Board of Directors Minutes - July 17-19, 1997

Howard Farrell (Board of Directors), Kent Gardner (Executive Director), David Grady (Editor), John Hatley (Board of Directors), Larry Lunsford (Board of Directors), Barbara Rossier (Board of Directors), Michael Shonrock (Vice President), Mardie Sorensen (Province Coordinator), Carol Thompson (Secretary/Treasurer), Barbara Tootle (Board of Directors), Anne Forcier (Board of Directors), Ed Whipple (President) and Daisy Woods (Board of Directors).

The Summer Board of Directors Meeting of the National Order of Omega was called to order by Ed Whipple, President, at 8:30 a.m. on Friday, July 19, 1997 at the Las Vegas Hilton, Las Vegas, Nevada.

1. Minutes
A motion was made by Larry Lunsford and seconded by David Grady to approve the minutes of the Winter Board of Directors Meeting. Motion passed.

2. Introduction of New Board of Directors Member
Ed Whipple introduced Barbara Rossier, of University of Missouri, Kansas City, as the new member to the Board of Directors. Barbara is the new student Board of Director and will serve a one year term.

3. Introduction of Province Advisors
Ed Whipple welcomed Rusty Jergins and Tammy Manko to the meeting. Rusty and Tammy were invited to attend the Summer Board of Directors meeting to represent Order of Omega Province Advisors. Rusty and Tammy represent Epsilon and Tau provinces respectively.

4. Regional Conference Update
Kent Gardner reported to the Board that one hundred seventy eight (178) new honorary initiates were inducted into the National Order of Omega at four (4) regional conferences and at the Iota Phi Theta national board meeting. Kent indicated that no honorary initiations were conducted at the Northeast Interfraternity and Panhellenic Conference (NEIFC/NEPC) because of a conference leadership change. He noted that he has followed-up with the NEIFC/NEPC planning committee to ensure that the Order of Omega initiation is included in the program activities next year.

Kent reported that the new NPHC fraternity Iota Phi Theta asked to have an honorary initiation ceremony conducted at their national board meeting in Richmond, Virginia. Kent noted that the Order of Omega chapter at Virginia Commonwealth University conducted the initiations for Iota Phi Theta. He also indicated that the special initiations at the NPHC Regional Conferences continue to be well received. The summary of honorary initiations is as follows:

Kent reported that WRGC will be celebrating its 50th Anniversary at its 1998 conference. He reminded the Board of Directors that it voted to establish an ongoing award to be presented annually at WRGC to an Interfraternity Council, Panhellenic Association, or National Pan-Hellenic Council that has made a significant positive impact in their community. It would be called the National Order of Omega Futures Award.

5. Tentative Fiscal Statement

Kent Gardner reported to the Board that the fiscal year for The National Order of Omega ends August 30, 1997 and that the annual fiscal year report will be presented at the Winter Board of Directors Meeting. He noted that at the beginning of July, income was up approximately $9,000 over this same time last year. Kent also added that expenses have increased as well. He predicted that the fiscal year budget will either break even or be slightly in the red for the second year in a row.

Kent reported that after reviewing all the chapter files, there were fifty (50) chapters who had not been heard from this past year. He indicated that this was a significant increase over the previous year and felt it may be a reflection of the increase of struggling Greek communities across the country. He noted that letters were sent to each of these chapters encouraging them to reactivate and make contact with national headquarters.

6. Initiation Dues Increase

Kent Gardner reported that the proposed dues increase of $15.00, which would make the national dues $40.00, passed by the required two-thirds vote of 93 yes votes - 41 no votes. This increase would go into effect this fall. Kent explained that a few chapters were seriously concerned about the increase and indicated that they would withdraw their membership from Order of Omega. He suggested that Barbara Rossier, the Student Board of Director, send a letter with the fall mailing explaining the increase, the benefits of the increase to the chapters, and fund raising ideas.

Barbara Tootle suggested providing scholarship monies to those individuals who could not afford the dues increase. Kent noted that some of the fraternity and sorority chapters on the local campus pay the initiation dues of those members selected into Order of Omega. Ed Whipple suggested providing chapters with fund raising ideas to cover membership dues for new members who are unable to afford the increase. Michael Shonrock suggested providing more Order of Omega scholarships to address the concerns raised by some of the chapters regarding lack of resources available through the national organizations. He suggested two levels of scholarships. The first would be tier one scholarships - for those who are the most outstanding. Tier one scholarship would be $500.00 each. Tier two scholarships would be $100.00 each and would go to those individuals the scholarship committee felt were strong applicants, but not the most outstanding. Mardie Sorensen suggested offering a fixed number of scholarships by province, so that all provinces are equally represented in scholarship monies.

Kent noted his first priority will be to hire a full-time clerical staff member. He also indicated the need to locate new office space to accommodate the increased work load and additional staff that will be hire. Kent indicated that he will look at a variety of office space options including purchasing a building of duples or renting office property. He shared with the Board of Directors that the rent on the current space is $750.00 per month and is expected to increase to $1,100 per month.

7. New Chapter Listings

Kent Gardner reported to the Board that fourteen (14) new chapters of The National Order of Omega were installed during 1996-1997. They include the following:

Kent reported that the Province Advisors continue to play a role in the active recruitment of new chapters. He also noted that their role in contacting inactive chapters is critical to their reactivation. Barbara Tootle asked the Board to consider ways in which to nurture the role of the faculty advisor, particularly since they also play a role in the health and active status of a chapter. She suggested recognizing outstanding advisors who have served a certain number of years. Larry Lunsford noted that the Association of Fraternity Advisors (AFA) provides a $25.00 donation to the campus library of the AFA Distinguished Service Award recipients. Ed Whipple asked Anne Forcier and Larry Lunsford to resurrect the awards and recognition materials developed as part of the Strategic Plan and prepare a proposal for consideration by the Board of Directors.

8. Chapter Reports and Concerns

Kent Gardner reported that the University of Oregon chapter is initiating members but not collecting dues. Shelly Sutherland, province advisor for the area, called to report this to Kent. Kent also noted that Southwest Texas State University was using its dues to pay for parties. He reminded the Board that it has the authority to take on a custodial role of a chapter who is not in compliance.

Howard Farrell suggested that the Board carefully consider any case of a chapter who is not in compliance on its own merits before assuming a custodial role. Mardie Sorensen requested that the process for such action include the province advisor. She suggested that the process for addressing chapters who are not in compliance start with Kent Gardner as Executive Director and the respective province advisor. A motion was made by Howard Farrell and seconded by Michael Shonrock to authorize the Executive Director to take appropriate action with a chapter who is not in compliance with The National Order of Omega Consitution and By-Laws and to keep the Board of Directors informed about such actions. Motion passed.

9. Omega Trends

David Grady distributed to the Board of Directors the following summary of expenses for Omega Trends for 1996-1997:

	November 1996	April 1997	1996-97 Totals	1995-96 Totals	1994-95 Totals
Printing	882.00	  1,938.39	  2,820.39	  2,472.40	  3,249.00
Postage	      1,398.78	  1,602.01	  3,000.79	  2,992.77	  4,131.83
Supplies	 37.95	     96.68	    134.63	    262.55	    176.63
Design		 75.00	     75.00	    150.00	      0.00            0.00

Totals	     $2,393.73   $3,712.08       $6,105.81       $5,727.72       $7,557.46

# Ordered        8,000       8,200	    16,200	    15,800	    22,850

Avg. $/newsletter			   $0.3769	   $0.3625	   $0.3307

David indicated that he would highlight the following individuals in their fall edition of the newsletter - Rusty Jergins and Tammy Manko, as two outstanding Province Advisors and Barbara Rossier as the new Student Board of Directors. David requested that each of them send him a photo to include with feature. Howard Farrell thanked David Grady for his excellent work with the Omega Trends.

10. World Wide - Web Home Page

David Grady reported that he is working on updating The National Order of Omega home page. He indicated to the Board that because it does take time and someone with the appropriate knowledge to keep the home page current, he is looking at hiring someone to help him with these responsibilities. Mardie Sorensen suggested that David talk with Kent Pawlak at The University of Texas at Arlington. She noted that he has a strong background in this area.

11. Student Board of Director

Barbara Tootle provided a summary of the recent Student Board of Directors selection which was completed this spring. The Student Board of Director was selected from the Mid-America Region. Barbara Rossier, from University of Missouri - Kansas City, was selected for the 1997-1998 Student Board of Director position. Ed Whipple reminded the Board that the next Student Board of Directors would be selected from the Eastern Region and would be coordinated by Anne Forcier.

Babara Tootle Suggeste using quotes from Barbara Rossier's application essay in the article being done on her for the Omega Trends. She also suggested moving up the application deadline to March to avoid spring break dates.

12. Fellowship and Scholarship Report

Michael Shonrock distributed to the Board a sample press release he has developed to promote and inform others about the Order of Omega Fellowship and Scholarship Awards program. Michael also distributed and reviewed the draft time line for both award programs. He asked the Board to provide him with any significant changes to these materials. Michael reported that the deadline for the Scholarship and Fellowship Award applications is November 1, 1997 and October 17, 1997 respectively. Michael reported that he will continue to use the business reply envelop to minimize the number of applications that get sent to the wrong address. He noted that this has decreased the number of applications getting lost in the process.

A motion was made by Barbara Tootle and seconded by Anne Forcier to provide up to fifty (50) $500.00 scholarships to the most outstanding applicants and up to and additional fifty (50) $100.00 scholarships to the next level of outstanding applicants in honor of Order of Omega's 30th Anniversary. In addition, the top thirty (30) applicants will be named 30th Anniversary Scholars. After discussion, motion passed. Michael added that he will include the 30th Anniversary logo on the scholarship certificates.

13. Province Advisors

Mardie Sorensen reported several updates regarding the province advisors: Cub Berrians (Old Dominion University) assignment has been changed from the Sigma Province (Kentucky, West Virginia) to the Iota Province (Virginia, North Carolina); province advisors positions are available for Delta Province (Arkansas, Louisisana, Mississippi) and Xi (Michigan, Wisconsin); Cherie Wechsler is the province advisor for the newly reorganized Theta Province (Western California); Eastern California chapters were reassigned to the Eta Province (Arizona, Eastern California, Nevada, Utah) and to Tina Barnett.

Mardie reported that the following province advisors were not fulfilling their responsibilities - Matt Supple (Upsilon), Mary Peterson (Lambda), and Traci Christler (Gamma). A motion was made by Larry Lunsford and seconded by Daisy Woods to authorize Mardie Sorensen to ask these three individuals to step down from their province advisor positions. Motion passed. Mardie solicited names from the Board of Directors of Greek life professionals to fill these vacancies.

Mardie reported that province advisors are interested in assisting with Order of Omega Regional Conference business, including honorary initiations. In addition, province advisors would like to see an informal gathering of province advisors organized at the regional conferences and see more recognition of province advisors who are doing their jobs well. Barbara Tootle suggested honoring Barb Ross for her long time work with Order of Omega at the province level. It was the consensus of the Board to honor Barb Ross. Mardie will get a recognition plaque made for Barb and Ed Whipple will send a thank-you letter on behalf of the Board of Directors. Ed indicated that he will recognize Barb Ross at the Order of Omega reception during the AFA/NIC Annual Meeting in San Francisco December 1997.

Larry suggested naming scholarships after outstanding province advisors and former members of the Board of Directors. Howard suggested giving a gift to the campus library in the name of the province advisor, volunteer, or former Board of Directors member being honored. After discussion by the Board, a motion was made by Mardie Sorensen and seconded by David Grady to honor individuals who have given exceptional service to the National Order of Omega by naming a student scholarship after them and donating $100.00 in the honored individuals name to the organization of their choice. Motion passed. A motion was made by Mardie Sorensen and seconded by Howard Farrell to honor Barb Ross in this manner. Motion passed. Kent Gardner noted that he and Mardie will review Order of Omega records to determine if any other individuals should be honored. Ed asked Mardie to develop a list of criteria to be used when considering individuals for named scholarships.

Kent suggeste that Tammy Manko and Rusty Jergins share ideas with other province advisors on how to be a good province advisor. He suggested doing it in a letter format. Kent asked Tammy and Rusty to prepare a draft for Mardie to review before sending it out.

14. Interfraternity Institute (IFI)

Anne Forcier proposed to the Board of Directors that the Order of Omega sponsor annually one Interfraternity Institute grant of $375.00. This grant would support the attendance of a new Greek life professional at the Interfraternity Institute. She proposed that the awardee be a full-time employee who has responsibilities for fraternities and sororities and has an Order of Omega chapter in good standing. After discussion, a motion was made by David Grady and seconded by Michael Shonrock to support this proposal. Motion passed. Anne indicated that she will follow-up with the National Interfraternity Conference to establish this grant in Order of Omega's name.

15. Speakers Bureau

Kent Gardner reported that he has received thirteen names of past and current Order of Omega Board of Directors members and province advisors who are interested in being a part of the Speakers Bureau. He asked those members of the Board who have yet to submit their names for participation to do so.

16. Graduation Cords

Kent Gardner reported that graduation honor cords are still a popular item. He also indicated that the Order of Omega banners and initiation stoles are selling more slowly, but all new Order of Omega chapters receive these items with their installation materials. He asked David Grady to include information on the Order of Omega banners in the next edition of Omega Trends.

17. Chapter Reference Manual

Kent Gardner asked if their were any suggestions for changes in the Chapter Reference Manual. He asked the Board of Directors to review the manual and submit changes to him. David Grady noted that the manual should be placed on-line to make it easier to update and be accessed by the membership. David will work with Kent Pawlak at The Unversity of Texas at Arlington to put the manual on the Order of Omega home page.

18. Constitution, By-Laws, and Ritual

Kent Gardner asked the Board of Directors to review and submit any changes to the current Order of Omega Constitution, By-Laws and Ritual. He asked David to make sure the constitution and by-laws were included in the information provided on the Order of Omega home page.

19. 30th Anniversary - Special Recognition

Kent Gardner asked the Board of Directors to submit names of outstanding Order of Omega alumni for consideration as one of the 30th Anniversary Outstanding Alumni Recognition Awards. He asked for names, addresses, and a brief paragraph on the individual be submitted to him by August 15, 1997. Kent indicated that he will contact previous Board members and province advisors for possible names. Anne stated she will look at database management programs for possible use by the national office to develop an alumni and donor records system.

20. Order of Omega Pins

Kent Gardner reported to the Board that Order of Omega has contracts with two jewelers to provide the membership pins. The two jewelers are Pollack and Masters of Design. Kent added that each vendor provides the organization with 4,500 membership pins for a total of 9,000 membership pins annually. He noted that this arrangement is working well for the organizations.

21. Strategic Plan

Kent Gardner asked Ed Whipple, Carol Thompson, and Anne Forcier to assist him in reviewing the current Order of Omega Strategic Plan and to provide any proposal changes to him by November.

22. NPHC Conference

Kent Gardner reported that he and Daisy Woods would be attending the National Pan-Hellenic Conference at the Adams Mark Hotel in Mobile, Alabama this October. They will conduct an Order of Omega honorary initiation ceremony Friday, October 10, 1997.

23. AFA/NIC Annual Meeting

The Annual AFA/NIC Meeting is scheduled for December 3-7, 1997 at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport, San Francisco, California. Order of Omega will be hosting a reception on Saturday, December 6, 1997.

Michael Shonrock reported to the Board of Directors that the number of teams for the Case Study Competition will be limited this year between six and eight. Michael indicated that this would provide a better opportunity to judge and give constructive feedback to the graduate teams who are competing. He noted that Cindy Pennington (Association of Fraternity Advisors) will be assisting Order of Omega with all the arrangements. The Case Study Competition is scheduled for Thursday, December 4, 1997 from 1:30-6:30 p.m. Barbara Tottle suggested printing the synopsis of the winning team in the Association of Fraternity Advisors (AFA) Newsletter. Michael indicated he would follow-up with the AFA Newsletter Editor to discuss the possibility for doing this.

Ed Whipple explained that the Executive Council has reviewed the expenditures relating to the Winter Board of Directors meeting and the Fall Executive Council meeting and is recommending several changes. Ed noted that there is a need to have some kind of Order of Omega presence at the AFA/NIC Annual Conference to conduct the Case Study Competition and present the Fellowship Awards, but did not believe the entire Board of Directors needed to be in attendance. Michael Shonrock explained that the initial reason for the Winter Board of Directors meeting was to review and select scholarship recipients. He noted the work is now conducted by the scholarship committee at Texas Tech University prior to the Winter Board of Directors meeting. The Board of Directors role has evolve into an endorsement of the committee work. Kent Gardner added that another reason for the Board meeting was to take advantage of the attendance of the Board members who were already attending because their institution had sent them. He noted that most of the Board of Directors have moved on to different positions within their respective institutions and are no longer attending NIC/AFA as the institutional representative.

Ed Whipple indicated that the Fall Executive Council meeting, usually held in October, could be held at the Annual NIC/AFA Conference. Kent reported that eliminating the Winter Board of Directors meeting and holding the Fall Executive Council meeting at the AFA/NIC Annual Conference would save approximately $11,000 and still provide a strong Order of Omega presence at the conference.

After discussion by the Board, the proposal was accepted. Ed asked if any of the Board members would be attending the conference on behalf of their institution or any other organization. Daisy Woods, Larry Lunsford, Howard Farrell, and Barbara Tootle indicated that they would be attending the AFA/NIC Annual Conference this December.

24. Board of Directors Reappointments

Ed Whipple reviewed the Board of Directors appointment schedule. He noted that the appointments of Barbara Toolte and Larry Lunsford expire Summer of 1997. Ed reported that the Executive Council voted to appoint Barbara Tootle and Larry Lunsford to an addtional three-year term.

25. 1998 Summer Board of Directors Meeting

Kent Gardner reported that the dates for the 1998 Summer Board of Directors meeting are July 16-18.

26. Recognition of Outgoing Board Members

Ed Whipple presented John Hatley with a gift (engraved clock) on behalf of the Board of Directors and Executive Council for serving as the Student Board of Director for 1996-1997. The Board expressed their sincere appreciation for the service to The National Order of Omega.

The Summer Board of Directors meeting of The National Order of Omega was officially adjourned by Ed Whipple, President, on Saturday, July 19, 1997 at twelve noon.