IGDA Elections – Michelle Hinn
February 15th, 2010 by Macguffin in UncategorizedIf you’re coming to this post without having seen the lead-in, you can find that post here. It links to all the other assessments I’ve posted. You can also find my disclaimer there – I’m on the Boston IGDA chapter’s board and support the candidacy of Darius Kazemi.
NOTE: Due to emergency surgery and subsequent hospitalization, Michelle was unable to answer the IGDA Q&A or answer the questions raised on this page. I wish her the best with a speedy & complete recovery.
Ms. Hinn has an excellent statement that is, sadly, not backed up by any Q&A. Her career bio paints her as a crusader for accessibility in gaming, a topic that is often completely glossed over or forgotten in many of the games our industry creates. The lack of Q&A, though, is easily overshadowed by Ms. Hinn’s recent resignation from the board of a non-profit.
A bit of digging on the internet uncovered the fact that Ms. Hinn recently resigned from the board of the Able Gamers Foundation ahead of a vote to remove her. The press release for AbleGamers notes that the vote was being called, “for alleged misconduct, conflict of intrest [sic], using AbleGamers limited resources for presonal [sic] gain, and knowing misleading [sic] the board on issues vital to AbleGamers Foundations core mission of forwarding Game Accessibility.” It further notes that the board has accepted her resignation and is considering legal action.
Regardless of the merits of this issue (which I cannot ascertain in the time I have to work on this), this sort of thing must be addressed.
Questions for Ms. Hinn:
- Why run for the board now?
- Can you explain the Able Gamers situation?
- Given the controversy outlined above, how do you justify your running for the board with those issues unresolved?
- When can we expect your Q&A to be posted to the IGDA site?
- What do you think the IGDA’s role in the industry-wide Quality of Life discussions should be?
- What are you bringing to the table here that makes you a better candidate than the other nominees?
- Do you think the IGDA’s dependence on studio sponsorships for money is a bad thing? If yes, what will you do to begin changing this? If no, why not?
Tags: igda
February 19th, 2010 at 6:53 pm
Whoa, I had no idea. I know Michelle Hinn personally and she’s always been a wonderful person. I also know Mark Bartlet of AbleGamers personally. I’ve emailed Michelle Hinn asking if she plans on rebuting Mark’s claims.
February 24th, 2010 at 11:36 am
I am not sure there is anything to rebut Reid, the press release is a statement of fact and I have gone to great lengths to not publish or openly discuss the merits of the case beyond the press release in order to save what little credibility I believe she has left in the game accessibility movement.
As a 501(c)(3) public charity the AbleGamers Foundation is required to publish board changes and reasons (even if we spell every other word incorrectly). The fact is we will be paying for the situation that she left of in for years to come, and it is only by the kindness of a few others that her stunt did not force us to end our mission outright.
As an IGDA member, and a leader in the game accessibility movement, as well as the President of one of the few nonprofits that make game accessibility our mission, I DO NOT support Michelle Hinn for IGDA board and urge others to do the same. I now have an open question about her commitment to game accessibility beyond that of talk and her list of accomplishments to that cause are dated at best. The IGDA would best be served by another person.