Annual reports

2021 EFA Annual Reports

Advertising

David Stacks, Advertising Chair

The EFA’s advertising program for 2021–22 has two goals: 1. Recruit potential clients to our Job List and Member Directory. 2. Continue growing our membership.

Over the past year, we have advertised in print and digital publications aimed mostly at potential new members. We have seen some success, as our membership has grown an average net of about 50 new members per month. We have advertised with Google display and text ads; in Writer’s Digest and Poets & Writers magazines; and at the Society for Scholarly Publishing conference website.

In response to requests from our members in academic editing, we will place our advertising in the coming year in the academic marketplace to reach doctoral candidates, historians, researchers, scientists, and scholars. EFA’s advertising program will recommend additional ad placements with the Scholarly Kitchen, Education Week, the Organization of American Historians, and possibly Science magazine and the Chronicle of Higher Education. These placements will be in addition to Writer’s Digest and Google advertising.

The EFA has a strong working relationship with our creative-advertising agency, Robot House Creative of Oklahoma City, and our media-placement agency, Peak Media of Edmond, OK. We plan to rely on these partners again in 2021–22.

Our advertising program wishes to thank members of the EFA’s Diversity Initiative for assisting with our review of academic publications for our 2021–22 advertising placements. The following EFA members have provided research, resources and opinions regarding our coming year’s advertising program: Sheila Buff, Joy Drohan, Elizabeth A. Farley-Dawson, Tanya Gold, Kellie M. Hultgren, Sangeeta Mehta, Adrienne Moch, Katharine O’MooreKlopf, Faye C. Roberts, Amy Spungen and Lila Stromer. Thanks to everyone!

Chapter Development Committee

Akiko Yamagata, Chapter Development Chairperson

Chapters are one of the EFA’s main sites for member networking. In a typical year, chapter coordinator volunteers across the country organize coffee hours where members share stories and resources about their businesses. They arrange for experts to speak to members about marketing strategies to macros. This year, as the pandemic dragged on into a second fiscal year, all of these gatherings continued to take place on Zoom.

In 29 chapters in 21 states, chapter coordinators found creative opportunities amid the constraints. They adapted their meetings to better suit the virtual platform: one chapter changed from an unstructured social hour to more structured sessions focused on peer critique of websites, for example. Other chapters cosponsored gatherings with other professional organizations, such as a writer’s group or an entrepreneurial association. Another chapter responded to the stress of the pandemic by offering a virtual self-care and yoga session.

Virtual meetings allowed connections within EFA that would not have been possible otherwise. Board members spoke at several chapter meetings. Robin Martin presented on making the most of your EFA membership to the Northern California and Chicagoland chapters. And Lourdes Venard spoke about the fiction editor–client relationship to the Florida chapter. No longer restricted to in-person meetings, members took part in chapter gatherings far beyond their local area. Members in Pennsylvania and Florida attended chapter meetings in California. Chapters across the United States hosted members from around the globe, from India to Ecuador.

Chapters have also actively extended their reach. Even during the pandemic, we re-activated the Chicago chapter and established one in New Mexico. More importantly, chapters are moving toward encompassing larger geographic areas. The North Carolina chapter is expanding to include South Carolina, and plans are in the works for a Midwest regional chapter.

The motivation behind these developments — expanding the reach of EFA’s chapters — addresses a gap recently identified by a Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Survey, conducted in November 2020 by the Diversity Initiative. The survey quantified what had previously been a hunch: that chapters serve only some EFA members (35 percent, according to the survey). Looking ahead to FY 2021–2022, addressing this gap will be a primary goal.

The Chapter Development Committee, which includes David Stacks and is supported by Christina Shideler in the office, also focused this year on better supporting chapter coordinators. These have included chapter mentors, experienced EFA members who act as resources and sounding boards for new coordinators for three or four months as they begin to organize. We have also distributed resources to improve accessibility on Zoom and are continually researching ways to improve chapter meetings in this

regard. We also developed logos for each chapter to support their marketing efforts. We are also changing how chapters pay their speakers in order to alleviate the financial burden on chapter coordinators, one small step in improving equity and inclusion in the organization.

In the upcoming year, the Chapter Development Committee will build on the lessons of our pandemic year to expand EFA’s chapter program in ways that members can take part. Chapter coordinators have overwhelmingly voiced support for more virtual meetings, so the committee will focus on providing training and resources to support continued success in the virtual space.

Our approach to developing chapters will also focus more on larger geographic regions without the presumption of in-person gathering. Finally, to ensure that the growing network of chapters receives adequate support, the Chapter Development Committee will also be expanding. Members interested in serving on the committee should contact chapters@the-efa.org.

Discussion List

Nanette Day

The last year has been eventful for the Discussion List. Foremost among this year’s changes was the retirement of longtime EFA Board member Sheila Buff. After two decades on the Board, she stepped down in January 2021 from her board duties, including her role as DL Chair. We thank Sheila for her lengthy service and for her oversight of the DL during a period of growth.

In the past decade, the EFA Discussion List has doubled in size, growing from 736 members in 2011 to more than 1,400 members today. The list has become increasingly spirited over the years, often averaging nearly 1,000 posts per month while offering members collegiality, passion, depth and breadth of knowledge, and empathy and support. A greater number of participants means greater diversity and variety in points of view. Norms for online communities have also changed over time, leading to a shift in many EFA members’ expectations for how the DL is moderated.

In response, an ad hoc team was formed to review the DL Code of Conduct and moderation policies as well as oversee the DL on a daily basis. This team included Education chair Molly McCowan, Event Chair Amy Spungen, Social Media chair Ruth Mullen, Chapter Development chair Akiko Yamagata and EFA co-exec Christina Frey. They did a tremendous amount of work behind the scenes while also carrying out their duties for their respective committees. For example, they considered the feedback that the board gathered from members regarding how the DL operates and encouraged members to share suggestions during a town hall. Using the insights gleaned, along with a vision of how to grow the DL, they developed the new code of conduct that clarified the ground rules for collegial and inclusive discussions. At the same time, they created guidelines for moderators to handle issues fairly and objectively in a timely manner.

This month, the EFA Board of Governors voted to make the Discussion List a Committee of Record in recognition of its importance to our members and to our organization. We are currently finetuning the Code of Conduct based on ongoing member feedback. In addition to sharing mental health resources and engaging members in targeted discussions, we are in the process of setting up a #newvoices program to help new DL users become more comfortable contributing to discussions. We are also planning some focused “coffee chats” for the fall to help members within specific areas and fields connect with one another and build more meaningful professional relationships. We will be using the academic editing group as our pilot program for these chats.

Finally, we are looking at ways to create moderator training modules so we can develop a rotation schedule for new moderators. If you are interested in helping out with any of these activities, please let me know at discussionlist@the-efa.org.

Diversity Initiative

By Sangeeta Mehta

Now in its fourth year, the EFA’s Diversity Initiative (DI) continues to support the EFA’s increasingly diverse membership and promote equitable access for all. I’d like to thank everyone who has attended our meetings and taken part in our online discussions, especially our five incredible subinitiative leaders for their exemplary dedication to the DI. Here is a brief report from each of them on their subinitiatives.

Communications: Slack is still popular as the DI’s primary communications platform, with a steady engagement of about 20 users and 12 posters per week and two or three new members joining per month. It has been especially popular for sharing new style and language resources related to our mission and requests for assistance with specific cases. This year we added a #job-opportunities channel where DI members can amplify postings and share references for projects with diversity-related needs. After two years in the role, subinitiative leader Kellie M. Hultgren is seeking a replacement and will be stepping down in July.

Events and Opportunities: In October 2020, the Diversity Initiative hosted its first online event, a free webinar on transgender allyship for writers and editors, coordinated by Molly Pisani. The 90-minute webinar was enthusiastically received by members, around 100 of whom either attended the live event or viewed the recording afterward on the EFA’s website while it was available. Molly is negotiating with

the instructor to make this content available at no charge to EFA members on a long-term basis. Molly is also in the process of developing an event on disability and inclusion that will be cosponsored by the EFA’s Education committee and will be held in August 2021.

Resources: Former DI Resources subinitiative leader Amarilys Acosta stepped down in July 2020 after successfully steering several DI projects, including the Word List of Diversity and Contested Terms, which is now available via the member section of the EFA website. Additional resources, including booklets and webinars related to diversity and inclusion, were linked on the website during this period. In May 2021, Cody Sisco stepped up to oversee Resources and looks forward to assessing and updating the current resources and helping EFA members access them.

EDI Survey Project: The DI’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion survey, chaired by Lourdes Venard, was sent out to the full EFA membership in November of 2020. We had 637 members completing the survey, for a response rate of 22%. The survey was undertaken to not only ascertain information about the membership, but to ensure that the EFA is inclusive and welcoming. Now that the data has been tabulated, Lourdes and other members of the EDI Survey Project continue to work with the EFA Board to implement resources that will benefit all members.

Welcome Program: Under the leadership of Linda Ruggeri, two iterations of the DI’s Welcome Program (WP) were held this past year, once in the fall and again this spring. First launched in February 2019 by Alissa McGowan, and later co-directed by Brittany Dowdle, this three-month program pairs established members (welcomers) with new members (newcomers) to help new members familiarize themselves with the EFA. As director of the WP, Linda’s work included editing various documents, managing the intake and exit surveys, and holding orientations for over 90 program participants. She and volunteers also organized three virtual socials.

Founded in January 2017 by EFA co-executive Christina M. Frey and me, the DI is always open to new members. If you would like to join and help make the EFA a more inclusive organization, see our page on the EFA website and send an e-mail to diversity@the-efa.org. Any EFA member who agrees to our nondiscrimination statement and honors our mission statement is welcome to participate in our discussions and let their voice be heard.

E-Bulletin

Denise Larrabee, Editor, What’s New at the EFA

What’s New at the EFA continues to exceed the industry open rate standard of 22.6% with its average open rate of 34.24%. With a new design launched in January 2020 that is more compatible with the EFA brand, this monthly communication tool continues to provide EFA members with information on benefits, events, and resources available to them.

Member support has been more important than ever during the pandemic, and What’s New has helped the EFA keep its members informed and connected during this difficult time by: • presenting up-to-date information on all the events and meetings now presented virtually; • providing the information and links members need to stay connected to each other through social media; and • promoting numerous new educational webinars (now totaling 15) that the EFA offers free to members.

EFA member Lila Stromer continues to volunteer time as proofreader, and EFA staff provide tech and design support. What’s New is a successful communication tool because of these volunteers and the EFA staff, and we are grateful for their hard work and dedication.

Education

Molly McCowan, Chairperson

When I took over as Education chairperson in July 2020, the Education program had outgrown the systems previously put in place. Therefore, my first action as chairperson was to complete an in-depth program audit to decide which ongoing courses needed to be updated or removed from the catalog and to develop better tracking methods for financial and other data, such as enrollment figures.

This audit provided two main insights: one, many of our courses were losing money (they need to break even so we can continue to provide professional development for our members and guests). Two, the number of students had more than tripled from the previous year (2019) while all the systems had stayed the same. (Summer 2019 had 360 active students; summer 2020 had a whopping 1,230.)

While we did see a dip in enrollments in spring 2020, most likely due to the pandemic, overall, the program’s growth has continued (Spring 2021 had 1,323 students, the highest number in EFA history). The demand for professional development and editorial training is now extremely high, perhaps because the pandemic forced many people to either move into freelancing or rely on it as their main source of income for the first time.

To help the Education program meet this demand for professional training, I’ve worked to reconfigure administrative tasks so as many as possible are automated. I’ve also streamlined the instructor onboarding and course management processes.

When I came on as chairperson, all communication

about scheduling, interviewing, vetting, and course details and materials was done via e-mail and Word documents, creating an arduous workload for the chairperson and staff member working on this committee. We have now moved to software called Dubsado, which streamlines the course proposal process, allows us to interview and onboard new instructors easily, and automates much of the behind-thescenes course administration. We have detailed spreadsheets tracking course financial data and enrollments, allowing me to see which classes are consistently in the red and adjust as needed. I’ve also created training materials that help our instructors navigate Sakai — our learning management system — and format their courses in a similar way, making course navigation easier for students.

An additional priority over the past year has been to improve course accessibility for students who are deaf or hard of hearing or who have vision impairment or low vision. The instructors and I have worked as a team to implement accessibility changes within Sakai, making sure our ongoing classes are as accessible as possible. On the webinar side, we’ve moved to using Zoom Webinar, which offers live captioning and automatic transcription tools.

Finally, in response to direct instructor feedback, I created a Slack community where EFA instructors can ask questions and provide peer support; we also held our first Instructor Happy Hour event (held via Zoom), which was a success.

My goal as chairperson is to continue to improve the Education program’s offerings, creating a one-stop-shop for anyone seeking high-quality editorial training. I’m working on adding more self-paced courses, although we may need to find a separate learning management system to handle these due to technical difficulties we’ve encountered over the past year. I will also continue to offer regular free members-only webinars, as they’ve consistently had high enrollments and I believe they further enhance the benefits of EFA membership.

Events Committee

Amy Spungen

The goal of the Events Committee is to promote the EFA and attract potential clients and members by attending conferences, annual meetings, literary and book festivals, and trade shows. After former Events Chair Molly McCowan moved to chair the Education Committee, I began serving as Events Chair in February 2021, with transitional help from Molly and much ongoing help from EFA staff member Vina Orden.

This past year was unlike any other for the Events Committee. Nearly all of the 27 events for 2020–21 that were expected to be held in person, and were budgeted for accordingly, were either canceled or moved online during the year of the pandemic. There were 16 events the EFA sponsored last year that were not canceled, some of which were new.

Sponsorship opportunities that did not evaporate were transformed into an online EFA presence via virtual booths. These pandemic pivots offered the EFA a way to promote itself and, through virtual rooms in some of the virtual booths, to occasionally interact in real time with attendees. Though these venues were challenging, the EFA was grateful to maintain relationships with organizations we have worked with in the past—and to connect with some new-tous events as well, such as the Festival of Literary Diversity in Canada.

The Events Committee also worked with the Advertising Subcommittee (now a committee of record) to place ads at some virtual events that did not offer booth options. Thank you to Advertising chair David Stacks for his help with that, as well as Vina.

At this point we are seeing some events revert to inperson planning, but we are also noting hybrids combining in-person and virtual options. Hybrids may become an event staple going forward, given their ability to attract participants unable to attend in person, pandemic or no pandemic. For now, the Events Committee is planning for another 27 events in 2021–22, hopeful they will all be held, whatever the format.

Thank you for this opportunity to present our annual report on Events. If you have any event suggestions for future EFA sponsorship, please e-mail them to me at events@ the-efa.org.

Job List

Joy Drohan

Between May 2020 and May 2021, we listed 389 jobs, basically equal to what we listed in the same period in 2019–2020 (391) and less than we listed in that period in 2018–2019 (495). On average, we listed 32 jobs a month over the past year, equivalent to the average of 33 per month in 2019-2020, but down substantially from the same period in 2018-2019 (41). Our 20-year average is 36 jobs/ month, so there’s not generally a great deal of fluctuation in our listings.

In January 2020, we started to track the job listing acceptance rate — the proportion of job listings received that meet our standards of reasonable pay and antiharassment. Data are limited, but for January to May 2021, the acceptance rate is below that of the acceptance rate for the same month in 2020, by as much as 27%. The average acceptance rate in 2020 was 56%, and in 2021 so far it’s been 47%, so we’re seeing more jobs that are never listed because we will publish only jobs that basically meet or exceed the median rate in

our 2020 rate survey. I suppose this is to be expected after publishing rate increases (in Sept. 2020), but we hope that we are raising the floor for editorial freelance pay by enforcing this standard.

As usual, the primary source for job postings continues to be word of mouth. At least half of all jobs come either from repeat clients or clients who were recommended to EFA by a colleague. Web searches are our third-largest source of job postings. Our Google ads are a distant fourth. We continue to get job postings from a range of other sources, including our social media and print ads. We have participated in some virtual conferences and other events in the past year, but as expected the jobs from these sources are down.

The categories of work from the Job List continue more or less as always. From January 1 to May 31, 2021, the jobs have broken out as:

Academic work: 63

Fiction: 61

Business/marketing: 39

STEM: 32

YA/Kids: 22

Memoirs: 14

Miscellaneous: 13

General nonfiction: 11

Education: 11

Graphic design/book layout: 4

Indexing: 6

Translation: 3

Membership

Lourdes Venard

For the first time, EFA surpassed 3,000 members. As of May 31, 2021, the number of active members was 3,073 (last year, the total at this time was 2,768).

The Membership committee, under Michael Coffino, surveyed members in August of 2020. One of the topics of most interest was a question about EFA conferences; a sizable majority said they preferred virtual conferences because of travel expenses and a lack of time for attending in-person conferences. Others said they prefer in-person conferences because of the networking opportunities. Members mentioned the following as possible conference topics: • Developmental and substantive book editing skills • Working with authors and their expectations • Finding agents and editors who use developmental edi-

tors

• Up-to-date information on book publishing standards and expectations • Networking for jobs • Tax issues • Website development • Dealing with unfair clients and cultivating good ones • Business management and marketing • Publishing and editing trends • Career management

Members also wanted discounts for office supplies and laptops. One of the newest member benefits, which I obtained in April of this year, was a partnership with Perks at Works, which offers discounts to more than 30,000 merchants, including Staples, Office Depot, Best Buy, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Microsoft, and more. Please check out our Members Benefits page on the EFA website if you haven’t lately, as there are some new benefits there.

We also have partnered with ACES: The Society for Editing; Editors Canada; the Chartered Institute of Editing and Proofreading (CIEP); and the Institute of Professional Editors to obtain a partnership rate for their conferences and discounts on their classes and webinars.

The 2020 survey yielded a long list of other potential connections and benefits that members would like to see. I continue to explore more of these benefits, but help is always needed to negotiate with vendors and companies. If you are interested in volunteering for the Membership committee, please reach out to me at membership@the-efa.org.

As Membership chair, I also am working with other board members and the general membership to make EFA more inclusive and diverse, as well as to bring more programs that will further benefit all members, including webinars, virtual events, and networking groups. If you have any ideas, please feel free to reach out to me.

Freelancer Newsletter

Ruth E. Thaler-Carter, Newsletter Editor

Since the 2020 EFA Annual Meeting, we have published six issues of the EFA’s Freelancer newsletter. While the newsletter volume year now adheres to the calendar (January–December), this report features the last three issues of 2020 and the first three issues of 2021 to match the June timing of the Annual Meeting.

As of the first issue of 2021, the Freelancer is published electronically only and is available to members as a download from our website. We realize that some members prefer a print copy and some no longer have home printers, but this change saves the association several thousand dollars a year in printing and mailing (especially for the July–August issue, which usually runs to not only more than the usual eight pages, but often to a page count that isn’t divisible by four, making it much more expensive to print and bind). It also saves the volunteer editor substantial time in producing both color and black-and-white versions of the publication, and it means that everyone can see a full-color version of the pub-

lication. The e-only format allows for issues to have fewer or more than eight pages depending on available content, which also makes it easier and faster for the editor to produce it.

The Freelancer is now under the EFA’s Publications program, so the editor is no longer on the Board of Governors.

As always, I wish to thank the wonderful, generous colleagues who contribute articles and other material, and especially our stellar team of proofreaders. We are all volunteers and take time from our paid work to provide fellow EFA members with a publication we feel is a valuable resource.

Also as always, the Freelancer newsletter is open to submissions from members of articles, news of achievements, resources, tools and whatever else you would like to share with colleagues. Deadlines are: July 15 for the July–August issue September 15 for September–October November 15 for November–December January 15 for January–February March 15 for March–April June 15 for June–July

Send your newsletter material to: newsletter@the-efa.org.

PR Group

Sangeeta Mehta

The PR group is proud to report that, this past fall, we concluded our two-year long rates survey project, enabling the EFA to update its rates chart, a resource widely used as a reference point by clients, members, and other freelancers.

Back in the spring of 2020, we surveyed EFA members on the rates they charged for projects from which they earned freelance income in 2019. Last summer, Research Results in Fitchburg, MA, collected and tabulated the survey results. Our consultant for the project, Angela Darchi of Venture Research Associates in Westfield, NJ, provided analysis of the survey data in the form of an executive report. This report was released to the EFA membership on September 23, 2021, along with the updated rates chart and an introduction to these materials.

The rates survey project would not have been possible without a dedicated team of staff members and volunteers, and I am particularly grateful to General Manager Susannah Driver-Barstow, Membership, Programs Coordinator Christina Shideler and longtime PR group member Sheryl Holmberg. Sheryl also wrote a series called “EFA members comment on their real-world practices and experiences,” based on anonymous write-in comments in the rates survey; Part One of this series is available in the November/ December 2020 issue of the Freelancer newsletter.

Many thanks also go to Events and Communications Coordinator Vina Orden and principal partner of Robot House Brian Winkeler for their work in keeping our “EFA in the News” page updated. This webpage consists of media outlets and industry leaders that have covered or mentioned the EFA — most recently, the Chronicle of Higher Education and Poets & Writers.

Publications

Robin Martin, EFA Publications Chairperson

At the annual meeting in 2020, I reported that the EFA Publications Committee was hoping to re-issue much of the back catalogue in new editions. The EFA Publications committee began a systematic review of backlist titles during the ’20–’21 fiscal year. Volunteers Molly McCowan and Maria Alonzo have been tremendous help over the course of this project, which will continue into the next fiscal year.

We re-released two revised titles this FY: • Ebooks and Editors: What You Need to Know, by Kevin

Callahan

• 6 Easy Steps to Customize a Style Guide: What’s Your Style? by Robin Martin

We also published a “Special Anniversary Release” titled 50 Years of the EFA: Commemorating Fifty Years Supporting Professional Editorial Freelancers, which I researched and compiled along with co-editor Denise Larrabee. It was designed by EFA member Kevin Callahan. All of our efforts were donated.

For the final thrust of this year, we sent out a call for proposals in March (2021) and selected two new booklets to add to the catalogue: Kristy S. Gilbert — Visual Grammar: Design Foundations for Editors and Wes Cowley— Using Freelance Platforms Safely and Effectively. Once again, we have reached into the EFA membership to bring in two copyeditors, two proofreaders and a designer for the booklets. We will issue both paperback and ebook versions of all booklets and are aiming for a late-summer release date.

As the Publications Committee chairperson, I am dedicated to building the quality and value of the EFA booklet catalogue. The review of the back catalogue titles continues, even as we press forward in the production of valuable new offerings for editors and writers.

The transition to Aerio, an Ingram company, as the storefront for our booklet sales has had some bumps because of insufficiencies of the platform. For instance, international customers must purchase the booklets elsewhere (they can order from their favorite local bookseller with the ISBN). With the help of Susannah Driver-Barstow and Christina Shideler in the office, we’ve been able to iron out most issues as they pop up, and will continue to be responsive.

We are also on the lookout for more-efficient ways to sell the booklets from the EFA website.

Costs are projected to remain in budget for 2020/2021.

More volunteers are needed to assist with the ’21/’22 Publications committee. Please express your interest to Publications Committee chairperson Robin Martin at pubs@ the-efa.org.

Treasurer

Marcina Zaccaria

It’s been a memorable year at the EFA. Each month, the EFA Board has looked at our income and expenses. We’ve compared our spending year to year and made certain to attend to requests for spending in new categories.

Our dues, education income and publication sales have been healthy and strong. We’ve kept track of our expenses, and made certain that payroll, professional fees, and education payments were made.

This year, we’ve attended to areas of the budget like professional fees and diversity training. Our bookkeepers have kept up with us each month. We have compared our spending, and noted the difference in the areas of conferences, rent and internet costs.

Although we have all had to adapt to remote work, we found our reliable EFA staff always working with us. We have persisted and thrived. In accordance with our 50 year tradition, we have recognized that the Overall Financial Situation of the EFA continues to be strong.

Website

Karen Wallace

Over the past year, there have been tweaks to the website and a great deal of troubleshooting. Fortunately, most problems have only affected a few members. (An exception was an erroneous second set of renewal notices sent by a testing version of the website in January.) Downtime was rare and brief.

New content

• Updated Editorial Rates table and supporting informa-

tion

• Word List of Diversity and Contested Terms • So You Want to be an Editor? • Resources for New Freelance Editors • Keeping Your Business Safe from Scammers • Member Skills: revised to agree with the terms used in the rates survey • Mental Health Resources (in progress) • Regular posts in the Blog & News section

All of this content was created by board members and other volunteers, as well as by the office staff.

New functionality

• Blog & News page: Added the ability to subscribe. Each Tuesday, subscribers receive an e-mail notification of any new posts during the previous week. • Recorded webinar e-mail automation: Links to the webinar and materials can now be specified when the webinar is set up, and they appear in the automated e-mail. • Recorded Webinars page (in progress): It will soon be possible to restrict the page view to recorded webinars that are free to members.

The first half of 2021 was mostly devoted to preparing for, testing and trouble-shooting a full WordPress update, which was implemented on April 12.

We planned to add a PayPal payment option but set aside the testing once the update started. Since then, PayPal introduced a virtual credit card option called PayPal Key. This provides PayPal account holders with a number that can be used like a credit card number during checkout.

Before the introduction of self-paced classes, we investigated ways to streamline the class registration process. Nothing turned out to be feasible, so we’re using a work-around that reduces the demand on staff time.

Information from discussions on Vanilla Forums (used by the board and chapters) was transferred to a searchable section of the website accessible to admins. If a board member or chapter chair needs to access any of that information, they can contact the office for assistance.

Reporting continues to be slow. We will remove old accounts and transactions soon and will continue to do so periodically. However, this will probably not improve the speed much, so we plan to create an off-WordPress report manager that will run on daily imports of data.

Another major effort going forward is to assess the website’s accessibility and bring it into line with current accessibility standards.

It’s been an honor to serve as the EFA’s website chair for the past nine years. During that time, the organization has grown in size and in what it offers, and our new (almost four years old!) website has reflected that growth. I am grateful for all that I’ve learned in this role, for the ongoing support of our co-chairs and for the opportunity to work with many dedicated board members.

Special thanks to our amazing staff members. My job would have been impossible without the skilled and always willing help of Susannah Driver-Barstow, Christina Shideler, Vina Orden and Juliana McCardle. I will miss everyone, but I know that I’m leaving the website in good hands. n