New Member Welcome Materials: Local Group Examples

What is a New Member Packets

Ideas of what would go in

Samples:

Tampa Bay Mensa

This is what I put together for Tampa. Needs some more work such as Connect settings that default to not being able to receive messages. . And it is a lot of information.

Hello, this is a publication from Tampa Bay Mensa in response to member requests for information on the various communication methods and sites available to members.  You don’t need to use all of these communication options; any major group information will be sent to you several ways. However, some of these features might enhance your membership experience.

American Mensa Website

American Mensa’s website (https://www.us.mensa.org/) is a good place to start to learn more and connect with other Mensans. This site can be accessed by logging on with your unique member number. After logging in you can navigate to the different parts of the site by selecting options from the drop-down menu pictured below. While I am going to highlight a few uses for this site, I encourage you to get in there and explore as there are many more features than I can detail.

Attend Tab: provides a link to the Events Calendar, including Regional and National events. There’s also a filter for virtual events that are available for you to attend. This is different from our local events calendar on our local website.

Connect Tab: provides links for Mensa Connect (I will give much more information on that later), the member directory, and the Special Interest Group (SIG) listing. If you have a particular interest, then chances are that there is SIG for that. SIGs meet on Mensa Connect, Facebook, or in person depending on how the group organizer sets it up. If you don’t see a SIG for your interest, you can start one if you would like to!

Lead Tab: most folks holding group officer positions will be familiar with this section, which has links to officer reports and other tools.

Learn Tab: has an introduction for new members and gifted youth information.

Read Tab: you can access newsletters from all groups as well as National publications.

Recognize Tab: lists group and individual awards.

Volunteer Tab: gives information on how you can volunteer and provides a space for groups to share their community projects. Mensa is a completely member-driven volunteer organization from the local group up to National officers.

Shop Tab: gives you a site to purchase some Mensa swag.

Play Tab: provides some information on ways to engage with other members in games play.

My Mensa Tab: this is where you can customize some of your communication preferences and make changes to your address, email, phone, or profile. If you don’t want to miss your local group email, be sure your profile is set to ‘ok for local group to email you.’ This is also where you can elect to have the local newsletter delivered electronically or by mail. If you are ok with the electronic version, please consider updating this setting because a huge portion of our share of dues monies are used to print a newsletter for those that want it.

Mensa Connect Mensa Connect is a communication platform provided by American Mensa. As such, it is an official site unlike Facebook. Its purpose is to provide space to engage in conversation and share information. Events can be posted here also. There are numerous subgroups called communities.  Current members are automatically enrolled under their local group’s community as well as the general group.  After you sign in to Mensa Connect using your Mensa credentials, you can browse different communities and request to join ones that interest you. Some are private, such as officer communities, but many are not.

There are two ways to sign in to Mensa Connect, either from the American Mensa website under the Connect Tab or through the MemberCentric application. There are more features available using the web-based version versus the app. On the web-based version, you can log in and select the drop down Participate Tab to get information on using Mensa Connect. One big question folks have is how do I receive notices on postings in my communities? You can choose to have notices sent to your email in real time or daily digest, or you can also decline email and check the communities yourself. The tutorial Q and A explains how to post and reply to conversations. There is also a personal email box feature. So if you reply to a sender rather than a group on a chat, it becomes a private conversation. This is another area where just signing in and exploring will be the best way to learn what the site has to offer.

As Tampa Bay Mensa members, it might be of interest to join the Region 10 Mensa Connect group since events and information from other groups in Florida may be of interest.

Facebook

If you are already a Facebook user, then odds are you are already in the Tampa Bay Mensa Facebook group. If you prefer not to use Facebook, no worries. Any important group information will be provided in multiple ways. Besides the Tampa Bay Mensa group there is also a Region 10 group, Tampa Bay Mensa Bookclub group and American Mensa on Facebook. For our Gifted Youth member parents, we also have a new group for their use, Tampa Bay Mensa Gifted Youth.

Tampa Bay Sounding

Our newsletter is now published every two months, on even months. I know folks are used to using this as their main source for information on group events, but I urge you to check our online calendar on our website (tampabaymensa.org) to be informed of the latest event information. As mentioned earlier, if you would like to change to electronic delivery it would reduce printing expenses for our group. When a new edition is published you can have a notice emailed to you that it is available.  To submit an article to the newsletter, contact editor@tampa.us.mensa.org

Local Group Website

To navigate to our local group website use tampabaymensa.org. You can view the event calendar, look up local group officer listings, read the ExComm minutes or link to the newsletter.

I hope this information is helpful. Keeping our Tampa Bay Mensa members informed and connected is important!

MWM Mensa ( This did not format well from PDF Copy. I can ask Chad if he has as a document or let me see if we can import PDF

The Dummy’s ( ) Guide to Something for Everyone The purpose of this document is to provide you with just a glimpse of the breadth of offerings that Mensa provides, and for you to see that it has something for everyone. Many members regret that they were inactive for their first few years, having joined just to see if they could pass the test, and lament that they didn’t realize earlier how much Mensa has to offer. It is our hope that whether you explore now or later, you realize that there is value for you here; in the forms of friends and community, things to do, or just intellectual stimulation on your own time. The deeper you dive, the more you will discover. Regularly scheduled MWM events: A few of the unique activities that we’ve done recently: New Members Open House (M) Walking tours and city-wide scavenger hunts Saturday Night Party (M) Attended lectures/discussions with experts (RS) Young Adults Trivia Night (W) Escape rooms (RS) Young Adults Brunch (M) Wine festivals and winery trips Young Adults Bar Night (M) Axe throwing Gourmensans (+ other events for foodies) (M) Fused-glass making class Games nights (W) Georgetown GLOW Nationals games (A) Visited a pop-up poutine restaurant Capitals games (A) Many events at the zoo (ZooLights, Brew at the Zoo, etc.) Gifted Youth and Teen SIG activities (M) Karaoke Movie screenings (M) Rocky Horror Picture Show Book club (M) Truffle Factory Tour Classical music night (M) Travel to Las Vegas for a trivia tournament (and fun!) Intro to curling class Key: W=Weekly, M=Monthly, A=Annual, RS=Regularly scheduled event, but not on a set cadence National Events: ● Regional Gathering (RG) - MWM’s RG takes place each summer and is one of the largest in the country. Regional Gatherings are a great place to meet much of the chapter: with full hospitality, speaker tracks, fun meet-and-greets, activities, and a games room. This weekend long event has something for everyone! Book a hotel room, you’re going to want to stay the night. ● Other RGs - Other local groups have their RGs take place throughout the year, and as with ours, many Mensans will travel to the larger ones, such as Snowball in NJ, or WeeM in Chicago. ● Annual Gathering (AG) - The national gathering for American Mensa. This takes place in the summer, and is held in a different city each year. ● Mind Games® - An annual event where Mensans gather for a weekend to play new games being released by game makers, with the chance to judge and provide feedback. ● CultureQuest® - A trivia competition in which teams of up to 5 Mensans simultaneously gather to compete. Ways to get to know people: ● Attend events - There is obviously no better way to meet like-minded people than going to some of our events. This is how most of us build our circles of friends within Mensa! ● Special Interest Groups (SIGs) - SIGs could have been placed in a few sections of this list, as their offerings are diverse and they probably provide more than any other single aspect of Mensa. The American Mensa website aptly refers to them as “the fabric of the rich tapestry of Mensa.” Some SIGs allow you to casually follow a topic of interest and make like-minded friends, while others offer the opportunity to be much more involved, with a few even taking trips together. There are over 140 SIGs covering every imaginable topic, including games, fitness, entertainment, tech, SCUBA diving, travel, dating, generational groups, books, art, aviation, music (and musicals!), health conditions, philosophy, food and drinks, career fields, sports, politics, religion, and much more. ● Volunteer - Whether you organize a picnic, help at the registration desk at an RG, or assist with the Gifted Youth program, volunteering is the best way to meet a large number of Mensans, while simultaneously contributing to the organization as a whole. ● Play games - Mensans LOVE playing games, whether they’re board games or online games. This can be a great way to have fun while encountering new people, and provides a particularly easy environment if you’re a bit introverted. ● SIGHT - SIGHT (Service of Information, Guidance and Hospitality to Travelers) allows Mensans to meet (and even stay with or host) other Mensans while they travel around the country or the world! Communities: ● Facebook groups - Approximately 200 Facebook groups are unofficially or semi-officially associated with Mensa (including Facebook groups for SIGs). These groups are often the best places to meet and connect with others based on an endless array of topics, interests, hobbies, and backgrounds, both broad and specific. ● Mensa Connect - The official Mensa forums platform Ways to follow MWM/American Mensa: ● Benefits and Services - Membership in Mensa provides you with access to various partner benefits, such as discounts on everything from insurance, to travel, to technology. ● Facebook - Join MWM’s Facebook group, DC Area Young Adult Mensa, and DC Gen X Mensa; and follow our page as well as American Mensa’s. Groups are private, so only other people in the group can see you are a member, or what you post. ● Make sure you receive emails - On the website, ensure that you allow your local group to contact you via email, and that you are opted into messages. We don’t send many emails, we promise! ● Capital M (CapM) - MWM’s monthly newsletter has the calendar of events, among other notices, and is always available online. Publications: ● Mensa Bulletin - The national magazine of American Mensa ● Local Group Newsletters - Every local group publishes a newsletter, including ours! ● Mensa Research Journal - The MRJ publishes recent findings on giftedness and intelligence ● Young Mensan Magazine - A magazine just for our youngest members ● Mensa World Journal - The membership magazine for Mensa International ● Email Newsletters - Four different newsletters focusing on the world both inside and outside of Mensa Things to do/know: ● Mensa Foundation - Our philanthropic arm; offering awards, grants, fellowships and gifted youth education (Mensaforkids.org) ● Mensa verification badge - Although many Mensans are modest about their intelligence and membership in Mensa, some like to show proof that they are in fact members. This digital badge allows