The meeting was called to order by President Karla Spencer at 10:10 a.m. Board members present were: Karla Spencer, Gail Carlson, Bob Schultheis, Tom Henderson, Pat Snodgrass, Joan Hickman and Brenda Procter. Absent were David Lindell, Rex Ricketts and Eldon Cole.

Minutes of the September 7, 1999 Board Meeting and October 26, 1999 Annual Meeting were approved as distributed by Bob Schultheis.

Karla opened discussion on the need for a bylaws committee to review and update the chapter bylaws, which have not been done since 1990. Gail Carlson agreed to contact Jim Ollar, Dale Hagerman, and perhaps others to review the bylaws in time for the June Board Meeting. Any changes would then be brought to a vote at Annual Conference in October.

The Treasurer’s Report was given by Tom Henderson. As of 12/31/99, the savings account balance is $4,396.91 and the checking account balance is $1,616.33, for a total of $6,013.24, with two checks outstanding. After the checks clear, the total balance will be $5,963.24. Tom suggested the Membership Committee, with a reminder from Karla, canvass the affected members to remind them to pay their 2000 dues by March 1, 2000, which is when the dues must be sent to national. Brenda Procter asked about getting a list of newly-eligible members and Tom said that list must come from the Personnel Office. Bob Schultheis moved and Joan Hickman seconded to accept the treasurer’s report. Motion passed on voice vote.

Tom Henderson then distributed an operating budget based on 80 paid members. Life Member dues remain at $100, a one-time cost. Karla mentioned that the newsletter was also mailed to the Life Members, at a postage cost of $35 per mailing. Tom offered to arrange coverage of any teleconference expenses for upcoming Board Meetings to save travel. Joan Hickman moved and Pat Snodgrass seconded to approve the operating budget. Motion passed.

For the Recognition and Awards Committee report, Brenda Procter was introduced as the new chair, replacing Gail Carlson. Gail agreed to work with her to learn about the committee’s responsibilities. Gail mentioned that three awards presented at the October 1999 Annual Conference are being sent forward for further competition at the North Central Region level. Those awards are: Don Fancher, Distinguished Service Award; Barbara Brown, Mid-Career Service Award; and Water Quality Education in the Classroom, Teamwork Award.

In Rex Rickett’s absence, Karla Spencer gave the Membership Committee report. She handed out lists of active, life, and inactive members, and will forward the membership information to Rex and discuss ways to recruit new and inactive members into ESP. There are currently 66 members, down from 1999's membership total of 107 members. The national portion of the membership fees is $100 one-time for life members, $25 for new members, and $20 for continuing members. The state retains $11 per new and continuing member.

For the Professional Improvement Committee report, Joan Hickman was introduced as the new chair, replacing Susan Mills-Gray. Karla reported that the December 2, 1999 satellite downlink featuring Denis Waitley had a total of 85 participants at the eight sites statewide, and feedback was quite positive. Joan asked about networking contacts with other associations. It was suggested for her to contact Susan for details. Joan mentioned the deadline for the Professional Improvement $500 mini-grant is March 1.

In David Lindell’s absence, Karla Spencer gave the Courtesy and Memorials Committee report. She stated David’s request that any life-changing events of members be reported to him so an appropriate response can be made.

Pat Snodgrass gave the Loan and Fellowship Committee report. She mentioned that contributions have been made to the fund to recognize Barb Froke and Don Fancher, and that $52,500 in funds were also received from the Frances Pringle estate. Pat will try to keep the same committee members, but asked for a campus contact to replace Tom Henderson, who is taking on other responsibilities. Jim Ollar was suggested. A question was raised as to why ESP is not represented on the Loan and Fellowship Selection Committee, since ESP provides the funds. Karla will check with Jim Ollar about whether ESP was previously represented, then turn that information over to Pat. Next deadline for Loan and Fellowship applications is March 1.

In Eldon Cole’s absence, Karla Spencer gave the Annalist report. She said Eldon has now gotten the archive information from Larry Hale. Bob Schultheis mentioned that he has the minutes and some financial reports for 1993 and later. He will share these with Eldon to bring the records current.

Goals for 1999-2000 were discussed, with the following goals set:

1. Continued communication between all members and other associations regarding professional improvement and upcoming meetings.
2. Improve membership recruitment, especially in light of a diminishing membership pool due to the Voluntary Early Retirement Incentive Program (VERIP).
3. Hold at least one professional development activity during the year.
4. Publish three issues of the ESP newsletter via e-mail.
5. Continue to upgrade the Web site, including addition of committee members serving with the committee chairs, and adding past minutes and newsletters for archival purposes.

Plans were then made for publishing the newsletter under Gail Carlson’s direction. Bob Schultheis requested that copies of the newsletters be sent to him in Word97 format so they can be posted to the Web site.

• Issue #1 will focus on membership, with submissions due January 31.
• Issue #2 will focus on awards nominations and announce the date of the December professional improvement activity, with submissions due May 31.
• Issue #3 will focus on ESP activities, including the ice cream social, at Annual Conference, with submissions due September 30.

Future Board Meeting dates were set as follows:

• April 19, 2000 at 1:30 p.m. (possibly as a teleconference)
• September 6, 2000 at 10 a.m.
• If needed, a teleconference will be scheduled between April and September.

Announcement included:

• The North Central Leadership Conference will be February 6-8, 2000 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Gail Carlson will attend. She needs 30 copies of the membership and Loan and Fellowship brochures as handouts. She requested ideas for different or unique programs to include in her report there. The Web site was suggested.
• The Public Issues Leadership Conference will be April 2-5, 2000 in Washington, DC. Registration is due March 1. Karla will check with Brenda Procter to see if she wants to go.
• Gail gave an update as ESP representative to UMEA. There are about 90 Extension people eligible for the VERIP program, and about half are specialists. The Joint Luncheon following the October 23-24, 2000 Annual Conference will again be held at the Memorial Union Building.

Meeting was adjourned at 12:05 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,