MINUTES UAF STAFF COUNCIL MEETING #108 Wednesday, May 12, 1999 Wood Center Ballroom I Bev Frey called the meeting to order at 8:35 a.m. MEMBERS PRESENT: MEMBERS ABSENT: Anderson, L. Candler, R. Aslam, D. Dufseth, K. Baergen, A. Evans, C. Barneby, T. (for B. Gieck) Murawsky, N. Bender, L. Rounds, P. Christensen, S. York, R. Comstock, S. Downes, I. OTHERS PRESENT: Duvlea, P. Duffy, L. Enochs, K. Fellerath, J. Frey, B. Gabrielli, R. Hazelton, G. Hagen, D. Heineken, H. (for A. Poe) Mosca, K. Martyn, P. Wadlow, J. McClellan, L. Youngberg, J. Parzick, J. Powell, D. Rogers, P. Simmons, H. Sowell, P. (for M. Scholle) Thomas, M. White, P. Wilson, K. B. The Minutes to Meeting #106A (March 11, 1999) and Meeting #107 (April 2, 1999) were approved as distributed via e-mail. C. The agenda was adopted with the addition of a resolution of support for President Hamilton under Staff Affairs report and a resolution for the Chancellor under President's Report and bylaw changes under Other Business. II COMMITTEE REPORTS A. Staff Affairs - L. Anderson Paid Time Off - The committee is looking at this issue again. The GI staff council submitted a proposal. A small subcommittee comprised of Lydia Anderson, Becca Sanches, Phil Rounds, and Karen Enochs will be working on this issue. Representative Enochs stated that at the health benefits meetings Mike Humphrey stated that the executive officers are going to the Board of Regents with a request for a paid time off program for just the executive branch. Representative Anderson will obtain a working draft of the proposed paid time off program as soon as one is available. If you are interested in serving on this subcommittee, contact Lydia Anderson at fnlma@uaf.edu. In House Recruitment - Concerns were addressed regarding departments offering positions in house. The committee will be addressing career ladders again in the fall. ATM - The fee on the NBA ATM machine in Wood Center was an issue earlier in the year. Another ATM machine from Alaska Option will be placed in Wood Center. At this time there is no fee on this machine. Resolution of Appreciation for President Hamilton - An employee called Representative Anderson regarding the push for legislative lobbying and recommended that a resolution in support of the new President's efforts be passed. The Administrative Committee and Staff Affairs Committee both felt this was a good idea and representatives concurred. A motion was made and seconded. The vote was unanimous. RESOLUTION PASSED (unanimous) ================ RESOLUTION OF SUPPORT FOR PRESIDENT MARK HAMILTON WHEREAS, the UAF Staff Council values the Office of the President of the University of Alaska; and WHEREAS, the UAF Staff Council has trust and faith in our new president; and WHEREAS, UAF Staff Council appreciates the excellent job President Mark Hamilton has done during such adverse times and budget shortfalls; and WHEREAS, the UAF Staff Council feels we have a president who has the energy, leadership and vision to articulate the University mission to the people of the State of Alaska; and WHEREAS, President Mark Hamilton has presented a thoughtful, careful plan for the survival of Alaska's University to the Legislature and the people of Alaska; now THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT, the UAF Staff Council acknowledges the positive changes in the Office of the President at the University of Alaska; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED THAT, the UAF Staff Council heartily endorses and completely supports President Mark Hamilton as he leads the University of Alaska into the 21st century. DATED THIS TWELFTH DAY OF MAY, 1999. ****************** B. Rural Affairs - H. Simmons CRA Faculty & Staff meet in Fairbanks for a technology forum. The group met with Steve Smith regarding the satellite interconnect project and some of the grants Mike Sfraga obtained. These meetings were very informative. Next meeting will be at May 17 at 11:00 a.m. The Center for Distance Education has a catalog for shared courses and the committee is working on a shared catalog instead of four or five. The CRA logo and this shared catalog will be reviewed at their next meeting. Distribution of this catalog will be the fall. Rural Affairs thanked the representatives for the opportunity to address various issues. If you have issues that the Rural Affairs needs to address, please contact Heidi Simmons. President-Elect Christensen asked if Rural Affairs has coordinated with staff members from other MAUs at the various campuses on issues that overlap. Representative Simmons stated that they have not contacted the other staff at this time. C. Staff Training - D. Powell 1. Longevity Awards Program The longevity awards program is tomorrow, May 13 at 1:30 p.m. in the Wood Center Ballroom. The guest speakers will be Dr. Wood - representing the past, Chancellor Wadlow - representing the present, and Patty Hamilton - representing the future. There will also be a RIP presentation honoring the 37 staff members who are taking advantage of the RIP. Representative Downes thanked the committee for all their hard work. Al Sokiatis is the master of ceremony this year. Ann Tremarello and Syun Akasofu will be receiving 40-year awards at the program. Staff Council will also be presenting the Chancellor with a lazy Susan, which Bev Frey made. D. Elections, Membership & Rules - P. White 1. Election of President-Elect Nominations were opened for president-elect. Irene Downes was elected with unanimous approval. MOTION PASSED (unanimous) ============= The UAF Staff Council moves to approve Irene Downes as president- elect. EFFECTIVE: June 1, 1999 ******************* E. Ad Hoc Picnic Committee - A. Baergen & J. Parzick The picnic is shaping up and all staff were encouraged to wear their beach attire for the picnic. Special thanks to Phil Rounds and the crew at the Fire Department. The committee has gathered a number of door prizes, balloon bouquets, flowers, dinners, hair cuts, and more. All staff are encouraged to attend. F. Health Benefits Task Force - K. Enochs Representative Enochs updated the Council on the RFP process and the questions the committee has formulated to go out with the RFP. The committee will meet a few more times and then the RFP will be sent out the end of May. There is a separate portion for the pharmaceuticals, because this is the fastest growing portion of the health benefits. Representative Enochs stated that she felt the committee did a very good job and hopefully when the whole process is over, we'll have a better carrier and it will save the University some money. Representative Anderson asked for comments from representatives. Representative Downes stated that she has had calls from constituents who are going to find employment elsewhere because of the increased costs. The added health costs brings down morale. Representative Martyn stated that he has had concerns from constituents and they consider the increased costs a pay cut. Are there plans that charge less given the age of the employee or their dependants? This will be checked on. President-Elect Christensen stated that the deductible and out-of-pocket were areas of concern for staff. Representatives Downes asked if an employee is covered under another health care plan, do they have to participate in the University's health care plan? Representative Enochs stated that this issue hasn't been addressed. The committee's mission was to look at the RFP, but that she will ask this at the next meeting. It is unclear at this time if committee members will participate in the scoring of the RFPs because of confidentiality, but they will receive a copy of the RFPs that come in. G. UA Technology Board - I. Downes The Technology Board opted to not fund any printing next year. The Board felt that there was too much paper usage and waste. Several projects were funded including the Writing Center. The web site has been updated with the projects that are funded, www.uaf.edu/TAB/. The Board will meet again in August to address fall projects. The Board is still looking for large idea projects that would go for more than one year. Representative Downes stated that she will be stepping down from the Board next year and asked for representatives to consider serving on this Board. The Board is made up of students, faculty, staff, Vice Chancellor, David Bantz from the Library, and chaired by the Chancellor. Proposals are considered from areas who pay the user fee. The cost to print will be set by each lab and Representative Downes was not in favor of this because the printing is the one tangible item students see from the technology fee. III OTHER BUSINESS A. Motion to amend Governance Coordinating Committee procedures The Governance Coordinating Committee at the current time only meets twice a semester and this motion reflects how often they meet. MOTION PASSED (unanimous) ============= The Staff Council moves to approve the following change to the Governance Coordinating Committee procedures. The recommended change clarifies how often the Governance Coordinating Committee currently meets. EFFECTIVE: Upon Chancellor's Approval ARTICLE VI Meetings Sect. 1 The UAF Governance Coordinating Committee will ((hold monthly meetings)) MEET AT LEAST TWICE A SEMESTER during the academic year. ***************** B. Chancellor's Recognition Program Nominations are open for the Chancellor Recognition Award and are due in the Governance Office by May 21. President Frey and another member will review the nominations and forward recommendations to the Chancellor. The award will be presented at the June 2 meeting. C. Proposed changes to the bylaws - S. Christensen President-Elect Christensen presented a number of changes to the bylaws. The changes were brought directly to the Council without prior review from committees. Concerns were expressed regarding the occasional low numbers attending Staff Affairs meetings and the proposed change to break the committee up into smaller committees. President-Elect Christensen stated that committees of three to nine people are the most functional. Also, concerns were expressed that these changes did not go to the committees prior to coming to the full Council. Representatives reiterated their concern that there are too many changes to address at a full meeting prior to review by a committee. President Frey referred the proposed changes to Elections, Membership and Rules. IV Chancellor's Remarks - J. Wadlow Commencement - The Chancellor thanked everyone for making commencement a success this year. She received numerous positive comments on the ceremony. Economical Summit - President Hamilton called an economic summit regarding FY01. Themes on a system level for 2001 include enhance and strengthen UA role in teacher preparation and Alaska Quality Schools Initiative. UAF advanced 27 initiatives to focus on for 2001. Another area is health. This will include the one year certificate or two year degree program in nursing, enhanced research relating to the health field, newly proposed degree called paramedics, and human behavioral aspects in the research component. Alaska could be the hub for many logistics. Recognize all the strengths and the activities in research data collection, specifically the super computer, SAR facility, rockets and capitalize on this resource. UAF can play a major role in distance learning throughout the state. Internet 2 can also enhance distance delivery. UAF is looking ahead. The new President is determined to get additional funding for the University of Alaska. Board of Visitors - The UAF general catalog is now on a CD. This CD is designed for students who have applied and accepted and reaffirms their choice of UAF. Chancellor Wadlow thanked staff for all there help over the years and looks forward to the longevity awards program, staff picnic, and the June 2 Staff Council meeting. V Remarks from Dean Gabrielli Dean Gabrielli thanked staff for the opportunity to address the Council. Dean Gabrielli will be meeting with the Northwest Assembly when he is in Nome for the Northwest commencement. The director of Kuskokwim instituted all campus meetings to address problems at the campus and this has been a successful problem solving strategy. One issue addressed was increased enrollment. As a result, nine initiatives have been developed to address these problems. Staff contributed a great deal to the university. Future of the University - Dean Gabrielli is very enthusiastic regarding the future of the state. In the past, the University may not have been seen as not a producer, but this is changing. The University is the means by which the State can diversify our economy. This is a critical component for the future of this state. Dean Gabrielli thanked staff for the work they did in contacting the legislature with POMs and letters. Technology - The College of Rural Alaska recently received a grant from the Natural Science Foundation for $500,000. This will connect 140 villages throughout the state. The grant follows an initiative from the Kuskokwim distance delivery consortium which brings together state agencies, school districts, and other partners that connects 35 villages so far. The FY01 budget includes a request for funding to complete the connection of all the villages throughout the state. This will enable a number of ways in learning. Last week there was a technology conference that brought together faculty and staff from CRA and Cooperative Extension. Faculty and staff provided demonstrations of how they are using this technology in the learning process and how it expands to research. Graduation - Kuskokwim held commencement on April 30, Northwest commencement will be May 13, Chukchi is May 12, Bristol Bay is May 15, and Fort Yukon is May 14. This is an excellent time to honor the student and all their accomplishments. VI The Council took a five minute break. VII Guest Speaker - Sue Wilken, Polar Express The Implementation Team consists of Sue Wilken and Scot Ebanez, co-coordinators, James Schropp, Larry McNerney, Colleen Abrams, Kathleen Schedler, and Warren Fraser. The new polar express card will get rid of the multiple stickers and multiple cards. Also, the new card will allow for expansion for students, staff, and faculty. The polar express card can allow access for only designated hours and designated students, staff, and faculty. Also the card can be programmed to allow people into buildings at certain times. For instance, faculty and staff may have 24 hour access, but a student helper might only have access from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. The new card will be much more convenient. Financial Aid can be added to the card to pay for tuition and books. "Bear" bucks can be added for use in vending machines, Wood Center eateries, West Ridge eatery, Bookstore, etc. Employees will be able to do payroll deduction to the card for purchases. This fall the polar express card will be the new ID card, library card, allow faculty/staff discounts, copy card, and SRC access. When an employee or student leaves the University, then all privileges are automatically suspended. Replacement fee - $10 for lost, stolen, or damaged cards. The card will be suspended and the Imaging Office will issue a new card. Door access - Departments will have a cost and it will be spread out over a few years. The readers will enable departments to receive data on who is using the labs, etc. The more readers, the better this card will work. Changes to the card - The information is accessed off banner and changes are immediately. This program will be available at the rural sites. Rural staff are encouraged to get a card. The system will be up and running in Fairbanks and then the rural sites will be set up. Representative Hazelton stated that she participates in the Southeast card system and it was been extremely helpful. VIII Governance Reports A. Faculty Senate - L. Duffy Larry Duffy was elected president-elect for Faculty Senate. At the last Senate meeting, they addressed bylaws changes and changes to the Governance Coordinating Committee procedures. The Senate is also developing a procedure for the evaluation of administrators. A Senate goal next year is to increase faculty involvement in governance. B. ASUAF - J. Richardson - no report. C. Alumni Association - J. Poole Financial Situation - The Finance Conference Committee is still working on next years budget. Faculty, staff, students, and alumni continue to educate the state on the vital role the University plays in this state. Commencement - There were a number of positive comments on this years ceremony. Physical Plant was commended on how nice the campus looks. Alumni Reunion - The reunion will be July 21-23. There will be a tours all around campus, as well as an awards luncheon. College Town Dinner - This event is going to be re-established. The date is set for September 23 at the Westmark. This is an opportunity for the community and UAF to interact socially, and the importance of both to this community. Graduation Bash - Representative Comstock congratulated the Alumni Association for the find job they did. President Frey thanked Jake Poole for his continued reports at the monthly Staff Council meetings. D. Staff Alliance - S. Christensen Staff Alliance will be working with Statewide Human Resources on the rewrite of the Board of Regents human resource policies. Upcoming issues for the Board of Regents agenda include: tuition benefit for staff, salaries, job evaluation structure. Staff Alliance will be looking at unrecorded overtime and governance participation. Legislators feel that tuition benefits are costly and should be deleted, but the Board of Regents are not in favor of this. However, there may be changes to this benefit in the future IX President's Report - B. Frey Parking fees will increase 6% for next year, which is equal to the higher education price index. The annual decal for faculty and staff will go up to $225, a semester decal will be $141, and the gold decal will be $562 for nine months or $674 for an annual gold decal. Tesoro - Last year Tesoro generously donated two Bruce Moose and 50 gallons of gas for the Staff Council raffle. This year Lyza Fonte contacted Tesoro and they generously contributed $1,000 for the Carolyn Sampson Memorial Scholarship. President Frey has contact Debra Damron in University Relations for a special acknowledgement of Tesoro in the local paper. Staff Council unanimously passed the following resolution and this resolution will be presented to the Chancellor at the staff longevity awards program on May 13 along with the lazy Susan. RESOLUTION PASSED (unanimous) ================ RESOLUTION OF APPRECIATION FOR CHANCELLOR JOAN WADLOW WHEREAS, Joan Wadlow has served as Chancellor of the University of Alaska Fairbanks since July 1, 1991, and WHEREAS, Joan Wadlow developed a long-range strategic plan to lead the University of Alaska Fairbanks into the 21st Century, and WHEREAS, Joan Wadlow successfully completed a 12.1 million dollar private fundraising campaign for the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and WHEREAS, Joan Wadlow has consistently and strongly supported the University of Alaska Fairbanks staff in her years of leadership, and WHEREAS, Joan Wadlow has given her strong support for the Supervisory Training Program, and WHEREAS, Joan Wadlow continually provided support for the staff longevity awards program and staff picnic, and WHEREAS, Joan Wadlow realized the importance of promotional opportunities for current employees by approving a policy for mandatory 5 day internal recruitment of staff positions, and WHEREAS, Joan Wadlow listened to the voice of the staff through participation in regular, monthly Staff Council meetings as well as regular private meetings with staff representatives, and WHEREAS, Joan Wadlow has supported release time for staff participation in governance activities, both verbally and in writing, and encouraged all deans, directors, and supervisors to allow such release time for employees, and WHEREAS Joan Wadlow has served the University of Alaska Fairbanks staff and the University of Alaska Fairbanks community with creativity, strength and vigor, now THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that Staff Council recognize and applaud the leadership Chancellor Joan Wadlow has provided the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we wish Chancellor Joan Wadlow well in future endeavors, knowing that her skill, humor and inventiveness will serve her well in whatever enterprise in which she invests herself. DATED THIS TWELFTH DAY OF MAY, 1999. Certificates of appreciation were presented to the committee chairs for their hard work and dedication this past year. Certificates were presented to Heidi Simmons, Chair of Rural Affairs, and Lydia Anderson, Chair of Staff Affairs. Rob Gieck, Chair of Elections, Membership and Rules is out of town doing field work, and Darlette Powell, Chair of Staff Training had to leave for another meeting. X Comments and Questions - None XI Announcements - None XII The meeting was adjourned at 11:12 a.m. Tapes of this Staff Council meetings are available in the Governance Office, 312 Signers' Hall, if any one wishes to listen to them. Submitted by Kathy Mosca, Staff Council secretary.