June 21, 2000

The regular meeting of the Staff Advisory Council was held at the Northwest District Extension Office in Findlay from 10:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Agendas were distributed. Christine presided at her first meeting as chair. The April minutes were reviewed, and no changes were noted. Christine reviewed the agenda items that were developed at an executive team meeting on June 14. All members of the executive team attended this meeting, and the topics discussed are included in today's agenda.

June 21, 2000
Findlay, Ohio

Present: Carol Bunn, Cindy Crawford, Marjorie Dellinger, Janice Dicarolis, Mark Erbaugh, Debra Gallagher, Ted Gastier, Becky Hooper, Jim Karcher, Mabel Kirchner, Barbara LaMoreaux, Kathy Mohler, Christine Nielsen, Susan Sommer, Regina Vann, Shelley Whitworth
Absent: Anne Groves, Betty Aylsworth, Rita Bowers, Ann Lighthiser, Pat Patterson, Carol Sowers, Cathy Zirkle

The regular meeting of the Staff Advisory Council was held at the Northwest District Extension Office in Findlay from 10:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m.

Agendas were distributed. Christine presided at her first meeting as chair. The April minutes were reviewed, and no changes were noted.  Christine reviewed the agenda items that were developed at an executive team meeting on June 14. All members of the executive team attended this meeting, and the topics discussed are included in today's agenda.

VICE CHAIR ELECTION 
Christine acknowledged Deb Gallagher who was elected to serve the remaining term of vice chair since Christine has stepped into the chair position. Deb will also continue to serve as vice chair next year.

PROJECT REINVENT VIDEO 
A video is being produced by Marilyn Trefz to highlight changes in the culture of the college as a result of Project Reinvent. The narrated video includes interviews with Bob Moser, L. H. Newcomb, Allan Lines, Joy Pate and a segment addressing SAC's involvement in the college. Cathy Z. will represent SAC since the June 23 date for taping conflicted with Christine's schedule. At the recent executive team meeting, possible points were selected for Cathy to discuss.

MEMBERSHIP 
Christine announced Sherri DeCant has resigned her position with SAC. There are now two vacancies in membership (including Thad's). A discussion pursued on who initiates a contact with the unit/department to fill a vacancy. Referring to the bylaws, it was not clear if SAC does the contacting or Dr. Moser. Christine will follow up.  Christine also reported that Anne Groves has transferred to a new department, although she continues to work in the college. According to bylaws, Anne may complete her term, but the appointment reverts back to the original unit at the end of the term. Christine has discussed this with Anne and is awaiting a decision on whether Anne wishes to continue her term with SAC.

BYLAWS

Continuing the discussion about who initiates a contact when there is a vacancy, the consensus was the bylaws should be amended to clarify this responsibility.  Regina suggested the following change to amend the membership section of the bylaws, item E. The section will read as follows (the additional verbiage is highlighted):
5. Vacancies - Council shall notify the Vice President to solicit an appointment from the vacating unit/department head to fulfill the remainder of the vacated term. All subsequent terms will be served following the above specifications. Former members who have been off the Council for 12 months are eligible for appointment.

According to bylaws, proposed amendments must be distributed to the full membership prior to the meeting to be voted on. A vote to amend the bylaws will take place at the July meeting.

DRS. MOSER AND NEWCOMB MEETING 
Christine and Thad met with Drs. Moser and Newcomb to provide an update on SAC activities and review items during the transition of leadership between Thad and Christine. The written task force reports were shared also. Dr. Moser's comments included:

· He is very pleased with SAC's activities and involvement in the college. 
· He asked if there are members who have experienced difficulties being away from their daily responsibilities or from supervisors questioning the amount of time devoted to SAC. Christine and Thad indicated they were not aware of any. 
· Now that the SAC structure has been established, he is looking forward to SAC operating in more of an advisory capacity and concentrating on how to make the college a compelling place to work. He emphasized that SAC members should not worry about implementation of ideas and to consider off-the-wall type of ideas that may surface. 
· He asked what needs to happen for staff to feel more of a part of the college or to feel inclusion with daily responsibilities (being involved in the total "picture"). 
· Moser encouraged SAC to continue moving locations around the state of the regular meetings and to take advantage of these opportunities to broaden members' understanding of the college.

FOUNDATIONS RETREAT 
Several SAC members attended the Paul Axtell Foundations Retreat held May 9-10. Many shared their perspective of the two days with everyone feeling it was a valuable experience.

TASK FORCE UPDATES 
The summaries that were shared with Moser and Newcomb were e-mailed to members earlier. However, brief updates were given by TF chairs.

Web Site - Susan reported there have been various versions of the web address, and she discussed this issue with Jim Lemon in C&T. He suggested it be short and consistent at all places. (Following the meeting, Susan contacted Jim again to verify the address. After review by the executive team, it was agreed the official address will be: <sac.ag.ohio-state.edu>. Another suggestion he made was to distribute cards listing the web address to new employees at orientation. Susan indicated that Front Page is the software package used with the web page.

Susan made a motion, seconded by Janice, that the following guideline be used with the web site:

Additions to the web page and email messages beyond regular maintenance must be approved by the executive team or Council. Motion passed.

enVision - Christine reported in Cathy's absence that a new schedule has been developed for TF members to write articles. Cindy Crawford will write the article for the summer issue.

List Serve - Regina reported in Ann's absence. She shared the task force's concern about a message that was sent recently that may not have been appropriate. Referring to the February SAC minutes where suggested guidelines were listed, Regina asked if these guidelines could be voted on to establish definite rules.

Rather than include these guidelines in the bylaws, Barbara made a motion to develop a policies and procedures manual, and Cathy M. seconded the motion. Motion passed.

Since the secretary is the official record keeper of the bylaws, the secretary will also maintain the policies and procedures manual.

A discussion and review continued on the list serve guidelines, and the following revisions were made:

Do not keep the original guideline that limited the number of messages to two per month. The consensus was that depending on the issue/topic, some may warrant more than two messages per month.

1. Information sent needs to be relevant to all staff.

2. Messages will be approved by at least one executive team member.

Regina made a motion to approve the above guidelines; seconded by Shelley. Motion passed.

Membership Directory - Barb reported there has been no activity since distribution of the directory.

Deb made a motion that because it is so costly to print the directory and it soon becomes outdated, that there be no more printings and the TF be dissolved. Members are listed on the web page, and reference should be made to it. Barb seconded the motion. Motion passed.

Promotion Display - The executive team has seen the display. A discussion followed on how and when the display could be used. Various ideas were suggested. It was agreed the Communications Director would be responsible for scheduling the use of the display.

Employee Rewards - Regina reported that Christine will continue to be a member of this task force but will no longer serve as co-chair. The TF has met on a regular basis or via conference calls, and Marilyn Trefz has served as a facilitator for group discussions. The TF is in the midst of collecting facts and information that will be used with the survey results. Some writing has begun, and editing will take place during a video conference scheduled as their next meeting. The goal continues to be September 1, dependent on the survey results.

Survey - Marjorie reported that the response as been better than expected, with 60% return rate. Therefore, there will be no follow up mailing. The five prize winners were announced, and Marilyn purchased the prizes and arranged to have them delivered. Data entries are scheduled for mid-end of July, and Mark has volunteered his grad student to do this since the person originally scheduled for this task is leaving.

Staff Development - Shelley reported that a conference call will be set for later this month. A couple issues have surfaced from the Staff Rewards TF that will be addressed: performance evaluations and release time. The major assignment of this TF will be to focus on the survey results once they have been summarized.

OTHER REPORTS Guiding coalition - has not met. VP's Advisory Council - has not met. Facilities Master Planning Group - Ted distributed an enVision article to members via email.

NEXT MEETINGS

July 19 at Piketon - Start time will be 10:30 to allow extra time for travel. Shelley is coordinating arrangements, which will include a tour of the facilities and subs for lunch. Christine will invite staff to join the meeting for a brief open discussion.

August 18 at Stone Lab - Ted is coordinating these arrangements and will have more to report in July.

September 14 annual meeting - the executive team is gathering information on a location. Possible locations were discussed, and the consensus was that the Fawcett Center would not be a choice. An email message has been sent to administration to get the date on their schedules.

October 26 Fall Faculty Meeting - SAC has not been invited to participate at this point. Cathy Z. is following up.

Farm Science Review - Jim Karcher suggested SAC have a booth and use the promotional display at FSR. After discussion, it was agreed to pursue this, and Jim will make the arrangements.

NOMINATIONS FOR OFFICER POSITIONS Deb reported that two officer positions will need to be filled for the next term: the secretary/treasurer position and communications director. Becky declined to serve another term, and Cathy will be contacted to see if she has an interest in serving another year. A slate of officers will be presented at the July meeting by the nominations committee (Deb, Barb, Janice). Voting will take place in August and installation at the September annual meeting.

EXTENSION AND NW DISTRICT UPDATE Extension District Director Dick Martin joined the meeting during lunch and provided background information on Extension and issues specific to the northwest portion of the state.

Janice made a motion to adjourn the meeting; seconded by Mabel.

Becky Hooper Secretary/Treasurer