Staff Senate Minutes
September 9, 2010
Members
Lance Alexis
Cyndi Ammons
Mike Burnett
Mike Corelli
Keith Corzine
William Frady
Sheila Frizzell
Tammy Frizzell
Homer Harris
April Karby
Jason Lavigne
Eric Margiotta
David Porter
Kathleen Prindiville
Laura Simons
Scott Swartzentruber
Jeff Tatham
Walter Turner
Dianne Lynch (Ex-Officio Member)
Kathy Wong (Ex-Officio Member)
Special Guest, Erin McNelis, Faculty
Senate Chair
Present
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I.
Approval of the minutes of the previous meeting
Amend Human Resources section 4b. It is inaccurate. On October 1, 2010 state salaries, etc. will
be made public.
Motion
Walter Turner
Second
Eric Margiotta
II.
Approval of the Meeting Agenda
Motion
Jason Lavigne
Second
Homer Harris
III.
Chancellor’s Office Update (Dianne Lynch, ex-officio member)
a. New President, Tom Ross
i. He comes to the UNC system from Davidson.
ii. His first day will be January 1, 2011.
iii. January-March, 2011, the new president will be visiting all of the campuses.
b. Board of Trustees Meeting
i. William Frady (Staff Senate Chair) and Erin McNelis (Faculty Senate Chair) were
on the agenda. More on this meeting later under agenda item Vg.
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September 9, 2010
IV.
c. Board of Governors
i. The Board of Governors will meet next in Wilmington.
ii. Issues:
1. They are looking at the biennium.
2. 3.3 Billion Deficit
3. Submissions of Budget Cut scenarios.
a. 5%
b. 10%
4. $500.00 tuition increase may help to offset the cuts.
d. Western Carolina University
i. Enrollment
1. Enrollment is down just a little.
2. 9407 is our official head count. WCU had 9429 last fall.
3. However, the quality is up (GPA and SAT).
Human Resources Update (Kathy Wong, ex-officio member)
a. Employee Appreciation Day is on October 21, 2010.
i. No SPA service awards in 2010, nor faculty or non-faculty EPA retiree dinner.
1. HR has asked that the departments recognize the employees years of
service, retirement, etc.
ii. Employee Appreciation Day will feature many of the standard events.
1. Live Entertainment
2. Vendor Fair on the concourse
3. Meal
iii. On the arena floor there will be a table with certificates.
1. 5 years
2. 10 years
3. 15 years
iv. For honorees (20 years or more) and retirees (SPA, EPA and EPA non-faculty)
there will be a gift that is standard. (The honorees/retirees will not be able to
choose the gift as they have in years past.)
v. For Employees with greater than 30 years of service, there will be a one-time
“catch up” gift.
vi. If there is any feedback, please let Kathy Wong know.
vii. They hope to make it an annual event – “Week of Recognition.”
b. NC Flex Open Enrollment
i. Open enrollment begins on October 4, 2010.
ii. There are some changes. For example, the reimbursement timeframe has been
extended.
c. Job Recruitment Update
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September 9, 2010
V.
i. To post a job for recruitment, departments do not have to send the posting to
the Executive Council. They can simply submit the opening to Human
Resources. This is a return to more “standard” business practices.
ii. Housekeeping will not be privatized. It appears that AB Tech has gone this
route, but any word that WCU will follow suit is strictly rumor.
d. State Health Plan
i. A dependent coverage mailer has gone asking for documentation. This mailer is
legitimate. Please submit all required documentation to the state health plan.
If documentation is not provided, the dependent coverage will be dropped
retroactive to the last coverage year. Please contact Peg Schaeffer in HR if you
have any questions or concerns.
e. Student Holy Days
i. Students are allowed 2 holy days a year. WCU encourages accommodation.
Kathy Wong will check into how this works faculty/staff.
New Business
a. Committees (William Frady)
i. The Governance committee does not have any volunteers. Senate members
can serve on multiple committees. Please contact Tammy Frizzell if you are
willing to serve (tfrizzell@email.wcu.edu).
ii. All committees should meet and elect a chair before our next meeting. Please
send the names of the chairs to Tammy Frizzell (tfrizzell@email.wcu.edu).
b. Treasurer Position (William Frady)
i. The Staff Senate is setting up two funds. The creation of the treasurer position
would alleviate some strain on the secretary position.
1. The two funds are:
a. Employee Emergency Assistance Fund
b. Ornament Fund
ii. Vote:
Motion
Eric Margiotta
Second
Mike Corelli
The motion carries.
c. Staff Assembly Alternates (William Frady)
i. Western Carolina University’s Staff Senate needs at least one alternate delegate
to the Staff Assembly.
ii. The delegate will:
1. Have the option of attending the teleconferences.
2. The alternate will be able to attend the in-person meeting if a regular
delegate is unable to attend.
3. The alternate will be able to vote in the absence of a regular delegate.
iii. It is interesting to note that the Staff Assembly suffers from some of the same
issues as our Staff Senate:
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September 9, 2010
1. Attendance
2. Serving on committees
iv. Staff Assembly is a great way to get our voices heard at the state level. A good
example of that was our comments on the furlough issue being forwarded by
Staff Assembly Chair, Kelly Eaves-Boykin.
v. In January Staff Assembly delegates will have an opportunity to meet the new
UNC President.
vi. Mike Corelli agreed to serve as the Staff Assembly alternate for Western
Carolina University Staff Senate.
d. Staff Senate Buttons (William Frady)
i. Years ago the Staff Senate had buttons for its members to wear.
ii. Tammy Frizzell contacted Multicultural Affairs and enquired about their button
maker. Yolany Gonell kindly offered to allow the Staff Senate to make enough
buttons for its members. (Eric Margiotta offered to have UC student workers
make the buttons once a design is in place.)
iii. The Staff Senate would like to know the cost of producing buttons for all staff
members (~1500).
iv. Perhaps ~200 buttons could be given out at Employee Appreciation Day?
v. Tammy Frizzell will check into the specifics and report back to the Staff Senate
via email.
vi. The original buttons read: “Have you helped a student today?” and
“Staff Senate
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Motion
Eric Margiotta
Second
Mike Corelli
The motion carries.
e. Meeting with the Chancellor on November 30, 2010. Please place this item on your
calendars (William Frady). *A special meeting request was sent out.
f. Leadership Retreat on September 14, 2010 (1:00-4:00 pm) will be held in the UC Grand
Room. The Staff Senate Secretary sent an RSVP for the entire Senate. *A special
meeting request was sent out. This retreat will help prepare for work on Western
Carolina University’s Strategic Plan.
g. Board of Trustees (William Frady/Dianne Lynch)
i. The Board of Trustees was very welcoming.
ii. Areas covered:
1. Employee Recognition
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September 9, 2010
2. More computers for Staff with limited access
3. Employee Emergency Assistance Fund. William Frady received the first
donation to the fund.
h. Staff Handbook (William Frady)
i. This item would be a major undertaking.
ii. By the time it went to print it would probably be outdated.
iii. The Human Resources office has submitted to the Office of State Personnel to
re-establish their training position.
1. They hope to use the re-established position to revitalize New Employee
Orientation.
iv. The Staff Senate will direct interested staff to the web for the desired
information. We will function as a conduit.
i. Holiday/Flex Scheduling (William Frady)
i. There is some concern that Veteran’s Day and Memorial Day are not holidays on
which we receive a day off.
ii. The state allows us 11 holidays. It is up to the institution to decide which days
are given.
iii. Taking certain days off have a profound effect on the academic calendar.
Institutions must have x Monday/Wednesday/Friday class dates and x
Tuesday/Thursday class dates.
iv. The Fourth of July holiday used to be taken at Christmas, but there was some
concern that WCU did not honor any patriotic holidays. Therefore, it was
decided that the Fourth of July would be given.
v. If you take too many days away from Christmas, certain employees will have to
take leave without pay or be in the position of working. Those employees may
feel that they “have to work” and that effects the university’s cost savings. The
university would not be able to have its “shutdown.” (Chuck Wooten will be
asked for hard data.) - Certain university personnel deemed “essential” must
still work during holidays and are compensated with time and ½.
vi. We are given a flat 11 paid holidays by the state, 12 if the Christmas holiday falls
on a Wednesday, Thursday, Friday pattern.
vii. WCU has worked hard to pull its calendar in line with local schools and local
employers. Any potential changes could jeopardize this progress.
viii. Floating holidays would be hard for Human Resources to track. Certain types of
leave are manually keyed.
ix. The Staff Senate will survey the staff and see if this issue is a key concern. *The
staff must understand that only 11 holidays are granted and taking one day
means the sacrifice of another.
j. Employee Appreciation Day/Community Service/ Fund Raising (Tammy Frizzell)
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September 9, 2010
i.
VI.
VII.
Last year the Staff Senate collected food throughout the weeks leading up to
Employee Appreciation Day. We then donated the food items to Community
Table for use with their Kid’s Backpack Program.
ii. We also solicited items to give-away at our table during Employee Appreciation.
iii. Employees were asked to donate to the Scholarship Fund.
iv. This year the Senate will again collect food for the Kid’s Backpack Program and
will solicit funds for the Employee Emergency Assistance Fund.
1. *The Senate will also look into a letter campaign to help kickoff the
EEAF.
Old Business
a. Employee Emergency Assistance Fund (Tammy Frizzell)
i. Key Issues/Concerns:
ii. The foundation document should contain permissive/discretionary language.
(IE use of the word “will” switch to “possibly” or “may.”)
iii. The foundation document and possibly the application form should clearly
define what it means to be eligible.
iv. Make sure that applicants understand that eligibility does not mean that they
will receive the funds.
v. Possibly remove or amend the employee status section as employment details
will be confirmed by Human Resources.
vi. Add 920# to the application.
vii. Spell out application process on the form.
viii. Make the section for family members applying (deceased employee, etc.)
clearer.
ix. Examples of appropriate documentation are needed.
Informational Items
a. Ornaments (Tammy Frizzell)
i. Ornaments will be ordered this month and our profit sharing endeavor with
Catamount Clothing & Gifts will be a go!
b. Retention Rate (Walter Turner)
i. Our retention rate is down.
ii. We need to get our constituents fired up.
iii. We currently lose 1 out of 4 students.
iv. Let’s try and make it 1 out of 5 or 1 out of 6.
c. Meeting with the Chancellor on November 30, 2010.
d. Chancellor’s Leadership Retreat on September 14, 2010 (1:00-4:00 pm) in the
University Center Grand Room.
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