Smith College Staff Council
Meeting Minutes
January 9, 2002 (Approved at the February
6, 2002
meeting)
A meeting of the full Staff Council was held on Wednesday, January 9, 2002 at 2:15 p.m. in the Mary Maples Dunn Room at Pierce Hall.
Attending: Stacey Anasazi, Jack
Begleiter, Cyndee Button,
Sandy Bycenski, Serena Harris,
Chris Carr
Hill, Patty Kimura, Mimi Lempart, Merrilyn Lewis, Ann Mayo, Janice
McDowell, Sam Rush, Stephanie Schoen and Bill Sheehan.
Excused: Cristen Abrams, Carla Coffey, Lakisha Coppedge, Patrick Diggins, Lisa Dwinell, Alicia Guidotti, Patty Hayes, Bob Lesko, Anne-Marie LaFosse, Steve Monteiro, Patty Rist and Mike Washut.
Patty Kimura called the meeting to order at 2:25 p.m. after a quorum was met.
REVIEW MINUTES
The
minutes of the December 2001 meeting were approved. Bill Sheehan
announced
that for further information on such areas as ACRA (presented
at previous
meeting), Jonathan Lovell is available to give an overview
presentation
about the college's budget processes, funding, expenditures,
etc.
COMMITTEE REPORTS
Activities
Since the committee has not met since the last Staff Council meeting, Ann Mayo has nothing to report. The committee is set to meet January 10.Communications
The Communications Committee also has not met and needs to set a meeting date.Nominations and Elections
Serena Harris reported that the committee is working on a nominations and elections report. Nominations will be held sometime between March and May of this year. During the nomination process, volunteers are needed for outreach to the Smith community, especially RADS and Physical Plant. Patty reinforced how important outreach can be. Since service areas tend to not feel included, it is very important to hand deliver the nomination ballots providing an opportunity to say hello and answer any questions.All members were encouraged to think about Staff Council positions that are opening up in June since half of the council's terms will end in May.
It was announced that Honey Gillman has resigned from the council due to a heavy workload.
Personnel Policy
Sandy Bycenski reported that the committee is meeting with Lianne Sullivan-Crowley on January 10.
Staff Visions Ad
Hoc Committee
Mimi Lempart reminded members that January
18th is the deadline for submitting
registration forms for the Staff
Visions art exhibit that will take place
March 4-29, 2002.
New/Old
Business
Staff Council Lunch with Carol Christ on January
28th
Lunch with the new president of Smith College is scheduled for Monday, January 28, at noon on the lower level of the Smith College Club.
Physical Plant Tour
At the last Steering
Committee meeting, the idea of substituting a physical
plant tour for a
monthly Staff Council meeting was discussed. Gerry Manley,
an
administrative assistant at Physical Plant, contacted Patty Kimura about
the details. Although the tunnels are not included at this time due to
asbestos concerns, the tour is fascinating: one views areas such as the
boiler plant that is four stories high and painted in primary colors to
signify the different campus locations served. Staff Council agreed that
Patty should pursue plans for the tour, keeping in mind times that may be
optimum for outreach to members of Physical Plant.
Community
Forums
Staff Council needs to begin forming ideas for a spring
Community Forum.
One idea suggested is asking Jonathan Lovell to present
on Smith College's
budget. Patty asked for ad hoc committee volunteers
and Sandy Bycenski
and Cristen Abrams (absent) volunteered.
Fragrance Free Ad Hoc Committee
Although Patty Hayes was
not at the meeting, Patty Kimura explained that
on the behalf of a friend
who is experiencing difficulty in handling a situation
involving
allergies and fragrance sensitivity, Patty Hayes and the Steering
Committee feel that this is a community/working issue. Since the council
is committed to making the college community hospitable to all, how can
the council help, educate, discuss and then send suggestions to the
college
workforce about this issue? It was decided that an ad hoc
committee should
be formed to discuss the best way to handle this
situation. It is possible
the result will be to make a recommendation to
the Campus Climate Working
Group to consider this issue (similar to the
smoking issue). An ad hoc
committee will be formed. Ann Mayo and Janice
McDowell volunteered; other
volunteers should contact Patty Kimura.
Spring Diversity Training Ad Hoc Committee
Merrilyn Lewis,
Jack Begleiter, Patty Kimura and Stephanie Schoen volunteered
for this ad
hoc committee. All ad hoc committees should set dates to meet
and move
forward on planning.
Other Business
Janice McDowell mentioned that she saw an ad in the Hampshire Gazette about this year's Spelling Bee. Staff Council needs to decide whether or not to support this fundraiser. This item will be discussed at the next meeting and the council's finances will be reviewed.
Patty then asked, "What are Staff Council's priorities for this year and how do they meet the goals of the council?" There is budget flexibility to shift Council priorities by supporting another kind of event, such as bringing in a speaker for a community event. Currently the budget supports the printing of the Council Chronicle, Activities Committee events including family entertainment for the Staff Picnic in June, and miscellaneous meeting expenses. One-time college funding supports the Staff Council diversity training. Patty asked that the council think about strategic planning and the budget. The council consists of an interesting, diverse group from all over campus; it is important to be leaders and make future plans/decisions about priorities and discuss funding. Members are to continue thinking about ideas for this year, ideas that may or may not need funding. Three ideas that came up were 1) how to better use the liaison list to reduce paper waste, 2) how to engage more staff in the Smith community and 3) how to better represent departments as Staff Council members by deciding what is the most efficient way to reach people and what information is of value to staff members. As a way to highlight members' leadership roles, it was suggested to invite yourself to a staff meeting in the area that you represent in order to introduce yourself, tell how to best contact you as a representative, explain what the council does, and answer any questions or concerns. In-person contact will increase your credibility as a Staff Council member.
The next Staff Council meeting will be Wednesday, February 6, 2002, 2:15 p.m. in the Mary Maples Dunn Room, Pierce Hall. The Staff Council meeting was adjourned at 3:21 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Cyndee Button, Co-Secretary
Staff Council