msa import publishers deckhand - ajtruckle/meeting-schedule-assistant-support GitHub Wiki

From Deckhand

This importer allows you to bring publisher information exported from Deckhand into Meeting Schedule Assistant. It is available from the Import menu.

Use this importer when you have a Deckhand CSV export containing publisher details and want to add new publishers to Meeting Schedule Assistant. Only new publishers are added; existing publishers are skipped.

What This Importer Does

The Deckhand Publisher importer reads a CSV file exported from Deckhand and imports:

  • Publisher names
  • Their gender
  • Their standing
  • Their publisher type
  • Their congregation group
  • Optional notes (if a field is mapped to Notes)

Only new publishers are added.
If a publisher already exists, they are skipped.

It does not modify existing speakers, congregations, assignment history, or meeting schedules.

Required Format

The CSV file must contain the following fields:

  • First Name
  • Last Name
  • Title
  • Standing
  • Publisher
  • Group

These must match exactly as written in the CSV header.

Deckhand exports publishers as an Excel workbook containing a single Publishers tab. You must save this tab as a UTF‑8 encoded CSV file, ensuring that the first row contains the column headings.

Opening the Importer

From the Import Menu

Import → Publishers → From Deckhand

Image

Figure 1: Selecting the Deckhand Publisher importer from the Import menu.

Import Steps

When you choose Publishers → From Deckhand, the Deckhand Import window opens. Use this window to select your CSV file, adjust the student assignment defaults, and optionally map one of the CSV fields to the Notes property.

Screengrab of the Import from Deckhand window

Figure 2: The Deckhand Publisher importer window.

1. Select the Deckhand CSV file

Click the Browse icon and choose the CSV file exported from Deckhand.

2. Set student assignment defaults

Adjust the checkboxes to choose which student assignments should be enabled for brothers and sisters after import.

3. (Optional) Map a field to Notes

If you want, select one of the CSV fields to be imported into the Notes property.

4. Start the import

Click OK to close the window and begin the import.
The importer then reads the CSV header row, validates the required fields, and processes the records.

5. Complete the import

A summary is displayed showing how many publishers were added or skipped.

Field Mappings

Field How it’s used in Meeting Schedule Assistant
First Name + Last Name Combined to create the Publisher’s full name.
Title Determines the publisher’s gender.
Standing Indicates the publisher’s standing (Elder, Ministerial Servant, Unbaptized Publisher, etc.).
Publisher Indicates the publisher’s type (Publisher, Regular Pioneer, etc.).
Group Assigns the publisher to a congregation group.
Notes (optional) A CSV field you choose to map to the Notes property.

Summary

The Deckhand Publisher importer provides a simple way to bring publisher information into Meeting Schedule Assistant. It supports:

  • Importing publisher names
  • Their gender
  • Their standing
  • Their publisher type
  • Their congregation group
  • Optional notes

Only new publishers are added.
Existing publishers are skipped.

After processing the file, a summary report shows how many publishers were added or skipped.

Back to Publisher Importers

Related Importers