| Summer 2005 National Council Meeting June 23-25, 2005 Ripon, Wisconsin Thursday, June 23 President’s Report President Sandra Alspach called the meeting to order at 7:40 p.m. She presented her report which outlined a series of immediate, intermediate and long-term goals. Sandra stressed that her agenda was designed for a two-year period. She presented the following immediate goals. · To prepare for the 2005 NCA Convention in Boston, including the Thursday November 17th Council meeting at 8: 00pm in the President’s room (Sheraton). · To select a tournament manager for the 2006 tournament to be held in Gatlinburg, Tennessee. · To prepare for the 2006 NCA Convention in San Antonio, Texas. · To select a tournament manager for the 2007 National Convention and Tournament hosted by Central Michigan University and Ed Hinck.
Sandra presented the following intermediate goals.
She presented the following long-term goal.
The Council discussed these goals as well as other issues. The Council was apprised of the conflicting dates for the 2006 tournament and that scheduled by DSR. Discussion focused on the relationship between our “off year” tournament and provincial tournaments, the proper naming of our off-year tournament (honorary or honoraries), and our past efforts to involve the other honoraries in the tournament. The Council agreed to continue discussion of the appropriate name. The Council also agreed that we should develop a standard press release for the honorary tournament. One issue the Council has addressed for several years is how best to identify and utilize our alumni base. Bill Hill suggested that efforts to develop a database need to be made on the local rather than national level because the national office has no viable mechanism for tracking local chapter alumni. No specific plan to enhance tracking and utilization of alumni was presented. There was significant discussion about the nature of PKD. Michael Bartanen noted that we need to craft a clear vision and statement of what we stand for and what we do. Developing our “brand image” became a recurrent theme throughout the Council meetings. The suggestion was made that we would likely need to employ external sources (experts) to help the organization develop a clear and sellable marketing strategy. Secretary-Treasurer’s Report Bill Hill presented the Secretary-Treasurer’s report. He indicated that the organization is in sound financial order. The current net worth of PKD is $100,591. Income for the 2004 tax year was $70,463.10 and expenses were $53,586.08. The National Convention and Tournament was very successful, with a net income of slightly over $20,000. Bill reported that a large part of that net was due to the hard work in generating local revenue and controlling costs by Scott and Gina Jensen. The Council commended and thanked them for their hard and very effective work. The National Office remains the most significant annual expense. Bill reported that he met with Scott Wun, the new Director of the NFL, about the relationship between the two organizations. Scott is very supportive of PKD and is anxious to ensure that the PKD/NFL relationship continues. Bill and Scott did agree that PKD needs to hire some part- time help for Joyce during the National Convention and tournament years. They also agreed that Scott will identify a person to begin working with Joyce to develop an understanding of PKD needs. Bill and Scott agreed that the person will accompany Joyce to the 2007 National Convention and Tournament. Bill also reported that Joyce had purchased new soft ware to enhance record keeping and ability to construct various data bases. Joyce has made arrangements to have the software installed. Joyce received a bid for the President’s ring. A local (Ripon) jeweler bid to create a mold for $700 and then reproduce rings for $700 each. All agreed that to be a steep price and decided to pursue other options. Bill will make another effort to contact Joel Hefling about the Brookings, SD. supplier. We also received a good bid for a PKD Key supplier. Prices were very reasonable and the supplier offered a number of options. Bill reported that information about that supplier had been sent to Amy Meeks for positing on the PKD We Susan Millsap presented her Past-President’s report. She provided the completed report from the 2005 National Convention and Tournament Resolutions Committee. That report was sent to Amy Meeks for posting on the Website. Suisan indicated that the communication survey results suggest that chapters still would like to receive a hardcopy of the Key. She also reported the results from the 2005 tournament evaluation committee survey. That data collection effort generated 208 usable surveys, the largest count in recent history. Overall, the results are very positive. Susan summarized the data and offered the following major conclusions. First, we may need to stay out of the shuttle business. Second, a core of people seems willing to extend the tournament by one day to hold IE elimination rounds. Third, there was much support for adding debate speaker awards. Fourth, the experimental events were well received and participants would support changing the “To Honor” event each convention. Finally, the most significant negative evaluation focused on the debate scheduling process. There were multiple errors in that process that caused time delays, teams hitting each other multiple times, and uneven affirmative/negative side assignments. The Council discussed this issue and decided to continue discussion the following day after all had the opportunity to review the report. During her report, discussion focused on the general issue of organizational communication. Susan indicated that we need to continue to communicate with DSR regarding our event dates. The Council also discussed the status of our current website. The following aspects of the website were discussed: (1) purchasing a domain for the website; (2) making the website more interactive, rather than historical; and, (3) assessing the “net benefit” of the website, initially by documenting the number of “hits” received. The Council noted two important considerations in making any modification to the website. First, we should continue to operate the website through UA Monticello. That has been a positive relationship and efforts should be made to make upgrades that are portable to that site. Second, we must develop the content message for PKD. The website is a tool, but our communication will not be as effective as possible without developing a clear statement of who we are and what we propose to do. Susan next discussed issues related to awards. She will oversee the award selection process and has begun working on that duty. We do, however, need to make certain that the awards criteria, which Glenda Treadaway compiled, is made available to all chapters. Those criteria will be posted on our website and included in a future mailing. Finally, Susan reported that she is prepared to assume program planning responsibilities and will be attending the NCA convention in Boston to begin the planning process for the 2006 NCA convention in San Antonio. Editor’s Report Nina Jo Moore presented her Editor’s Report. She listed the issues of The Forensic produced under her editorship, and summarized the major content of upcoming issues. She indicated that we will be back on the established publication schedule with the Summer 2005 issue. She also indicated that the Key is now posted on the IE-L in addition to the PKD website. She announced a September 1 deadline for Council members to submit articles for the next Key. The Forensic remains a competitive publication. Over the past several issues, approximately 30% of the submitted articles have been rejected. We still seek creative ways to generate sufficient high quality manuscripts for publication. We also need to continue to avoid competing with The Forensic” as we deliberate about the possible publication of collections of various types of works in the future. Nina Jo also announced that negotiations with EBSCO are complete and that the Forensic will be included in that index beginning Fall 2005. All acknowledged that this is a major accomplishment for our organization. Historian’s Report Michael Bartanen presented his Historian’s report which included four initiatives for consideration. First, he indicated that the Council needs to develop a strategic plan for the archives. Although the material is safely stored in Ripon at the NFL headquarters, we have not decided how to create any systematic access to the materials, or how to catalog the materials. Michael indicated that we will likely need outside expertise and services to complete this process. Specific issues to be addressed include: SWOT analysis of our archives, digitalization of some materials, indexing of materials, acquisition of additional materials, creation of an archive endowment, creation of an archive network with other forensic organizations, and creation of a permanent position of archivist. Second, he proposed a project called “A Hundred years of Pictures.” This initiative calls for PKD to solicit pictures from chapters and individuals to visually document the history of the organization. Third, he called for “The Legacy of Leadership.” This initiative is designed to develop and implement strategies for creating a more complete video archive or interviews with living PKD past-presidents. Finally, he proposed that we implement “Forensics and Vocation: Celebrating those who make a Difference.” This initiative calls for creation of an “Order of Attainment” to honor PKD members who have used their forensic skills and PKD membership in their careers and lives to make a demonstrable difference in local, national, or international contexts. Immediate discussion focused on the fourth initiative. The Council responded quite favorably to this idea and voted to implement the initiative. Michael was charged with responsibility to fully develop an implementation plan and to present that plan at the 2005 NCA meeting in Boston. Substantive discussion of the other initiatives was deferred for the Saturday meeting. Friday June 24, 2005 The meeting was called to order by Sandra Alspach. The Council returned to a discussion, led by Susan Millsap, of the 2005 Convention and Tournament survey results. Susan emphasized that the responses were positive overall, and listed the following suggestions for future events which the survey generated.
The discussion next focused on the least positively evaluated area of the tournament, debate scheduling. Susan indicated that several people contacted her either during or after the tournament to express their dissatisfaction with the way debate was handled. Apparently, there were numerous problems created by attempting to use an untested computer program. The Council agreed that the decision to tryout a new program at a national tournament was ill- founded and should never be allowed to happen again. The Council also agreed that proactive steps need to be taken to show the membership that we are aware of the problems that occurred and responsive to their concerns. Having an adequate number of available judges is always a concern for our tournament. It became apparent during the 2005 tournament that numerous judges—for a variety of different reasons— did not pick up their assigned ballots. Of course this placed an additional burden on an already over worked pool of judges who met their judging commitments. In response to this problem, the province of the Lower Mississippi made a recommendation to sanction judges that do not pick up their assigned ballots. That province also suggested that hired judges be paid $20 per round. The Council recognized the need to address the problem created by judges that do not pick up their ballots, but chose to take a positive rather than punitive approach. The Council did not endorse the proposal to raise the hired judge per round pay. 2005 Tournament Director’s Report Gina Jensen presented the report prepared by Scott Jensen. Scott identified four major challenges the tournament faced. These included the problems with debate, the need for more oversight of tabroom staff, the schedule conflict between debate and Readers Theater, and the initial problems with the tournament website. In addition, Scott made the following recommendations.
Scott also addressed the problem of “judge specialization.” Allowing judges to self-select out of judging responsibilities in specific events exacerbates the problems created by having a limited pool of judges. The Council acknowledged the problems created by judge specialization and suggested that the approach we take to respond to this issue should be based on a clearly defined educational/competitive principle for the organization. Gina then advanced additional recommendations that Scott made including the following.
Following this, the Council discussed a variety of issues related to the selection of the tournament director. The Council discussed but took no action on the suggestion that the tournament director be made a Council member for the two year term. 2006 Tournament Report Tom Huebner presented an update of issues related to the 2006, 2007, 2008, and 2009 tournaments. He reported that DSR selected a tournament date that conflicts with our previously announced date (March 9-12, 2006). As a result, he suggested that we re-consider the name of our 2006 tournament. Tom indicated that he will continue to engage in communication with the other honoraries, but that we should focus on our upcoming event as a “PKD” event. He reported that information about the 2006 tournament has been posted on appropriate websites, and that tournament staff decisions need to be made soon. Plans also appear to be going well for the 2007 Convention and Tournament at Central Michigan. Again, tournament staff decisions need to be in planning. As president-elect, Tom is also developing plans to locate suitable sites for the 2008-2009 tournaments. He is also hoping to create a “Council Members Manual,” and is hoping to revive the PKD Assessment Survey. The Council then adjourned the morning meeting and began to get organized to travel to the National Office for the afternoon session. The Council resumed the Friday meeting after visiting the National Office where we met the new Director of the NFL, Scott Wun, and had lunch with Joyce. The Council agreed that the 2006 Summer meeting would be held in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan, June 22-24. Meeting time is to begin at 1:00pm on June 22. The Council also agreed that recommendations for the 2007 tournament director would be considered at the 2005 NCA meeting in Boston. Finally, the Council agreed that the 2008 tournament would return to St. Louis during the first week in March of that year. Gina Jensen assured the Council that she and Scott would be available for that tournament. The Council agreed that the experimental event for the 2007 tournament will be “To Honor Native Americans.” Featured works can be either by or about Native Americans. The Council also discussed the possibility of having a non- competitive celebration of examples of civic engagement at the 2007 tournament. Examples might be presented on CD, or through other means. Full details of such a celebration will be forthcoming. Finally, the Council acknowledged the ongoing problem with obtaining appropriate sites and hosts for the National Convention and Tournament. Acknowledging the value of geographic diversity, the Council agreed that the site for the 2009 Convention and Tournament would depend primarily upon bids submitted. Sandra clarified major committee assignments. Phil Voight will oversee research and professional development. Amy Veuleman will oversee PR and Charter and Standards, and Gina Jensen will serve as province Coordinator. The discussion turned to the PKD website. Our goals are to try to get a counter on the site to document usage, and to get our own domain name if possible. Student Representative’s Report Andrea Carlile presented her Student representative’s report. Andrea identified three primary goals of her office. First, to establish a national service project in which all chapters can participate. She identified two readily available options, the “Dress for Success” project and the “Pop tab collection for Ronald McDonald House Charities. After discussing both options, the Council endorsed the “Dress for Success” option. Andrea’s second goal is to increase inter-province and provincial communication. The Council pointed out that this has been a perpetual goal, and has met with limited success in the past. The Council did encourage Andrea to continue to pursue the goal, and endorsed her plan of using the PKD website as the communication conduit. Third, Andrea proposed to promote province tournaments. She explained the presumed value of those tournaments, and indicated that many students are simply unaware of their existence. She pointed out that the Northern Lights hold an annual province tournament, and that the Heartland and lower Mississippi planned on a joint province tournament. After presenting her report, Andrea informed the Council that she will be on a study abroad assignment in India during Fall 2005. She plans to remain in contact, and will return to active PKD work prior to the Summer 2006 meeting. The Council then returned to a discussion of the deferred items from Michael Bartanen’s report. First, the Council discussed the archives and how best to develop a strategic plan. The general conclusion was that a plan is needed to proceed with indexing archival material. We will likely need to put existing material on a server and should consider acquiring the services of an intern for this task. We should also anticipate that outside expertise might be required to fully develop and implement the most effective strategic plan possible. The Council agreed that a picture history of PKD would be useful, and that such a collection should be bound. The Council decided that this project should be assigned to the Centennial Committee with a specific charge. At this point the Council adjourned. Saturday, June 25, 2005 At the outset, Susan Millsap announced the results of the Award Committee deliberations to select the 2005 recipients of the Derryberry, Shields, Nichols, and Norton awards. The Council thanked Susan and her committee for their work. Charter and Standards/Public Relations Report Amy Veuleman presented her report regarding Charter and Standards and Public Relations. She identified the following goals.
The Council discussed and generally endorsed these goals. More information will be required to determine exactly how to implement some of them. Amy also suggested that a press release be developed to announce election to the National Council. Province Coordinator’s Report Gina Jensen presented her Province Coordinator’s report. Gina identified a number of goals she has for 2005-2007 including the following.
The Council discussed a number of issues related to provinces and their role in PKD. All agreed that there needs to be a frank discussion about the function of provinces and place of provinces in the evolution of PKD. Gina suggested that she is in a good position to engage province leaders in a frank discussion about on-going concerns and perceptions about inactivity in some provinces. All agreed that there needs to be more information coming from the provinces about their activities and goals. Gina suggested that a “History of Provinces” including travel patterns, budgets, etc would be useful to compile. The Council also discussed the usefulness of investigating existing and potential linkages between state associations and PKD. Gina suggested that provinces could be assigned specific responsibilities such as promoting student research and hosting development conferences. Professional Development/Fund Raising Phil Voight presented his report for professional development and research. He advanced a number of ideas to promote professional development within the organization including the following.
Phil also presented a detailed development plan for the organization. The plan outlined the basic steps required to implement a fund raising campaign. Such a campaign must begin with a judgment about the purpose for which the funds will be used. Next, the organization must consider who the responsible fiscal agent will be, and must develop a campaign timeline and growth table. Throughout the campaign there must be coordinated communication plan and a targeted donor list. Phil also identified major types of funds that can be solicited. These include planned giving arrangements, estate planning, and major gifts. Determining how to integrate corporate sponsorship and in-kind donations is also an important concern. We also discussed the possibility/feasibility of acquiring a national spokesperson for the organization. The Council discussed many of these ideas and drew comparisons to the successful fundraising efforts by the NFL. The point was made, however, that any effort to attract corporate sponsors should not conflict with such NFL efforts or activities. The Council also acknowledged the problems created by “passing the hat” at PKD business meetings or similar events, and recommended that we refrain from that practice. The Council did discuss the possibility of using Chapter Anniversary Designations” as a vehicle to encourage local chapters to get back in touch with their alumni and help activate that potential base of support. Finally, Phil informed the Council that we will have trophy sponsor for the 2007 tournament and have received an initial estate pledge. Concluding Issue The Council noted that the new specifications for stones for the PKD key and Pin are slightly different than those prescribed in the constitution. This is an unavoidable problem since we are dependent on the deliverables of the contracted supplier. The Council agreed that modifying the specifications in the constitution was a small editorial change and could be done outside the constitutional amendment process. Following that decision, the meeting was adjourned. Passed Motions 1. Allocate $300.00 for discretionary purposes to Sandra Alspach. 2. Implement an “Order of Attainment.” 3. Standardize the ballot for the PKD national tournament to include event descriptions and rules. 4. Establish a “judge incentive” mechanism to reward extra judging at the national tournament. 5. Appoint Tom Huebner 2006 Tournament Director. 6. Change the name of the 2006 tournament to the “PKD National Comprehensive Tournament.” 7. Treat the “off-year” tournament as a PKD sponsored event. 8. Allocate sweepstakes points to the top 3 contestants from each school in each event. 9. Investigate the possibility of obtaining a PKD domain for the website. Assignments 1. Develop a press release for the 2006 tournament (Amy). 2. Solicit sites for the 2008-2009 tournaments (Tom). 3. Work with endowment effort (Phil, Sandra, Bill). 4. Submit articles for Key to Nina Jo Moore by September 1 (all). 5. Develop an implementation plan for the “Order of Attainment (Michael). 6. Develop an implementation plan for the “judge incentive” (Phil, Susan). 7. Review 20067 tournament fee structure (Tom). 8. Submit recommendations for 2007 tournament director (Sandra). 9. Draft a call for non-competitive “civic engagement” entries (Sandra). 10. Check with Amy Meeks regarding a “counter” for the PKD website (Bill). 11. Formulate a draft strategic plan for the archives (Michael, Sandra, Tom). 12. Develop a press release for elected officers (Amy). 13. Initiate conversations with province officers about the role of the province structure in PKD (Gina). 14. Draft a plan for the developmental conference (Phil). |
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