UIC UNITED: A Chapter of SUAA Minutes of the Board of Directors Meeting May 8, 2008

Members Present: Marsha Borders, Judy Curry, Merrill Gassman, Carol Humble, Richard Johnson, Rose Kirk, Carole Koch, Irving Miller, Lawrence Poston, Leonard Ramirez, Susan Sindelar, Charles Stanislao, and William Troyer

Members Absent: William Jones, John McCrosky, and Frank Tachau

The meeting was called to order by President Irving Miller at 10:30am.

1. Introduction of New Board Members: Board members present introduced themselves and described their past and/or current roles at UIC and their current roles on the Board of Directors.

2. Approval of Minutes: Approval of minutes of the April 7, 2008 meeting was postponed until the next Board meeting.

3. Discussion with SURSMAC Representatives: The SURSMAC representatives were not present; the agenda item was postponed.

4. Treasurer's Report (Chuck Stanislao): Total net assets as of May 8, 2008: $42,999.14
Average amount of dues collected per month: $1400.

The issue of audits of local chapters was discussed. It will be addressed with the incoming SUAA Treasurer following the annual meeting

5. SUAACTION (Richard Johnson): Dick described the role of SUAACTION for the benefit of new Board members. It is a political action committee (PAC), set apart by law from SUAA. It is funded entirely by volunteer contributions and supports political candidates in State elections.

Fundraising efforts have been very successful; current collections total $17,002 toward a goal of $18,000. There will be a meeting of some SUAACTION members following this Board meeting to further assess fundraising progress and related issues.

6. Report from Lobby Day - April 9, 2008 (Richard Johnson): Lobby Day was sponsored by the Higher Education Coalition, of which SUAA is a member. The rally was held in Springfield to demonstrate interest and support. It was noted that the Coalition does not appear to be interested in highlighting pension issues at this time.

The upcoming SUAA annual meeting was also discussed, including expected agenda items. It appears that UIC UNITED will be represented by a full delegation.

7. Constitutional Convention: President Irving Miller led a discussion concerning whether our Chapter should have a position on a State constitutional convention. There was no consensus among Board members on whether to survey our membership so a survey will not be initiated at this time. However, the Board agreed that it would be beneficial to hold a forum on the issue, perhaps in the fall.

Board members also agreed that more information on this issue would be helpful. To that end, Judy Curry will circulate to Board members a summary of Dawn Clark Netsch's views (con) and Pat Quinn's views (pro).

8. Membership (Susan Sindelar): There have been no updates to date from SUAA reflecting April activity. Membership numbers are still reported at 1627 members, with 143 non-renewals as of March 2008.

There is no progress to report on working with SEIU on common goals. President Irving Miller will follow-up with Christine Boardman.

Sue spoke with two tradesmen at the April 22, 2008 Chapter meeting regarding working with the trade unions on common goals. Their responses were enthusiastic. Sue will make formal contacts with UIC's trade and police labor unions.

The UIC UNITED packet of materials will be added to the annual Faculty/Staff Orientation program. Discussion continues regarding a 10-minute slot on the program's agenda. Meanwhile, Sue will follow-up on revising the UIC UNITED brochure.

9. Program (Carol Humble): Board members reviewed and discussed the revised preliminary program plan dated
May 7, 2008.

Plans will proceed for a Fall forum on the Constitutional Convention, with a panel of speakers reflecting both sides of the issue. The following potential speakers will be contacted within two to four weeks:

Jim Nowland (Susan Sindelar will contact)
Pat Quinn (Susan Sindelar will contact)
Wayne Wayland (Carol Humble will contact)
Rep. John Fritchey (Richard Johnson will contact)

Carol Humble, Rose Kirk and Chuck Stanislao will follow-up to secure an appropriate venue. The time for the event will be changed to 4-7pm.

Potential speakers for the Fall Chapter meeting in October will be contacted within the next two weeks:

Paul Green (Richard Johnson will contact)
Dick Simpson (Rose Kirk will contact)

10. Newsletter (Lawrence Poston, Judy Curry): Members reviewed and discussed the Publication Services quotation ($967.50 for 1200 copies; $1,022.66 for 1400 copies). Chuck Stanislao indicated that these prices are better than those of outside jobbers. Larry Poston described start-up problems with Publication Services, including design issues, and expressed concern that campus-based services may be discontinued. There was general agreement that printing should continue to be done on-campus. Judy Curry has also asked for an additional quotation from Publication Services for 1700 copies.

Judy led a brainstorming discussion on redefining the purpose and frequency of the newsletter to better serve the organization. Ideas included: expand the audience; provide salient information on the political situation at the State level; issue the newsletter at the start of each academic year and the start of the Spring semester; utilize UIC NEWS more to promote UIC UNITED events; and ask Board members to contribute content. Judy Curry will follow-up with UIC NEWS. Discussion of these issues will continue at the next Board meeting.

11. Old Business: The next Board meeting will be scheduled for late June, to follow the annual SUAA meeting.

Chuck Stanislao asked about the status of the house bill on "sweeping" pension funds. Richard Johnson responded that it is a dead issue.

12. New Business: Richard Johnson introduced a proposal to establish a UIC UNITED annual scholarship in the amount of $1500 (est.) for the purpose of giving back to the University. The topic will be added to the next Board meeting agenda for further discussion.

13. Adjournment: The meeting was adjourned at 12:10pm.

Respectfully submitted by Carole Koch, Secretary

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