August 1, 2016
Present: John Portela, Barbara Wentworth, Ron Holmes, David Wihry, Maryalice Crofton
NOTE: The July 5 Exec meeting did not have a quorum so no business was conducted.
1. Merger of two task forces
John presented a recommendation that Board Development be merged with Executive Committee. The members overlap considerably and the merger would not only make better use of time but add other task force chairs to discussions. Moved by Portela to merge Board Development Task Force into Executive Committee. Second by Wentworth. Vote in favor: Unanimous.
2. Report on exit conference from CNCS monitoring/audit visit
The team of two people arrived on July 11 and the exit conference was late on July 14. The team remarked that there were few issues to address – in fact, the major finding was the lack of issues. A written report will be issued within 45 days. Executive Committee met with the CNCS team. MCCS members emphasized the need to lose sight of the needs of small, rural states in Washington decisions. Their impressions were the team was surprised how much Commission staff are doing. The CNCS team also remarked on the level of awareness and engagement of Commissioners.
3. New Dept. of Education designee
The seat reserved ex-officio for the Commissioner of Education or his/her designee has been vacant since May. Kristie Littlefield left the department for a local education position. The new designee was announced. Deborah Plowman will represent the department.
4. Continuing changes in Commission membership
Janice Daku submitted her resignation from the Commission. Laura Hudson also sent an email saying she will not seek reappointment. Barb Wentworth suggested we ask Janice to continue serving on the Excellence and Expertise Task Force as a community member. Maryalice will reach out to Janice about that.
5. Recommendations for appointment to vacancies on Commission
The resumes of potential candidates were discussed. Exec Committee members directed Maryalice to ask all nine candidates to submit the full application package before the next meeting. Another resignation is anticipated but not confirmed.
6. National issues
Ron continues to serve on ASC’s public policy committee. There is a work group drafting reauthorization recommendations for consideration by the membership. Some recommendations may overlap with another national advocacy group (Voices for National Service).
More immediate is the 2017 budget. Given the nature of election years, everyone expects there will be a six-month Continuing Resolution (CR).
Work was completed on the first phase of appropriate performance measures for State Commissions. This is a field-initiated response to the inappropriate imposition of program performance measures on Commissions. The ASC work group presented the final draft and received endorsements from a significant number of Commissions (over 40). The next step is a meeting with CNCS to present the recommended first set.
7. Blaine House Conference status
The keynote will focus on asset-based community development and do a seminar on how to map assets. There are nearly 20 sessions and a strong planning committee. Thanks to Nicki Pellenz, Machias Savings Bank will cover the full cost of the keynote speaker which is an enormous help. Cabot Creamery also renewed their financial support. Now the challenge is outreach and promotion. Registration is open through VolunteerMaine.org and the Maine Volunteer Foundation is a partner.
8. Commission annual retreat
John noted is not in Maine during the dates first selected. Exec decided to return the schedule to a business meeting on September 16 and connect the retreat to the October business meeting. The retreat will now be October 20/21. John added that he had a conversation with Bill Hulterstrom at the regional meeting of Commissions. He’d like to involve Bill in the Maine retreat for a perspective on the role of Commissions. There was further discussion about a local facilitator. Maryalice was directed to see if Joanne D’Arcangelo would be available to help develop and conduct the retreat. She has been very effective with MCCS in the past.
9. Results of New Chair’s poll of Commissioners
John polled the Commissioners to determine if anyone wanted to change task force assignments. Overall, people want to stay with their current assignments. He has not had any success with finding a chair for Public Information and Education now that Laura Hudson is leaving. There was some discussion of who might have the skills and interest in leading the group. John will follow up on ideas/recommendations.
10. Other issues
Executive Committee recommended a special 6-month task force be developed by Michael to advise on his new assignment. Grant Selection/Performance isn’t an option due to the conflict of interest it creates. Community members are a natural for this group.
It was agreed that Executive Committee would review the MOA we anticipate United Ways of Maine to propose. The MOA would address MCCS use and access to the GetConnected platform, specifically the Disaster Relief Module. Barb indicated the MOA would be available in 4-6 weeks.
Maryalice informed the members that the operating supplemental funding request was approved by CNCS and a temporary staffing position will be established to complete the work. The award is $22,013.
The Program Development funding award finally arrived on July 22. That triggered the changes in staff roles. Michael Ashmore became the Training and Program Development Officer on August 1; Pelin Fitzpatrick moved into the Grants Officer position on the same day. Hiring for Pelin’s former job will start in September but filling the position is likely to take the rest of the year.
There being no other business the Executive Committee meeting ended at 4:10 pm.