Present: Pat Arkema, Kristin Baum, Darlene Blake, Ella Born, Cathy Colony Bunnell, Jenniffer Carpe,
             Cheryl Carter, Jan Christensen, Milind Deshpande, Charlie Eastham, Judy Elleson, Mary
             Freitag, Andrew Fuhrmeister,  Steve Fulwider, Pat Kenner, Hazel Kerr, Tina Knutson, Joy
             Kross, Feather Lacy, Mark Long, Bonnie McIntosh, Dan McMillan, Juan Parales, Sherry
              Pech, Sandra Reed, Janice Simmons-Welburn, Barb Spence, Rebecca Stamy, Anne
              Tanner, Jun Tang, Billie Townsend, MichaelWichman, Al Young

Absent: Diane Anderson, Linda Crowley, Karen Kolek, Wanda Magruder, David Martin,
            Donna Muller, Pamela Lenz Nielsen, Nick Peters, Kathy Sayre,Carlos Serrato, Jan Warren,
            Xian Wu
Administrative Liasons: AVP Bob Foldesi, Sue Buckley

Guests: Carolyn Colvin, President, Faculty Senate
           Mark Braun, Office of Governmental Relations

 1.        The meeting was called to order at 2:35 p.m.

 2.          Review/approval of minutes.

             a.    6/14/00 Staff Council meeting. Approvedas written.

             b.   Reviewed minutes from 6/16/00 and 6/20/00 Executive Committee meeting.

 3.        Comments/Regents’ Report – AVP Bob Foldesi.

• The Board of Regents approved the domestic partner benefits proposal last month. As of January 1^st, 2001, domestic partners may sign an affidavit and be added to a (UI employed) partner’s current health plan. AFSCME and COGS members are not included in this proposal as their benefits are included in their collective bargaining unit contracts.
• ISU is downsizing its employee pool due to the current budget crisis that the three Regents’ institutions are facing.
• Health insurance rates are expected to increase due to higher pharmaceutical costs, an aging work force and longevity. Premium costs have increased over 20%.
• Judie Hermsen in Employee and Labor Relations has accepted the position of Human Resources  Manager for FSG.

4.   Announcements

• The July Board of Regents’ meeting is next week.  Regents Excellence Award winners will be honored at a dinner in Cedar Falls.
•  Pat Kenner, Pat Arkema, and Barb Spence will be meeting with two members of the committee reviewing the men's and women’s athletic departments.  Please send any thoughts or comments to them before July 20.

5.   Items for Previous Agendas.

• Parking Proposal. The UI Parking Committee voted 8 to 2 in favor of the parking proposal. Staff Council will continue to explore alternatives to the parking problem on campus.
• Communication Issue. Councilors from Research will meet today to discuss the best way to communicate with their constituents. They hope to utilize email lists and to encourage people to subscribe to the Staff Council list serv.

 

1. Diversity Committee. They have forwarded a letter to President Coleman thanking her for her support of domestic partner benefits.

 

8.     New Items.

• Computer Based Training (CBT) Project. Elizabeth Curl of ITS attended the meeting and distributed information on the CBT project. All Staff Councilors may participate in the program at no cost. An application in the materials distributed. Software is available until June 30, 2001.
• In late July, Longevity Award certificates will be given to President Coleman for her signature. These are for those individuals with 25 years of service as of July and August 2000.
• Annual salary letters will be distributed soon. They will only include information about salary and fringe benefits received by the employee.
• News and Views should be ready for distribution in August.

a. Carolyn Colvin, President of Faculty Senate, was introduced. She will be invited to speak at a future Staff Council meeting once the Senate is back in session.

b. Mark Braun, Office of Governmental Relations, was introduced. He distributed literature and presented information on the Legislative Outreach Program. This program has four major components: 1) message development and communication, 2) budget development, 3) advocate development, and 4) Legislative and Executive Branch outreach. He welcomes suggestions and input. See handout for additional information.
 

University Convocation, October 3, 2000, 7:30 p.m. MacBride Auditorium.

 
                                   Next Council Meeting
                          Wednesday, September 13, 2000, 2:30-4:30 P.M.
                                  W401 Pappajohn Business Building