Membership
To become a member, you must:
Attend a scheduled tour of the makerspace;
Be sponsored by an existing member;
Attend a scheduled orientation meeting;
Read and understand the Standing Rules;
Complete and submit the online Membership Application;
Memberships Plans:
Full Membership rights and obligations
Access to the Space to work on projects either on your own or in collaboration with other Members.
Permission to bring up to three (3) guests who shall remain under the control of the Member.
Any and all guest are required to have a signed waiver on file.
The Member accepts full responsibility for their guests’ actions.
Use of all community tools and equipment within the space, subject to restrictions applicable to specific tools as noted in the Space.
Reduced fees to certain workshops and events (not including the cost of parts, supplies, etc.).
1 vote per membership
Membership may include immediate family members living at the same address, together a "Member".
Requires 2 volunteer hours per month
Considered Regular member class
Associate Membership rights and obligations
Access to the Space to work on projects either on your own or in collaboration with other Members when the space is open.
Permission to bring a (1) guest who shall remain under the control of the Member.
The guest is required to have a signed waiver on file.
The Member accepts full responsibility for their guests actions.
Use of all community tools and equipment within the space, subject to restrictions applicable to specific tools as noted in the Space.
1 vote per membership
Requires 2 volunteer hours per month
Considered Regular member class
Complimentary Membership rights and obligations
Limited to a total of 5 for the organization
Free or discounted memberships classify as Complimentary Memberships
Term = 3 months
Requires submission of application which shall include statements of (i) Need of the applicant and (ii) how Makersmiths will benefit from granting the applicant a complimentary membership
Application is approved by a majority vote of the Board of Directors
Term is renewable but requires reapplication and approval by the majority of the Board of Directors at each renewal term.
The Board of Directors is authorized the flexibility to require volunteer hours, teaching of classes, etc. as a condition of the approval of membership application and any renewal
Key to space issued
Use of all community tools and equipment within the space, subject to restrictions applicable to specific tools as noted in the Space
Access to the Space to work on projects either on your own or in collaboration with other Members
Permission to bring a (1) guest who shall remain under the control of the Member. The Complimentary Member accepts full responsibility for any of their guest’s actions
Reduced fees to certain workshops and events (not including the cost of parts, supplies, etc.).
Required 5 volunteer hours per month but subject to upward adjustment by Board
No voting rights
Considered Supporting member class
Honorary Membership rights and obligations
Limited to a total of 10 for the organization
Are just that, Honorary, and are intended for persons in positions like Mayor, Town Counsel, Member of Congress, high profile community members, etc.
Term of 1 year
No key or access to space
Honorary Membership is given by majority vote of the Board of Directors
No voting rights
Considered Supporting member class
Corporate Membership rights and obligations
Corporations pay $5K or more for 10 revolving memberships
All the same rights and obligations as Full Membership
1 vote for the Corporate Membership
Membership Dues:
Dues for each month must be paid by the 15th of the Membership renewal date. New Associate Members must sign up as a monthly recurring membership. Members who fail to pay their dues by the deadline are granted one 14-day grace period before their membership is suspended. Membership fees are non-refundable. Currently available plans are:
Member Plan | Monthly | 6 Months | 12 Months |
---|---|---|---|
Full | $100 | $600 | $1200 |
Associate | $50 | n/a | n/a |
Complimentary | n/a | n/a | n/a |
Honorary | n/a | n/a | n/a |
Corporate | $500 | $2500 | $5000 |
*Note: Discounts for 6 and 12 month memberships were terminated pursuant to Board action on January 29, 2020.
Termination of Membership
A membership shall terminate if any of the following events happen:
The Member resigns by providing notice in writing;
The membership term expires and is not renewed;
The Member fails to pay dues, fees, or assessments within 14 days after they are due and payable;
An event occurs that renders the Member ineligible for membership, or the Member is no longer able to satisfy membership qualifications, or does not maintain the responsibilities of membership;
The Board makes a good faith determination that the Member has materially failed to observe the rules of conduct of the Space, or has engaged in conduct prejudicial to Makersmiths purposes and interests. In the event that the Board terminates a membership, the Member shall return any keys issued to them and all other Makersmiths property immediately.
Many makerspaces use MIBS Simplified Rules of Coordinated Consensus through Chaos (MIBS SRC3) as the procedure to handling meetings. Version 1.0 was written by Nick Farr of HacDC who said it best when he stated: “MIBS SRC3 is designed for people who hate meetings, generally get along pretty well, but can sometimes get pretty opinionated and obstinate about thorny issues AND tend to ramble on at length. This process is designed to bring drama down to a manageable level.”
Makersmith will closely follow the MIBS SRC3 format as the standard procedure for handling.
The meetings of the Board of Directors will be held on the last Wednesday of each calendar month from 7:00PM to 8:00PM in the Leesburg space.
The Annual Meeting of the Board of Director will be held on the last Wednesday of June from 7:00PM to 8:00PM in the Leesburg space.
The Regular Meetings of the Membership will be held on the first Wednesday of each calendar month from 7:30PM to 8:30PM ish in the Leesburg space.
The first 10 minutes of any Membership Meeting will be dedicated to cleaning the space.
Committees are voluntary groups, formed by members in order to achieve certain goals.
New Member Orientation Committee (Chairperson John Dubelko)
No reimbursements, regardless of amount, are made to members without documented approval by the majority of the Board and the Treasurer that is obtained prior to the date of purchase. Any purchases for equipment, goods or services made without prior approval will be considered a donation for which a tax donation receipt will be issued.
Makersmiths does NOT generally supply consumables such as material for your project, nails, glue, 3D printer medium, etc There may be some left behind and appropriately marked by other members, but please respect the rules associated with this equipment. Pay it forward.
The freebie shelf is maintained by the appropriate space's Facility Committee's Chairperson, who may implement additional processes in the interest of safety and orderly operation of the freebie shelf /bin.
All personal tools, supplies or equipment that are not stored in a member storage bin must have prior approval by the appropriate space's Facility Committee's Chairperson before being stored. Anything left in a non-member storage area that has not been approved by this method will be disposed of in the following manor:
Anyone can teach/host a class at Makersmiths as long as they have the passion and knowledge to share with the community.
Instructors are encouraged to “pay it forward” and not take compensation for teaching. However, Instructors that would like to be compensated for teaching classes should follow these guidelines:
Examples:
The member is allowed one 17-gallon storage bin which will be placed on the member storage rack in the basement of Royal St. or TBD at Purcellville.
Makersmiths and it's officers and agents acknowledge that valuable intellectual property rights may be created by persons using its facilities, and disclaims any and all rights to that intellectual property.
Makersmiths recommends that Intellectual property rights be clarified and memorialized in writing by persons working together at its facilities so as to clearly distinguish between the project creator (the owner) and persons who merely assist in routine work (the helpers) to advance the project.