The National Order of Omega
Summer Board Meeting
July 13-14, 2001
The Boulders, Carefree, Arizona

MINUTES

Present:

Ed Whipple (President); Kent Gardner (Executive Director); Michael Shonrock (Vice President); Mardie Sorenson (Province Advisor Coordinator); Daisy (Dee) Wood; Mindy Sopher (Province Advisor); Wes Schaub (Province Advisor); David Grady (Editor); Barbara Tootle; Larry Lunsford; Jose Diaz (Student Representative); Jennifer McCoy (Student Representative); Anne Trask Forcier; Kent Pawlak; Howard Farrell.

Ed introduced Jennifer McCoy as the newest student Board Member.  She is a senior in accounting at the University of Iowa. Carrying out tradition, outgoing student board member Jose Diaz presented Jennifer with a souvenir sweatshirt from the University of Miami. 

Mardie introduced the two Province Advisors selected to attend the meeting:  Mindy Sopher from North Carolina State University in Raleigh-Durham; and Wes Schaub from Case Western Reserve, Cleveland.   

A letter from Bob Biggs, sending his attendance regrets, was circulated.  

Also circulated were photos taken during a ceremony dedicating a National Order of Omega Plaque at the University of Miami, where the order was originally founded.  Jose Diaz and Larry Lunsford participated in the ceremonies. 

Summer Board Meeting, 2002 

Next summer's Board Meeting will be held July 11-14 at a place to be announced. 

Chapter Status Report 

Kent reported that eleven (11) new chapters have been established.  He also distributed a list of Inactive Chapters totaling one hundred four (104), but noted that 55 of those reported their last initiation in the year 2000 so some chapters may have neglected to report more recent initiations.  Forty-four (44) chapters have been re-activated (see list attached).  He also reported on the initiation of honorary members at regional conferences (list attached).   

Scholarship and Fellowship Report 

Michael reported that use of the web site for making application information available has been successful.  Deadline reminder postcards will also be sent out in mid-August and again about the end of September/first of October for the November 1 application deadline.  AFA Perspectives magazine will carry notices of the deadline, as well as the publications for ACPA and NASPA. 

Kent Pawlak suggested that a "formal" application be developed to achieve consistency of information acquired from applicants.  Michael and Kent Pawlak agreed to work on that format. 

During general discussion the following suggestions were made:  a) On Omega's Website, link the scholarship application information and the list of last year's winners; b) better utilize e-mail addresses obtained through various reports; c) name a scholarship after someone who had performed a special service to the organization as a way of demonstrating appreciation for the contribution; d) investigate ways to enhance the scholarship presentations, which could result in increased levels of awareness about the availability of the  awards/funds. 

Also discussed were problems with the timing of the scholarship awards related to junior/senior eligibility.  Jose moved that academic juniors be allowed to apply for the scholarship.  Barbara seconded.  Motion carried unanimously.  A direction was given to change the Web site to reflect this action. 

Omega Trends 

David distributed a Summary of Expenses for 2000-2001 including a historic comparison (report attached). He noted that since the newsletter was piggybacked with the semi-annual chapter mailing, the reported postage cost is overstated.  In questioning the efficacy of mailing multiple copies of the newsletters to chapter presidents for distribution to local members, Kent Gardner suggested that e-mail distribution of Omega Trends might be more effective.  However, this would entail capturing initiates' e-mail addresses in the national database.   

David requested that Mindy and Wes, as guest province advisors, send him their biographical information for inclusion in a feature in the next issue.  He also requested board members send him any speeches or published articles, which they would like to appear in the newsletter. 

Province Coordinator Report 

Mardie reported that she was able to fill 7 of the 9 province advisor positions that became vacant since the fall.  New England and New York provinces remain open. She received spring reports from only eleven (11) of the twenty-three (23) province advisors.   She reported that 4 province advisors had not fulfilled their obligations and recommended replacing Shannon Nichols (Mu); Cathy Pritchett (Nu); Jana Basler (Omicron); Danny Kelley (Upsilon). 

AFA/NIC Meeting 

Michael announced that the AFA/NIC annual conference would be held Nov. 28 - Dec. 2 in Crystal City, Virginia.  The Board affirmed its support for continuing the case study presentations during this conference and hosting the Recognition Reception before the Saturday Banquet.  Discussion related to the issues regarding participation by masters and doctoral candidates in the case study competition.  It was the consensus of the board that the next case study competition be limited to only masters students and then be re-evaluated next year to determine what, if any, affect this action has on the program. 

Barbara suggested that Order of Omega try to plug into any of the publicity related to AFA's 25th Anniversary this year.   

Student Board Member 2002 

The next student board member will be from the Northeast.  Anne will coordinate the selection process. 

Inter-Agency Task Force on Alcohol 

Ed will attend the next Inter-Agency Task Force meeting on August 9 in Washington D.C.  He re-iterated the importance of Order of Omega being connected with this group, and that Omega will receive publicity during National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week in October.   (Some concern was expressed that Order of Omega's name be correct in the task force's publicity materials.) 

Chapter Disciplinary Problem 

Kent Gardner reported that he had been notified of a recent claim of hazing by the chapter at the University of Pennsylvania, which has not submitted initiation fees since 1998.  He will continue to investigate and may invoke some disciplinary action.  Board members felt this may be an opportunity to highlight and affirm Order of Omega’s policies pertinent to hazing and related matters. 

Board of Director Appointments 

No Board Member term expires in 2001, so there were no new appointments to the Board.  There was consensus that it no longer served a purpose to invite a representative of NIC-NPC-NPHC to sit on the Board.  However, the Board reserved the right to invite representatives of other organizations to its meetings, based on issues under consideration at the time.  

Black Leadership Conference 

The Board confirmed its support for the continuation of funding scholarships presented at the Black Leadership Conference.  Michael moved that, pending Kent's feedback from the BLC, up to $1,000 in scholarship awards be given during its conference.   Daisy seconded.  Motion carried. 

NPC Conference 

Kent Gardner will attend the NPC Conference on July 28 in Indianapolis.  An initiation will be conducted on Saturday night. 

Website Report 

Kent Pawlak reported on Omega's website usage from January through June of 2001.  There were 8,931 user sessions, or 366 hits per day.  His comprehensive report is attached. 

During discussion, board members questioned whether it was time to consider performing web server functions in-house, and emphasized the importance of the organization keeping its computer hardware up-to-date. 

In regard to the purchase of Order of Omega logoed items through the website, David said that Spirit Recognition, Inc. has offered to sell a wide range of logoed items and provide the organization with a 10% sales commission.  The Board authorized Kent Gardner to further investigate Spirit's proposal and how their offerings might be linked to Omega's website. 

The Board expressed its utmost thanks to Kent Pawlak for his extraordinary work related to all aspects of Omega’s website. 

Outgoing Student Board Member Presentation 

The Board presented Jose Diaz with a beautiful mantel clock in honor of his completing his term.

Jose warmly thanked the members for the opportunity to serve and said he felt he had made many long-lasting friendships during his tenure.  

Organizational Structure 

Using SWOT  (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) Analysis methods, the board enacted some specific organizational changes and suggested various general strategies for future operations.  (Findings of SWOT analysis groups is attached).   

David moved that the administrative positions of the Order of Omega be re-configured to a combination of full-time and part-time paid positions that reflect less reliance on volunteer contributions while emphasizing operations performed through maximum usage of technology.    Motion seconded.  Motion carried.    Kent Gardner will submit a recommended office staffing plan and resulting financial needs to the board before the fall semester begins. 

Mardie moved that the 23 Province Advisor positions be replaced with a system of 4-6 regional advisors who would receive compensation and training.  Motion seconded.  Motion carried.   

Recognizing lack of alumni involvement in Order of Omega as a major weakness, there was consensus that future programs should be designed to involve past scholarship/fellowship winners, chapter presidents, past board members, and past province advisors.    As an initial step, it was recommended that more information such as permanent address, e-mail address, major, etc, would be requested of initiates.  This information could also be extremely useful should corporate partnerships develop.   

With the creation of a full-time executive director position, the board agreed it could then shift its focus to strategic planning issues and establish annual priorities, which would be implemented by staff and evaluated at mid-year.   

To address funding dependence on membership fees, board members suggested the creation of corporate partnerships to fund scholarships and an endowment, and reducing the number of inactive chapters.   It was also noted that an active alumni program could play a role in minimizing this dependence. 

Board members were reminded to utilize their contacts with other organizations to advance the goals of Order of Omega, specifically, and the Greek system, in general.  And, the organization should consider expanding its communications links outside the Greek Advisor arena.  Daisy commented that diversity initiatives and how diversity issues are woven throughout the Order's publications/policies should be strongly considered.  She wondered if partnerships with historically black colleges and universities (HBCU's) or other groups representing diversity could advance the Order's goals.  

David moved that Kent Gardner and the Executive Committee be given discretionary authority to implement any of the Board's suggestions before the December Board Meeting.   Motion seconded.  Motion carried.  

The meeting adjourned at 12:00 noon.