Update by the Executive Director
Tim Merriman, Executive Director
July 2006

Audit, Budget and Cash Flow
The 2005 audit was completed by Sample and Bailey CPA, PC, in June, 2006, and the management letter was reviewed. We finished FY2005 with an unrestricted deficit of $134,548. Approximately $94,000 in grants income for 2005 was deferred to 2006 due to timing of payments. That amount should be a benefit to unrestricted funds in 2006, but $40,000 in operating loss definitely resulted from lower revenues from NIW 2005 and reduced membership income. Despite operating losses net assets for 2005 grew by $6,936. The $200,000 received from Downtown Development Authority in 2004 is regarded as restricted income until 2011 when the facade contract expires and it will be realized as unrestricted income and will offset 80% of the current unrestricted loss. Current total net assets of NAI amount to $385,037.

We will hire a consulting accountant to improve our bookkeeping in some areas of importance identified in the FY2005 audit. It is expected this will happen in July, 2006. Steve Collins of Sample and Bailey has recommended several qualified individuals to do this. We have interviewed one of them and will complete interviews soon and begin making changes to our accounting system to reflect improvements requested by the auditor.

Business Plan
Certification continues to exceed expectations but other income areas are slower than expected. NIW 2006 revenue is beginning to flow and is doing well ahead of last year and suggests that NIW 2006 may be more what we expect at this annual event. The IWH 06 meeting in Puerto Rico performed well programmatically and we will know more about financial performance when the final hotel bill is reconciled and paid.

Building
We have no new news regarding the six parking spaces behind the building. Mason Street Partners met with us in May about it but has not provided an update on their plans.

Grants
We received $28,500 from the Gates Family Foundation toward the capital costs of the new building in early July, not reflected in the June financial report. This is being applied to our mortgage. We will receive the remaining $11,000 from the NPS/EPA/CSU grant in the next 30 days since work on that is completed. Another $61,000 originally expected in 2005 from the EPA/FWS grant should be available to us by end of the summer. A second phase of the NPS/EPA grant is slated for funding in September but the amount for NAI is uncertain at this moment.

Definitions Project
The early June meeting of the Definitions Project in Shepherdstown, WV, went well with representatives from 20 organizations and agencies. They made progress in identifying a list of terms to define and products to disseminate what we agree to with those definitions. The next meeting is in late August in Fort Collins.

InterpPress
The History Book is in final editing and should go to print in August, 2006. We have a book contract for an interpretive writing book with Alan Leftridge that may be released late in 2006.

Journal of Interpretation Research
The first 2006 issue of the journal is going to press in the next week. The second is in progress according to editor Carolyn Ward so we should be back on schedule with this by fall.

Legacy Trust Fund
LTF income will be updated by the August Staff Report. Quarterly reports for most funds have not been received by July 17. For more information on Legacy Trust Fund click here.

Networking
We held a Certified Interpretive Planners course in June in Panama that went well. Four Panamanians attended the Certified Interpretive Trainers course in Fort Collins in July. I have no other meetings or travel scheduled for July.

Strategic Plan
We have obtained a bid for a strategic planning workshop for NAI in 2007 and will be including it in the new budget.

Travel Plans
My upcoming travel may be viewed here.