July 21, 1999

The regular meeting of the Staff Advisory Council was held in Columbus at the Food, Agricultural & Biological Engineering meeting room. An opening ice-breaker activity was lead by Thad. Thad welcomed new member Anne Groves who is replacing Mitch Moser. Mitch resigned because of work schedule conflicts. Anne is a Systems Specialist for Computer Operations in the Communications and Technology Section.

July 21, 1999
Columbus

Present: Betty Aylsworth, Rita Bowers, Carol Bunn, Cindy Crawford, Sherri DeCant, Marjorie Dellinger, Janice Dicarolis, Debra Gallagher, Ted Gastier, Anne Groves, Becky Hooper, Jim Karcher, Mabel Kirchner, Barbara LaMoreaux, Ann Lighthiser, Kathy Mohler, Patricia Patterson, Susan Sommer, Carol Sowers, Regina Vann, Thad Welch, Cathy Zirkle

Absent: Mark Erbaugh, Shelly Whitworth, Christine Nielsen

The regular meeting of the Staff Advisory Council was held in Columbus at the Food, Agricultural & Biological Engineering meeting room. An opening ice-breaker activity was lead by Thad.

Thad welcomed new member Anne Groves who is replacing Mitch Moser. Mitch resigned because of work schedule conflicts. Anne is a Systems Specialist for Computer Operations in the Communications and Technology Section.

Minutes of the May 19 meeting and notes from the June 3-4 LINC Retreat were reviewed. No corrections were noted. Cathy Zirkle made a motion to approve the minutes, seconded by Susan Sommer. Motion carried.

SAC SPONSOR

Dr. L. H. Newcomb, Senior Associate Dean for the College, joined the meeting. At the LINC workshop, Paul Axtell introduced the concept of each group having a sponsor to serve as a connection to management. Becky reviewed the task force plans to ask Dr. Moser's support in naming Dr. Newcomb as the sponsor. The Executive Team met with Dr. Newcomb last week, and both parties agreed on common objectives:

the sponsor will serve as the direct link of communication with administration the executive team will meet quarterly with the sponsor, and the chair will communicate on a more frequent basis as needed the sponsor will be involved with the annual meeting and other meetings as required the sponsor will approve and provide financial support for SAC

Dr. Newcomb addressed the SAC members and indicated the College is looking for a vision from Council. He praised staff and the progress that has taken place this first year. He cautioned members to not become discouraged: we are the pioneers and there will be disappointments and frustrations. He suggested we learn to be patient because progress will not go as fast as we want. Drs. Newcomb and Moser are looking to the Council to help "change the culture of the college" so that staff are in-the-know, are more involved, and better appreciated for their contributions. Some words of advice from Dr. Newcomb:

• find a vision to pull the organization forward
• don't get bogged down in minutia
• collaborate - it's not a we/they relationship
• come up with things that matter
• Cabinet wants broad/clear advice
• a majority vote is not required - build consensus

Words of caution . . . it can't be done all at once. In the beginning, maintenance is getting the job done.

EXECUTIVE TEAM UPDATE

As mentioned earlier, the Executive Team met last week to plan the agenda and follow-up on administrative activities. Thad shared topics that were discussed.

Cathy Forte's role - Following discussions with Dr. Newcomb, it was decided there will be a shift in structure from the College's administrative standpoint with the designation of a Council sponsor. The sponsor will be the direct link for communications, therefore, Cathy Forte will relinquish her role as liaison between Council and administration. Nancy Ray will provide secretarial support for the Council on behalf of the College. This will include meeting arrangements, refreshments, etc. It was noted that Nancy is Thad's secretary, but she will continue in this role beyond Thad's term as chair.

Marilyn Trefz will continue as a resource for the Council.

Christine Nielsen - continues on leave from her position at OARDC. Thad announced that a flower arrangement was sent to Christine and her husband at the time of the miscarriage. Thad will update Council members on additional information once he becomes aware of any news.

Remembrances for Council Members - Thad reported that the Executive Team discussed with Dr. Newcomb how to share condolences with members when a death or illness occurs. Dr. Newcomb suggested that we not create a policy but handle each situation on a case-by-case basis. It was agreed that the Secretary/Treasurer have a box of cards and stamps to send to council members. Dr. Newcomb approved this as an appropriate expenditure as well as flower remembrances from the College funds.

Acknowledgments were made to the following Council members on recent deaths: Mabel Kirchner's father, Cathy Mohler's father, and Carol Sowers' mother.

TASK FORCE REPORTS

enVision Articles

Cathy Zirkle reported two articles were submitted for the next enVision. Cathy wrote one article pertaining to the accomplishments to date and the goals of SAC, and Betty Aylsworth did an article about the LINC workshop.

Web Page

Susan Sommer distributed a report that Deb Gallagher developed on the status of the FAES staff web page. (For those not in attendance, a copy will be sent via campus mail.) Deb will be the web master with inquiries or input going to either Deb or Susan. The detailed report listed the message/purpose of the site, who are the readers, information to include on the page, listing of possible links, etc. New member Anne Groves provided some helpful information and volunteered to serve on this task force. It was agreed that since the College is redesigning its web page, a contact should be made with Jim Lemon so that SAC aligns its page design to the College's.

List Serve

Ann Lighthiser has been in contact with UTS to get an application for the list serve. Ann will maintain the list serve, and the officers have been designated as the "owners" which means they can send out information to everyone listed on the list serve but replies will come back only to the officers. Ann has also been in contact with Cindy Maher from the Communications and Technology Section who maintains the database for all College employees, and she will be providing the required info on staff e-mail accounts. Although she updates the College database weekly, it was agreed she will send an updated list of staff to Ann on a quarterly basis. Ann reported that because there are so many staff, it was necessary to develop two lists to be used for the list serve. However, in reviewing the lists it became apparent that all staff were not included in the printout. Several SAC members voiced opinions on the obstacles that will be encountered in maintaining this list serve and on how to insure all staff are included on the list. Anne Groves and Ted Gastier were named to also serve on this task force.

Membership Directory

Barb LaMoreaux and Janice Dicarolis have been editing the biographical sketches to make then succinct and similar in information. Hard copies were distributed to members present for review before inclusion in the directory. Bios that have not been turned in need to go to Barb or Janice ASAP.

Survey

Cindy Crawford reported for this task force, and Sherri DeCant distributed a copy of the survey. During discussions, suggestions were made: add a question to the survey pertaining to staff accessibility to e-mail, list the name of SAC on the survey, indicate if one response or more is appropriate for each question, and assure that the survey is a blind survey.

Cindy inquired about financial support to cover costs associated with the printing, mailing, etc. Thad suggested that he and the task force members meet with Dr. Newcomb to review the survey and ask for financial support then. Thad asked Cindy to develop a budget outline to present to Dr. Newcomb.

Further discussion pursued on whether or not the survey was valid for statistical purposes, or even if it needs to be scientifically correct. The issue of whether a task force has the final word once a project is assigned was discussed. Various opinions were expressed, however, Thad deferred this discussion to the meeting with Dr. Newcomb.

OLD BUSINESS

OARDC Director

Dr. Steven Slack from Cornell will begin October 1.

Fall Faculty Meeting

Deb Gallagher gave an update from the last planning meeting -- to be held October 7 at the Parke Hotel near campus, 9:30-3:30. A survey will be sent to faculty before the meeting, and the results will be shared during a panel discussion in the afternoon as relates to "making the college a compelling place to work and learn." Some interesting statistics shared indicate that typical attendance at the fall meeting is 150 faculty, while the total number of faculty is 576, resulting in 426 faculty who do not feel engaged.

LINC Report

Cathy Mohler and Carol Bunn shared their perspectives of the LINC Retreat. Many positive comments were heard, and the consensus was that this retreat was held at the most appropriate time for members to use the techniques and training to pursue SAC goals and objectives.

Project Reinvent

Betty Aylsworth shared information from the Project Reinvent-Next Step Stakeholders Group and their follow-up action. The "stakeholder-in-residence initiative" was enthusiastically received and approved by the College Faculty Council. A copy of the letter was distributed to SAC members (copies via campus mail to those not present).

NEW BUSINESS

Group Facilitator

The new concept of a meeting facilitator/meeting manager that was presented at the LINC Retreat will be deferred until later.

August Meeting

The next meeting is scheduled for August 18 at Malabar Farm in Richland County, starting at 10:00 and concluding by 3:30 p.m. Thad stressed this will be a working meeting but will also have a social component. The tentative agenda was reviewed, and the final agenda will be sent out closer to time with directions to the Pugh Cabin at Malabar Farm. Lunch will be potluck with members bringing food; Council will provide the main dish, drinks and table service. Members with last names A-K are to bring a dessert, and members with last name L-Z are to bring a salad. Dress is relaxed/casual. A van will be arranged to travel from the Columbus campus.

September Meeting

This will be the annual kick-off meeting when officers are installed. This would also be the appropriate time to recognize individuals who had the vision for a staff advisory council or who helped in the development. Individuals mentioned were: Marilyn Trefz, Cathy Forte, Terri Cory, Terri Clark. The meeting will be held at the Buckeye Hall of Fame Restaurant near campus. The morning session will be the regular meeting, with a nice meal served at noon, and adjournment soon after lunch. Thad announced that it does not look like the schedules for Dr. Moser and other administrators will permit their attendance, however, Dr. Newcomb may be available.

OTHER BUSINESS

Thad reported that Marilyn Trefz asked that representatives from SAC be designated for the Guiding Coalition since the group is now expanding its membership. This is the primary advisory group that directs Project Reinvent. The consensus was that each of the "areas" of the college be represented, and the following volunteered to serve:

ATI Barb LaMoreaux (alternate Betty Aylsworth)
OARDC Christine Nielsen (tentative) or Susan Sommer
Extension Cathy Mohler
Columbus Regina Vann
At-Large Pat Patterson

Sherri DeCant announced she will be taking a four month leave of absence - her son is to undergo surgery soon, and she will then continue on maternity leave. Sherri will return for the December SAC meeting.

Marjorie Dellinger made a motion to adjourn the meeting, seconded by Deb Gallagher. Motion carried.

Becky Hooper
Secretary/Treasurer