Executive Committee Meeting Minutes
Conference Call
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
6:00 pm
Present: Tom Campbell, Jackie Carlson, Shyno Chacko Pandeya, Ed Godek, Ron Grasso, Andy Hochberg, Sean LeBlanc, Joel Slovin and Ron Spicer
Absent: Sara Coady Howe
Staff: Deb Goodhind and Anna Symington
The meeting convened at 6:05 p.m.
Approval of Minutes
Motion: by Ron Grasso, seconded by Andy Hochberg, to approve the minutes of the September 15 Executive Committee meeting. The motion passed unanimously.
President’s Update
Sean was on campus earlier this month to attend the Welcome Back Pancake Breakfast and was impressed with the student turnout. The Alumni Association was showcased in the most recent edition of UMass Amherst Magazine for having instituted a number of new traditions to augment old ones, including the pancake breakfast, Commencement Ball and our flip-flop giveaway to new incoming students.
Sean encouraged committee members to consider attending an upcoming Career Connections event in Lowell, as well as register through MaroonCentral as a Minuteman Mentor.
Executive Director’s Update
Anna reported that the “Fall into Success” kickoff on October 6 had great attendance and received a good amount of campus coverage. The program was a collaborative effort of the career services advisory group, comprised of colleagues from across campus who support student career programming in their respective areas, and included a series of fun and interactive career-related events, including a “Why Hire U” video contest, trivia quizzes, and resume reviews. The new vice chancellor for student affairs has recently developed a task force to review and evaluate career advisory efforts across campus. It is likely that members of the task force and advisory group will eventually combine to form one collaborative group in the future, with Alumni Association staff remaining very involved with the new group’s efforts.
Anna was asked to speak to the College of Engineering’s alumni advisory board relative to the various ways in which the Alumni Association engages students. Attendees were quite impressed with these various initiatives and noted their interest in working collaboratively with the Alumni Association to help expand our outreach to engineering students.
Homecoming Weekend is shaping up to be a very exciting weekend, with numerous events and programs scheduled to appeal to both students and alumni.
October Board Meeting Agenda
The Executive Committee approved the October board meeting agenda as presented.
FY 2010 Operating Budget
Joel reported that the Finance and Investments Committee met last week to review the proposed FY 2010 operating budget. Deb provided an overview of the budget that included a comparison of budget vs. actual revenues and expenses over the past three years. She developed the budget based on revenue projections and known funding requests related to proposed committee initiatives for FY 2010. Revenue projections were estimated conservatively, including a projected 3.5% rate of return on investments, and membership revenues were projected based on the membership program’s current structure. Operating expenses were decreased accordingly, primarily through reduction of administrative and general marketing costs.
Committee members agreed to forward the proposed budget as presented to the Board of Directors for approval at their October meeting. Joel noted that the Finance and Investments Committee could potentially recommend additional revisions to the budget later in the year, dependent on the final membership restructure proposal approved by the Board.
Directors and Officers’ Insurance
Andy reported that the Alumni Association recently purchased directors and officers’ insurance (D&O) coverage through a new carrier, which also included network security coverage for the same liability and retention amounts. However, upon review of the final policy, Deb noted that the network coverage was actually less than the amount for which we thought we had contracted. Our insurance agent has discussed this discrepancy with the carrier, who has offered two different options for modifying our current policy: one that would maintain our current premium and provide both D&O and network security coverage at lower liability limits than we originally requested, or one that would provide the same level of requested coverage at a higher premium. Either option will require staff to complete an application relative to the network security coverage for the carrier’s consideration prior to final approval of any modification.
Committee members agreed that it would be prudent to identify an insurance professional who could provide additional insight into what levels of coverage and retention would be most appropriate for an organization of the Alumni Association’s size. Deb will reach out to Audit Committee members and ask whether they can recommend anyone through their professional contacts.
Alumni / Donor Database
Motion: by Ed Godek, seconded by Ron Spicer, to move into executive session with staff present. The motion passed unanimously.
Motion: by Andy Hochberg, seconded by Shyno Chacko Pandeya, to move out of executive session. The motion passed unanimously.
Membership Proposal
Ron Grasso reported that the Communications, Marketing and Membership (CMM) Committee has met seven times in seven weeks to develop a working document relative to a proposed restructure of the membership program. The CMM Committee will present the document at the October board meeting, which will reflect a strategic restructure framework representing several key concepts, including:
- All alumni are considered members of the Alumni Association
- Elimination of annual and maroon level dues
- Continuation of life membership level and perhaps development of another premier level
- Cumulative total of past dues paid will be eligible for consideration towards life member level
- Alumni will be encouraged to “acknowledge” the Alumni Association through dues
Ron noted that the committee must consider additional questions prior to finalizing the granular details of a restructure proposal, such as whether to incorporate a sustaining member level into the proposal, and identifying which benefits would correlate to each proposed member level. The committee will seek approval from the Board to move forward within the proposed restructure framework at the October board meeting.
Committee Reports
Audit
The Audit Committee met last week with the external auditor to review the audited financial statements. The primary emphasis of this year’s audit was a review of the Alumni Association’s records in relation to new UPMIFA and Form 990 reporting requirements. In general, the auditors found the records and internal controls of the Alumni Association to be in good order and identified no significant deficiencies or material weaknesses in their review. The Form 990 will be distributed to all board members for review prior to the filing deadline.
The Audit Committee informed the auditor that the Board of Directors is currently considering a possible restructure of the membership program. The auditor did not anticipate this creating an audit concern; although she did recommend that the Board develop other possible alternatives for offsetting any potential revenue loss associated with a restructure. In addition, the auditor noted that the Board should be using a portion of the life member reserves funds to maintain the cost of life memberships.
Career Connections
None
Clubs
The next edition of Clubs newsletter is scheduled for distribution to all clubs steering committee members later this week. The Clubs Committee is currently coordinating the year-end evaluation process of each club and is beginning to collect peer institution data relative to the committee’s review of the clubs’ nominations and elections process. Each member of the Clubs Committee has been assigned as a liaison to specific clubs.
Communications, Marketing and Membership
None
Finance and Investments
None
Honors and Awards
Nominations for the Distinguished Alumni Awards are due by October 23. The Honors and Awards Committee plans to meet in mid-November to review the nominations and select award recipients.
Nominating
The Nominating Committee met in early October to review this year’s nominations and elections timeline and begin considering the current board’s profile summary. Six director and the clubs representative positions are eligible for election this year.
Programs and Services
The Programs and Services Committee is working with the Volunteer Advocacy and Public Affairs Committee to review the goals and location of the Distinguished Alumni Awards program, with the intent of improving participation of both alumni and legislators. The committee also plans to begin review of reunion programming shortly.
Technology and Online Services
The Technology and Online Services Committee continues to focus on developing social media strategies to expand participation, drive more traffic to the Alumni Association’s website and increase broadcast email open rates.
Volunteer Advocacy and Public Affairs
Promotion for the New Orleans service trip, scheduled for mid-January, is on-going and several alumni have already registered to participate. Plans to coordinate Volunteer Appreciation Day around the men’s basketball game planned for January 10 at the MassMutual Center are underway.
Old Business: None
New Business:
Committee members briefly discussed ideas for implementing new initiatives to collaborate with diverse affinity groups.
Groundbreaking ceremonies for the new Minuteman Marching Band building are scheduled for Homecoming Weekend. All board members are invited to attend.
Adjournment:
Motion: by Ron Spicer, seconded by Ron Grasso, to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed unanimously.