UMEA Executive Board Meeting
Wednesday January, 13 2015
Memorial Student Union 2205 A/B
President Sarah Denkler called the meeting to order at 10:08 a.m. Those in attendance were
Sarah Denkler, Emily Crowe, Ashley Bales, Bethany Bachmann, Virgil Woolridge, Brent
Carpenter, Jim Meyer, Amy Patillo, Karen Sherbondy, Becky Simpson, James Quinn, Taryn
Dameron, Mark Porth, Kevin Anderson, Megan Samson, Holly Jay, Sarah Traub, Patrick Byers,
Pat Snodgrass, Tish Johnson, Susan Mills-Gray, Jill Scheidt, Pam Duitsman, Megan Webb,
Wendy Platt, Jerry Baker, Nancy Coleman, Teresa Mareschal, Clint Dougherty, Lynda
Zimmerman.
The agenda was discussed and Sarah Denkler noted that Flagship Breakfast agenda item
would be removed and not discussed. Jill Scheidt moved to approve the agenda, Susan MillsGray seconded the motion, and the motion carried unanimously.
Becky Simpson moved to approve the October 14, 2015 board minutes as submitted by pastsecretary, Sarah Traub, Pat Snodgrass seconded the motion, and the motion carried
unanimously.
Patrick Byers moved to approve the Treasurer’s report as submitted by Rebecca Travnicheck
(given by Sarah Denkler in Rebecca’s absence), Virgil Woolridge seconded the motion, the
motion carried unanimously.
In preparation for the administrative update with the cabinet, a discussion began and Susan
Mills-Gray added several questions to the current list for the cabinet.
President’s Report given by Sarah Denkler, UMEA President.
 202 paid members, 32 of which are new members.
 Legislative Day is March 2, 2016. Sarah explained to those new to UMEA and Extension
that the university system across all four campuses and Extension go to Capitol Hill in
Jefferson City to meet legislatures and talk on the system’s behalf. Extension is
sometimes referred to as the 5th campus in the university system meaning that extension
is vital.
 Title of the ISE this year is “Advocating for Extension with Talking Points”. Extension will
provide information packets to representatives that we may talk with on Legislative Day.
You will not be able to register for the Legislative Day event without attending the ISE
 In the past, Legislative Day has been sponsored by the Alumni Alliance but has since
disbanded. Now, the University System Government Relations office, headed by
Melanie Barger, has taken over these duties to coordinate and plan the event. Tracy
Feller, Director of Extension Constituent relations - is taking point inside Extension to
orchestrate with the larger group and campuses in these efforts.
 The conference center will be handling registrations and providing each campus
(Extension) counts and attendee lists to plan their side-line, campus-specific events,
(Legislative Breakfast and ISE.) When we register the address will provide your district
reps and time slots created. There will be a breakfast. Information will also be provided
in an ISE on advocating for Extension with talking points
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The address you provide during registration relates to the legislature representative that
you will be able to talk with in that district.
Government Relations will be generating the legislative visit time slots, provide this to
each group to pair up as we see fit with our registered attendees. We will also provide
information for packets to be left behind - receive at check-in. Extension will have 2
interactive booths (already selected by RD’s).
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MELD will be held in 2016.
Safety Training Trying to set up ISE in 2016 regarding terrorism and other
security threats for county offices.
County Financing Committee New committee being formed to look at best
practices for money coming back to the regions. (2 state council, 2 RD’s, 3
Faculty, Tony Delong and Beverly Coberly).
Volunteer Code of Conduct Almost finished. Trying to decide how to unveil
with the different groups.
Council Tools Page A new council web page will be complete by March. This is
to include some MOODLE courses for training. As a result, the Government
Relations Office will also have an “Elected Officials Resource Tools” page Tony
wanted to remind everyone that he is available for trainings for your council
members.
Faculty Wages – The starting wage scale has increased for new hires to
$40,000-$50,000. The equity increase, effective December 24, was to help offset
those that fell below that increase.
Program Integration Restructured into 3 pilot projects that are being tested in a
few counties where Extension will be taking a statistical look at the county,
asking community we as extension should do in community, and create a
program to fill that need. This is the type of workshop that was conducted during
the PLC.
Program Leadership Council See above.
Council to Campus – This is in planning. Think about asking Tony in for annual
meetings to train council.
Food Systems – Many pilot projects taking off under food systems.
Administration is trying to bring these teams together under one umbrella to
coordinate the outcomes and make sure the results are cohesive and work
together.
Hiring – Search for new vice-provost is moving along. This hire is a top priority for
the University.
Committee reports
 Finance – Proposed budget presented on behalf of the committee by Susan Mills-Gray.
Members present: Susan Mills-Gray, Becky Simpson, Clint Dougherty, Emily Crowe
 Professional Improvement and Staff Benefits – Report given by Tish Johnson. Clint is
resigning from chair of committee due to his recent appointment as President-elect of
UMEA.
o Chair – Tish Johnson
o Chair-elect – Taryn Dameron
o They would like to rename award as “scholarship”
o Committee wants to be more proactive about professional development
and get back to UMEA sponsoring professional development activities.
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Proposed to write a survey monkey on topics to survey UMEA members
only as a benefit of membership.
o Suggested adding non-UMEA professional development opportunities to
the UMEA website as a benefit to our members.
o Committee is looking to make sure we have a representative from
Extension on the staff benefits committee. Teresa Mareschal volunteered
to represent Extension on that committee.
o Budget for Professional Improvement and Staff Benefits in 2015 = $6,000.
The committee requested to add a second budget line for professional
development offered by UMEA and requested an additional $1,500 =
increase the total budget to $7500.
Awards – Report given by Ashley Bales.
o Members present – Mark Port (WC), Sarah Denkler (SE), Ashley Bales
(SE)
o Chair – Ashley Bales (SE)
o Chair-elect – none elected
o Budget ProposedIncome
$1500 Sponsorship from MAREC
$500 from UMEA
Expenses
$500 Meritorious Award – 2 @ $250
$900 Programming Awards
$500 – 1st place
$250 – 2nd place
$150 – 3rd place
$100 Rookie Award – 2 @ $50
$500 – Awards and printing
Timeline for Awards
o May 1 – Applications sent out to membership to start making nominations
o August 31 – Applications due to committee
o September – Committee scores applications
o October – Awards given at Annual Conference
Future Directions
o NPA/YPA employee numbers are growing within UMEA and Extension.
The committee suggested possibly starting another awards category to
represent that group in 2017.
o Committee would like to see an increased amount for monetary awards in
the future. Awards in general provide incentive for people to join UMEA.
o The committee requested an increase in the rookie of the year award
dollars from $50 to $150 each, growing the budget from $2000 to $2200.
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Nominations – Chair, Lynda Zimmerman. No report was given. The committee will be
recruiting for open UMEA positions later in the year
Professional association reports
 ESP – Report given by Amy Patillo Report in Meridith Berry’s absence.
o Membership is at 78 members including 9 new members. We continue to
recruit both regular and life members. Faculty with three or more years in
Extension are eligible to join.
o ESP sponsored the ice cream social at the Fall Summit.
o At our annual meeting, Meridith Berry was sworn in as President and Andrew
Zumwalt as President-elect. Meridith will attend the PILD conference in April
and Andrew will be representing ESP at the JCEP conference in February.
o Our award winner will have their submissions forwarded to the national level
for consideration,
o The global issues committee continues to offer monthly webinars. You can sign
up for these through the ISE portal. Extension faculty and staff who have
traveled to foreign counties or those who have immigrated have an opportunity
to share their experiences. It is a rewarding experience for both the listener
and the presenter.
o ESP board meets monthly.
o National Conference October 23-17, 2016.
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MACEDEP – Report given by Tish Johnson.
o We are still securing final membership renewals, but presently there are 37
paid members of MACEDEP; these include those from both the Community
Development and Business Development professions within University of
Missouri Extension. The membership number thus far represents an increase
of four people over last year.
o Officers for 2015-16 are Crystal Weber, President; John Gulick, VicePresident; and Tish Johnson, Secretary-Treasurer. Tish also serves as the
organization’s web master.
o Connie Mefford is serving as the North Central Regional Representative of the
National Association of Community Development Extension Professionals
(NACDEP). Connie occupies seat previously held by Richard Proffer.
NACDEP is only about 10 years old, and we are pleased that Missouri
continues to play a key role in forming this young organization.
o The NACDEP national conference will be held in Vermont June 26-29, 2016 in
conjunction with ANREP. Several MACEDEP members have submitted
conference proposals and we anticipate submitting some award nominations.
In addition, several individuals – led by Crystal Weber and Debi Kelly – will be
adding on days to visit with Vermont colleagues and tour some innovative local
food sites.
o The Community Development Society will be held in Minnesota in late July.
Several MACEDEP members have submitted proposals. We are looking at
hosting the 2019 conference, which will be the 50th anniversary of the
organization’s formation that took place in Missouri.
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MAE4-HYW – Report given by Nancy Coleman.
o Nancy thanked the association for allowing MAE4-HYW to vote for UMEA.
o 81 state members, 54 national members.
o Each region has planned 4H day of training for adults and volunteer members.
Jan 23 in Rolla for EC; Jan 23 in Neosho and Jan 30 in Ozark both for SW
region; Jan 30 at Clinton High School for WC; Feb 6 in Cameron High School
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for NW, Feb 13 at Advance High School for the SE, Feb 20 at the Manual
career and technical center for UR (UE adobe connect), and Feb 27 in Macon
for NE region.
New officer leadership team: Nancy Coleman, President; Stephanie Femrite,
President-elect; Dana Joerling, Secretary; Kim Hall, Treasurer; Elaine
Anderson, Reporter; Sam Lower, Archivist.
Regional representatives: Jenny Wallach, EC; Tracie Moore, NE; Cindy Wells,
NW; Lesley Meier, SE; Janice Mery, SW; Amanda Meek, UE; Amanda
Quance, UW; Taryn Dameron, WC.
National meeting will be Oct 8-9th, 2016 in New Orleans, LA.
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MAEP – Report given by Brent Carpenter.
o The MAEP year is off to a good start. Final MAEP membership will likely be
about 65.
o Many of our ANR colleagues are actively serving the association in various
ways at the state level. A handful are also providing leadership at the national
level, including Matt Herring who continues as Secretary of the National
Association of County Agricultural Agents.
o We expect a MO contingent of about 70 MAEP members and family to attend
the Annual Meeting and Professional Improvement Conference in Little Rock,
AR July 24-28, 2016.
o MAEP just announced our two national honorees who will be recognized at the
annual meeting. Sarah Denkler who will receive the Achievement Award
(under 10 years of service) and Jim Crawford will receive the Distinguished
Service Award (over 10 years of service). MAEP is also in the process of
nominating Eldon Cole to the NACAA Hall of Fame—the most prestigious
national award for a county based ag professional.
o Past President Sarah Denkler is coordinating our summer professional
development opportunity—Explore Missouri—which will include a business
meeting and an ag industry tour in her area.
o We are very pleased to be working with Dr. Rob Kallenbach, recently
appointed ANR Program Director. We’re excited about the opportunities in
agricultural extension.
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MEAFCS – Report given by Sarah Traub.
o MEAFCS has 42 members this year, which is the biggest it has been for
several years.
o We had 15 members and 2 spouses attend the 2015 Annual Session at the
Greenbrier in West Virginia.
o At the National Session, Susan Mills-Gray and Tammy Roberts received a
National 1st Place Award for TV Communications. Rebecca Travnicheck
received a 3rd place national award for radio/podcast.
o While in WV, Rebecca Travnicheck was elected to the National Board as the
Central Region Director.
o The NEAFCS 2016 Annual Session will be held in Big Sky, Montana
September 12-15. Our President-Elect, Maude Harris, will be representing
MEAFCS at both JCEP and PILD this year.
Old Business
 Valued Employees Committee – Report given by Amy Patillo. The committee put
forward a survey proposal to Dr. Henderson but have not yet received a response.
They will proceed once they hear from the cabinet.
 Complimentary membership for new employees – Report given by Sarah Denkler.
UMEA has changed their bylaws to include full-time employees with at least 50%
extension appointment. After the Extension Summit this fall, Sarah sent an email to
430 individuals, not in faculty positions, who met this criteria inviting them to join
UMEA on a one-year complimentary membership. Sarah received 10 thank you
messages from that one email. There was some discussion from the room to clarify
the specifics regarding these updated by-laws. Sarah Denkler explained this change: If
you were hired before July 1, 2015, your complimentary membership expired
December 31, 2015. If you were hired July 1, 2015 or later, you receive 18 months of
complimentary membership.
 Legislative Day is March 2, 2016 in Jefferson City – The details of Legislative Day
were previously discussed in the president’s report. The executive committee wants
that option to be online. Sarah has had discussions with ETCS to work on the voting
system similar to voting system for council voting in counties. Not done yet, but work is
in progress.
New Business
 Approval of 2016 budget - Susan Mills-Gray proposed the 2016 budget with the
following amendments on behalf of the absent UMEA Treasurer, Rebecca
Travnicheck. Note: The Legislative Day and Tailgate lines were removed from both
income and expenses.
Income
Adjusted Dues: $5,850
Awards donation $1,500
Auction $1,644.65
Balance transfer from savings to balance the budget: $5,583.35
Total = $12,800
Expenses
Cash Awards, Plaques, etc. $2,200
Bonding already paid @ $200
PILD $1000
Gifts & Memorials $250
Postage $30
Supplies $100
Travel $3,200
Professional Development $6,000
Flagship Council Membership $100
Professional Development (new line item) $1,500
Total: $14,580
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Sarah Traub moved to approve the budget as amended, Bethany Bachmann
seconded it, and the motion carried with one vote of dissention.
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Extension Summit – Georgia Stuart-Simmons is chair of the 2016 Extension Summit.
Event will be held October 25-27th, 2016 in Columbia. This overlaps with the ESP
national conference (Oct 23-27). A rigorous discussion followed where alternatives to
an annual extension summit were shared to avoid this problem in the future. Lynda
Zimmerman took notes and suggestions and will take these suggestions back to the
summit planning committee.
JCEP will be held Feb 10-11, 2016 in Las Vegas.
PILD will be held April 10-13, 2016 in Washington D.C.
Administrative Update —Tom Henderson, Beverly Coberly and Joy Millard,
 The position for Director of Extension, now titled Vice Chancellor for Extension and
Engagement, was posted on January 5th, 2016. We have hired an outside agency to
conduct the search and will be accepting applications through February 5th. Steve Ball,
Associate Professor in the Department of Nutrition and Exercise Physiology, is head of
the search committee. Joy said to call her directly if potential applicants cannot find the
job posting online. Sarah Denkler thanked the cabinet for their attendance at our
meeting and for answering our questions.
The meeting was adjourned at 2:53 p.m. by Sarah Denkler.
Respectfully submitted by Emily Crowe.