Michigan ASCD Board of Directors Meeting Minutes
June 23, 2004

Attending: Ilene MacDonald, Jim Perry, Shereen Arraf, Jan VanGasse, Judy Schaftenaar, Sara Shubell, Nancy Davis, Linda VanderJagt, Karen Mlcek, Mary Ellen Bluem, Narda Murphy, Lucy Stieber, Charlotte Koger, Betty Underwood (MDE), Marie Neil, Bill Bushaw, Judith Dorsch Backes, Olga Moir, Patti McLaughlin

Welcome and Special Recognition
President Sara Shubel called the June MASCD Board meeting to order at 2:13 p.m. She welcomed everyone and thanked them for rearranging schedules to come today. Sara acknowledged longtime Board member Marie Neil, who recently retired from Kent ISD, and presented a small token of our appreciation. Sara encouraged Marie to continue in her leadership role on the MASCD Board. Marie thanked Sara and said she was planning to join us in the fall and spring when she isn’t enjoying time in Florida. Marie also thanked Olga Moir for attending her retirement reception at Kent ISD and for the beautiful plaque she presented on behalf of MASCD Board.

2004-05 Executive Board
Sara introduced Ilene MacDonald, our incoming president, who has spent lots of time planning today’s meeting. Ilene spoke about the responsibility she feels in assuming the presidency of this organization. She hopes our agenda will be meaningful for us as a Board and for our own professional growth.

Ilene introduced the 2004-05 MASCD Executive Board. Linda VanderJagt is the new President-elect, and Jan VanGasse is the new secretary. Patricia McNeill continues as treasurer, but is unable to be with us due to the birth of a new grandson. Ilene also introduced new Board member Shereen Arraf. Ilene asked each Board member to introduce him/herself.

Illene reviewed the agenda for the retreat. She spoke about the wonderful ASCD leadership conference she attended with Sara and Olga and hoped we could have more Board members attend next year. She hopes to use several of the things she learned at that conference during our retreat.

We watched a short video, Canyon Dreams, and shared our thoughts about the metaphors it represents for our work in education and as MASCD Board members.
Ilene asked us to look at MASCD as a learning organization, as a powerful learning community, connecting through shared purposes, cultivating capacity and creating a legacy of leadership.

MASCD Mission/Vision/Goals
Ilene asked Board members to review the MASCD Mission/Vision/Goals. During discussion it was noted the Mission/Vision/Goals are not on our MASCD website and should be. The strategic plan, which is on the website, is an old one and it needs to be updated. We also need to review ASCD Mission/Vision/Goals and make sure our MASCD Mission/Vision/Goals are in alignment.

Expectations/Role of Board Members
Ilene MacDonald shared the ASCD attributes of a Great Affiliate Board for review. Narda Murphy suggested using the context of “as evidenced by” to review the work we have done and plan to do as MASCD Board members. Sara Shubel commented on the attribute of responsibility and noted that it has certainly been true of MASCD during the past few years; people have stepped up and helped with various presentations and workshops as part of their service as Board members. Ilene asked each Board member to fill out the self-evaluation and reflect on it.

Karen Mlcek commented that we need to have a Board manual. The last manual was updated and reissued in the winter of 2000. We also used to have new Board members come early to the June Retreat in order to provide an orientation session. Linda VanderJagt said she and JanVanGasse had agreed to work on updating the handbook and the MASCD Constitution and are committed to getting it done. Ilene MacDonald suggested that we review part of the constitution or handbook at each meeting so that by next June, we’ll have them updated. Judy Schaftenaar suggested we put this on the list of things to consider – but by the end of the retreat this may not be what we want to spend our time on. Linda VanderJagt said that as President-elect, she feels very responsible to get the constitution updated. Mary Ellen Bluem commented that as a new Board member, having served a year, she still isn’t sure what is actually expected. As the Region 4 representative, is there a mechanism for her to share information from Board meetings with Region 4 members? She asked for clarification of the expectations for Board members. Charlotte concurred. The evaluation questionnaire Ilene had distributed and had us fill out asked if we had enlisted new members and brought people to our meetings – do you want us to do this? In order to make our Mission/Vision happen, Karen Mlchek suggested we need to list and develop Board behaviors.

Judy Schaftenaar recalled filling out the ASCD Board Affiliate matrix at last year’s retreat and asked if all our work had been compiled. Judith Dorsch Backes agreed it would be nice to connect what the individual does as a Board member and tie it to the ASCD affiliate matrix.

There was discussion about using more electronic media (web or blackboard) to communicate about issues as a Board in a more timely way and then distribute the information out to our regional members. Ilene talked about using www.blackboard.com as a message board. Karen Mlchek said she created her own website to store all her resources and sends a new email to her colleagues any time she adds something. When Judith Dorsch Backes asked James last year, he said it would be difficult to create a listserve just for MASCD Board members. Marie Neil emphasized the importance of personal connections and how interacting with each other enriches us versus reading and reacting to things we receive over email. High touch is so important. That’s why some people stay involved in MASCD so long. Jim Perry concurred after 32 years of serving on MASCD, it’s the people who keep him coming back.

Cultivating Capacity
Ilene commented on how fortunate we are to have so many affiliates partner with us such as:

• MASFPS (Michigan Association of State and Federal Program Specialists) - Their focus is how to leverage state and federal programs to better educate kids. Patti McLaughlin sits on their Board, and Richard Weigel is now on our Board. We have similar goals and work. Many curriculum directors are also in charge of state and federal programs. They have a fall conference (Oct. 6, 7, and 8), and MASCD could present a session.
• MSDC (Michigan Staff Development Council) - Several members of MASCD Board are also members of MSDC Board. Pat Pogge from MSDC was invited to join our Board but she only came once. Olga has contacted their board president again and invited them to send a representative. Jan VanGasse and Judy Schaftenaar are both on the MSDC Board. Their retreat is in September.
• MDE (Michigan Department of Education) - In Betty Underwood’s experience, MASCD is well represented on MDE committees and in helping disseminate information. Charlotte Koger commented that MDE officials who have been invited to our Board meetings have been most helpful.
• NCA (North Central Association) – Mike Bugenski and Mary Jo Rassmassen - Partnering on the Marzano conference was a good experience and should continue.
• Merit Network, Inc. - Bill Bushaw said Merit partners around technology and technology research issues. Merit is located in Ann Arbor compared to Michigan Virtual which is mid-state. Merit has a strong interest in video and Internet 2. Merit is 40 years old and provides Internet connections for all major universities and 75% of public schools.
• Middle Cities – Judy Schaftenaar said they were organized for political reasons and continues to represent districts with similar demographics and concerns.

Ilene asked Board members to discuss

• Who are our partners?
• How do we create synergy with them?
• How do we not duplicate services or selectively abandon some of the things we try to do?

Judy Schaftenaar asked what defines partners? Olga Moir explained that when we ask for a partnership with another organization she approaches their executive director and asks for a formal commitment from their Board. Olga said we call the representatives to our Board liaisons because people seem to understand what that means. Their liaison reports back to their organization after attending our Board meeting. We formally recognize them, and they have a responsibility to report out at our Board meetings as well.

Ilene talked about the context of curriculum or staff development. Marie Neil said that one of our MASCD goals is influence, so why wouldn’t MASA and MIASA be on the list of partner organizations? Jim Perry asked if any educational association isn’t a potential partner with us? Jan VanGasse talked about having so many things to do in our roles, that it makes sense to partner with other organizations.

Patti McLaughlin believes we ought to be focusing on the best practices and research-based strategies as MASCD and share our expertise with the other organizations, including sponsoring joint conferences or workshops. She is particularly concerned with “bubble schools” – Those who are on the failing list one year and off the next. If they are just coming off the list, they’re fragile and still need support. Others are teetering in and out. How do we target that group of colleagues? How do we help keep schools out of supplemental services? Ilene commented that she has used the ASCD three-part video series on LEP learners and found it to be very helpful. We could showcase ASCD programs at the MASFPS conference in the fall. Many schools are looking for that silver bullet and these materials do showcase best practices. The President of MASFPS had approached Olga Moir about having an ASCD booth to sell materials, and MASCD could staff it and receive 15% of the sales.

Judith Dorsch Backes talked about the need for more strands through some of these workshops. The testing people (MERA) aren’t always at MASFPS, and we are not all at the testing conference. Funds are limited, and we need to piggyback our efforts.

A common professional development calendar is available on the Michigan Teacher Network per Bill Bushaw.

Karen Mlchek from Region 2 talked about an approach she has been using in her county. She has an intervention pyramid developed that helps people understand who is best equipped to help at which level of intervention. We could look at partnering with other organizations using the same type of model. Betty Underwood from MDE talked about their thoughts for having a fall conference that would be a sampling of different intervention strategies.

Judy Schaftenaar agreed with Jim Perry’s earlier statement, “Couldn’t we partner with all educational groups?” Which groups should we partner with for which goals?

Mary Ellen Bluem asked if heads of organizations ever get together to talk about what they are doing, how to avoid duplication, and how to collaborate more effectively. Sara Shubel said the Professional Development Collaborative (sponsored by MSCD) had attempted to do this. Charlotte Kruger was just at KIASA last week and this same concept was discussed. Olga Moir observed that, unfortunately, educational organizations are split on many important issues and the legislature knows it. It seems like we should be able to agree on some issues and unite around them. Bill Bushaw reminded us that Michigan has one of the largest education lobbies in the United States. The Education Alliance is the organization that pulls most of these organizations together. If two organizations do too much of the same stuff, they can get too competitive; if they do somewhat different things, there can be synergy.

Patti McLaughlin, Linda VanderJagt, and Bill Bushaw thought it could be interesting to see what other organizations MASCD Board members belong to.

Constituent Needs
Ilene asked us to think about who our constituents are. We need to review our membership profile data. Olga Moir stated that we only have information on 50% of our members. ASCD doesn’t collect this information, and 90% of our members come through ASCD. While we follow up, it can take up to a year to gather the information.

Ilene asked Board members to complete a homework assignment this evening: If you were talking with a colleague, why should they belong to MASCD? She also asked Board members to write down what other organizations he/she belong to.

The meeting was adjourned. Board members were invited to continue informal discussion over dinner. A continental breakfast will be served tomorrow at 8:00 a.m. with the Board meeting reconvening at 8:30 a.m.

Michigan ASCD Board of Directors Retreat Meeting Minutes
Thursday, June 24, 2003

Attending: Ilene MacDonald, Jim Perry, Shereen Arraf, Jan VanGasse, Judy Schaftenaar, Sara Shubell, Linda VanderJagt, Karen Mlcek, Mary Ellen Bluem, Narda Murphy, Lucy Stieber, Betty Underwood (MDE), Marie Neil, Judith Dorsch Backes, Patti McLaughlin, Tim Bennett, Dave Buell

Ilene MacDonald called the meeting to order. She asked for feedback on our homework assignment: What would you tell someone about why he/she should join MASCD?
Responses from Board members included:

• ASCD services such as online Smart Briefs daily;
• Relationships – like-minded people who are all about helping each other;
• Together we make a difference for kids; and
• To be heard and to contribute to the critical issues around curriculum and instruction

Legacy of Leadership
Ilene commented that as a community of learners ourselves, it would be beneficial to do a book talk among Board members this year using The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz.

Ilene asked us to consider if we are transparent as an organization; when we surface an idea or a suggestion is it viewed as good for students and not as political posturing? She showed the ASCD video, “We Believe.”

Ilene asked Board members to discuss how we could transform current MASCD events into deeper learning experiences. Some Board members thought planning the Guskey Conference in three parts was an improvement, but it could have been further enhanced by having regional study groups or videoconferences in between the three conference dates.

Illene shared a chart sharing the relationship between levels of impact and components of training. Narda Murphy talked about the intern model for curriculum directors that the University of Michigan developed. Rick Dufour’s work about creating professional learning communities has helped bring principals into the study model. Marie Neil said he will be in Grand Rapids for a week next summer working with several districts. Karen Mlchek has had him in her district, and he is doing videoconferencing to follow up on his work with them. Marie Neil suggested we invite John Harberts, Chief Academic Officer from GRPS, to a MASCD Board meeting to talk about how they have changed their Board culture; they do talk about instruction at their Board meetings more of the time than not.

Other suggestions to help transform current affiliate events:

• Before event – distribute provocative research with a stimulating question.
• During event – create home-base groups during the conference; convene with group midway and reconvene at the end to process.
• After the event – form leadership teams to apply and extend learning; “role-alike” chat rooms, study groups, networks.

Ilene asked Board members to break up into groups of three and asked each group to put their report on paper. If time allows, we’ll discuss these during lunch.

ASCD Website
Sara Shubel led Board members on an ASCD website scavenger hunt using wireless laptops. Board members suggested we consider using some of the same structure and information on our MASCD website:

• Short explanations or FAC’s with links to Michigan or ASCD resources;
• Have information packets (six packs) for a fee;
• Have synopsis of hot topic books, which we could put on our website for suggested book clubs; and
• Connect to engage with certain authors for online professional development.

MASCD Business Meeting
The MASCD business meeting was called to order at 10:40 a.m. by President Sara Shubel.

Minutes
Jan VanGasse made a motion, seconded by Shereen Arraf, to approve the minutes of the May 21 meeting. Motion carried.

Treasurer’s Report
Pat McNeil was unable to be here due to her new grandson. Olga Moir distributed a financial report for May and a proposed budget for 2004-05. Sara commented that there have been problems with our bookkeeper, and the Executive Board will be discussing whether to retain her services, which come with our rent or to explore the cost of hiring someone else. Marie Neil asked if our concerns have been addressed with the bookkeeper. Olga Moir said that she has informed the supervisor of our concerns. Marie Neil suggested that if we do have to go outside, we should pay less for our rent. Sara said we have to do our homework, ascertain the cost of going outside and bring a recommendation back to the Board.

Dave Buell referenced the minutes from the May Board meeting and asked about the sub-committee with Karen Mlchek and Marie Neil who volunteered to help with the format of the Treasurer’s Report. It didn’t happen. We shouldn’t continue to spend a lot of time at this meeting talking about it, it needs to be addressed by the Executive Board and/or the subcommittee.

Ilene MacDonald asked about our annual audit. Olga Moir said it has to be done between July 1 and September but things aren’t ready for it yet. Ilene mentioned there are also concerns about the amount of time James is available to us, which is decreasing. Dave Buell suggested we may need to review our operational needs and whether the services we are receiving as part of our rent are sufficient

Sara Shubel made a motion to schedule a meeting with Pat, Marie, Karen, and the Executive Board to develop a solution to the budget reporting concerns and develop a recommendation on the actions to be taken. Judy Schaftenaar seconded the motion. During subsequent discussion, Judith Dorsch Backes and Dave Buell suggested we also need to address the secretarial support services as well as budget support. Mary Ellen Bluem questioned if this was what Marie and Karen had volunteered to do. Marie Neil suggested we need to redefine what the responsibilities of the treasurer are, what the timelines should be for preparing reports for the Board, as well as the expectations and timelines we have for the bookkeeper and for the auditor. This all goes back to updating our Board manual and our constitution.

Sara agreed that we need to be clear about how much secretarial support we pay for and how much we are actually using. Are we asking James to do things we should be doing ourselves?

Lucy Stieber made a motion asking the Executive Committee to look at the status of our operational needs and report out to the Board at the next meeting, including recommendations for improvement. The motion was seconded by Mary Ellen Bluem. Following considerable discussion about wording of the motion, the vote was called and the motion was defeated.

Patti McLaughlin motioned, seconded by Ilene MacDonald, to have the Executive Board meet to examine the operational support functions, to define needs, roles and responsibilities and identify recommendations by the September Board meeting. The motion carried.

Karen Mlchek recalled when she first joined the Board, it was very helpful to her to have the Constitution and Board roles and responsibilities reviewed and she believes it would be very helpful to have these available to all Board members at the September meeting.

Karen Mlchek made a motion, seconded by Jan VanGasse, to approve the monthly budget. The motion carried.

Patti McLaughlin made a motion, seconded by Lucy Stieber, to approve the proposed 2004-05 budget today, knowing amendments can be made at a future meeting. The motion carried.

President’s Report
Sara Shubel shared an overview of the MASCD and ASCD initiatives and activities during the past year. Board members gave Sara a round of applause for her outstanding commitment and leadership as MASCD president. Marie Neil suggested Olga send a letter to Ingham ISD, thanking them for allowing Sara to commit the time to this organization. Sara was also complimented for jumping into numerous leadership roles at the national level during the past two years.

The business meeting adjourned. Board members broke for lunch.

During lunch, small groups reported out on their work around “transforming affiliate events”:

Judith, Mary Ellen, Tim, and Betty suggested:

• Look at a format or a way for people to prepare for the event.
• Before we engage a speaker/presenter, identify the needs of our constituents and prepare the presenter to address these needs.
• Ask participants to do prework on their plans to implement and share what they learn and our expectations for their participation.
• After the event, follow up with participants by region to see if there are ways we can support them or others we could connect them with.
• Could there be a single focus for all organizations in Michigan? Perhaps, one theme such as professional learning communities, so there are various levels of training available in Michigan, presentations, skill development and application.

Dave, Linda, Jan, Olga, and Ilene suggested:

• Looking at this in terms of events sends the wrong message; look at it in terms of process and relationship.
• During the workshop, creating home-base group is situational as job alike groups may be too homogeneous; regional may be worth looking at but may also want to look at self-selecting.
• Ask people what the solution you were looking for when you came to this workshop – creates conversation and opportunity for connections/self-selections/relationship building because those networks tend to be ongoing.
• Relationship building activities need to be built into the “during” piece in order to have an effective “after” piece.
• Also, look at how do they best like to learn. If they like technology, we can form groups based on how they do business/learn most effectively.
• Follow up to see how people would like to stay involved or how we could continue to help support them.

Narda, Lucy, Shereen, Pattie, and Judy suggested:

• Send short articles out with registration and information on how to get additional resources through ASCD.
• Result packets with guiding questions/focus questions to help you get ready for the presentation so they have sense that this is going to be useful information.
• Talked about event facilitators during the event and to touch base afterwards.
• Involve small group practices to allow more time talking and doing and the metacognition piece.
• Modeling it for them but giving them the practice time.
• Develop an action plan and that is what would be followed up with by the facilitator.
• It’s a change of behavior – people are used to going, sitting, and getting.

Influence
Following lunch, Olga Moir introduced Nancy Stanley, who is retiring from her position as legislative liaison with MASA for the past years. We asked Nancy to make a few comments about how she thinks MASCD might advance our influence around curriculum and instruction.

Nancy suggested:

• Educate your superintendent on legislation going through about curriculum issues which he/she might not know. Encourage him/her to take the information to the legislators or ask for permission to take the information on his/her behalf. It’s critical for superintendents to know what’s going on.
• There have been lots of bills dealing with teaching and learning, and we need to have people who understand and communicate with our legislators. MASA has tried to pair a superintendent with each legislator. They may be able to use our help with this on curriculum issues. A grass roots effort along these lines might be a good fit for this organization. With term limits, grass roots is becoming more and more important.
• Nancy reminded us to invite legislators to visit our districts. They enjoy being visible in their districts and are often available when asked to present awards.
• It’s important to work through our superintendent. If MASCD has looked at a bill and has a position, check to see if MASA has a position, and if there is an opportunity to work together with a united voice.
• Legislators say we don’t speak with one voice as educational organizations but often we can’t.
• Legislators probably don’t understand what curriculum people/MASCD members do. We may want to develop an education piece to have our members share with legislators.
• There is a central staff person for each party in the House and Senate. This may be a good way to make inroads. It may be most appropriate for Olga to call or write a letter and offer assistance from MASCD as they tackle curriculum issues.

Olga presented a plaque to Nancy, thanking her for all her help over the years with MASCD on legislative issues.

Sara Shubel shared a video on The Power of One.

Ilene asked us to discuss our various constituent groups and the services we should be trying to provide for them.

Jan VanGasse asked if we can determine how many districts we have memberships from. Olga said we could. Dave Buell suggested we geo-map this information. We also should give each region representative a list of all the members in their region.

Illene suggested we need to look at our strategic plan and our goals and do some self-reflection; Jan VanGasse said we need to do this at a regional level because it would look very different if we want to align our member services with the needs of our members rather than talking with heads of other organizations. Shereen Arraf asked what we had learned from the member survey we sent out last year. Olga said it really dealt with their preferred communication method.

Lucy Stieber suggested that hearing from a representative from an organization might not be as helpful as using an electronic survey to research what we want to know. It’s a wider audience and a better use of our time. We can follow up with focus groups if we need to. A survey would need to be well designed. We can remind them of previous surveys and the results and ask how we can better serve them. Did we share the results with them? Linda VanderJagt asked about feedback on our goals/purpose and/or the ASCD-adopted positions for 2004 and what we want to do. Dave Buell asked if we’re looking to expand our membership, understand how to serve our current members better or both? Ilene summarized that it’s difficult to build capacity or lead, unless you know what it is they need.

Meeting Dates for 2004-05
Illene asked for days/dates for MASCD Board meetings for next year. We’ve been meeting the third Friday. Board members concurred to keep the same eight meetings with no meeting in December, March, July, or August. Our November meeting would be on the 19th. The MEAP starts January 24. ASCD annual conference is April 2 – 4, 2005 and will be held in Orlando. We’ll set a retreat date at the September meeting. Board members requested it be later, possibly the third or fourth week in June, such as the 29 and 30.

Lucy Stieber suggested continuing the format of having guest speakers first. It’s an important part of the meeting; we always walk away with current information. Narda Murphy suggested we keep committee work on the same day as the meeting. Jan VanGasse observed that committees have to be more prepared and should not have to start over each meeting.
Lucy suggested that the committee chair needs be sure all necessary information for committee work is organized and available to members prior to the next meeting.
Judith Dorsch Backes suggested using technology to help streamline committee work. Jan commented that given the travel distance for some members to attend Board meetings, there needs to be a good use of our time.

Board members were asked to sign up for committees for 2004-05:

• Professional Development
• Influence
• Communication/Membership

Mary Ellen Bluem wondered if any of the committees might change as a result of a membership survey.

Olga Moir pointed out that last year all the professional development we generated came through partnerships. MASCD was approached by NCA and MIEM to do workshops with them and share the profits. The one we are going to do on subpopulations next fall, thanks to Shereen Arraf, is initiated by us and will be ours. Lucy Stieber suggested the focus of the professional development group should be different. Rather than planning workshops, perhaps they should look at what is out there and see how we can partner. Olga said MASA has asked us to consider working with them to identify quality ways of managing data at the building and district level. Betty Underwood said there are regional workshops rolling out the GLECs, and MDE will probably also roll them out through MCTE and MCTM. Olga thinks we ought to be doing something in this area as an organization. MDE is addressing classroom needs but Central Office needs to view/understand this at a different level. Betty would be interested in having MDE partner with MASCD on this topic. Jan VanGasse said she thinks we are still missing the boat by not having some type of workshop/sharing for new curriculum directors. There is a huge void there.

Jim Perry wondered why the Communication and Membership Committee was folded into one committee and would recommend separating them again.

Olga suggested we need to have the chair of each committee be from this Board but other members used to be and should again be primarily from the field.

Narda Murphy suggested that the Executive Board needs to tighten down the framework and give each committee a specific charge that they can focus on and accomplish.
We also need to be mindful of our strategic plan. The Influence Committee ought to take Nancy Stanley’s suggestions today and decide to implement some of them.

Board members volunteered to serve on the following committees:

Communication/
Membership Influence Professional
Development
Judith Dorsch-Backes Ilene MacDonald Shereen Arraf
Tim Bennett Patti McLaughlin Narda Murphy
Mary Ellen Bluem Karen Mlcek Judy Schaftenaar
Marie Neil Sara Shubel Lucy Steiber
Linda VanderJagt Jan VanGasse Betty Underwood

The next Board meeting is scheduled for September 17. Ilene distributed certificates signed by Olga and Sara, thanking Board members for their service.

Board members were reminded to read the First Agreement in The Four Agreements, for our book study.

The meeting adjourned at 2:00 p.m.