Bogleheads® local chapters

As a complement to the national meetings, local Diehards or Bogleheads chapters have existed since January 2005. In addition to the Diehards Local Chapters subforum, Yahoo Groups serves as a venue for meeting plans, recaps, and a way to stay in touch between meetings.

These local chapters are as varied as the Bogleheads. Some chapters meet in small informal groups at random dates. Other chapters have a set meeting schedule and a more formal meeting agenda. But the common bond between these local chapters are the desire to discuss personal investing with like minded peers.

To organize a local chapter, all a Boglehead needs to do is post the call for a new chapter on the local forum, get at least five members in the area to join the group, and then ask to be added to the national chapter map. Details are in this forum thread: New Diehards Local Chapter Forum

Chapter locations on Google Maps
A Google map with the location and contact information of all existing local chapters can be found at: Bogleheads (R) Local Chapters

Local chapter updates

 * Minnesota Diehards, refer to this forum post. Blog (deprecated): MN vanguard bogleheads (diehards)

Local chapters on Yahoo Groups
Below is a listing of local Bogleheads chapters on Yahoo! Groups.

Caveat: Forum screen names are used to provide anonymity when posting personal financial information. Linking of a Yahoo profile to a forum screen name connects that information publicly. Consider that this information will not only be seen by your friends, but potentially by employers and be data mined for commercial gain as well. Additionally, Yahoo encourages linking of your profile with Facebook. To protect member privacy, do not link with a Facebook profile and hide your Yahoo profile from public view.

California

 * Bay Area / Central CA: To be invited to join the San Francisco/Bay Area Diehards and/or the Central CA Diehards, first please send the meeting coordinator a private message, or, contact the meeting coordinator as listed for Chapter 5 - Central California in Google Maps (above). When writing to either email address: Please send an e-mail to kathleenryanaboglehead@yahoo.com with your contact information, (name, email address, mailing address, phone number), and also please include how you first heard of the Bogleheads.

Setting up a Yahoo Group
Here are the recommended Yahoo Group configurations:


 * Decide on a Yahoo Group name. Suggested: (area name)Bogleheads -or- (area name)Diehards
 * Create a Yahoo Group ID email for the group administrator. The email address should include the group name, nothing personal, as it will be publicly viewable and is the email address that all messages are sent from. Suggest: (area name)Bogleheads@domain.name.
 * Log into Yahoo under this ID. Select "Start a Group" at the top of any group page.
 * Select and place the group in Yahoo! Groups Category: Business Finance: Investments: Mutual Funds
 * Enter the group email address (created previously)
 * Enter a description. Include "Boglehead" so search engines can find the group. Copy suggested text below, then modify as needed:
 * Enter profile, the group is created.

Group settings
Main help reference: Group Owner/Moderator Help Topics

The Management menu (left side of page) is only available to moderators or group owners.

Below are recommended initial settings. If everything is configured correctly, the menu on the page's left side should show: Home at the top, everything else should be below the Members Only heading.

Membership approval
All applications for group membership must be subject to approval by the group moderator, as manual approvals impede spam attempts.

Force membership approval by:
 * Can I restrict membership? How?
 * Management --> Group Settings --> Membership --> Membership Type and Welcome Message (Edit) --> Membership Type: Restricted

Description and appearance
Enter the group's description and related link, which will be seen from the Home menu.
 * Management --> Group Settings --> Description & Appearance --> Description (edit)
 * Description: Edit as required (see description above). Be sure to include "Boglehead" for the search engines.
 * Related Link: http://www.bogleheads.org/
 * Listing Type: Listed in Yahoo! Groups directory

Images give a good first impression and add a level of overall quality. Add a representative image, such as landmark which identifies the area. The size should not dominate the text description, and should be usable over a wide range of displays. Suggested size: no more than 320 pixels on the longest side.

Yahoo does not scale the image - it will be displayed like the original. The image may need to be resized prior to uploading.
 * Management --> Group Settings --> Description & Appearance --> Photo (edit) --> Group Photo
 * New Photo: Browse... (upload), Add Now. (If an error message appears, ignore it and hit the browser back-button, the image should be loaded)

Messages
Group communications are through messages posted to the site and distributed by email. As the Bogleheads forum provides anonymity through screen names, consideration should be given to allowing members to have relative privacy within the group.

Yahoo provides some privacy by allowing members to hide their profiles. However, email addresses can only be partially hidden (the address up to "@" is visible). Email addresses are always visible in messages. Additionally, some members may feel comfortable using their real names within chapters, but not in public.

Therefore, message content should be restricted to Members Only. The message archive settings govern this feature.
 * How do I restrict access to the message archives?
 * Management --> Group Settings --> Messages --> Posting and Archives (edit) --> Archive Options --> Members

Moderating email
The group settings allow members to post messages directly, which is categorized as "unmoderated" email. In some cases, such as a concern for spam, individual members may be configured to have their messages "moderated". Messages will only be posted to the group after a moderator approval. Approving messages is more work for the moderator.
 * How do I approve pending messages?

Web features
These applications should be restricted to Members Only.
 * Managing Web Only Features
 * Management --> Group Settings --> Web Tools (edit)
 * Files: Limited (members can download files; moderators can upload/modify/download files)
 * Photos: Moderators only (upload/modify/download photos)
 * Links: Members (create/modify/delete links))
 * Database: Members (members can access Database feature)
 * Polls: Members (create/modify/vote in polls)
 * Members: Members (members view profiles; moderators can view profiles/change settings)
 * Calendar: Members (create/modify/delete events)
 * Promote: Members (get sign-up boxes)
 * Chat: Enabled

Adding members
Yahoo Groups membership works by two ways:
 * Using the "Join This Group!" button
 * By invitation from a group owner/moderator

Those who use "Join This Group!" will show up as a pending member (Members --> Pending). The owner/moderator can decide if further action is necessary, such as requesting further information from the applicant (by separate email), or approve the application.

Those who request group membership by email will need to be "Invited" to the group. (Members --> Invite People, at the top right of the page). Hint: Don't use the "Add Members" link, which is at the bottom of the Invite page.

Sharing responsibility
The owner may wish other trusted members to share ownership, or act as a moderator. Each group can have a maximum of 15 owners/moderators (there must be at least 1 owner).
 * Inviting, Promoting, and Managing
 * 1) From the list on the left, click Members and locate the member on the Members page.
 * 2) Click Edit Membership.
 * 3) A little way down, click Change to Moderator -or- Change to Owner.
 * 4) Click on the Make Moderator -or- Make Owner button to confirm.