UMass Amherst Alumni Association

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Executive Committee Meeting Minutes

Worcester Crowne Plaza
Thursday, November 9, 2006
6:30 p.m.

In attendance: Elaine Barker, Mary Custard, Mike Fiorentino, Sean LeBlanc, Christine Lopes, Kathleen Mitchell, Marc Rossen, and Kim Sherman

Absent: Hal Lane and Anna Symington

Guests:

Staff: Cristina Geso and Deb Masloski

Call to Order

The meeting convened at 6:35 p.m.

Approval of Meeting Minutes

Motion: by Mary Custard, seconded by Elaine Barker, to approve the October 5 Executive Committee meeting minutes.  The motion passed unanimously.

President’s Update
Kathleen agreed to facilitate the meeting in Hal’s absence. 

Committee Reports
Alumni Career Services
Kim reported that the committee has hosted two alumni career services events this fall, one in Los Angeles with approximately 30 attendees and the other in Boston with approximately 70 attendees.  The audience composition was equally divided between young alumni and alumni in their mid to later careers.  Of the alumni attending these two events, 49% became new members of the Alumni Association.  The committee has two additional events scheduled in New York City later this month, and has received commitments from two alumni volunteers to make presentations in the spring of 2007.   Kim delivered a presentation on the alumni career services programming to club leaders at the Leadership Conference.  The committee is working to implement various web resources to augment event programming by the end of January 2007. 

Alumni Clubs
Sean reported that the Alumni Association hosted the Leadership Conference over Homecoming Weekend in October.  Staff rolled out the new PCI Volunteer Leader module to the club leaders during the conference and helped volunteers design their new web pages.  The module was well received by club leaders.  Sean noted that the conference provided our club leaders with time to engage in productive discussion around strategies they can use to increase awareness of and attendance at club programs.  Volunteers also discussed ideas for lowering program costs and adding overall value to membership.

The Greater Boston Alumni Club will be hosting a networking breakfast on December 7 featuring Steve Buckley ’78 from the Boston Herald.  Steve has also agreed to participate in an event hosted by the Merrimack Valley Alumni Club next spring.  The Pioneer Valley Alumni club will be hosting a wine tasting event at the Hall of Fame in February.

Christine inquired whether the Alumni Clubs committee planned to evaluate how chartered alumni clubs are currently meeting their obligations as outlined within the partnership proposal.  Sean responded that a number of policy-related issues were presented to club leaders at  the Leadership Conference, including the need to consider quality, quantity and diversity of programming when developing club events and programs.  Only club leaders who are meeting programming obligations will receive an invitation to attend the Leadership Conference.  In addition, Sean noted that he reinforced with club leaders the appropriate use of membership monies in support of alumni programming in their respective geographic areas.  Any monies not used for this purpose will be swept from the clubs’ accounts at the end of each fiscal year.

Audit
Cristina reported that the Audit Committee will convene its first meeting in late November.  Cristina has also invited an alumnus who is a CPA with non-profit accounting expertise to join the committee, and hopes to recruit an alumna/us with insurance expertise to serve on the committee.  The committee’s first priorities will be to develop a charter and timelines for addressing other identified action items this fiscal year.

Communications, Marketing and Membership
Marc provided an overview of the executive summary of the research initiative and alumni survey conducted earlier this year by  the Communications, Marketing and Membership committee.  The survey was distributed to approximately 57,000 alumni with over 2,000 respondents, translating to an approximate 4% participation rate.  Marc noted that Kim Fill and Elena Lamontagne did an outstanding job in developing the survey and compiling a comprehensive summary report. 

Several key points of consideration were identified within the executive summary:

1. Respondents are confused about the value of the Alumni Association’s programs and services and want a clearer understanding of the Alumni Association’s mission and scope
2. The Alumni Association does a good job of communicating available programs and services, although many respondents do not take advantage of these opportunities
3. The Alumni Association is not currently seen as the top choice for career development or lifelong learning opportunities by most respondents
4. Respondents indicate a desire for relevant programming based on specific life stages

Marc noted that the organization is in a good position to begin addressing some of these concerns by continuing to build on several current initiatives, including expansion of alumni career services, exclusive member programming distributed through the alumni clubs, and targeted marketing of relevant programs and services through the PCI modules.  Kim commented that the survey is a reaffirmation that the board is strategically moving implementation of various programs and services in the right direction.  Sean noted that the survey also confirms the need to retool our messaging to better differentiate between the Alumni Association, UMass Amherst and the university’s Annual Fund.

Marc outlined several tactical options the committee plans to initially consider over the next few months:

1. Partner with other board committees to develop specific programs and targeted marketing based on life stage segments
2. Focus on acquisition of student members and leverage internet-based technologies to increase student awareness of the Alumni Association
3. Conduct ongoing follow-up research activities

Marc plans to facilitate a discussion around membership at the November board meeting.  After providing an overview of the executive summary, Marc will ask board members to breakout into smaller discussion groups by life stage segment.   Staff members will facilitate compilation of group notes and each group will be asked to report their ideas and suggestions to the full board.  Marc and his committee members will evaluate all feedback as part of the process to develop an integrated marketing strategy for further discussion at the February board meeting. 

Christine suggested that at some point within the next several months the Executive Committee should review and discuss current Alumni Association activities to determine if they are meeting the needs of our alumni, rather than the needs or desires of board members.  She believes that the Alumni Association would derive great value by refocusing their efforts to provide fewer programs and services that are executed very well, rather than providing numerous opportunities that are good.  Cristina also suggested that we continue to leverage partnership programs as a means to connect with alumni who might not otherwise engage with the Alumni Association.

Finance and Investments
Elaine reported that the Finance and Investments committee has distributed a formal request for proposal to approximately 10 potential investment management consultants.  Three committee members – Ron Grasso, Joel Slovin and Paul Sienkiewicz – have volunteered to complete an initial review of the proposals submitted to the committee and will develop a recommended short list of possible candidates to make formal presentations to the entire committee.  The committee hopes to develop a possible hiring recommendation for board approval in February. 

Kim suggested that the information contained within the Budget v. Actual by Program Code report might be more helpful if the report were reformatted to provide the comparison on a monthly and/or quarterly basis rather than an annual basis.  Deb noted that implementation of the new Quickbooks software will allow her to present this data as requested in the upcoming fiscal year.

Elaine reported that one of the state vehicles used by staff to travel to events is quite old and is becoming somewhat unsafe to drive.  The committee discussed the issue and unanimously passed a motion recommending that the Executive Committee consider the expenditure of funds up to $25,000 for the purchase of a new vehicle through the state procurement system. 

Motion: by Mike Fiorentino seconded by Kim Sherman, to approve the expenditure of funds up to $25,000 for the purchase of a new vehicle.  The motion passed unanimously.

Grants Review
Mike reported that the Grants Review committee plans to meet in mid-December to review the second round of grant applications. 

Governance
The Governance Task Force is scheduled to meet on November 30.

Nominating
Anna reported that the Nominating Committee is scheduled to convene its first meeting on November 13.  

Programs and Services
Mary reported that selection of the Distinguished Alumni Award recipients is complete.  The Programs and Services Committee plans to release their names after each has confirmed his or her acceptance of the award.  The Distinguished Alumni Awards luncheon is scheduled for Wednesday, April 11.

Student Programs and Services
Kathleen reported that the Student Programs and Services committee is meeting in a couple of weeks.  She also commented that she read a recent article in the Boston Globe discussing the popularity of educational etiquette dinners with college students.

Volunteer Advocacy and Public Affairs
Christine reported that the Volunteer Advocacy committee is working to develop a process for promptly responding to public events that impact the university.  One example of such an event is the recent appointment of Stephen Tocco to the UMass Board of Trustees by Governor Mitt Romney.  The committee plans to invite Dick Connor, from the campus’ Office of Public Affairs, to join them in a conference call and ask for his insight on appropriate ways to address these types of issues moving forward.  To encourage open lines of communication, the committee also recommends asking Hal to extend an open invitation to Mr. Tocco to attend a board meeting sometime next spring and speak to his vision for the university system. 

The committee is working with staff to draft congratulatory letters to all new members of the Commonwealth’s administration, that will also inform them about the role of the Alumni Association, statistics on UMass Amherst graduates in Massachusetts and the need for their support of the university.

The committee is also working to identify ways in which to engage more alumni in specific volunteer activities and plans to ask all board members to participate in admissions-related activities.  Plans to host a student leader reception and volunteer appreciation day in January and/or February are underway.


Executive Director’s Report
Cristina reported that she received a note from Elizabeth Dale thanking the Alumni Association for the flowers welcoming her to Drexel University.

Some board members recently received a book from unknown sources on Islamic Imperialism.  Members of other non-profit boards in the Pioneer Valley also received copies of the book. 

Development of four video spots is complete and Cristina thanked all board members who participated in the taped interviews.  She and staff members are excited about the videos and will preview them for the entire board at next week’s meeting.  

The football team is guaranteed a spot in the playoffs since their most recent win and it will be a matter of days before staff knows if the first playoff game will be hosted on the Amherst campus or away.  The final championship game will be hosted in Chattanooga, TN.  Staff members are researching various options for  travel packages to Chattanooga in the event that the team does make it to the championship game.

NESN has cancelled its scheduled television coverage of the men’s basketball game against Kentucky on December 22.  The A-10 will host the men’s basketball tournament in Atlantic City this year.  Staff members are working to develop a related event package with game tickets.  If the team performs well this year and alumni show significant interest, we could potentially partner with Athletics to develop charter trips to Atlantic City as well. 

Cristina is working with colleagues from the Five Colleges to develop an alumni event in the United Kingdom in late March.  The alumni event will revolve around a symposium on global warming and each campus will send one faculty member to participate on the panel.   The Alumni Association will be responsible for expenses related to staff travel and printing and postage of invitations for approximately 320 UMass Amherst alumni.  The university will cover faculty travel expenses.

Lisa Perlbinder, Director of Advancement Communications, will make a brief presentation at the November board meeting on the key themes and messages of the university’s capital campaign.  In the interest of time, written committee reports will be included in the board meeting packets, and oral committee reports will be limited to announcements of specific committee business related to board procedures or that require a vote of the board of directors. 

Cristina reported that a board member has acquired Alumni Association business cards through the university’s printing department that are replicas of employee business cards.  She is concerned that individuals or organizations receiving the cards form this board member may be unable to distinguish the fact that the individual is a volunteer and not an employee of the university.  Several Executive Committee members expressed concern that use of these cards could be construed as an action on the part of the board member to misrepresent himself or herself as an agent of the university, and others questioned the legality of the board member’s use of the cards.  Mike Fiorentino and Hal Lane will speak with the board member to request an immediate stop to the use of these cards.  Committee members also asked Cristina and Deb to contact legal counsel on this matter to determine if the Alumni Association could be at any risk in this situation.

Cristina noted that she has received positive feedback regarding the inaugural issue of the board email newsletter.  She hopes to send out future editions during the week following each Executive Committee meeting.

Old Business
UMass Club List Request
Christine noted that the President’s update in the October board newsletter incorrectly stated that the Executive Committee voted not to support the UMass Club’s request for access to the Alumni Association’s membership list.  Rather, the committee voted to postpone its approval to release the membership list until Cristina had an opportunity to speak with a representative of the UMass Club and ask them to submit an official affinity partner proposal for consideration.  Several committee members expressed concern that this incorrect statement misrepresented the actual conversation that occurred during the October committee meeting, and also created some ill will regarding the Executive Committee’s support of the UMass club with various university officials and alumni volunteers.  Christine suggested that Hal be asked to include a formal correction in the November board newsletter that would address this misstatement, as well as personally clarify the matter at the November board meeting.  As facilitator of this meeting, Kathleen volunteered to address this request with Hal.

Based on direction provided to her at the October Executive Committee meeting, Cristina contacted Meredith Waites of the UMass Club regarding development of an affinity proposal.  Meredith indicated that she was unaware of Lorrey Bianchi’s original request for access to the Alumni Association’s membership list, and she understood the Executive Committee’s concern about releasing private alumni information without appropriate safeguards in place.  Meredith agreed to submit an affinity partnership proposal, which Cristina forwarded to committee members earlier in the week.

Cristina provided a brief overview of the proposal and expressed her concern that the proposal is weak and somewhat lopsided in favor of the UMass Club.  She recommends developing a counter-proposal that would provide opportunities for cross-promotion and reciprocity between both organizations.  The proposal could also include a requirement that both parties work jointly in developing marketing materials so that the Alumni Association can continue to maintain control over our messages.  This will be critical in helping reduce confusion among our alumni regarding membership in the Alumni Association versus the UMass Club.

Motion: by Sean LeBlanc, seconded by Elaine Barker, to authorize Cristina Geso to continue negotiations with the UMass Club, on behalf of the Alumni Association, to develop an affinity partner proposal.  The motion passed unanimously.

Board Travel Reimbursement Policy
At the last meeting of the Finance and Investments Committee, members discussed the current reimbursement policy for board trave.  Elaine noted that past practice for travel reimbursement has not included any airfare, car rental or personal auto expenses incurred by directors residing either in or out of state.  The Alumni Association does provide complimentary lodging, meals and approved entertainment expenses for some board meetings. 

Deb provided a brief summary of research data gathered from a survey of 45 CAAE institutions responding to a survey on board travel reimbursement policies.  71% of the respondents indicated that they do not provide reimbursement of any type.  Instead, many of these institutions provide a gift-in-kind form to their directors that they can use for tax deduction purposes.  Of the remaining 29% of respondents who indicated that they do provide reimbursement, 15% plan to eliminate their reimbursement policy.  Several anecdotal comments from this survey suggested a common perception that most board members have the financial capacity to underwrite the cost of their volunteer participation.  After some discussion, coupled with their review of the survey data, the committee unanimously agreed to recommend no change in the current travel reimbursement policy for directors.  The committee will work to develop gift-in-kind forms for use by board members for tax purposes.

Sean expressed some concern about the board’s initiative to recruit increased numbers of alumni from across the nation to serve as directors and the fact that these individuals could potentially incur greater travel expenses than others residing in the Commonwealth.  He would recommend providing some measure of compensation to help offset expenses for out of state directors.  Elaine noted that the committee did discuss this concern but agreed that they consider any expenses they personally incur as a board member as an additional volunteer contribution and do not expect reimbursement.  Christine commented that she also spoke with several colleagues who serve on non-profit boards; all of these individuals indicated that they receive no reimbursement for any personal expenses they incur when traveling for volunteer purposes.  Executive Committee members agreed to accept the Finance and Investments Committee recommendation on reimbursement of board travel expenses.

Donations and Gifts Policy
The Finance and Investments Committee reviewed the current spending policy for memorial donations and gifts.  Deb noted that most memorial donations fall in the $50 range.  On occasion, the donation amount may increase to $100 dependent on the volunteer’s level of past participation with the Alumni Association.  In addition, staff may purchase various goodwill gifts used to steward volunteers (i.e. flowers for ill volunteers, bibs for volunteers celebrating the birth of a new child, thank yous for program presenters, etc.) and the cost of these gifts will typically range from $10 to $50.  All expenses for memorial donations or goodwill gifts are incurred within budget guidelines previously approved by the board of directors.

Because the staff is working within budget guidelines, the Finance and Investments Committee recommends that responsibility for determining the appropriate expenditure of these funds remain with staff members, particularly given the relatively small amounts of these disbursements.  Furthermore, staff members are appropriately disbursing all memorial donations for charitable purposes and gifts meet appropriate standards of the de minimis rule.  Any expenditure amounts recommended by staff above $250 for memorial donations or $75 for gifts will be forwarded to the Treasurer for review and approval prior to disbursement. 

New Business
Sean noted that his elected term as Club Representative expires in June 2007.  Given that the nomination and election standing rules for general directors have changed since his election to this position, he suggested that some clarification surrounding the procedures for electing the Clubs Representative position be considered at this time to ensure full transparency throughout the process. 

Motion: by Sean LeBlanc, seconded by Mary Custard, to charge the Nominating Committee with developing proposed nomination and election standing rules for Clubs Representative position for approval by the Board of Directors.  The motion passed unanimously.

General Announcements
None

Adjournment

The meeting adjourned at 9:05 p.m.