Staff Council Meeting

Wednesday, February 14, 2001, 2:30—4:30 p.m.

Otolaryngology Alumni Conference Room, 21271 PFP

 

Present:  Diane Anderson, Pat Arkema, Kristin Baum, Ella Born, Cathy Colony Bunnell, Jenniffer Carpe, Jan Christensen, Charlie Eastham, Judy Elleson, Pat Kenner, Kathy Klein, Tina Knutson, Karon Kolek, Feather Lacy, Mark Long, Wanda Magruder, David Martin, Bonnie McIntosh, Pamela Lenz Nielsen, Juan Parales, Sherry Pech, Janice Simmons-Welburn, Barb Spence, Rebecca Stamy, Jun Tang, Anne Tanner, Michael Wichman, Xian Wu, Al Young

Absent:   Cheryl Carter, Milind Deshpande, Mary Freitag, Hazel Kerr, Joy Kross, Dan McMillan, Donna Muller, Sandra Reed, Christine Remmert, Carlos Serrato, Billie Townsend, Jan Warren

Administrative Liaisons:      AVP Bob Foldesi, Sue Buckley

Guests:   Dr. David Skorton, VP for Research

1.      The meeting was called to order at 2:30 p.m.

2.      Review/approval of minutes.

  1. 01/10/01 Staff Council meeting minutes approved.
  2. Reviewed minutes from 01/16/01 Executive Committee meeting.
  3. Reviewed minutes from 01/31/01 Executive Committee meeting with President Coleman.

3.      Comments – AVP Foldesi.

a)      The Board of Regents will be meeting in Ames next week.  They are still in negotiations with the contract bargaining groups.

b)      President Coleman has approved the Funeral Leave Policy proposal, which allows UI employees to take an additional 2 days of vacation following 3 days of funeral leave.  This proposal was presented to Staff Council earlier this year and received their support at that time.  This policy will be added to the Operations Manual before the end of this week.

c)      The status of the Early Retirement Program is still under discussion.  The UI expects to receive a proposal from the Board Office in the next several weeks, regarding the future of this program.

d)      Sue Buckley was recently promoted to Associate Director of Human Resources.

4.      Announcements.

a)      Volunteers are needed for the IPTV fundraising festival. Volunteers from Staff Council and Faculty Senate are scheduled to answer phones on Sunday, March 4, from 8 am to 2 p.m. in Des Moines. The group will be leaving Iowa City at 6:30 a.m. Sunday morning.

b)      Applications for openings on University Charter Committees were recently distributed. Please encourage colleagues and co-workers to apply.

c)      Staff Council Memorial Book Program has been implemented as of January 1, 2001.  Staff Council will purchase a book in the name of UI Staff members who pass away.  The book will be chosen by and donated to the UI Library, and will bear a bookplate with the staff member’s name.  The family of the deceased will receive a letter informing them of the memorial gift.  This program is extended to all UI Staff, P&S, MSE/C, and Merit and is support by Coca-Cola Funds.

5.      Items from Previous Agendas.

a)     Smoking Policy.  Council continues discussion on the policy.

b)     Administrative Review.  Pat Kenner recently met with Associate Provost Lee Anna Clark and Faculty Senate President, Carolyn Colvin, and received some feedback regarding this issue.  Barb Spence and Pat Arkema will be assisting in the revising of this proposal.

c)     The Faculty Welfare Committee is seeking one additional staff member to assist on the development of an ethics statement.

6.      Committee Reports.

a.       Governmental Relations Committee. The committee is actively seeking information about how you or other staff serve the Iowa community.  University Relations has a new web address for their Community Partnerships and Outreach database:            http://itsnt12.its.uiowa.edu/iaoutreach/

b.      Education Committee.  Pat Kenner sought feedback from Council regarding the current Staff Council Scholarship process and criteria.  Council approved the proposal that the Scholarship process be changed from a merit-based system to a lottery-based system. Council will implement the changes in the process after the April 1 deadline (for summer semester scholarships).  Also the committee is seeking a few individuals (2 staff and one faculty) to serve on the Mary Jo Small fellowship selection committee. Please email Pat Arkema with nominations.

c.       Executive Committee.  Pat K. reminds councilors of upcoming events:

·        Prepare our Daughters for life will take place on March 1, 2001. They are still seeking volunteers for this event. If you are interested, please contact Diane Finnerty.

·        The Reception with President Mary Sue Coleman is scheduled for April 5th.  Both current and new councilors will be invited to this event.

·        Staff Celebration Day.  Nancy Noyer will attend Staff Council’s March meeting to speak about this year's event.

·        Dave Ricketts will attend our March Staff Council Meeting and will speak on the progress of the new parking policy.

 

7.      Speaker, Dr. David Skorton, VP for Research, gave a Power Point presentation on the UI’s Core Values message.  He encouraged counselors to offer their feedback on the presentation.

8.      Elections Committee.  The Staff Council elections process is underway.  Ballots for vacancies on Staff Council are due March 1.  Pat Kenner made a request for nominations for Staff Council Vice-President and Secretary. Dave Martin was nominated for Vice-President, and Ella Born was nominated for Secretary.  Both accepted the nominations. Nominations will be open until the March 14 meeting, at which time Council will have officer elections.

9.      FYI – Reminders.

Cultural Diversity Day, Field House, February 25, 2001

Prepare Our Daughters for Life, March 1, 2001

Forum with President Coleman, Tuesday, March 20, 2001, Seebohm Conference Room 283 EMRB

10.  Meeting adjourned at 4:15 p.m.

 

Next Council Meeting

Wednesday, March 14, 2001, 2:30-4:30 p.m.

W401 PBB