Staff Council Meeting Notes for September 20, 2017

Georgia Institute of Technology Staff Council Meeting Notes for September 20, 2017

Attendees: Ann Blasick, Anthony Bridges, Jeffrey Bridges, Rick Clark, Tina Clonts, Wansley Dennis, Debbie Dorsey, Quinae Ford, Leslie Hall, Ryan Lisk, Rudy Paratchek, Laura Pusateri, Kyle Richardson, John Scuderi, Jenny Sheppard, Ericka Thomas

Guests: Aaron Coker, Rachael Pocklington, Vivian Victor

Agenda Items:  Call to Order o Approval of 8/16/2017 Minutes o Introduction of guests  Elections  Race Relations Series  Town Hall Planning  Inform GT Series Update  Ad Hoc Committee Report  Committee Reports  Old/New Business

Call to Order: Chair Laura Pusateri called the meeting to order at 10:37 a.m. All members and visitors present introduced themselves.

Pusateri asked the Council for a motion to approve the August 16 minutes. Motion was made by Rudy Paratchek and seconded by Jeffrey Bridges. All were in favor.

Elections Leslie Hall stated that the dates of the nominations/applications and elections have changed slightly. The nominations/applications period will be October 2 through October 13. The election period will be October 25 through November 8. Debbie Dorsey asked about the communication plan. Pusateri stated that the Elections Committee decided not to have info sessions this year, but the committee is working with the Communications Committee to push the information out. For this election period, the following seats will be open.

Administration & Professional 4 seats Information Technology 1 seat Scientific & Research 1 seat

1 Skilled Trades 1 seat

Dorsey asked if those who are elected will receive something that addresses expectations (e.g., attendance, etc.). Pusateri stated that the plan is to be more upfront about these expectations – they will be spelled out during nomination and election periods. Regarding communications, Jenny Sheppard stated that importance of sending a consistent message and the timing of the message. Pusateri stated that a PowerPoint slide, PDF, and flyer will be provided with same message.

Race Relations Series Pusateri reported that there was a reason that this series had not taken place. Keona Lewis would like to present one of the videos per semester with an hour discussion. The plan is to offer the same video twice within a semester. The tentative plan is for this to occur in October and November 2017. It would be scheduled during the lunch hour. Lewis recommends limiting the sessions to 50 people. The title of the first session would be “The Difference Between Us.” The first session is scheduled for October 25.

Town Hall Planning Pusateri stated that the Town Hall is scheduled for November 7. The mid-day session will be held in the in the Student Center Ballroom. Suggested topics include the following items.

Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Health & Well Being Staff Council Elections What Staff Council has been working on

As in the past, three Town Hall sessions will be offered – 6 AM, 11 AM, and 3:15 PM. Wansley Dennis asked if the 6 AM meeting is effective in that the audience did not appear very engaged. J. Bridges stated that is effective and that the group attending is appreciative. Pusateri asked if having the afternoon session at EBB was a good location. Rachael Pocklington suggested the West Village. The consensus in the room was to host at EBB.

In a continued discussion about possible topics, Sheppard suggested a presentation about the Ferst Center. Pusateri stated that this might be a good topic for the Spring Town Hall or an Inform GT Series presentation. Kyle Richardson suggested that we present information on the Campus Recreation Center (CRC) and Outdoor Recreation. Pusateri stated that these topics were discussed in the Inform GT Series on September 19. Pusateri encouraged committees to generate ideas for Town Hall topics.

Inform GT Series Update Rick Clark reported that presentation on September 19 was a success! The PowerPoint presentation will be posted on the Staff Council website. All of the people in attendance yesterday will be added to the Staff Council email distribution list.

2 Another session is tentatively scheduled for November and Clark asked for topic ideas. He stated that the Ferst Center mentioned earlier is an option. Clark asked if we would we consider and/or would it be wise to have student leaders in a panel discussion about the condition of being a student – what is the GT experience for students. John Scuderi suggested a topic that has a connection back to the research that is going on, a topic that has mass appeal. Ericka Thomas stated that the idea of the student panel would really need to be planned out and that maybe there is not enough time to plan this out.

Ad Hoc Committee Update Dorsey reported that the newly formed Ad Hoc Committee has met. This committee will be looking at and researching in more detail the recommendations made in the spring related to the Staff Council Bylaws. Members of the committee are being assigned different recommendations to research. The next meeting of the committee is scheduled for September 29.

Committee Reports Health and Well-Being – Scuderi reported that there are no new updates.

Campus Physical Environment – No report.

Employee Engagement – Paratchek reported the committee continues to work on the idea of flash recognition. The September 1-year recognition gifts were distributed to the Council members for delivery.

Compensation and Benefits – David Brown reported

Communications – Sheppard reported the committee continues to work on the website and communications for the elections process.

Old/New Business Pusateri reported the five Council members will be attending the USG Staff Council Conference at Georgia Southern University next month.

Pusateri asked for a motion to adjourn. Motion made by Paratchek and seconded by J. Bridges. All were in favor. Meeting was adjourned at 11:59 a.m.