Membership Committee

1995 Annual Report

The past year has been an interesting learning experience for the Membership Committee for two important reasons. First we had to learn to deal with renewals as well as new memberships and second we had to come to grips with the fact that, unlike the first year when we had a grant from the Province, it is primarily the revenue from membership dues which cover the operating costs.

During the first year the concentration had been on enrolling new users. While membership was encouraged, the emphasis tended to be on "free access". It was not uncommon for users to be unaware of: a) the procedure to join; b) the role of membership; c) the relationship between membership and use of the net; and c) the reliance of Chebucto on the proceeds from dues. We believe we are now well on the way to correcting this situation. However, it is important to point out we have not sacrificed the principle of access for all regardless of ones ability to pay.

During the year documentation was prepared and procedures implemented to handle renewals. As well existing documentation was revised with a view to clarifying the membership information. Perhaps most important, we have instituted a procedure which will require each user to respond to the membership committee each year indicating his/her intention to join or not. There is now the clear expectation that if a user can afford to pay the dues, it is his/her obligation to do so. If a user fails to respond following the two reminders, access will be cut off. Accompanying the decision to implement this user response procedure was the decision to modify the dues payments to read $20 or what you can afford. Although it will require a full year to determine the effectiveness of these changes, the Board is satisfied they will be successful.

A design is now being completed for a membership card which will be available in the near future. Means of distributing these cards are still being considered. We are attempting to find a way of doing this without requiring a mailing. The Ways and Means Committee will report on possibilities of using the card to obtain discounts at selected stores.

An important thrust for the Membership Committee for the next few years will be to interest people in joining Chebucto and/or to remain members not because of the Internet access it provides but rather as a means of supporting the local information services. Our aim should be to have each Internet user in the Halifax Metro Region a Chebucto member and a user of and contributor to its information services.

Membership Chart

Summary Report as of Mar 6, 1996
					1994 	1995	1996	Total

Adult Membership			1370	2610	278	4258
Family Membership			   0	 235	118	 353
Youth Membership			   0	  70	 28	  98
Unwaged Membership			   0	 158	 86	 244
Supporting (custom)			   0	   0	 45	  45

Memberships:				1370	3073	 555    4998
Expired Memberships:			   0	 811	 470	1281
Renewals:				   2	 598	 276	 876
Net Change				1372	2860	 361	3717

Current Statistics:
Accounts Active:			2065	4681	 886	7632
Never Member:				 695	1608	 331    2634
Accounts Pending:			   0	 929	 782    1711
Total Online Applications Processed:	3797	7554	1366   12717