June 5, 2018
PRESENT: Celeste Branham, Carol Rancourt, John Portela, David Wihry, Maryalice Crofton
The meeting opened at 3:00 pm by teleconference.
DISCUSSION:
Commission Retreat (Sept 20 and 21)
Kaira Esgate has agreed to be the facilitator. Members present agreed there needs to be an emphasis on operationalizing the new strategic plan in addition to orientation for new people. Kaira needs a small team of Commission members to work with her. Celeste volunteered as incoming chair. She will ask Niki and Joe to join her.
OIG Audit
Last week there was a flurry of letters introducing the firm contracted to do the audit and the audit team. One of the first steps will be a virtual entrance conference at which they request a board member be present. It's clear this process will likely occur this summer so the info is a "heads up" notice for officers.
Summer Schedule
The next scheduled Executive Committee meeting is July 3. Maryalice asked if members would like to move the date. It was agreed to move it to Monday, July 9, at 3pm. The August date does not pose a problem for anyone. John shared that he has a medical issue which will take him out of circulation at some point this summer.
All members will need a reminder that the full Commission does not meet in July or August.
Status of New Commission Candidates
Maryalice received a copy of a posting last week for 4 new members. Maria Staples will move into Carol Rancourt's seat and Carol will retire at the end of the June meeting. Peter Doak will take the seat vacated by Jacinda Goodwin. Trevor Hustus will take the seat formerly held by Kevin Bois. Luke Shorty is moving into the seat for experts in education.
That leaves four other candidates still under consideration and three people with reappointment requests pending. The timeline for action on them is unknown.
Celeste pointed out there are members with terms expiring in September. We need to know if they want to be reappointed and, if so, get their paperwork to the governor's office right away. Then they can be processed and appointments go back to the September schedule. Those with terms expiring are Brianna Tibbetts, Joe Young, Coleman Lapointe, Niki Pellenz, and Celeste. Celeste will write to them and find out their intentions.
Public Comment on Strategic Plan
The changes made during the Commission work session are reflected in the plan posted on May 29 for public comment. The invitation for comments went to the 3500 people on the newsletter list, everyone who attended the Vision Conference, the listserv of National Service contacts in Maine, and a general call through our social media. The comment period closes June 12. David offered to review the comments and make recommendations to the Commission on any that should be considered. So far there are no substantive comments - the 4 submitted affirm the work posted.
Status of AmeriCorps Competitive funding decisions
CNCS updated the funding information on June 4. The information is embargoed but Maine did well.
Training Funds for Commissions
The allocation to states was supposed to be out by now so Commission could discuss use of any increase. There is no information.
CNCS reform plan
This was released today and is now called the Transition and Sustainability Plan. It is the reform plan the president directed every federal agency to develop. Maryalice will have copies for the business meeting along with a summary of discussions happening among states. There will be a hearing on August 2 in Boston that MCCS representatives should attend.
The meeting ended at 4:13 pm.