Candidates for the Board of Directors
Kevin Payravi
My name is Kevin Payravi (User:SuperHamster on Wikipedia). I was invited to join the Board of Wikimedia District of Columbia in 2018, and am looking forward to the opportunity to continue my service to help ensure the organization's continued impact, programming, and success.
I joined the English Wikipedia in 2007 and have since been an active contributor to the project and the movement at-large. In 2015, I founded Wikipedia Connection, a student organization at the Ohio State University. This group eventually lead to the formation of the Ohio Wikimedians User Group, an active user group that does outreach and organization in the state of Ohio. With these groups I helped organize edit-a-thons, photo competitions, class planning that integrated Wikipedia, and more. In 2017 I served as a core organizer for WikiConference North America, and am doing so again for this year's conference.
Online, I have been a primary organizer for Wiki Loves Monuments in the United States annually since 2016. I am also on the international organizing team for Wikipedia Asian Month, Wikipedia's largest online edit-a-thon spanning over 50 Wikipedia projects.
I plan to bring my various experiences and expertise from these activities to the Board. I believe I have a diverse mix of engagement with the Wikimedia community, and believe that this will help me be a positive asset to the organization when it comes to planning, programming, and community engagement. Thank you for your consideration!
Diane Shaw
I would like to submit my nomination to serve a third two-year term on the Wikimedia District of Columbia board of directors. I strongly support Wikimedia District of Columbia’s mission to support the advancement of free and open knowledge, particularly information gleaned from cultural heritage and governmental organizations, for the use of everyone around the world. Wikimedia District of Columbia does excellent work in supporting the training of editors and raising general awareness of Wikimedia community projects. As I have seen from my time serving on the board, Wikimedia District of Columbia has become an ever more dynamic organization over the years, sponsoring a variety of activities geared towards beginning as well as experienced editors, and increasing its outreach to diverse and under-represented groups. I am delighted that I have been able to help with organizing and participating in these efforts. After attending the Wikimedia Conference in Berlin this past spring, I am very upbeat about the strategic direction of the Wikimedia movement, which Wikimedia District of Columbia is working to fulfill through its partnerships and educational activities. I hope to be able to continue my service on the board for the next two years, including the role of secretary which I took on in June, 2018. The future of Wikimedia community projects looks bright, and Wikimedia District of Columbia has been, and will continue to be, a catalyst for the positive development of free knowledge initiatives both locally and nationally. I appreciate your consideration for my election for another two-year term on the board.
Background: Diane (User: Uncommon_fritillary) is a special collections cataloger for the Smithsonian Libraries in Washington, D.C. She has been editing English Wikipedia and contributing to Wikimedia Commons since 2011, and finds the Wikidata “Mix and Match” tool totally addictive. She has attended Wikimania in Washington D.C. (2012) and in Montreal (2017), Wikiconference USA in New York City (2014), Wikiconference North America in Montreal (2017), and the Wikimedia Conference in Berlin, Germany (2018). She is an enthusiastic supporter of GLAM-Wiki initiatives and enjoys participating in (and sometimes organizing) edit-a-thons at DC area museums. She is looking forward to helping with the recent award of a Knight Foundation grant partnering Wikimedia District of Columbia and the Smithsonian Institution to improve the description of artworks in Wikipedia through crowdsourcing. Diane has served on the board of directors for Wikimedia DC since 2014. She enjoys old books, birding and travel.