wasn’t possible to repay. In 2014, the Board decided to forgive the debt. This shows up in our 2014 books and it had ramifications throughout the year. As much as possible, FGNA took back services that had been FEFNA’s, such as the Bookstore. This did not directly affect members.

New financial reporting systemFGNA had an antiquated bookkeeping and financial reporting system that was patched together with baling wire. It was much like a Rube Goldberg invention and demanded constant input from the Executive Director and various staff. This year we moved out of its confines, thanks to the expertise of Virtual, Inc. They provided a great deal of advice and support with the new accounting system, as well as the day-to-day bookkeeping.

The office moveThe lease on the FGNA office came due in April, 2014, and staff took on the project of finding a

4 2014

new place and moving. The new space is more compact; 850 to our previous 3000 square feet. 85 boxes of archival information were moved to offsite storage, an additional 60+ boxes of expired materials were sent to the shredder, and other items were either sold, donated, recycled, or salvaged.

Governmental relations

Another focus for 2014, though not one of the three top priorities, was governmental relations. In Alaska in 2014, the legislature approved a statute that becomes effective in July 2015, exempting from massage therapy licensure requirements “person[s] using only light touch, words, and directed movement to deepen awareness of existing patterns of movement in the body as well as to suggest new possibilities of movement…”

The Federation of State Massage Therapy Boards (FSMTB) proposal for a Model Practice Act (MPA) drew us all to action. We saw that draft did not include exemption from massage therapy licensing requirements for the practice of the Feldenkrais Method. Practitioners had a great deal of discussion about the MPA and many submitted concerns to the FSMTB during their public comment period, as did the Guild on the part of all members. Over 1300 responses were submitted. FSMTB commented on their website, “The response was tremendous and indicative of the level of interest attached to the work… [FSMTB] carefully reviewed each of the comments submitted both by individuals and by organizations and swiftly identified areas that needed further consideration…” Unfortunately, FSMTB did not address the issue of exemptions in the version of the MPA that their Board approved in 2014. FGNA and other members of the Federation of Therapeutic Massage, Bodywork and Somatic Practice Organizations have been in communication with the FSMTB, and will meet with them in 2015 to discuss concerns.

Members requested that the Board of Directors focus on two additional key topics for the Guild: developing member practices and certification.

Developing member practices

In 2014, there were many opportunities for practitioners to develop themselves, locally and at a distance. Many members received a great deal of personalized assistance in creating their Continuing Competency plan thanks to the vision of Candy Conino.

Video recordings from the ConferenceOne of my wishes has been that we could have some of the presentations available at a distance. We were able to make the first step by engaging Onsite Recording to record two presentations:• Ned Dwelle’s team collaborated in presenting “Senses in Action.” Online excerpts are

available: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VlyIWgkSZuk• Jeff Haller’s presentation, “ATMs Have Secrets to Tell” also has a selection online:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1So2w520XU

Virtual education/learningThe Council of Regional Representatives asked the Board of Directors to initiate processes for online or at-distance learning. When the Board decided to delay the 2015 Conference to 2016, it became possible to assign staff resources to research this idea.

CertificationThere has been a strong call for changes to many aspects of certification: certification of practitioners, Assistant Trainers, and Trainers; and accreditation of training programs.

5 2014

Certification of practitionersFGNA formed a Task Force to Separate Certification from Graduation and the team has met intensely for many months. At the 2014 Conference, a cornerstone presentation was made to members by Candy Conino, and the recording is available at: https://sites.google.com/site/fgnataskforce/.

Task Force to Change the International Protocol to Change PolicyFor many years the Protocol to Change Policy has been identified as the barrier for larger changes for training and other international agreements. Representatives from FGNA, the Australian Guild (AFG) and EuroTAB Council to review the Policy. This group came up with an alternative approach, which was brought to the members for online discussion in the fall.

Streamlining the Pathway from Assistant Trainer to TrainerThe process to become a Trainer is very long and involved and perhaps far more difficult than intended. Our NATAB worked relentlessly in 2014 searching for ways to streamline the process of becoming a Trainer.

The future of the membership, of the GuildA constant concern of many members has been that they are not connected with other practitioners-- the distances are great and time is precious. With the dawn of the new technologies for video conferencing, it is possible to have video meetings between practitioners across the city, across the state, and even across the nation. In our future, with increasingly easy technology, we will be able to be more connected.

Unconnected Connected

6 2014

FinanceThomas Pappas, Acting CFO

With regard to Fiscal Year 2014 as compared to Fiscal Year 2013, the Guild while still having challenges was able to accomplish a lot of changes, such as hold a successful Annual

conference, reduce expenses, institute a new membership platform in Timber lake and bring on a new Association management company. All of this was done while reducing the loss from the previous year by more than $10,000.

2014 Year end FGNA Cash Basis P&L CASH BASIS

Year End Balances: FGNA FY14 FGNA FY13

Chase Checking 143,257$ 179,821$ Chase Money Market 99$ 5,322$ Wells Fargo Checking 210$ 3,510$ Regions 51,317$ 52,683$ Petty Cash 107$ 107$

Total Checking/Savings 194,990$ 241,443$

Income Summary:Professional Dues & Fees 458,978$ 483,518$ Trainee Dues & Fees 8,527$ 15,645$ TAB Training Accreditation Fees 41,758$ 47,951$ Donations 2,122$ 905$ Bookstore 22,860$ 1,885$ Misc. 3,064$ -$ Conference 69,494$ 67,589$ Interest 14.52$ 131$ Region Revenue 24,105$ 23,517$

Total Income 630,922$ 641,141$

Expense Summary:Personnel 289,894$ 373,460$ Contract & Professional Services 187,531$ 86,083$ Region Expenses 36,290$ -$ General & Administrative 44,334$ 83,478$ Insurance 3,111$ 6,107$ Advertising 1,391$ 1,145$ Marketing 60$ 558$ Promotion 43$ -$ Travel, Meals 66,831$ 81,189$ Dues, Subscriptions, Pubs 22,991$ 43,120$ Region Library -$ 2,433$ Taxes, Licenses, Fees 5,404$ 2,003$ Merchant Services 7,227$ 13,847$ Bank Fees 11,885$ 2,046$ Depreciation -$ 2,342$

Total Expense 676,990$ 697,811$ Net Income (46,068)$ (56,670)$

2014 Year End FGNA Cash Basis Profit and Loss Statement

7 2014

NATABBonnie Humiston, Chair

In striving to fill these roles in 2014, the North American Training Accreditation Board (NATAB) volunteers met by phone approximately twice monthly. They met in person twice, once for a 3-day

meeting in California in February, as well as having twelve hours of meeting prior to and during the FGNA Conference. During the Conference, the NATAB met with the Board of Directors as well as with Trainers and Assistant Trainers. In addition, Nancy Forst Williamson, met monthly by phone with members of the European and Australian training accreditation boards, to coordinate the actions of the three TABs. (Training policy recommendations, Trainer Candidate, and Trainer applications require agreement of all three TABs, while training accreditation and Assistant Trainer applications are decided by each TAB alone.)

The following trainings were accredited in 2014:Training Location Educational DirectorEugene 2 Eugene, OR Frank WildmanHawaii 4 Oahu, Hawaii Jerry KarzenSanta Fe 2 Santa Fe, NM Alan QuestelColombia 2 Cali, Colombia Alan QuestelBrazil 3 São Paulo, Brazil Jerry Karzen

The following applications were approved in 2014:Trainers Trainer Candidate Assistant TrainerChristine Barrat Scott Clark Andrea Silvina GuzUlrike Apel Gabriela GomezZoran Kovich Richard S. Goldsand

The North American Training Accreditation Board (NATAB) is established by the FGNA Board of Directors to:

1. Uphold and further the international standards of the Feldenkrais Method® of somatic education through recommending policy and changes in policy for accreditation of training,

certification of Trainers and Assistant Trainers, and other related policies.2. Review for approval applications for accrediting training programs and certifying Trainers

and Assistant Trainers, and approve other related positions (such as Trainer Candidate).

Policy Exceptions approved:• Exception to seven year deadline for completing a training• Exception to staffing ratio for a single segment of a training program

A variety of topics relevant to NATABs areas of oversight were discussed. Major topics included:• IFF Assembly preparation, • NATAB composition, • Streamlining the path to Trainer, • Obstacles in the way of Assistant Trainers who wish to gain enough teaching experience to

become Trainers, • Process of reviewing Trainer, Assistant Trainer, and Trainer Candidate applications, including

page limits on application,

8 2014

• A Trainer code of conduct • Input to the Board of Directors regarding the geographical scope of the TABs • Educational Director’s authority regarding trainees make up of missed time • Conflicts of interest • FGNA Policy E2.2.1.5 Protocol for Changing Internationally-Approved Training Accreditation

Policies and Guidelines (including Trainers and Assistant Trainer Certification), • Input to the Board of Directors regarding an appeal process for the Trainer Candidate

applications • Policies and Procedures for certifying Trainers and Assistant Trainers• Communication with the Board of Directors• Planning for an Educational Forum for conversation by the educational community about how

to have the Feldenkrais Method continue forward over the next twenty years.

2014 NATAB membersName Seat Term Expiration Serving SinceAnn Harman, Chair Board appointed Novemember 2014 April 2010Liza Weaver Brickey, Co-Chair

Board appointed July 2015 September 2012

Violet van Hees Member elected December 2015 January 2013Nancy Forst Williamson

Member elected December 2016 january 2009

Anna Johnson Chase

Member elected December 2014 Novemember 2014

Bonnie Humiston Board appointed August 2015 July 2013Alan Questel Trainer-elected December 2015 August 2013Richard Corbeil Trainer-elected December 2014 July 2013

Ann Harman left NATAB at the end of her term. NATAB thanks her for her years of service and numerous contributions. Bonnie Humiston was appointed Chair when Ann Harman’s term expired. Anna Johnson Chase joined NATAB during 2014.

NATAB also wishes to thank Andrea Wiener, Executive Secretary. Without her tireless service and attention to detail, our job would be much more difficult!

Moshe teaching at Amherst. Photo provided by the IFF Archive. Used with permission.

9 2014

CORRJane Johnston, Chair

The Feldenkrais Guild® of North America is divided into ten regions. The Council of Regional Representatives (CORR) is comprised of Representatives from each of the regions:

Canada, Eastern, Midwest, New England, New York, Northern California/Northern Nevada, Northwest, Southeast, Southern California/Southern Nevada/Hawaii, and Southwest/Rocky Mountain. To see the states covered by each region please go to: www.feldenkrais.com/regions

Here is the line up of 2014 Regional Representatives:Canada: Rosa MurnaghanEastern: Jane JohnstonMidwest: Stacey Grill-Ewing, Alice BrydgesNew England: Misha ForresterNew York: Frederick SchjangNorthern CA/Northern NV: Michele Westlaken, Virginia YaoSoutheast: Becky BehlingSouthern CA/Southern NV/HI: Darcia DexterSouthwest/Rocky Mountain:Tammy Rosen, Joan Pacos

CORR meets about eight times a year. We generally meet by phone for two hours every two months, with an extra meeting before International Feldenkrais® Week, plus a two day in-person meeting before or after the Annual Conference. We meet with the Board of Directors twice a year, once by phone, and once during our in-person meeting at the Annual Conference.

The job of the Regional Representative has many facets. Primarily, the Representative acts as a conduit of information between the region’s members and FGNA and its Board of Directors, as well as with members of other regions. Reps coordinate with other regional volunteers to ensure that:• An accounting of all monies spent and held by the region has been communicated with FGNA.• A budget is created for the region and put out for vote by members.• Regional elections are held in a timely manner.• A regional Annual Meeting is held each year.• Regional activities are coordinated.• An accurate inventory of each region’s library and other equipment is published annually.• Regional newsletters are emailed frequently to region members.

Regional Reps also:• Attend CORR meetings.• Send a regional newsletter to region members.• Volunteer extensively at the Annual Conference.• Facilitate International Feldenkrais Week events in their region.• Assist with the FGNA membership drive.

In 2014 CORR was active with the following:

International Feldenkrais WeekInternational Feldenkrais Week is a ten day event hosted by the FGNA and CORR for the purpose of promoting the Feldenkrais Method®. There is an International Feldenkrais Week web page with a place to list all Feldenkrais Week special events. It is located on the FGNA website. CORR made the following items available to all members: posters, press releases, sample of letters

10 2014

for Official Recognition of International Feldenkrais Week, invitations for students, sample letter to the mayor or other government official, three flyers, a International Feldenkrais Week Facebook page, a Yahoogroup to network with colleagues, coordination with other colleagues around the world, and a website to list individual events. Also available were templates of coupons for classes and an ATM® lesson on the FGNA Feldenkrais Week web page that members could download to put on their website or make available to their students by CD. All of these items were available on the Feldenkrais Week page on the FGNA website or at the Yahoogroups website for FGNA members to download.

New York, especially, hosted many International Feldenkrais Week events; Frederick Schjang was the organizer.

Regional Annual Meetings, Study Groups, and TrainingsRegional Reps are responsible for hosting a regional annual meeting in their region. If possible, these meeting are rotated to different locations within the region and are paid for out of region funds. Most regions host some type of advanced training in conjunction with their annual meeting. Often the regions host more than one advanced training a year. Some of these trainings are offered free of charge to region members, some come with a nominal fee. Many regions have multiple ongoing study groups and professional development days that have a variety of themes. These professional development days are usually provided for members of the region by senior practitioners.

VolunteeringVolunteering by FGNA members is a necessity to keep our organization running. Many regions are operating without their full complement of officers. We’ve spent time talking about volunteerism during our CORR meetings and how to increase the number of volunteers, and thus decrease the amount of work that each volunteer must do. Please volunteer to help your Regional Representative in any way that might suit you. FGNA is our organization and we need support from every member!

In 2014, CORR made a concerted effort to fulfill more volunteer duties during the annual conference. The Regional Reps helped in the office, hosted the morning ATMs, and were generally on meet and great duty during the conference.

MeetingsBefore the 2014 conference in August, CORR held its only in-person meeting of the year. We met for two days including a half-day with the Board of Directors. During the CORR meeting, we made plans for the rest of 2014 and 2015. We discussed many ways to promote the Feldenkrais Method.

Google AdsEach year CORR votes to have group projects endorsed and paid for by all of the regions together. In 2014, we wrote ads and funded their publication on Google. These ads were published in advance of Feldenkrais Week 2014 and have continued running since. At the initiation of these ads, the website received many more hits than normal. Many thanks to Tammy Rosen Wilbur for writing the ads and spearheading this advertising effort. We are continuing to expand these advertising efforts in 2015. Please explore your volunteer skills and offer to help your Regional Representative! FGNA belongs to all of us.

11 2014

Activity within FEFNA was rather quiet in 2014. FEFNA lent support to an Esther Thelen Research committee project in order to document the meeting of a group of Feldenkrais

trainers and practitioners with Maxine Sheets-Johnstone in January at Yachats Oregon. FEFNA supported the recording and archiving of the lectures, exercises, and discussions during this event. The Esther Thelen Research committee has the intention of finalizing production and distributing these materials to the Feldenkrais community.

Amazon SmileIn 2014, members asked, “Can’t we donate via Amazon Smile to FEFNA? Isn’t it easy to set up?” We decided to look into it. Although FEFNA is a charitable organization, we discovered that our current classification via the IRS does not allow companies such as Amazon to donate a portion of a purchase (e.g. .5%) to us. We investigated changing the classificaiton and learned that the cost may be higher than the benefit in two ways: first, the dollar value may not cover the legal costs; secondly, the IRS, after review, may require change to some aspects of FEFNA. So we have decided, at this time, not to pursue it.

FinancesAlthough FEFNA has been rather dormant for serveral years, there have been projects on the books. FGNA, as the parent organization, has assumed responsibility for much of the funding, volunteer energy, and staff required for these projects. In 2014, it became clear that the two organizations needed change their relationship. The biggest change was that FGNA assumed operational responsibility for the bookstore.

“The Feldenkrais® Educational Foundation of North America is a charitable organization whose mission is to advance human

development and learning through education and scientific research.” –FEFNA Mission Statement

“The primary objectives of FEFNA, as a public benefit organization, will be to provide educational materials, to support research, and to encourage publications

to enhance knowledge of the Feldenkrais Method® of somatic education.” –Bylaws

FEFNARob Black, President