Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

Summary:

First time for everything

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Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

torcsandantlers 28 May 2023 23:52

Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

Mainsite Mirror

See Promotions-Policy for how promotions are to be handled.

This discussion is open to all staff. Please feel free to leave your thoughts. This is NOT a voting post.

Rules and Decorum:

This thread exists to allow commentary and criticism on candidates as candidates. All comments should be addressing one of the following:

• Concern or support for a candidate's ability to perform their duties after promotion.
• Concern or support for a candidate's character only in so far as it will affect their ability to perform their duties or their standing as staff.

What is not allowed in this thread:

• General complaints that you don't like a candidate for reasons that would not effect their ability to perform their duties.
• Comments that contain neither concern nor support for any candidate. A totally neutral stance does not need commented.
• Vehemence, rudeness, and incivility. While this is a place to post concerns, it is not a place to attack candidates.

Replies to comments are allowed but not required. Any user may respond to any concerns or support, including the candidate in question. All of the same rules apply to replies.

Staff will be monitoring this thread and will issue orders to stop discussion only if they have passed into unproductive vehemence. Staff will remove any comments that are extremely rule-breaking.

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This discussion will be open for two weeks. After which time it will move to a staff vote.

Operational Staff Candidates:

Below is a group of suggestions regarding Junior Staff who Team Captains have nominated to be voted upwards to Operational Staff. Please read the commentary provided in order to help your judgement regarding these staff.

Junior Staff Member:	Aftokrator
Captain/Team:	MAST (Deadly Bread & torcsandantlers)
Why:	Aftokrator has been a consistent and conscientious member of staff for nearly a year and a half now. They maintain and regularly prune 6 collaborative pages, assist with tagging (notably the mass tag changes in Oct '22), they are quick to bring rule-breaking behavior to the notice of staff as a whole, and they're quick to act to revert problematic changes on pages. But they haven't allowed this quickness to compromise their judgement. They've proven themselves to be trustworthy and a good worker.
Optional areas of improvement:	N/A
Junior Staff Member:	AriadnesThread
Captain/Team:	Discord (Cassandra_Prime does not match any existing user name, gee0765, LadyKatie, Yossipossi)
Why:	A very productive and active member of the team since joining in all aspects. Typically very constructive in staff discussions. Very on top of what's going on in the server with an eye for details. Additionally Ari shows interest in, and offers assistance on staff matters beyond the scope of what is expected of a Junior Moderator on the team.
Optional areas of improvement:	We'd like to see you show more self-confidence in your abilities.
Junior Staff Member:	AstersQuill
Captain/Team:	Discord Critique (Pedagon)
Why:	Aster is a welcoming and well known face on discord in the critique channels and beyond, although their reason for deserving a promotion extends far beyond these aspects. Beyond being an exceptional, active critter, Aster has a particular fascination with policy and doing anything they can to improve the way critique is approached and maintained on discord. I added Aster to the Discord Critique team in February, so this is a very fast promotion, but since joining the team they have revolutionized the way we tag idea and draft threads, took it upon themself to implement many new initiatives effectively and efficiently, and have proposed many other ideas to improve the effectiveness of the team - which they will be empowered to do once made OS. AstersQuill will make for a fantastic OS as the ability to vote on new policy will work with their strengths while also serving to support their growth of writing new policy.
Optional areas of improvement:	AstersQuill is an extremely reflective person so I invited them to propose their own areas of growth: "I do feel like I need to grow in regard to time management and actually situational skills. There are many times I've noticed myself getting too "excited" and massively overblowing a situation in my head to the point that I take the time to step away to cool down. Time management is also another issue that I need to work on but my schedule is so fluid right now that I'm doing my best to just be active when I can." Despite these moments, Aster has been one of our most active critters and, through conversations as a team and 1-on-1, has grown a lot in their ability to match actions to situations. From my perspective, Aster's greatest area of growth is to be willing to take a step back and fill a more supportive role guiding other staff to be just as active. This is something that being an OS would allow them to do effectively, and they have already shared plans of how they would do so.
Junior Staff Member:	AvocadoMilk
Captain/Team:	Discord (Cassandra_Prime does not match any existing user name, gee0765, LadyKatie, Yossipossi)
Why:	AvocadoMilk has been an active member of the Discord Team even before its officialization, having initially joined June 2022. AvocadoMilk received an internal promotion from Junior Mod to Moderator within the team in November of 2022. AvocadoMilk often responds to situations quickly, and has displayed experienced knowledge of our procedures. Avocado has also been involved in policy concerning the team, as well as assisting with records.
Optional areas of improvement:	N/A
Junior Staff Member:	basirskipreader
Captain/Team:	Licensing (Naepic)
Why:	Basir has done a fair amount of quiet work on Licensing. Between the usual licensing work of image verification and licenseboxing, xe is also a helpful presence in IRC and the discord, willing to help answer questions when I'm not around Xe's work offsite is also admirable. Basir's sandbox can be found here: http://scpdsandbox.wikidot.com/basircv
Optional areas of improvement:	My understanding is that xe has linetoed on 19cord's rules a number of times. I think the biggest thing for xem to learn is how their actions reflect on xe as well as staff, and hope xe can learn to coordinate/cooperate better with people outside of just licensing.
Junior Staff Member:	EmotionalEntropy
Captain/Team:	Discord (Cassandra_Prime does not match any existing user name, gee0765, LadyKatie, Yossipossi)
Why:	Has gone above and beyond their station as a Junior Moderator. In addition to regular moderation duties Em has often taken the initiative in matters such as porting ban lists, and has been engaged with policy (having offered opinions on an in the works guidelines document and worked on a policy proposal relevant to the team) as well as displaying leadership qualities such as organizing moderators discussing disciplinary action in such a way as to be most productive.
Optional areas of improvement:	It's been said before, but be careful not to burn yourself out. Step away at times you feel you should.
Junior Staff Member:	fairydoctor
Captain/Team:	Discord (Cassandra_Prime does not match any existing user name, gee0765, LadyKatie, Yossipossi)
Why:	Has consistently been a productive member of the Discord team since joining. Often seeks out second opinions and is very attentive rather than jumping in head first. Also, while not directly a duty of the Discord Team it is notable that Fairydoctor has been actively engaged in work on the Discord's Reading Club, an initiative within the server which many enjoy and which has overall been a positive contribution to the server.
Optional areas of improvement:	Feel free to step away at times if you need to
Junior Staff Member:	Fishish
Captain/Team:	Discord (Cassandra_Prime does not match any existing user name, gee0765, LadyKatie, Yossipossi)
Why:	Fishish has been an active member of the Discord Team even before its officialization, having initially joined in early 2022. Fish received an internal promotion from Junior Mod to Moderator within the team in June of 2022. Fishish has an eye for nuance, and has multiple times brought up previously missed details or an alternate perspective that have changed how we ended up handling a moderation action, even when the majority was prior set on an alternative course.
Optional areas of improvement:	While it is important that moderators engage with the Discord's users we should ensure that we retain a level of professionalism and a behavioral standard above and beyond what is expected of our users. In some spaces it is common and acceptable to use mod powers to create joke roles or do brief mutes, and this isn't perceived as harmful, however the Discord is not one of those spaces. We've already spoken about that, and we trust you will improve, but it is worth reiterating.
Junior Staff Member:	frystavirki
Captain/Team:	Discord (Cassandra_Prime does not match any existing user name, gee0765, LadyKatie, Yossipossi)
Why:	frystavirki is reliably good about knowing and following established procedure as well as displaying decent forethought, checking in about potential issues or what our policy is on certain matters before they become a problem.
Optional areas of improvement:	N/A
Junior Staff Member:	Guaire
Captain/Team:	MAST (Deadly Bread & torcsandantlers)
Why:	Guaire has been a productive member of MAST for about 10 months now. Their tagging work is both accurate and frequent, and they're vigilant in checking recently tagged pages to correct misstags. Also, while this is a strange double-team sub-team, their work in license-boxing has been prolific and of a high quality. They're a consistent voice in staff conversations, and they're a powerhouse of staff work.
Optional areas of improvement:	N/A
Junior Staff Member:	Kufat
Captain/Team:	Tech (aismallard & stormbreath)
Why:	Kufat was previously Junior Staff on the Technical Team, and since rejoining has continued to do important developmental work for the site. As many know, he maintains the SkipIRC network where the site has some official channels, and more recently he has been working on the VIP Lounge to make chat connectivity more accessible and featureful. He is an even-handed person who takes both technical maintenance and social inclusion seriously, and overall is an asset to site staff.
Optional areas of improvement:	N/A
Junior Staff Member:	RosySaturniidae
Captain/Team:	Discord (Cassandra_Prime does not match any existing user name, gee0765, LadyKatie, Yossipossi)
Why:	Rosy has been an active member of the Discord Team even before its officialization, having initially joined June 2022. Rosy received an internal promotion from Junior Mod to Moderator within the team in November of 2022. Rosy is reliably good about knowing and following established procedure, and ensuring that we follow through with concluding moderation discussions, both of which are deceptively important to ensuring the smooth running of discplinary procedures. Rosy has also engaged with general staff discussion regarding general staff matters.
Optional areas of improvement:	N/A
Junior Staff Member:	The_Spider_Queen
Captain/Team:	Licensing (Naepic)
Why:	Kara has been doing staffwork longer than xer addition to today's Licensing team would suggest. Xe's body of work is enormous, and xe seemed to be capable of handling just about any staff team xe joined. Currently, I have assigned Kara a large-scale project involving addressing 4.0 images and while it has not gotten off the ground yet, the plans xe has discussed with me are fairly comprehensive and would benefit from xe leading it from an OS standpoint. Xe's sandbox of work is here: http://scp-sandbox-3.wikidot.com/karablue-staff-box-o-doom
Optional areas of improvement:	Ideally, i'd like to see xem contribute a little more to site policy discussion.

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Administrator Candidates:

Below is a group of suggestions regarding an Operational Staff member who the Administrator Team has nominated to be voted upwards to Administrator. Please read the commentary provided in order to help your judgement regarding these staff.

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Staff Member:	Pedagon
Captain/Team:	Admin Team
Why:	As captain of Discord Crit, Pedagon quickly organized it into an effective team, having worked in tandem with the Discord Team to ensure that his team and the crit channels are as effecient as possible but also to ensure that their time is not wasted. Some ways in which he has done so is creating the Moth Squad (the Discord's variant of the Butterfly Squad), gateing the channels so that they are only accessible to site members, coordination to create a licensing-help channel as well as other efforts. Pedagon is knowledgeable and has a unique perspective in terms of staff's functions in both a policy and personnel aspect.
Optional areas of improvement:	N/A
Staff Member:	torcsandantlers
Captain/Team:	Admin Team
Why:	torcs displays very close familiarity with our policies and policymaking in general. torcs has been involved with multiple policy efforts such as changes to our promotions procedure. In their policy efforts torcs is meticulous, open to feedback and willing to adapt accordingly. As captain of MAST torcs has kept MAST running smoothly despite the turbulent changes in MAST captaincy these past months, seeking to keep the various subteams running smoothly with a clear vision for MAST's future. torcsandantlers is also a member of the Disciplinary Team. Notably, torcsandantlers was the primary staff member responsible for the official discussion and eventual vote regarding the deletion of "The List of Things Dr Bright Is Not Allowed To Do At The Foundation" getting community and feedback on proposals for dealing with the list, narrowing those down, crafting those policies into something workable, designing the mechanics around the community vote, tallying the results, and designing the new voted upon pages. This hot button issue was carried out smoothly and procedural, which occurred without any significant issues. Their steady hand in a matter like this is the kind of thing the admin team looks for in candidates.
Optional areas of improvement:	N/A

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EDIT:
On May 30th, we were informed by the Admin team via DrBleep that Naepic wished to withdraw their candidacy for promotion, because of this Naepic's candidate blurb has been removed. No edits have been made to the comments, so any made before the time of this edit may reference him as a candidate.
On June 5th, we were informed by the Discord Team via Cassandra_Prime does not match any existing user name that Jjed (account deleted) was being withdrawn as a candidate for promotion, because of this Jjed's candidate blurb has been removed. No edits have been made to the comments, so any made before the time of this edit may reference her as a candidate.

Last edited on 11 Jun 2023 17:28 by torcsandantlers Show more

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

divinephobia 01 Jun 2023 20:35

I've already expressed my thoughts on the mainsite, but I might as well do it here as well. Here are the users that I feel I can speak on.

AriadnesThread - Support. Outstanding, showstopping, breathtaking, and honestly quite incredible. Ari has been a wonderful member of the discord staff since I've been part of it, though it hasn't been all that long. She's great at creating a welcoming environment and good at assessing situations as to when to put the hammer down.

AstersQuill - Support. Always on top of things when it comes to crit moderation. Incredibly observant and enthusiastic to participate in the community. I worry slightly that they might burn themself out if given more responsibilities, but I trust that they will find a balance.

AvocadoMilk - Against, hesitantly. Not the most active, and when I see this user around, they are generally not doing anything. Maybe it's simply a matter of not being around at the same time, but I still stand by this.

basirskipreader - Against. Sorry, but I'd just be incredibly concerned when it comes to xer behavior and how xe acts, particularly in the discord. I know my opinion doesn't hold much weight regarding this, but I'd always be cautious about promoting anyone who has consistently walked the line between breaking the rules in a staff-run space.

EmotionalEntropy - Support. Em is very lovely and great at keeping things in check, as well as very active on the discord! As others have expressed though, I do get a little worried that they might burn themself out.

fairydoctor - Support. Outstanding mod and community member, very firm when necessary, and I fully trust their judgment in just about any situation.

Guaire - Support. While my only real experience with Guaire has been within the discord, I've heard nothing but glowing reviews regarding his work with licensing and tagging.

Pedagon - Support. Very organized, very involved, and in-tune with the community's needs, and has done a wonderful job with managing the discord crit channels. I believe his input to be valuable and it'd be a net positive for everyone for them to be promoted to admin.

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

torcsandantlers 12 Jun 2023 00:03

This discussion is closed and promotions have moved to a staff vote. Thank you for your input!

Last edited on 12 Jun 2023 11:18 by torcsandantlers Show more

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

HarryBlank 29 May 2023 02:05

I wish particularly to highlight all three admin candidates for their hard work and suitability for promotion. Naepic has handled a very difficult situation as the new Licensing Captain with admirable humility and energy, and I consider him one of the most conscientious members of staff. I feel similarly about Pedagon, who has demonstrated for several years now a dedication to transparent and fair staff operations under extraordinarily difficult circumstances both personal and on-wiki. I've watched the way staff conduct their activities improve tremendously over the past months, and a lot of that is down to Dagon's willingness to stand up for principles. I know both of these candidates have the best interests of our writing community at heart, and trust them fully. They have my unqualified support. I am also pleased to see torcs nominated, as they are one of the most diligent and omnipresent members of staff and have proven capable of handling advanced responsibilities with grace. I could not be more on board with these picks.

I consider Afto, fairydoctor, Fishish, Guaire, Rosy and The_Spider_Queen to be active, engaged staff members whose efforts can safely be rewarded with more responsibilities. I am confident in basir's capabilities as well, though I would encourage them to calm the fuck down a bit in general. In an alternate sense I'd say the same about EmotionalEntropy, as it's hard to keep up that level of investment over the long term without significant burnout. Step back when you need to, please, both of you!

Kufat has been a steadying and positive contributor to staffchat over the past few months, and a promotion is absolutely deserved.

Those are the members I can confidently speak on. I'll be familiarizing myself with the activities of the other candidates over the next little while.

Last edited on 29 May 2023 02:07 by HarryBlank Show more

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

Uncle Nicolini 29 May 2023 14:42

Afto is a hard worker and is active enough to justify promotion. Support.

AriadnesThread is a busy bee on the discord server and I see them enough. Support.

AstersQuill is a powerhouse of discord crit and handles so many thread managements its unreal. Dont forget to take care of yourself. Support.

AvocadoMilk… I have no idea what you do. I rarely see you, and when I do, it's not been ideal. Can't say I support this candidate.

Basirskipreader has been quietly working behind the scenes in licensing for a long time now, and I think its about time we reward xem with a promotion. Support.

EmotionalEntropy is good at their job, though I fear they are going to burn out since they're very obviously burning the candle at both ends. Chill out, please! Otherwise, support.

Fairydoctor is constantly working on the discord to make it a better place. Just don't be afraid to disengage if a troll is getting to you. Support.

Fishish is one of the most active mods on the discord, something that I am sure has earned him the trust of many users. However, I do hear there is concern regarding Fishish's behavior at times, but I am unfamiliar with that. Withholding full support until I can familiarize myself with this issue, but until then I do soft support him. After talking to Cassandra about this I feel more confident throwing my support behind Fishish.

Frystavirki is another candidate I rarely see, but that may be time zone related. No idea. I'm sure you're good, but I can't support someone I don't know.

Guaire is too humble for his own good, he should have been promoted last round. Full support.

JjEd is alright, though I have never interacted with them. They do good work on the discord. Support. After recalling the incident Ori mentioned below, I can no longer support jJed.

Kufat is good. Deserves the promotion. Full support.

RosySaturniidae does good work for discord team. Not much to say here other than I support them.

The_Spider_Queen will probably kill me if I dont support xer, and then Naepic too. So I support xer.¹

Naepic has been doing admin-level work for a while now. I fully support his promotion and wish him well.

Pedagon has similarily been doing admin-level work for some time now and deserves a promotion. Full support.

Torcsandantlers has also been doing admin-level work for a minute now and deserves a bigger office. Full support.

Footnotes

1. Really though, they have historically done very good work on Licensing and have kept Site-34 alive ever since we mostly migrated from IRC.

Last edited on 30 May 2023 19:24 by Uncle Nicolini Show more

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

OriTiefling 30 May 2023 17:47

Afto- Your activity is consistent and speaks for itself. Your work is impressive and I've appreciated your presence in the crit world. Support.

Ari- Your even keeled temperament is something this team needs. I would like to see you participate in more staffchat discussions, because your viewpoints are super helpful. Support.

Aster- Like I told Dagon, you're more than deserving of this promo. Consistent activity combined with a good head on your shoulders makes you an excellent candidate. Support.

AvocadoMilk- I don't actually agree with the assessment that you're active. Like Nico above said, I rarely see you around the Discord and when you are present, I'm not amazingly impressed with your judgement nor maturity. Against

Basir- Basir you're a great person and I appreciate you as a friend, but your behavior in public spaces has been questionable at best and actionable at worst. Like Harry said, you need to calm down. Until that happens, unfortunately I am Against

Em- I have to echo the burnout concerns. You put your whole self into the things you do, which is great from a passion standpoint but bad from a "this user is going to burn out from being overinvested in everything" perspective. I can Support, but I do caution you to focus your energy on less things overall!

Fairy- Like Nico said, you're prone to letting trolls and bad faith actors get to you. Take a breather and disengage when it feels personal. That said, I can Support.

Fishish- For the love of God calm down please. I trust your moderation abilities, but there have been multiple instances where you've toed the line yourself. I can Support at this time, but please think before engaging certain topics and users.

Fryst- I do actually see you around, definitely later at night. Your judgement is sound and your work is good, so Support.

Guaire- You weren't promoted already? Weird. Support.

JjEd- I do not trust your judgement or maturity. During the recent issues with an AHT banned user, your decision to vehemently support the user and come into staffchat with angry accusations instead of taking the time to try and understand the situation served to do little beyond cause problems. This combined with issues regarding maturity in public spaces leads me to be Against your promotion.

Kufat- You've been a long trusted staff confidant. Support.

Rosy- I feel as if your activity has been inconsistent, but overall you display good judgement. Support.

Spider- I'll be honest and say I don't really know who you are, but the body of work displayed here and the support you're getting from other people whose judgement I trust means that I feel ok with a Support.

Naepic- Consistent, reliable, and helped admin through the Licensing Team captain transition. Support.

Pedagon- You have an excellent head on your shoulders and helped form something remarkable from the once struggling Discord crit team. Support.

Torcs- Listen, anyone who can navigate the Bright List discussion like that deserves to be paid irl. Support.

Last edited on 30 May 2023 18:03 by OriTiefling Show more

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

psychicprogrammer 01 Jun 2023 18:16

In full agreement with everything Ori has said here.

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

Pedagon 31 May 2023 01:23

Afto- Beyond what ori and your captains of MAST already said, you are also a consistent and kind member of many SCP related communities. I see you joking along with both users and staff, which is not a requirement but does speak to your membership of the wiki as a holistic space and shows why you belong to be in the members who curate it beyond your daily work. Since I don’t believe that anyone has N/A areas of growth, however, I would suggest that you get involved more with policy conversations and things impacting other teams. I have seen how smart you are and I know you have great ideas in general, so I would love to see them be brought into staff spaces more often. Support.

Ari- You are a kind and supportive member of the discord community as well as staff in general. You bring a soft but experienced and thoughtful voice to the work I have seen you do that is very much needed among the group that manages 19cord sometimes. You do however need to own your voice as an OS as you will be viewed as a mentor to JS and I sometimes worry about if staff is impacting your life positively with how often I see you alerting the discord team about needing to step away or take longer breaks. Remember that you are a volunteer here and you do not owe anyone an explanation beyond being around or not. Support.

Aster- I already said so much about Aster that I don’t feel I can really add much more. So I’m gonna do it anyway. Aster is a fantastic member of the Discord Critique Team and has changed so much of the way the team operates even just as JS. You have been involved in creating policy, improving the discord just because you wanted to try something, and all while still giving amazing critique. I say it a lot and I think you take it as a joke, but you are well on your way to becoming a crit captain soon and I bet an admin after that. But remember that nobody is an island and you dont need to do everything yourself. As an OS I hope we can get you into more of a support role to the rest of the team in any way you want (or not. It’s up to you). Support.

AvocadoMilk- Like ori said above, I rarely see you around and, when I do, you tend to be contributing to the issues going on or just letting things happen. Additionally, I have had to warn you about jumping into critique staff spaces and weighing in despite it being in our own private channels and clearly being a critique staff situation. One of the minimum things I look for when voting on OS promotions is the ability to recognize limitations and acknowledge boundaries that they just aren’t qualified for or invited into. Just because you have access to something, such as channels due to moderator roles, doesn’t mean you should feel entitled to use it as you wish. And I know this might sound like I’m just being a grumpy jerk, but when it comes to being an OS and being given access to things or placed in a mentorship role, I just don’t feel like you are ready to be trusted. We already have had issues in the past with staff feeling entitled to negatively use features we thought they could be trusted with or who jump into things without thinking (like voting on deletions without actually checking) and we don’t need more people who would probably do those kinds of things. Against.

Basir- I agree with both Harry and Ari here even though I really want to vote for you. However, I want to add something else in my reasoning here because, in addition to what has already been said, I have had multiple people come to me expressing discomfort or just annoyance at the ways you engage in the 19cord critique channels. More specifically, I have had some users express a specific discomfort with some of the comments you have made directly because they saw your staff role and assumed you were saying things officially or worrying them about the views of staff. And while I have your back and explained these situations to the users to clarify, making there be no need for an official warning or anything, I do feel like your conduct and way you represent staff in some of the things you say are enough to make me oppose your promotion for now. So for this round, Against.

Em- I have asked you to join my A-Team on Seminars so I obviously have faith in you as staff. I do want to echo the burnout concerns though as well as just your need to save everyone. Remember that the wiki won’t die out if something gets missed or you hand things over to another person. And similarly, telling someone you aren’t the right person to report things to or telling someone you need to disengage are always accepted. I want you to be on staff a long time and I worry you’re on a path to resenting the wiki completely. Support anyway.

Fairy- If Discord Team had told me they were nominating you I would have loved to put in a good word as your captain of Discord Critique. You do great work and some mighty fine critique, but you need to learn to disengage sometimes. I love that you put your entire heart into everything you do, but high blood pressure isn’t a great attribute for when you are being considered for a promotion to getting even more responsibility. Please reflect on what drives you as staff and what parts are detrimental to your life, then burn them. Hesitant but vocal Support.

Fishish- Supporting because I know you do fantastic work and are a great person who would really benefit policy and promotion decisions on staff so OS would be a fitting level for you to have, but my god please cut it out with the meme moderating. 19cord is not a place where we need moderators who treat the role as a joke or like to jokingly do things like meme roles or meme mutes. 19cord should be a welcoming place and if I had joined and seen mods abuse their access like that I probably would have left as a new user. You are teetering on the same edge as I said for Avocado but just happen to have Humpty Dumpty’d your way onto the right side.

Fryst- I have nothing really to say because you don’t cause problems and I don’t run into you much. This is both your reason why I am Supporting and an area of growth for you. Don’t be afraid to make ripples in the pond. Being OS is about having a bigger voice on how the wiki functions and speaking up so I’d love to see you more actively causing problems.

Guaire- Similar to Fishish and AvocadoMilk, tone it down on the meme moderation. I know you deserve this promotion and are a phenomenal member of the wiki community (and dinosaur lover so I have to Support obviously) but please dont get sucked into the actions of moderators who think they can abuse access to moderation tools as a joke. Making the tools we use to protect users into a joke only makes users feel like we will treat their serious use unseriously.

JjEd- Copying Ori because I think it needs to be said twice: “I do not trust your judgement or maturity. During the recent issues with an AHT banned user, your decision to vehemently support the user and come into staffchat with angry accusations instead of taking the time to try and understand the situation served to do little beyond cause problems.” Similarly to this, I have also seen you publicly support the actions of prior staff who abused their access even beyond the user ori mentioned. Additionally, you frequently pop into conversations to answer questions incorrectly rather than defer to the obvious, proper people as well as intrude upon Discord Critique Staff spaces. For all these reasons I am extremely Against.

Kufat- I was a massive dick to you but I have been shown the light. You are a very personable and kind member of the wiki staff as I have come to know you in 19cord and staffchat. You have also publicly acknowledged having grown since [history not included] and that ability to acknowledge change and reflect is something that you demonstrate consistently and I respect a lot about you. Massive Support with all my heart.

Rosy- Honestly I see you around but I don’t associate you with your work as staff. This might be because I am just not very perceptive or maybe it’s your activity levels ori mentioned. Right now I would Abstain but before the vote I will familiarize myself with the work you do and reassess. I’d also love if you reached out and chatted to me in case you think I’m just a blind idiot for not noticing all you do.

Spider- You’ve been on staff forever and you deserve the promotion so I am giving a big Support. I don’t see your work because Licensing was a blackbox until very recently but your captain is someone who only trusts good people.

Pedagon- I was really surprised to see the reasons given for my nomination and the N/A for my areas of growth so I’m gonna write my own. The reasons I think I was actually nominated, beyond what HarryBlank already said and what is in my blurb, are my commitment to transparency, communication, and accountability as well as my willingness to say the difficult things that need be said and my proclivity to doing things once and doing them right that first time. Additionally, as a captain I also have a demonstrated ability to emphasize mentorship, collaboration, and overall supporting other staff as they learn how to engage with policy and improvements to things like the Discord Critique Team expectations. Additionally, my areas of growth that I can be extremely direct and sometimes it crosses a line into pure violence if the moment is wrong (im so so sorry cassandra_prime does not match any existing user name and others who have gotten caught in the crossfire), I can be very slow in reviewing things because I don't like to give half thoughts, and I can be quite quick to respond to things if i see them going down bad paths (which can sometimes halt conversations or make people feel like they are doing bad things or that i hate them apparently). These are all things though that I believe I can continue to work on in the Admin role and that I have demonstrated my commitment to working on in the past. Vote Pedagon

Torcs- Torcs is honestly a powerhouse on staff through both daily tasks and policy. I don’t really have much to say for torcs though because our paths rarely cross outside of the promotions stuff and seeing the announcements pop up frequently of new major events and policies you have stuck your hands into. I hope to see more of you once you become an admin because I bet I could learn a lot from you in my captain roles as I seek to support my own staff in learning to do policy as effectively as you do. Support.

Last edited on 31 May 2023 01:29 by Pedagon Show more

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

LORDXVNV 01 Jun 2023 01:07

Aftokrator - Yes. You're cool and all as a person. I think the community likes you. I figure your work is less visible because collab logs don't get actively posted often but if the people who you work for say you're doing it I trust that you are.

AriadnesThread - yes. You're a good mod for 19cord and overall a kind person in my opinion. I would trust you with power.

AstersQuill — Yes. This is coming from a balance of how I've seen you work in 19cord and Dagon's endorsement but I would trust you to make decisions pertaining to the site as a whole.

AvocadoMilk - No. Aside from what Ori and Dagon have already mentioned, AvocadoMilk has a serious and concerning blind spot when it comes to NSFW content which in my opinion is actively hindering their ability to moderate a large public Discord server but would also be quite unsuitable for a website with age gates. To my recollection, other staffers have had to ping AvocadoMilk more than once to explain why a NSFW concept was inappropriate for the server.

also: in the course of typing this up I became aware of yet another incident of unwarranted early lenience happening as I was thinking it through. And I know AvocadoMilk isn't adverse to asking for help/guidance when they know they're unaware of things - will describe if asked by other staffers - so I really don't understand why this blind spot is a thing. But it's really very concerning and I can't in good conscience support handing AvocadoMilk more power.

I will describe these incidents with specific detail should others on staff ask.

Note that I don't think this blind spot is out of malice — if it was, I wouldn't be describing here.

basirskipreader — I feel I would likely abstain unfortunately. You've done good work and lots of work and I definitely consider you a friend, but I'm torn between two poles here. On one hand we just got out of a position where a licensing team member got away with more than they should've in public spaces because their work was viewed as valuable. as much as it pains me, i'd like to buck this licensing trend. on the other hand punishing staff members for being themselves in public spaces even through such roundabout means risks encouraging staff members to disengage from the community entirely and could bring us back to the fabled insular staff of the past. neither is a healthy option for the wiki.

EmotionalEntropy — yes. please remember that being OS does not mean you are obligated to act as an AHT interface. i would say i fear this unofficial duty is going to lead you to see the worse in people but honestly that unofficial duty comes from you being too lenient with friends

fairydoctor — yes. a kind heart. i mostly trust your judgment and in cases where i wouldn't you are willing to consult with others. that said yeah don't feel like you would have to be the sole defender of the scp wiki or its spaces from evil or trolls because that's a one way trip to burnout city

Fishish — yes. I generally trust your judgment but yeah maybe in 19cord instead of engaging with likely bad faith users just jump straight for the banhammer so you don't take the hits yourself

thats a joke i would vote for you because you wouldnt abuse power like that

frystavirki — would have to abstain. I honestly don't think we've interacted much if at all, i think we just have a timezone mismatch. Same as Nico unfortunately, can't support someone I don't know. you may feel that your interest is just the discord and that's fine but if so Adjunct exists for that purpose I think. for some reason you're just less visible to me and it would help if you had a CV — but again don't feel obligated.

Guaire — sure, yes. we're not that close but I think you can probably be trusted. your character and judgment seem pretty good. I will defer to your captains views on your staffwork

JjEd — have to say no unfortunately — I don't recall the exact level of vehemence that Ori is describing in that AHT banned user situation and frankly it could have been caused by good-natured ignorance, but that in itself is a red flag. Trying to "help" a situation when ignorant of the proper way to do so is unfortunately one of my personal pet peeves and I agree with Pedagon's description of that tendency to pop in to answer questions incorrectly.

The AHT banned user thing is one black mark and can't be held against JjEd forever, but the continued tendency to want to help even when inappropriate is something that would need to be addressed before I would feel comfortable supporting, because as that AHT incident showed, trying to help a situation when not fully understanding it honestly just makes things worse.

Kufat — yes absolutely. Honestly it does feel like you're largely doing your own thing and pursuing your own interests but those interests are good things. I fear the day we have to migrate the community back to IRC because Discord collapses, but should that come it will only be possible because of your tireless efforts in maintaining it.

RosySaturniidae — I see you around but yeah it's kind of hard for me to figure out how much staff work you actually do. part of it is because half the time i see you it's out in other Discord servers instead of the moderation channels. it's very likely this is me just paying not enough attention. right now I'd vote yes but only because I know you well enough to reasonably trust your judgment.

The_Spider_Queen - Yes but quite a bit because it's Naepic who put you up. I would say that Naepic doesn't tend to like bad people, but he likes me so one could contest that statement. I trust Naepic's statements on the work that you do and that it's valuable. also youve been on the site for years, so I feel like it's reasonable to say that you care enough about the site to vote in favor of its well being.

Pedagon - yes. i am not being threatened by a tyrannosaurus rex. But yeah actually building a discord crit team is something good. just don't hiatus on us like the other CO admins

torcsandantlers — easily a yes. Level headed, hard worker. in every conversation we've had i'm not sure i've ever felt need to doubt your judgment.

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

LORDXVNV 03 Jun 2023 14:27

After speaking with basir regarding the behavior people have complained about — namely engagement in 19cord, basir states that xer behavior is largely 1) consistent with xer general expression of xer transgender identity and in line with xer behavior in other large discord servers. Furthermore, xey state that they find the unwritten lines drawn for acceptable behavior in 19cord to be opaque and inconsistently enforced.

The example xey gave me at the moment is that there was a person posting anti-lgbt politics in 19cord. If xey started engaging with this and drew from their own lived experience and sexual identity as a person who loves men, they had no idea at what point that would cross the line of acceptability in 19cord.

Given this, from my own perspective as a largely-closeted cis/masc NB, I would find it morally abhorrent to police xer behavior and attempts at earnest self expression by denying xem a promotion given the quality and breadth of xer hard work. If a 19cord moderator or detractor would care to weigh in with actual examples of how xer behavior is actually inappropriate and how these characterizations are incorrect I might change my mind, but for now I support basir's promotion.

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

scalykitty 02 Jun 2023 01:06

I'm still fairly new, and haven't been around for a few weeks, so I'll just share my opinions of the names I recognize.

Aftokrator: From what I've seen, it looks like you have a good handle on things. Support

AriadnesThread: Great job with 19cord stuff. Support.

AstersQuill: On a more serious note, Aster is great to work with and I fully support their promotion. By far the most active jstaff on the discord crit team, and super competent. Support.

EmotionalEntropy: Again, great job with 19cord stuff. I trust your judgement with things. Support.

Fairydoctor: Good work on the crit team, and a competent mod on 19cord. Support.

Guaire: Competent mod, fully support.

Kufat: Again, active and competent. Good work with IRC and helped out with the recent IRC crit issues. Support

Pedagon: Good captain. Trustworthy and level headed. Support.

Torcsandantlers: Surprised you aren't already an admin. Support.

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

AriadnesThread 04 Jun 2023 18:30

Aftokrator - Afto has been incredibly helpful in the situations that I've worked with them directly in discord (where they are in less of a staff role, but ultimately an ambassador from the site prior to their promotion), but also is a great force on MAST that I look up to a lot. Strongly Support.

AriadnesThread- That's a'me. The only thing that I'd like to say is that I've read what folks have to say about the impact being staff seems to have on my life, particularly with my notifying the discord staff that I'm around, but that's actually force of habit from some other leadership roles around the internet where it's requested to give the other mods a heads up that we're around. I'll work on toning that down, as I don't want to give the impression that I'm overly stressed out! (I mean, I am, just not about here, it's more that everything is happening so much all the time everywhere.)

AstersQuill - Aster not only gives fantastic crit, but navigates tricky situations where emotions get high (particularly from prospective authors) with care and kindness. I very happily Support.

AvocadoMilk- I admit that I have not seen anything to cause me hesitation in recommending promotion, as what I typically see on Discord is a conscientious effort to keep the 'back end' mechanisms on track (ban log porting, etc). However, I worry that a promotion ahead of tackling the perception that other staff seem to have that you are less present than ideal might set up challenges for you as OS that would be unnecessary, so I would recommend some reflection on those comments and working to correct that approach. For now, Abstain.

Basirskipreader - I am going to Support, because while I recognize that there has been pushback on Discord from time to time, it has almost always been to trolls and bad actors in the Discord who are typically banned later for bigoted behavior anyway. Xer contributions to the server have on the whole been very positive, helpful, and xer help work on licensing has been very helpful in the midst of that transition.

EmotionalEntropy - While I Support Em's promotion on the discord, I am going to echo the caution of others that I worry about burnout, but also a certain rigidity in dealing with situations that might require or appreciate a lighter touch, particularly with users who aren't blatantly trolling or being hateful. You have a zeal to protect our users, which I think is not only admirable but necessary for what we're doing, but please don't take that on to the degree where every situation is seen as a problem rather than a learning opportunity.

Fairydoctor - I'd like to echo more or less exactly what I said for Em above, along with the Support. Please remember to take the breathers that you need, which I've noticed you're much better about lately than even a few weeks ago!

Fishish- I admit that I haven't seen the use of joke-y roles or mutes since the discussion was brought up earlier in the cycle, but regardless of that discussion I have always found you to be helpful and often necessary voice of sensible moderation that is very useful in the mod team. Support.

Frystavirki - You're fantastic to work with, when I get the chance to (as our times don't always line up). Very much a Support.

Guaire- I strongly Support Guaire's promotion for their MAST work alone, particularly with tagging. I also find them very helpful as part of the Discord team, especially in charged situations (that always seem to manage to crop up just as I have a meeting starting.)

JjEd - I am choosing to Abstain, as my interactions with JJ have been positive, but clearly the issue that others have touched upon with the AHT user presents the same challenge that I noted above for Avo, and I think being given time to move past that behavior and prove it was a blip in the line rather than a continuing issue. I have no doubt that you'll prove it the former.

Kufat - Your work on IRC is not only excellent, but honestly setting a standard for all of us who moderate the livechat spaces. You're neato, doing a great job, and always communicative in Staffcord about challenges and issues you see. Support.

RosySaturniidae - Our timezones don't always match up, but the times that they do have shown me good things, and I appreciate your longview of the Discord server growth as a comparatively newer member. Support.

Spider Queen - While I do not directly work with xer, I have watched the evolution of licensing in the past few months from a black box of information to something far more transparent and effective, and I trust Naepic's assessment that you are a big part of that. Support, and thank you for doing work that if I'm being honest, I barely understand but deeply appreciate as its critical for keeping the wiki safe.

Pedagon- Strongly, loudly, aggressively Support, as what you've done with the Critters team is frankly miraculous. Every day I watch your levelheaded leadership with that group and hope to encourage the same sort of professionalism with the other Discord moderators. We work together quite a bit, and I trust you to call any of us to task if something is out of whack, which I believe is critical for an Admin.

Torcsandantlers - I'm going to echo what others have said that you really should have been paid for your work with the whole Bright List issue. Your policy work is excellent, but you also do a great job of imparting these directives and policies in a way that are informative and collaborative rather than authoritative, and I look forward to working with you more closely on policy stuff, because we're both apparently people who like doing that stuff. Support.

Last edited on 04 Jun 2023 23:19 by AriadnesThread Show more

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

fairydoctor 05 Jun 2023 00:34

I'm in support for all candidates up for promotion.

Regardless, here's a quick overview of my thoughts:

Aftokrator: Has good input and insights. Isn't afraid to act quickly.

Ari: Very polite yet firm. Is thorough. Someone good to go to for general information about 19cord policy.

Aster: Has done a lot of stellar work in the crit forums. Very quick on replies etc.

Avocado: Understanding, and poignant.

Basir: Has a lot of good insights, and is quick to act. However, I worry about the passive aggression sometimes. (I get it though! Just pull it back a little.)

Em: Does a lot of heavy lifting, very poignant and thorough. (Take a break now and then! You don't have to pull all the weight!)

Fairy: 🧚

Fish: Quick to act, has good input. Although, I worry they're too argumentative at times. (I get it thought. Sometimes it's needed.)

Fry: Communicative, quick to act, amicable, and easy going.

Guaire: Very informative, and fast acting.

JJED: Communicative and helpful.

Kufat: They've done outstanding work with IRC, both overall and with the recent accessibility features.

Rosy: Informative, quick to act, not afraid to be firm when needed.

Spider Queen: Has done a lot of work, has been good with assisting users and other staff with duties that may have been missed.

---

Dagon: Knows what they're doing. Sometimes can be rough around the edges, but this sort of overtness is required at times. It's nice to work with Dagon in the 19cord forums.

Torc: Has done a lot of policy work. Also knows what they're doing.

---

Everyone has been nice to work with, and I'm excited to see where this goes! 🫡🏳️‍🌈

Re: Candidate Discussion - Spring/Summer Promotions 2023

AstersQuill 05 Jun 2023 02:24

Although I cannot vote in this, I'd like to take the time to write down some of my thoughts on some of the other members of staff that are up for promotions alongside me.

AriadnesThread: A genuinely polite and enjoyable person to interact with on the server. You're an incredibly effective and competent member of staff, one that I see operate fairly stressful and emotional situations with a level head. I know you'll do great things in helping the other mods out as an OS.

AstersQuill: That's me! I am Aster! In all seriousness, I do my best to make the Discord Writing Channels not only an effective but also welcoming space for new and returning authors. It really is a great pleasure of mine to interact with everyone there, as well as to make sure that everything is running as smoothly as possible. As mentioned before though, I have a tendency to jump at pretty much anything that comes up in the channels. While this does good for making sure rule-breaking or problematic individuals are dealt with in a timely manner, it does take a lot of my attention away from doing other tasks. In the future, I hope to achieve a better relationship with moderating the space in general, and I hope that I can use my role as an OS to help out the other critstaffers in running the place effectively.

AvocadoMilk: Although we have never interacted personally, your behavior within the critique moderation space has given me enough reason to feel skeptical about voicing my support to you. You are one of the Discord staffers I see jumping in or commenting on CritStaff manners when uninvited. This is a tremendous issue in my eyes because a majority of these situations did not need any mod oversight in order to be resolved. In the future, I think you should take some time to reflect on your current position and presence within the server. Not every issue that pops up needs to be resolved by a mod, and I think you would benefit from taking a step back sometimes and letting situations develop before commenting.

EmotionalEntropy: One of the most level-headed and competent mods I think the Discord server has. You do a tremendous amount of work for the mod team, and I am confident that situations will be handled properly when you are around. Overall, I see you as someone who really loves and enjoys engaging with members of the community, both acting as a mod or just as someone in chat. Please don't be afraid to step back and let some of your other moderators handle duties though. You have a whole new group of junior mods that have a lot of promise, and I think you, Ari, and Fairy will do a great job at showing them the ropes.

Fairydoctor: Fairy! As a member of both mod and CritStaff, I have had the pleasure of working with you when it comes to certain aspects of the server. Your insight into issues and helping new users feel comfortable in the server is an incredibly admirable quality of yours. Like Em, you've done a fantastic job of showing your love for this community through both your mod work and as a host of Reading Club. Personally, I think you do let your emotions get the better of you sometimes. Please don't be afraid to take a break or walk away when a situation becomes too much. There are other members of modstaff that will be there to handle it, and I think you need to prioritize your well-being when these situations become too much.

Pedagon: You're the one that dragged me into this, so you're going to get a blurb of text too! (Joking of course.) I was honestly shocked when I heard that you would be put up for admin promotion, but the more I thought about it, the more that it actually began to make sense. You have done quite the Herculean task of not only reworking Discord Critique, but also working to create a harmony between the three major branches of critique. As a JS under you, I have seen firsthand your effective leadership, good judgment, and overall fantastic character in your interactions with the other new CritStaffers and members of Deer College. I have never seen you make a decision you couldn't justify, you provide reasoning for all you do even if it seems incredibly unpopular for you to do so. There are some times when, I personally, see you getting a little heated in your discussion, but I feel you always take the necessary steps to make sure you don't say anything obscene. It has genuinely been an honor working with you, and I trust you to do great things for the wiki as an admin.

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