Eastern Michigan University Alumni Association
Board of Directors Meeting
247 McKenny Hall
Saturday, November 21, 2015
Members present:
Patricia Andrewes, Patrick Barry, Amanda Bennett, Tom Borg, Ryan Buck (phone), Tom
Charboneau (phone), Linda Edwards-Brown, Sarah Fall, Randi Glaza (phone), John Godre
(phone), Mike Gomez, Ruth Halsey, George Harrison, Jasmine Lee, Jenita Moore (phone),
Chad Newton (phone), Paul Nucci, Don Reichert (attended first half of meeting, excused for
second half), Niklaus Schillack (phone for first half of meeting, attended in person for second
half), Greg Sheldon, Marques Thomey
Members absent: Matt Mortier (excused), Robert Murkowski (excused), Mauricio Silva,
(excused), Claudia Young (excused)
Ex-officio members present: Jill Hunsberger, Ann Thompson, Leigh Greden
Emeritus member present: Bill Malcolm, Bud Schimmelpfenneg
Emeritus member absent: Vicki Reaume, Fred Roberts
Others present: Dean Mohamed Qatu, Douglas Wallace, Vince Cavataio
1. Call to Order/Approval of the Agenda
Mr. Barry called the meeting to order at 9:05am. He welcomed the Board. No new business was
added to the agenda. In the absence of Ms. Reaume, Mr. Barry will provide a regents update.
Agenda was approved.
2. Roll Call
Ms. Halsey took attendance. The results of the roll call can be found at the top the minutes.
Ms. Halsey confirmed that we have quorum.
3. Approval of September 12, 2015 Alumni Association Board of Directors Meeting
Minutes
Mr. Harrison made a motion to approve the September 12, 2015 minutes. Ms. Andrewes
supported the motion. Minutes approved. Mr. Schimmelpfenneg made the suggestion that
minutes for the next meeting be paginated.
4. Guest Speaker - Dr. Mohamad Qatu, Dean of the College of Technology
The first goal of the College of Technolgy (COT) is investing more in technology. They want to
encourage and strengthen the technology associated with the college programs.
The second goal is to move in the direction to possibly having some engineering majors. The
COT recently put together a Mechanical Engineering curriculum, which is under review for
approval now. COT is also investing in more lecturers to relieve faculty members to complete
more curriculum development.
The third goal is to increase student enrollment statistics. The program in Mechanical
Engineering is helping with this.
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The fourth goal is to work on improving student success, working with the office of the provost.
Need to make sure that students are advised properly to ensure students are graduating in a
reasonable time. Goal is to engage the students with employers as soon as possible,
particularly using internship programs in their Junior and Senior years.
The fifth goal of the COT is to complete strategic planning for the next 5 to 25 years, working
closely with the foundation to increase donor funding for infrastructure and other needs to
improve the program.
The sixth goal of the COT is to increase faculty research. Working on initiatives to help the
faculty members to have more research opportunities.
Question from Ms. Fall: As a student in the Ph.D. program in the COT, will you survey the
students in the program and their opinion of how the program is going from their point of view?
This might be helpful to gain the student's perspective before moving forward too much.
Answer: There is a student advisory board and the COT takes students' perspectives very
seriously.
All alumni from the programs of MET are invited to attend events on December 3, 4 for the
interior design program and December 12 for the aviation program.
Question from Mr. Barry: Do you have an alumni advisory board at the COT?
Answer: Not at this time. COT is rebuilding the college advisory board, which will include
alumni.
5. Board of Regents Update
Ms. Reaume provided the regents update by email to Mr. Barry due to an important, prior
conflict. Below are the highlights of the email update.
Meeting minutes from the December 1st Board of Regents meeting will be posted on the Board
of Regents website shortly. The meeting was peaceful; as conversation period was moved to
the end of the meeting.
The Board of Regents approved a new academic program of neuroscience, which is a new
interdisciplinary major. Approved scholarships and awards of $54M. Approved an outlay
request to renovate Strong Hall. Approved the negotiation of the bargaining agreement with the
EMU & American Association of University Professors.
Next meeting is Tuesday, December 8th at 1:30, in Welch Hall.
On Monday, December 7th, the Board of Regents have invited us to a holiday mixer to include
the Board of Regents, Emeritus Regents, Foundation Board members, Alumni Board members,
and members of the University Executive Council. This event will include heavy hors d'oeuvres.
An invitation flier was distributed at the meeting. Mr. Barry encouraged all those who are able to
attend to attend. Event is Monday, December 7th, at 6:00 pm. RSVP is requested by
November 30th.
Ms. Reaume also believes that the conversation about the Education Achievement Authority
(EAA), with the State of Michigan, will be an issue at the next Board of Regents meeting.
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Mr. Greden provided a supplement to the update regarding the EAA: EMU's support for the EAA
was previously discussed 1 year ago. At that time, it was previously agreed that it would be
discussed 1 year from then, which is the next meeting. At the meeting 1 year previous, the
Board of Regents wanted four specific areas to be studied: MEAP student scores and student
performance, financial stability and financial management of the EAA, demonstrated
partnerships with EMU and transparency specifically FOIA compliance. EMU faculty assessed
all of these issues. The final report will be published in the next couple of days.
6. University Update
The University update was provided by Mr. Leigh Greden. Mr. Greden is the attorney and
advisor to Interim President Kim Schatzel.
EMU student retention rates and graduation rates have both improved. 2% point improvement
in retention rates. 4% point improvement in the 6-year graduation rate.
The University is opening a new International Center. After studying their peer institutions, EMU
was found to be the only University without a central international center for coordinating all
international issues. There is an opportunity for alumni engagement, particularly international
alumni. At this time, the organization chart for the International Center is not fully clarified, but
at a minimum it would coordinate and standardize the expertise and faculty activities overseas.
The University launched a new website of faculty experts, which allows the students, news
media, community, and alumni, to see experts in particular fields so that they can more easily
find a faculty member in the specific area of research.
Several new grants were awarded this past year: 1) $300K to Russell Olwell, with the EMU
Institute for the Study of Children, Families and Communities. The grant is to work with the City
of Ypsilanti Housing Committee to overhaul the city's low-income housing. The grant was
provided by Kresge Foundation, which, will provide serves on-site services to individuals who
move into upgraded (or rebuilt) low-income housing, including dental care, computer skills, etc.
2) A new grant for sexual assault prevention from the State of Michigan was funded for $53K for
a student-led social media program on sexual assault prevention, led by Ellen Gold, Associate
VP of Student Well-Being.
Interim President Schatzel kicked off a 2-hour conversation at the McKinney Ballroom on race.
The meeting was intense, but very informative. It was an opportunity to hear directly from
students on what they have seen, and open conversation. The search for the Chief Diversity
Officer continues.
The website "Top Masters In Education" has listed EMU's Masters of Education program of one
of the best value residential masters in Education 2015-2016. In addition, for the 12th
consecutive year, the Princeton Review named EMU College of Business among the nation's
best business schools.
EMU will give $54M in scholarships this academic year.
Due to a conflict, April 2016 Spring Commencement moved to Sunday, April 24th.
Question from Ms. Edwards- Brown: Do you have data on the retention rate for diverse
students?
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Answer: At this time, Mr. Greden did not have those specific numbers, but would get them and
send this information to the Alumni Board of Directors.
However, EMU has some specific programs geared toward increasing minority student retention
rates. In particular, the Men of Color Initiative is working to increase retention, but also life
skills, including conflict resolution skills among African-American males. In addition, My
Brother's Keeper program from the Obama administration is geared toward urban communities
and encourages men and women of color to take care of each other, to improve their
communities. EMU was named to host the Washtenaw County Local Action Summit.
Question from Mr. Harrison - Are students involved in the My Brother's Keeper program helping
to change the housing in Ypsilanti?
Answer: Yes - they are involved.
Question from Ms. Lee: Ms. Lee wondered about how EMU's grant from the Kresge Foundation
is competing with or against with U-M's Wolverines Pathways program?
Answer: The focus of the Kresge Foundation grant is not focused on educational awareness.
Question from Mr. Barry: What is U-M's Wolverines Pathways program?
Answer: It is a free, year-round program that is geared toward minority 7th grade and 10th
grade students, providing tutoring, cultural exposure, campus visits, college preparation
workshops, etc. This is a long-term strategy to improve U-M's minority enrollment. Students
who complete the program and are admitted to U-M will receive a full, four-year tuition
scholarship.
EMU has a similar program, the Education First Opportunity Scholarship - offered to students
who are Pell Grant eligible, with minimum of a 20 ACT score and GPA of 3.0 or above. It is
offered after students apply and their background is reviewed.
Question from Ms. Lee: A lot of University communities, are having discussions about diverse
students' experiences, but not as many having discussions about faculty, teaching assistants,
graduate assistants, facility workers, etc. experiences and their minority experiences. Does
EMU have a program such as this?
Answer: At this time the focus has not extended beyond students as much. However, EMU's
Human Resources office does focus on this, but Mr. Greiden will talk with HR about this.
Question from Mr. Borg: What is EMU doing to boost retention and graduation rates?
Answer: EMU is increasing academic advising access, more computer access to when courses
are offered, going through when courses are offered and mapping them out in advance. In
addition, EMU is helping students with financial issues, more one-on one focus with the
students to help them as they start to have issues. EMU is also increased tutoring for students,
so they can pass classes.
EMU is also working on job hire rates after graduation by collaborating with businesses in the
community.
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7. Foundation Update
Ms. Hunsberger from the Office of Advancement provided the Foundation Update.
With the new Office of Advancement, Ms. Hunsberger is hoping to no longer have a wall
between the Alumni Office, Alumni Board of Directors, and the Foundation. The Foundation is
celebrating a successful move into McKenny Hall.
Monthly communication from the Office of Advancement is beginning.
Staffing update for the Foundation:
With the growth in the COT, Betty Stremich, who previously had two development roles as the
Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations and Development Director, College of
Technology, will have just one development role as the Development Director for the College of
Technology. Vince Cavataio, the Director for Annual Giving, will take over the role of Director of
Corporate and Foundation Relations. An advancement communication specialist position will
soon be filled. They are concluding second-round interviews for a College of Arts and Sciences
development officer.
Main focus of the Foundation, at this time, is fundraising - as November and December are the
largest fundraising months.
Starting in January, they will bring in people discuss kinds of fundraising activities to have in the
next year. Specifically, studying return on investment, which programs should be given up, etc.
After the end of this month, the Foundation's capital campaign should be about $6M of our
$10M goal, after just 5 months. The Foundation is heading in to the next fiscal year with great
success.
Question from Mr. Barry: Where does the $54M from EMU for scholarships come from?
Answer: This comes directly from EMU. Other funding for students are Federal Pell grants,
private scholarships, and Perkins Loans.
8. Student Body Update
Mr. Barry indicated that Mr. Cole was not present to provide the Student Body Update, as he is
participating in a Mock Trial Event.
9. Office for Alumni Relations Report
The office successfully made it through another season of home football games and tailgates.
The alumni role at Winter Commencement has changed. Alumni moved out from the exit of the
Convocation Center to create a tunnel of alumni, welcoming students into the body of alumni.
Winter Commencement is December 19th. Need to be there at 9:00 am if you want to
volunteer, and ceremony will start around 10:00 am. Really need to have representation from
the Board to represent the Alumni Association.
The Alumni Office is in the implementation phase of Gradway, which is a social networking tool
for alumni. Alumni can volunteer in multiple ways including sharing interviewing skills,
mentoring, assisting with resume writing, etc. Alumni who are willing, will also be given the
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opportunity to write letters to their legislator on issues important to EMU. The Alumni Office will
be sending monthly or quarterly messages to students about topics they can support.
The Alumni Office is in the process of forming a new alumni network in Atlanta, Georgia. There
are over 1,500 alumni in that regional area.
Several new TruEMU days, have been added to the schedule, including the following: TruEMU
Night at the Palace at with the Pistons - March 23rd, TruEMU day at Detroit Zoo - June, and
TRUEMU Night at Comerica Park - July. Other TRUEMU days available on
https://www.emich.edu/truemudays/.
Giving Tuesday is Tuesday, December 1st. Board members are encouraged to participate
100% on December 1st.
New handout of upcoming events was distributed
10. Alumni Association President-Elect Report
President Elect Report moved to earlier in the agenda, as Mr. Thomey had to leave early.
Mr. Thomey met with the EMU Foundation Board of Trustees and presented to them key events
and dates for our alumni association.
Mr. Thomey is unable to meet the minimum donation requirement of $1,500 for the Foundation
Board of Trustees, due to a career change, so we need to consider another board members to
attend. Bylaws state that the President-Elect is the default alumni association participant on the
Foundation Board of Trustees. In the event that the President-Elect is unable to fill this role, the
Executive Committee will nominate a member of the Alumni Association Board of Directors to
serve on the Foundation Board of Trustees. This nominee is to be voted on by the Board of
Directors. Mr. Bud Schimmelpfenneg is an emeritus member of the Foundation Board of
Directors, and Mr. Reichert and Mr. Sheldon are also on the Foundation Board of Trustees;
however, there is an additional seat for the Alumni Association Board of Directors. Mr. Harrison
has volunteered to fill this role, however, other members are welcome to express interest.
Members of the Alumni Association Board of Directors who are able to meet the minimum
donation requirement, and are interested in serving on the Foundation Board of Trustees should
email Mr. Barry with their interest in the next two weeks. Need resolution of this by the February
2016 meeting.
Mr. Thomey attended the EMU Career Fair.
11. Alumni Association Treasurer's Report
Mr. Schillack shared the highlights from his report. When discussing the license plate revenue,
he indicated that Heading 3 of his report should read "Detailed Scholarship Endowment
Information", as opposed to "Detailed License Plate Information".
The report included two recommended actions:
a. The Executive Committee moves to transfer $10,000 from the Alumni Association account
(R12003) to the Scholarship Endowment.
b. The Executive Committee moves to transfer $10,000 from the Alumni Association account
(R12003) to the Program Endowment.
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Mr. Harrison made the motion to accept these recommended actions. Ms. Andrewes seconded
the motion.
Question by Mr. Schimmelpfenneg: Why do we want to send another $10,000 to the program
endowment account?
Answer: This endowment account was created 1.5 yrs ago as an alternate funding source for
the Alumni Association Board of Directors for programming, as an alternate, or supplemental
source of revenue aside from the license revenue.
Question by Mr. Schimmelpfenneg: Will a budget for use of these funds be developed?
Answer: Yes, there would be a budget when the time comes for use of these funds, and that
they would be voted on by the Board of Directors to approve the use of these funds.
At the time the program endowment was developed, the idea was that we would work with the
foundation to create more earnings in the account to help grow funds for programming. This
hasn't happened yet, due to staffing transitions at the Foundation.
Comment by Mr. Schimmelpfenneg: When we negotiated the license plate money to come to
Alumni Board of Directors, we did in return for accepting all alumni as members of the alumni
association. If these funds are considered to be taken away, we need to re-iterate this.
Mr. Barry and Ms. Thompson agreed to contact the Vice President of Finance, Patrick Doyle, to
find a copy of this agreement. At the time that this agreement was made, Vicki Reaume was
with the Office of Alumni Relations.
Mr. Harrison called the question on the open motion. Vote passed. None opposed.
12.A. Committee Reports: Awards and Recognition
Mr. Harrison reviewed the highlights of his report.
Mr. Barry, Ms. Thompson, and Mr. Harrison met with Linda McGill to discuss the Teaching
Excellence Awards (TEA) and agreed that to reactivate this awards event, it should include
more alumni participation. The Awards and Recognition Committee is looking to investigate
options and will return with action items for a vote at the April 2016 meeting. If voted on, the
next TEA would occur in future years, perhaps 2017.
Question from Ms. Lee: In the past how many people were awarded at the TEA?
Answer: Five individuals, typically.
No recommendation was included in the committee's report; however, there was extensive
board discussion on the continuation of the TEA.
Comment from Ms. Lee: Perhaps structure of the award could change so that a certain number
of awardees must be alumnus.
Comment from Ms. Andrewes: She thinks this is a good idea - all of us should consider this
TEA, and send George our thoughts on what we think the make-up of the event should be.
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Comment from Mr. Schimmelpfenneg: The awards and recognition committee report is not a
consensus of all of the members of the committee. It is not a consensus that TEA should be
started up again.
Comment from Ms. Bennett: Ms. Bennett indicated that when this issue was brought before the
board 1 year ago, she voted it down. When Trudy was the chair of the Awards and Recognition
Committee she did research on those who were given teaching awards. Some of the new
individuals on the Board of Directors have not seen this report, and new individuals should have
the opportunity to see this report and see the research. What is the point of voting down the
TEA, if only 1 year later we are considering this?
Comment from Mr. Barry: When he did his tour with high level leadership, three Regents and
Kim Schatzel felt that bringing back the TEA would be important.
Comment from Mr. Schimmelpfenneg: Mr. Schimmelpfenneg indicated he also voted down the
event. At the time, he voted it down due to resource restrictions. He was also concerned about
the nominations.
Comment from Ms. Halsey: The executive committee discussed bringing back TEA, and one of
the goals would be to ensure that whatever is developed there would be a direct line between
the goals and purposes of the Alumni Association and the TEA.
Comment from Mr. Sheldon: Mr. Sheldon indicated he also voted this down the continuation of
TEA also due to limitations in terms of restrictions in terms of time and money. If high-level
leadership of the University feels that this is important, then we should request funding from the
University for this event.
Mr. Sheldon also had concerns that the quality of the Alumni Association awards has declined
over the years. We may want to focus on improvements of the Alumni Association Award,
before we change focus to starting another event. This is our signature award.
Comment from Ms. Edwards-Brown: We should attach ourselves to an existing TEA from one of
the schools and colleges, and give an alumni award.
12. B. Committee Report: Bylaws
Ms. Halsey shared the highlights from her report. There were no action items or
recommendations at this time.
The Bylaws Committee will study inclusion of the Board mission and roles into the Bylaws, to be
voted on likely at the April 2016 meeting.
12.C. Committee Report: Chapters
Ms. Lee shared the highlights from her report. There were no action items or recommendations
at this time.
One missing comment from the report: the Chapters Committee awarded two grants, one $800
and another $200 toward graduation celebrations for December and April graduation events, for
the Social Work Alumni chapter.
Total sponsorship funding available is $3,500 to date.
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The committee is trying to "tag-team" with the Office of Alumni Relations to have constant
contact with the chapters. Ms. Lee introduced herself to chapter presidents. The chapters
were asked that they share their upcoming chapters activity with the Board. If you are active in
any chapters - please ask your leadership to share activities of their chapter with the alumni
Board of Directors so Board members can attend the programs and go to the chapter meetings.
The Chapter of Year process is largely subjective, and the goal is to align the process. The next
Chapter Committee meeting is on December 9th.
Question from Mr. Schimmelpfenneg: How much money were chapters given when awarded
chapter of the year?
Answer: There were three awards of $250 each, for a total of $750.
Question from Mr. Schimmelpfenneg: How much money is in the budget for grants to the
chapters?
Answer: $7,500 is in the Board-approved budget for this purpose. $3,500 of this is remaining.
12.D. Committee Report: Fundraising
A fundraising committee report was not included with the board meeting packet, as there was
no activity on this committee since the last meeting.
Due to other commitments Mr. Schillack is not able, at this time, to chair the fundraising
committee and would like someone else to chair this committee.
Comment from Mr. Barry: At this time, we haven't pushed hard to get a new committee chair,
due to the new personnel being hired with the Office of Advancement. However, likely in
January, after discussions with the Office of Advancement, the Executive Committee will come
back to the board in February to get someone to chair this committee.
12.E. Committee Report: Nominations and Elections
Ms. Barry, in lieu of Mr. Thomey, presented the highlights from this committee's report. There
were no action items or recommendations at this time.
Mr. Schillack was accidentally missed on the list of board members whose term will expire this
year and eligible to run for a seat on the Board of Directors.
There will be at total of 9 seats available. Five board members are eligible to run again for a
seat on the Board of Directors.
There are four legitimate applicants for the positions of the board of directors.
Mr. Barry asked that if any members of the Board of Directors know of anyone who might be a
good applicant for a position on the board of directors, he encourages they be recommended to
apply.
Mr. Barry also indicated that the committee will reach out to the Deans of the colleges to see if
there are alumni they know of who would be good representatives on the Board of Directors.
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Comment from Mr. Gomez: One of the benefits of going to chapter events, and other events
where alumni are present, is that we get the opportunity to speak with individuals who might be
good members of the Board of Directors.
Comment from Mr. Nucci: The easiest way to get new members, is to utilize our networks.
Comment from Ms. Thompson: Another suggestion is to reach out to recipients of the alumni
award recipients and let them know that there would be openings for them, as they have already
been vetted.
12.F. Committee Report: Outreach & Community Service
Ms. Bennett shared the highlights from her report. There were no action items or
recommendations at this time.
Ms. Bennett reminded everyone of the Lights at the Toledo Zoo event, as well as the hat and
mitten drive.
Comment from Mr. Barry: This committee's role is to find opportunities not just for those on the
committee to participate in, but for all members of the board to participate. The greater Alumni
Board members need to participate in this committee. The view is that those on the committee
find the events, but we need to coalesce around these events and attend the events.
Comment from Ms. Bennett: An example of this is Ypsi Pride Day. The community positively
recognized EMU alumni participation in this event. This was the first time that EMU alumni had
a role. We need to find other activities like that we can all be involved in.
Comments from Mr. Andrewes: The key to participation at these events by Board members will
be early notification of the events, so that they can fit it into their schedule.
12.F. Committee Report: Scholarship
Ms. Andrewes shared the highlights from her report. There were no action items or
recommendations at this time.
Ms. Andrewes indicated that Board of Directors participation in the Explore Eastern events this
year were very successful. Given the number of the volunteer groups between the two events,
they were able to go around the room and bring individuals who were alumni to the alumni table
and discuss the alumni scholarship. The first time the Alumni Association table was placed on
the far side of the room, facing the wall on the far side of the room. The second time the table
was moved near the Financial Aid office, and therefore, the Alumni Association table had a
higher participation due to the new placement.
The website for the scholarship is active. If any members of the Board of Directors know of
anyone who wants to apply, please let them know that they can apply using the link off of the
main EMU alumni website.
Comment from Ms. Thompson: Attendance at Explore Eastern resonated with the larger
University committee and they were glad that they were able to participate.
Comment from Mr. Boar: Participation at the Explore Eastern event was a great opportunity to
get to know other administrators and offices around the University, and for the Alumni
Association to be seen.
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13. Alumni Association President's Report
Mr. Barry shared the highlights from his report. One action item was included with committee
report.
The President of the Board of Directors announces who would like to serve on each committee,
and the Board of Directors votes on this. Ms. Fall requested to shift from the fundraising
committee, given its current hiatus, and join the awards and recognition committee.
Mr. Harrison moved to accept Ms. Fall on the Awards and Recognition Committee. Mr.
Schillack seconded the motion. The vote passed. No objections.
Mr. Barry also discussed the mission of the Board of Directors and the role of the Board of
Directors, including distribution on the drafted mission and roles from the several Strategic
Planning meetings over this summer.
Mr. Barry will send an email to all of the members of the Board of Directors asking for review for
the mission and roles. The mission and roles will be included in the Bylaws.
Next steps for strategic planning will be to discuss the vision for the Board of the Directors; this
was something that was not discussed during the meetings this summer. This will include
creation of an Ad Hoc Strategic Planning Committee. Any members of the Board of Directors
who would like to participate in this ad hoc committee should email Mr. Barry and Ms.
Thompson with their interest in serving.
14. New Business
There was no new business.
15. Open Forum
Due to the late time of the meeting, there was no open forum discussion.
16. Adjournment
Ms. Andrewes moved to adjourn the meeting. Mr. Schimmelpfenneg seconded this motion.
Meeting was adjourned at 12:08pm.
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