ELT Minutes, November 6, 2013

November 20, 2013 ELT Minutes

Extension Leadership Team Minutes
November 6, 2013
Augusta — Farm House, Room 11 (Administration Building), UMA
9:00 – 3:30

Facilitator: Jon Prichard
Note taker: Dennis Harrington

Present: Dennis Harrington, Lisa Phelps, Jonathan Prichard, John Rebar, and Fran Sulinski.

Guests: Doug Babkirk and Aileen Fortune (in person)  

Branding Policy Challenges

Lisa Phelps has made positive progress in addressing challenges to our branding policy by a small group of 4-H volunteers. John Rebar and Lisa recently facilitated a face-to-face meeting with the group, and they now more fully understand the value of the 4-H and UMaine logos and why they need to comply with the policy.

Maine Planning and Reporting System (MPRS)

Dennis Harrington reported that the MPRS is now being used by the University of Delaware, bringing the number of land-grant universities that are using the system to seven. There are also four other major Universities who have expressed a strong interest in using the system. The New England Planning and Reporting Consortium has been asked to make a presentation about the system to the National Extension Directors meeting in March.

Penobscot County Office Improvements

Dennis Harrington reported that he is working with a committee to design a kitchen space in the classroom at the Penobscot County office. The project will be done throughout the winter. The building is also in need of a new roof — the work on the roof will begin immediately.

Tanglewood Electrical Service Improvements

Dennis Harrington updated the group about two phases of work that are planned for Tanglewood to replace the antiquated wiring that supplies electricity to the camp. Both phases of the project are proceeding and, while in the early stages of the work, we believe that the projects will be completed so that the camp has reliable electrical service for next year.

Maine 4-H Foundation

Lisa Phelps reported that Susan Jennings has embraced her new position as Executive Director of the Maine 4-H Foundation, which started October 1st. In her first month she has already met with some significant fundraising success and initiated new relationships with the UMaine Foundation and Development office.

Legislators Visit Campus

John Rebar updated the ELT about progress in educating Maine State legislators about the work of UMaine Extension’s proposed diagnostic lab and other programs. He has hosted groups of legislative leaders for campus tours twice in recent weeks. The visits were very positive.

Centralized Database Management System Update

After long delays and a complete failure by the previous subcontractor, Michele Lodgek and the ELT believe that the new developer for our centralized database management system is the right choice for the work. The project is back on track and the programming phase is under way. Michele is working closely with the new development team and will provide updates to the ELT and organization when appropriate on the progress including training and implementation schedules.

Personal Sustainability Project Workshops

Aileen Fortune and the Personal Sustainability Project team is working with Doug Babkirk to develop workshops to support supervisors and supervisees in interactions related to sustainable practices and work-life balance. The ELT is eager to be the first group to participate in the workshop during the upcoming winter.

Additional Costs for Hiring Temporary Employees

UMaine HR has notified Extension that we will be charged a surcharge of $75 for each new hourly temporary person that is hired. The surcharge helps offset costs incurred by HR related to advertising, hiring, payroll, and termination of temporary employees. A surcharge is common for most departments within the University. The surcharge will be charged to the Chartfield from which the temporary employee will be paid. Fran and John were able to negotiate this flat charge versus an hourly charge, which is less than other campus units pay. We believe this flat charge will save us money over a fiscal year.

Office Change in Libby

Jane Haskell has petitioned the ELT to move offices to Libby Hall 111 so that she can be in closer proximity to her support staff person. The ELT approved the move, which will take place in December.

Integrated Programming Enhancement Team (iPET) Proposal

The iPET has proposed that the ELT fund financial incentives to encourage staff to engage in producing integrated educational programs with the Internet as the primary platform. The ELT does not support offering incentives for what is an evolving expectation for modern program delivery. The ELT and Program Administrators will support the iPET in encouraging Extension staff to meet the vision of the Integrated Programming Model as expressed by John Rebar (see https://extension.umaine.edu/plugged-in/technology-marketing-communications/integrated-programming/).

Announcements:      

Congratulations to Ellen Mallory, who has been awarded $135,726 from Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NESARE) for her project, “Improving winter grain yields, grain quality, and nitrogen use efficiency in New England using adaptive management.”

Congratulations to Wanda Lincoln, who has been awarded $39,000 from the John T. Gorman Foundation, to help support the Senior Companion Program for FY14.

Announcement Invitation:

The ELT invites you to submit items to be included in the minutes/announcements of the next regularly scheduled ELT meeting. This is an opportunity to share with the ELT and the rest of the organization any of the following:

  • Notable programmatic accomplishments
  • Development or fundraising success
  • Significant new partnerships and/or opportunities
  • Important transitions

Please take the opportunity to share your good works through this avenue. Keep it brief … approximately two to four sentences would be appreciated. To submit an announcement, please contact your PA or appropriate member of the ELT.

Please remember to visit University of Maine’s news site for additional University of Maine Cooperative Extension highlight.

Search Updates:

  • POS#208 Small Farm Business Professional – Failed Search – Search will be reopened in January
  • POS#211 Crops Specialist – Advertising

ELT Meeting Dates – 2013

Meetings are from 9:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., unless otherwise noted.

Dates Facilitator Notes Location
November 25 Harrington Sulinski Orono — 102B Libby Hall
December 18 Sulinski Phelps Orono — 102B Libby Hall