Table of Contents

I. Set Up Meeting Information

II. Setting Up Registration

III. Sending Reminders and Information to Registrants

IV. Building a Successful Agenda

V. About Breakout Rooms and Shared Documents

VI. Running a Zoom Meeting

Appendix A - Sample Agenda

Appendix B - Online Session Leader Script

I. Set up Meeting Information

The following is for Zoom meetings organized using a “Licensed” subscription, not the "Free" subscription.

How We Set up a Zoom Meeting

Log in to Zoom.us

1. Click “My Account” in the top right of page

2. Click “Meetings” on the left side of the page

3. Click “Schedule a Meeting”

4. Fill out your meeting information

The “Topic” should be the title for your event

5. Enter Description

We usually include the following information in the description:

• Time and time zone
• Description
• Panelists/presenters and bios (if available)
• Note: All of the above information will appear on the registration page so it is critical to get it right here.

• Make sure that the time zone is correct
• For "Registration", check "Required"
• We use the following meeting options:
  • “Enable join before the host” – unchecked
  • “Mute participants upon entry” – unchecked
  • “Enable waiting room” – checked
  • “Only authenticated users can join” – unchecked
    • 'Authenticated users' requires any registrant to have (or to set up) an account; some attendants may prefer not to and it's easier to leave this unchecked.
  • "Record the meeting automatically" - checked

• Alternative Hosts
  • We typically add email addresses affiliated with our licensed group to this field, but they need to be associated with the 'parent' account beforehand.
• Click "Save Meeting"

II. Setting Up Registration

1. After you have saved your meeting, you'll arrive at a page with your meeting where you can manage it. From this page you can set up:

• Registration
• Email settings
• Branding
• Polls

To access these options, you'll have to scroll to the bottom of the page

At the very bottom of the page, edit your Registration Options by clicking "Edit" on the right side of the page and the following menu should pop up:

We use "Manually Approve" so we have control over who does and who does not enter any given meeting. We have had people register with fake names and email addresses whose registration we denied.

At the top, click "Questions" and add any identifying information you think is important. We typically request:

• First name
• Last name
• Organization
• Parent institution
• Email address

You can also add "custom questions" to let you collect information from attendees (e.g., questions for panelists, topics of discussion, topics for future meetings, relationship to CHCI).

2. Click "Email Settings" to edit the host contact information

• To preview and edit the confirmation email, click "Edit" to the right of "Confirmation Email to Registrants"
• We recommend editing the Confirmation Email to indicate that the link to the meeting is below. You can either add the text to the body or include it in the subject.

3. Click "Branding"

• Upload a horizontally oriented banner
• Upload a square logo

4. Poll: We do not use polls for our events

5. After you have set up your meeting, click the "Registration Link" to review your registration page.

6. Edit your registration page by going to "Meetings", clicking the link for the meeting and scroll down and click "Edit this Meeting"

You'll be able to change everything at a later date.

9. Send the registration link to your invited guests by selecting the individual to approve.

• It is critical that everyone who is attending is on the meeting register, including panelists
• The Meeting Organizers should make sure that all panelists/speakers are registered

10. As guests register, you have to approve them. This can be done in batches.

• To do this, go to "Meetings", click your meeting, and scroll down to the bottom of the page. To the right of "Manage Attendees," click "Edit".
• When you approve these members, they will be sent a confirmation email automatically.

III. Sending Reminders and Information to Registrants

It is generally a good practice to send reminder e-mails to your registrants in advance of the meeting. Include in that e-mail:

• Date
• Time
• Agenda (if available)
• Access and technical assistance information

We typically "Approve" registrations about one week in advance of the meeting and resend confirmation within 24 hours before the event itself (usually the morning of), which is typically when participants would look for it.

If you would like to email all registrants at once (with session information or materials) through your own email system, you can pull a list of the current registrants by going to Reports.

After clicking "Reports", click the box "Meeting"

When searching for your event, make sure that the time range includes your event's date and click "Search".

Click "Generate" next to the meeting you are looking for.

You can then download the list of registered guests with the information you requested from their registration in the form of a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet. Open the spreadsheet and highlight the email addresses in the appropriate column, and click "Edit", then "Copy." Open a new Microsoft Word Document and "Paste" the copied column and "Keep Text Only." In the same document, go to "Edit" > "Find" > "Replace...", and put "^p" in the first box and "; " or ", " depending on your email system, and press "Replace All", and "OK."

This will generate a block of text of the email addresses of the approved registrants.

IV. Building a Successful Agenda

Meeting length

• Design an event that last between one and two hours, but no more.
• We found that after about two hours, attention, engagement, and attendance are difficult to sustain.
• Build in time for welcoming participants to the meeting, reviewing session rules, and transitioning between different parts of the agenda.
  

Consider a mixed presentation/discussion model

• We found that the most productive and enjoyable meetings were those that mixed brief presentations at the beginning with small-group discussion.
• Meetings that focused on long presentations often lacked intense exchange between participants and generated less engagement and conversation.
  • If you are expecting a group of over 25-30 people, it is difficult to hold full-group conversations effectively. Instead, use Breakout Rooms (see below).
• We found it productive to offer a few presentations.
  
  

Include Breakout Group Questions/Topics

• Rather than simply writing “Breakout Session 1”, be specific by outlining exactly what you want a Breakout Session to discuss.
• If you are having multiple breakout session, it is helpful if they build on each other.
  
  

Focus on outcomes

• What would you ultimately like to get out of the meeting?
  • For our purposes, we wanted members to meet one another and to share questions, ideas, resources, and experiences. To that end, we had members contribute to a shared Google Doc (see below) so that we had a concrete takeaway of participants' discussions.
    
    

Think about the Next Meeting

• Understand that there will be topics and questions that won’t get addressed. The end of the meeting would be an opportunity for Participants to offer topics for the next session.

Create a follow-up strategy

• Keeping the conversation going after the meeting will heighten its overall value to participants. If you have a shared Google Doc, taking the time to close, edit, and re-share it with Participants is a generative process.

V. About Breakout Rooms and Shared Documents

If you are planning to encourage participation in a meeting with more than 25 Participants, we highly encourage the use of Breakout Rooms. Overall, creating and running a Breakout Room is fairly easy and has considerable upside.

Breakout Rooms are set up by the Host during the meeting itself

• Zoom will put all participants into a Room and we typically have Zoom send Participants to the Rooms automatically when opened
• The Host will not join a room automatically and stays in what we’ll call the Main Room
• Late arrivals will enter the Main Room and they can be sent to a room of the Host’s choosing
• People in Rooms may also leave their Breakout Room to rejoin the Main Room
  
  

Breakout Rooms can be timed or untimed

• If timed, it is easier for all sessions to be the same length
• Timed meetings also do not automatically send people back to the Main Room
  
  

It is easier to assign Breakout Rooms randomly (done by Zoom) rather than trying to pre-organize rooms

• In a pre-organized room, you’ll have to manually move individuals into a room. It’s not impossible, just time consuming.
  
  
• We found that breakout rooms of four to five people for 15-20 minutes worked well.
  
  
• Before the Breakout sessions start, the Host should review them to see whether people from the same organization are in the same room. If so, exchange them with individuals in another room.
  
  
• To encourage entire group interaction, we preferred successive random breakout groups. For our purposes, it allowed CHCI members to meet people from around the Network.
  
  
• Breakout sessions should have a clear and specific task, such as answering a pre-written question or reflecting on a topic.
  
  
• Arrange a way of capturing the discussion within the Breakout room
  • It is too difficult to record or capture the Chat and Video of each breakout session. Instead, capture the discussion in one of two ways:
  • After the Breakout Group session has ended, encourage people to share their discussion in the Main Room chat. While effective, we found that the sharing resources via Chat after the Breakout Meeting did not lend itself to discussion between Participants and captured only a small portion of the discussions within the Groups themselves. Still, the Chat can be saved, edited, and distributed later
  • Create a Shared Google Doc:
    • A Shared Google Doc is a centralized place for meeting information as well as a document where individuals can share their thoughts, questions, and resources. As a live document, it can be edited by multiple individual simultaneously, allowing for a constantly updated record of a discussion
    • Include a link to the Google Doc:
      • In the Agenda
      • In the Chat once the meeting has started
      • Include in the Google Doc:
        • Elements from the Agenda
        • Questions for Breakout Groups
        • A section for general discussion and reflection
        • A section for topics for next time
      • If using a Shared Google Doc:
        • DO NOT share the Google Doc too far in advance or on a public website. A shared Google Doc is basically a public document and can be accessed by non-Participants who have the link
        • Make sure that is editable by all who have the link
        • Clearly show (by using a different size and color font) where Participants should write comments, questions, and more
        • Encourage Breakout Groups to designate a scribe to record their discussion
        • Remind Breakout Groups to share their discussion in the Google Doc (this is done by the Host)
        • Close editing privileges after the meeting
        • Share the edited Google Doc after the meeting with participants
  • Put meeting Leaders in a separate room for last breakout session
    • The Host can put meeting Leaders in the same room. This allows the Leaders to review the shared Google Doc and to plan their concluding remarks

You can also put the Leaders in the same group for every Breakout session so they can track the discussion as they happen

VI. Running a Zoom Meeting

Roles

• There are three roles in a Zoom that are important:
  • Host
  • Co-Host
  • Participant
• Host has the most control and functionality of all
  • The Host is typically the account that set up the meeting
  • Alternative Hosts can be named, but are subordinate to the original Host
• Co-host has most of the same functions as the Host
  • There can be multiple Co-hosts
• While the Host and Co-host have largely similar views, their view of Zoom is different from that of Participants. In particular, Host and Co-hosts can see who has “raised a hand” and can lower a hand, but the Host and Co-host(s) cannot “Raise Hand” as the option is not available.
• Hosts can make any Participant a Co-host or Host, and also have the ability to take back the Host role.
  • We set up our meeting so that only Hosts and Co-hosts can share their screen to avoid Zoom bombing.
  • We make any panelist/presenter a Co-host

Meeting Best Practices

• Practice meeting
  • For individuals that have not been a Host or Co-host or been a part of a Zoom meeting, a practice session is incredibly helpful as the functionality of Host and Co-host are dissimilar from the Participant view
  • An optional session a week in advance has worked well for us
  • This meeting is also an opportunity to designate roles within the meeting. Some questions to consider:
    • Who will welcome Participants?
    • Who will review session rules?
    • Who will introduce the content of the session (include panelists)?
    • Who will transition between speakers?
    • How will the leader monitor speaking time of participants?
    • Who will make concluding remarks?
• Start ½ hour early
  • Encourage panelists and presenters to join the session a half-hour early. This gives enough time to:
    • Test any AV issues
    • Designate any Participant as a Co-Host
    • Practice sharing their screen (if necessary)
    • Review procedures
  • During this period, keep any other Participants in the Waiting Room
• Participants remain muted
• Participants rename themselves to include affiliation
• Two individuals focused only on background technical support
  • One should be focused on communicating with and opening the Waiting Room
  • The other should handle last minute registration approvals and sending confirmation links (accessible in the same place)

Script outlining procedures (see Appendix) to be read at beginning of meeting

Appendix A - Sample Agenda

Consortium of Humanities Centers and Institutes

Associate Directors and Administrators Network Meeting

Tuesday, May 26, 2020

12:00pm – 2:00pm Eastern Daylight (-4:00 UTC)

Purpose

We originally planned to hold a workshop to explore forms of advocacy in relation to the work of Humanities Centers/Institutes or in relation to our roles as humanities administrators, particularly in connection to the 2020 conference theme of “Borders, Mobilities, and Displacements.” So much has changed in the past several months, but the need for advocacy remains. Through a series of break-out discussions, this meeting will offer network members a chance to share and reflect on how our centers have responded to the pandemic programmatically and institutionally, how we have responded personally, and what challenges and possibilities we see on the horizon.

Throughout the session, we hope participants will update the shared Google Doc found here:

[Link to Google Doc]

Presenters

• Christina Chia, Associate Director, Franklin Humanities Institute, Duke University
• Noemí Fernández, Program Manager, Hurford Center for the Arts and Humanities, Haverford College
• Susannah L. Smith, Managing Director, Institute for Advanced Study, University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
• Amanda Jeanne Swain, Executive Director, Humanities Center, University of California, Irvine

Agenda

Welcome, Introductions, and Overview of Meeting Format and Management

Getting Centered

Individual reflection:

• What are 2-3 words that express key values, central mission of your center and/ or humanities more generally?

Breakout Conversations

• Given these values and the current global crisis, how do you see your center or your position:

• Advocating for cultural and social needs that have emerged (e.g., for art and cultural “content,” for pandemic contexts and analyses, for community and sense of connection)?

• Responding to structural inequities that have been revealed (e.g., in health, labor, technological infrastructure)?

• Grappling with ethical issues in institutional, professional, and personal contexts?

Breakout Group #1 (random) - 15-20 minutes

Discussion questions:

• Programmatically, how do you see your center responding to the issues revealed by the pandemic, including structural inequities locally and globally?
• How have you brought humanistic perspectives to understandings of the pandemic (historical, cultural, critical) and to the ethical decisions that have to be made in a time of global public health, economic, social, and political crises?

Breakout Group #2 (random) - 15-20 minutes

Discussion question:

• Institutionally, what are the ways you see the need to advocate for the humanities center in terms of resource allocation, making hard decisions when faced with budget cuts, and communicating the value of the work of the center?

Breakout Group #3 (random) - 15-20 minutes

Discussion questions:

• Personally, how are you thinking about your own job and how to advocate for yourself to do your job well?
• How are you/your center creating community and support systems for the center’s staff and affiliated people and partners?

Wrap-up

• Final thoughts re: break-out discussions (shared Google Doc)

• Possible name change to “Humanities Administration Network”

Accessibility

• We are expecting a large crowd (over 50)

• Please re-name yourself to include your institutional affiliation

• Please mute so as to avoid unintentional audial interference

• If you have a question about a presentation or wish to make a remark, please use the Chat function, which must be turned on and which will be monitored throughout the session.

• Please avoid using the Raise Hand function, as the group is too large

• Please avoid using the public Chat function for side or casual conversation

• Please be aware that the audio, video, and chat of this conversation will be recorded

• Please be aware that sections or the entirety of this virtual meeting may be shared publicly on the CHCI website

Technical Support

There will be three CHCI staff on this meeting providing technical and logistical support. Please contact them via Zoom's Private Chat function or by e-mail.

• Guillaume Ratel – [email] (monitoring waiting room, monitoring chat, highlighting questions)
• Bill Warner - [email] (muting/unmuting participants, monitoring registration, highlighting questions)
• Melissa Ulbricht - [email] (monitoring chat, additional support)

Appendix B - Online Session Leader Script

2020 CHCI Annual Meeting

Online Session Leader Script

In the first minutes after the session started, please take this time to welcome people to the session and make announcements.

It will take a few minutes for people to enter the meeting from the waiting room. Please use that time to welcome everyone, vocally, so there isn’t a lot of dead air at the start.

Sara Guyer will speak first, outlining the initiating ideas behind the meeting. She will then pass it off to the steering committee that organized the agenda.

Before explaining how the meeting will run, please:

• Ask everyone to mute themselves so as to avoid unintentional audial interference
  
  
• Ask participants to rename themselves, adding their institutional affiliation (hovering over their name)

• If participants need technical support at any point, to either Private Chat Bill Warner and Guillaume Ratel, or to e-mail chci@humanities.wisc.edu
  
  
• Remind participants that if they have a question about a presentation or wish to make a remark, please use the shared Google Doc. We will be tracking it throughout the session
  • A link to the Google Doc has been shared in the confirmation e-mail and it has been posted in the Chat
    
• Avoid using the Raise Hand function, as the group is too large

• Avoid using the public Chat function for side or casual conversation
  
  
• The audio, video, and chat of this conversation will be recorded
  
  
• Sections or the entirety of this virtual meeting may be shared publicly on the CHCI website
  
  

Thank the following organizations for sponsoring the online sessions of the 2020 CHCI Annual Meeting:

• Society for the Humanities - Cornell University

• Institute for the Humanities - University of Michigan

• Center for Humanities and the Arts - University of Colorado Boulder

• Charles Phelps Taft Research Center - University of Cincinnati

• Institute for the Study of Religion and Culture - University of Arizona

• OU Arts & Humanities Forum - University of Oklahoma