My Ceramics Club Work

I joined Foothill College's Claybodies Club in the Fall Quarter of 2005.

I have served as Secretary to the club since that time.

My responsibilities were writing and e-mailing agendas and minutes for the meetings.
I provided organization and leadership when necessary.

I have also served as the Organization Board of Directors (OBD) Representative for part of that time.

My responsibilities were filling out the necessary OBD forms, meeting OBD deadlines, and addressing the
OBD body with our proposals.

In the School Year 2005-2006, Claybodies Club had the following activities:

• Holiday Ceramics Sale Nov. 28 - Dec. 1
• Mask Making Workshop March 14
• Mother's Day Ceramics Sale May 10 - 11
• Low Fire Salt Workshop May 17 & 22
• Soda Fire Workshop June 12 & 19
• Photography Workshop June 26

Special Accomplishments? We won Club of the Year!

In the School Year 2006-2007, Claybodies Club had the following activities:

• Guest Speaker: Jenny Morten Nov. 15
• Holiday Ceramics Sale Nov. 28 - 30 & Dec. 2
• Guest Speaker: Christa Assad Feb. 28

Challenges:

• Keeping Club Members Enthusiastic and Involved
• Recruiting New Club Officers (We've had some turn over each quarter)
• Filling out OBD paperwork correctly and getting it in on time

Reflections:
I learned a lot about group dynamics from being involved with Claybodies Club.

• Groups don't move quickly to do anything and if you want to get something done it is important to assign it to someone specific. Doing everything yourself is exhausting and it does nothing to build team.
• It is important to communicate verbally and in writing, especially if your message is urgent.
• Bureaucracy can be difficult to work with but usually rules and regulations are there to protect everyone's best interest. Missing OBD deadlines can be frustrating but usually it is for the best and the event is better when it is planned welland not at the last minute.