Free Geek Structure

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Free Geek is governed by its workers and volunteers. It's a complicated place and there are numerous working groups and committees involved. Here's a rundown in a nutshell

Contents

Programs

These directly work to fulfill the mission of Free Geek. Some have meetings or associated email lists and queues in RT.

  • Adoption Program - Work 24 hours, earn a computer
  • Build Program - Learn to build computers, keep the 6th you assemble
  • Gapsters - Computers intended for free internet access which we supply to coffee shops & other public places.
  • Hardware Grants - Grants out computers and other hardware to non-profits
  • Thrift Store - Reuses (in the form of sales) many inexpensive gizmos and a few fancy ones, too.

The Big Three

decision-making and work-doing bodies

Board of Directors
The board is responsible for fiscal and legal oversight of the organization. It is made up of people elected by the Community Council.
Community Council
The council is open to all volunteers, staff, and other interested community member. It looks at the long term picture of Free Geek and sets general policy. It coordinates policy making between the various working groups as needed. (See the Founding Document of the Council for more details on the scope of the council.)
Staff Collective
The staff collective is responsible for day to day operations and is made up of hired staff members.

Working Groups

Groups are volunteer driven and are designed to support the various programs at Free Geek. They tend to meet after hours and have associated email lists and queues in RT.

ASS
Volunteer system administration
<ass AT freegeek DOT org>
Coders
Volunteer programmers
<coders AT freegeek DOT org>>
Core
Volunteers working in the day to day operations of Free Geek. ("The Core" is more of a descriptive term than a cohesive working group.)
<core AT freegeek DOT org>>
Hardware Grants
Volunteers helping to distribute hardware to organizations (apart from the Build and Adoption programs).
<grants AT freegeek DOT org>
Community Builders
In charge of room use, tabling, relations with neighbors, and networking with other organizations.
<commies AT freegeek DOT org>
PR
In charge of media outreach & relations, ads & marketing, the main Free Geek website, and corporate donations solicitation
<pr AT freegeek DOT org> OR, if someone from the media is asking, then <press AT freegeek DOT org>
Inreach
In charge of tours, volunteer rewards, core breakfast, front desk, public email addresses (like Volunteer@ and Info@), and large donation thank you notes.
<inreach AT freegeek DOT org>
Events
In charge of Free Geek parties and festivals, like Geek Prom, Geek Fair, and the holiday party.
<events AT freegeek DOT org>
Optimization and Priorities group
A Council workgroup which discusses what we're already doing and how we can do it better, compares proposals for expansion, & helps people turn their ideas into reality.


Standing Staff Committees

These standing committees of the Staff Collective are designed to oversee all the areas of Free Geek, implementing policies that are set by other groups and making policy suggestions to those other groups. Each committee has a mailing list and a queue in RT. Standing committees are ongoing. Ad hoc committees are temporary.

Standing Action Committee
Mission: Building and equipment security, staff and volunteer safety, supply, waste removal, and the sale of scrap material.
Programs: Recycling, receiving, maintenance and design of the physical plant, building security, general safety, relationships with neighbors.
Email: action at freegeek.org
Likely Suspects: Liane, Darryl, Cliff
Standing C7 Committee
Mission: The standing committee structure, liaison with board and council especially regarding policy development, financial considerations.
Programs: Policy development, load balancing of the committees, liaison with Free Geek Community Council and Free Geek Board of Directors, nominations to the various committees, proposals concerning changes to the committee structure itself; volunteer and staff scheduling; accounting and financial oversight.
Email: c7 at freegeek.org
Ad Hoc Events Committee
Mission:
Programs: In charge of major Free Geek parties and festivals, like Geek Prom, Geek Fair, and the holiday party. Meets seasonally, as needed. Generally, monthly for a few months before an event, then every other week, then weekly, then freak out right before the event.
Email: events at freegeek.org
Standing HR Committee
Mission: Provides oversight for those areas of Free Geek pertaining to the health and well being of volunteers and staff.
Programs: Human resources, volunteer and staff discipline, procedures regarding theft from Free Geek, mediation between conflicting parties, staff and intern reviews, health care and benefits packages, employee manual, oversee the hiring process, trainings.
Email: hr at freegeek.org
Likely Suspects: Richard, Laurel, Dave, Ali, Valerie
Standing Inreach Committee
Mission: To oversee aspects of volunteer coordination, provide avenues for volunteer feedback and appreciation, and to create a welcoming, accessible environment for all volunteers and donors.
Programs: In charge of tours, volunteer rewards, front desk, public email addresses (like Volunteer@ and Info@), and large donation thank you notes. In charge of room use, the Free Geek computer lab.
Email: inreach at freegeek.org
Likely Suspects: Liane, Jake, Caitlin, Valerie, Darryl
Standing Education Committee
Mission: Facilitating access to information through documentation, training and support.
Programs: Education, documentation, liaison with Distro group, technical support, Free Geek library.
Email: grok at freegeek.org
Likely Suspects: Caitlin, Luiz, Laurel, Meredith
Standing PR Committee;
Mission: Do PR, see here for a limmerick and haiku
Programs: In charge of media outreach & relations, ads & marketing, the main Free Geek website, membership development, tabling events and networking with other organizations.
Email: pr at freegeek.org
Likely Suspects: Laurel, Caitlin, Ali, Tony, Luiz
Standing Production Committee
Mission: Manage the flow of gizmos to ensure effective reuse by overseeing Build, Mac Build, Laptop Build, Advanced Testing, Printer Reuse, and Hardware Grants
Programs: Build, Mac Build, Laptop Build, Advanced Testing, Printer Reuse, Hardware Grants
Email: production at freegeek.org
Likely Suspects: Ali, Caitlin, Dave, Sergio, Meredith, Jake, Sophia
Standing Propagation Committee
Mission: Outreach to organizations to promote reuse of hardware and use of Free and Open Source Software.
Current Staff Members:
Programs: Liaison with Free Geek startups (the replication of Free Geek elsewhere), liaison with GAP volunteers, Hardware Grants.
Email: propagation at freegeek.org
Likely Suspects: Richard, Vagrant
Standing Sales Committee
Mission: To oversee long-term planning of retail and online sales
Programs: Thrift store, bulk and online sales
Email: sales@freegeek.org
Likely Suspects: Ali, Dave, Ebeth, Francisco, Luiz, Tony, Sergio
Standing Technocrats Committee
Mission: The selection or creation, maintenance, and technical security of hardware and software used at or installed by Free Geek.
Programs: Liaison with Coders group, liaison with ASS group, liaison with Distro group, selection of software commonly used at Free Geek, computer security, technical infrastructure.
Email: technocrats at freegeek.org
Likely Suspects: Richard

See the Perpetual Meeting Calendar for meeting times and attenders.

Ad Hoc Staff Committees

From time to time, there are also ad hoc committees that meet while needed before disbanding. Examples of this would be:

Interview committee
Recommended by HR and approved by the collective to interview people applying for paid staff positions
Resolution Committee.
Recommended by HR and approved by the collective to bring to resolution issues that could result in the termination of a staff member if not dealt with.
Review Panel
Recommended by HR and approved by the collective to coordinate reviews of collective members.
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