Henderson-Mercer-Warren Extension Council Meeting Minutes for 11/5/09

Attendance:

Cathy Good, Janet Hall, Steve Oaks, Janet Monville, Ann Alecock, Doug Mills, Al Kulczewski, Carol Wilcoxen

Welcome/ Introductions:

Steve Oaks welcomed everyone in attendance and individual introductions were made.

Get Acquainted Activity:

Wonderful meal provided by Henderson County Council members.

Minutes:

Al Kulczewski distributed the minutes from the September 3^rd meeting held at the Mercer County Extension office. Janet Monville moved and Ann Alecock seconded the approval of the minutes. Motion carried.

Correspondence: None

Fiscal Update:

Fiscal year starts July of 2010 with the county board monies coming in October. Gifts and donations will be coming at the end of 2009. State usually matches funds to 80%. The monies are managed by the University.

Question was asked by Steve Oaks on the update of the hiring of the three vacate positions in the counties. Al Kulczewski shared that the process of securing an Extension 4-H coordinator position for Mercer County will begin next week. Al also shared that the other positions are on hold until uncertainty of funding is cleared up.

Northwest Region Advisory Committee: No report at this time

WIEDP Report: No report at this time

Mercer County EDP Report- None given

Holiday Office Closing: Al Kulczewski asked approval to close the County offices on 28-30 with the staff using vacation time. The offices are closed December 24-26^th and 31st, and January 1^st for the holidays. Cathy Good moved and Janet Monville seconded the motion. Motion carried.

Programming Updates

Patti Jeanne Higgins Scholarship – A $15,000 donation has been made from the family for 2 scholarships to be given a year. Each scholarship will be for $500. The foundation will invest the money to fund the scholarship and any additional money needed to fund the $500 scholarships will come from the family. The requirements are that the applicant be a member of 4-H for at least 3 years and a current member of Mercer or Warren County 4-H.

Hazard Mitigation Plans- Cathy Good of Henderson County reported that the county gave out surveys at parent/teacher conferences with poor return rate so far. Mercer County passed out surveys during several meetings held in the area. HMP will lead to more federal monies for the counties needed during natural disasters.

Hispanic Outreach- Al Kulczewski shared that there are several programs in place to reach the Hispanic community. Monthly family nights are happening at the Armory in Monmouth, a Spanish Newsletter highlighting extension services and a health fair.

Live Well, Be Well- Carol Wilcoxen shared the success of the 7 week program for those living with chronic illness. Programs have been given in Warren and Mercer counties and ideas were given by council members on possible meeting places for the program to be held in Henderson County.

4-H Update- Carol Wilcoxen shared the survey results from the students of West Central School District on what they would like to learn about. Cooking, Photography and Robotics were the top 3. The 21^st Century grant obtained by the regional education office will support the after school program of tutoring, homework help and special interest classes offered through 4-H.

Ann Alecock will be attending the 4-H Shooting Sports training along with Mark and Scott Hall.

Leadership Programming- Adult leadership academies will begin in January.

Winter Ag Programs-Various Ag programs will be offered throughout the year. Council members suggested that they be better advertised for the general public. Suggestions were made to advertise in The Quill and The Clover newsletter.

Review of U of I Extension survey- Ideas were given on the survey and concern expressed on the low number of people taking the survey. Members felt the low numbers might affect the results.

The meeting was closed with a motion from Steve Oaks and seconded by Cathy Good.

The next meeting will be held January 7^th, 2010 at the Warren-Henderson Farm Bureau Bld. Monmouth.

Submitted by:

Ann Alecock

Secretary

Henderson-Mercer-Warren Extension Council

Wednesday, September 3, 2009 at 6:30 p.m.

Mercer County EPD Office, Aledo

Attendance: Marion Brown, Cathy Good, Deborah Goldner, Janet Hall, Janet Monville, Ann Alecock, Steve Oaks, Steve Oaks, Doug Mills, Bob Vickrey, Carol Wilcoxen and Al Kulczewski

Welcome & Introductions

Steve Oaks welcomed everyone that was in attendance and asked everyone to introduce themselves.

Get Acquainted Activity

None

Review of Extension Council Duties & Responsibilities

Al Kulczewski distributed a PowerPoint handout and summarizing the duties and responsibilities of the Extension Council and then reviewed this information with the Council members present at the meeting.

Election of Officers

Bob Vickrey moved, Jan Monville seconded a motion that Steve Oaks be elected to serve as Chair of the Council for 2009-10. Motion carries. Marion Brown moved, Bob Vickrey seconded a motion that Cathy Good be elected to serve as Vice-Chairman of the Council for 2009-10. Motion carried. Cathy Good moved, Bob Vickrey seconded a motion that Ann Alecock be elected to serve as Secretary of the Council for 2009-2010. Motion carried. Deb Goldner moved, Ann Alecock seconded a motion that Janet Hall be elected to serve as Financial Reporter for the Council in 2009-2010. Motion carried.

Election of Extension Board Members

Doug Mills moved, Deb Goldner seconded a motion that Bob Vickrey, Marion Brown, Cathy Olson, and Ann Alecock be elected to serve as members of the Extension Board representing the HMW Extension Council. Motion carried.

Representative to NW Region Advisory Board

Bob Vickrey moved, Deb Goldner seconded a motion that Cathy Good serve as HMW representative to the NW Region Advisory Board. Motion carried.

Authorization to Sign In/Out Account Checks

Marion Brown moved, Bob Vickrey seconded a motion that Janet Hall and Janet Monville be authorized to sign checks for the HMW Extension In and Out checking account. Motion carried.

Minutes

Al Kulczewski distributed copies of the minutes from the last Extension Council meeting held on May 20, 2009 in Stronghurst. Marion Brown moved, Ann Alecock seconded to approve the minutes as written. Motion carried.

Northwest Region Advisory Committee

Cathy Good reported that a meeting was held in Princeton this past spring but that Cathy was not able to attend. The main thrust of the meeting was to discuss finances.

Correspondence

Carol Wilcoxen shared several thank you notes she had received for programming delivered by the HMW Extension unit.

Fiscal Update

Al Kulczewski distributed fiscal reports for the FY09 year end and the first month of FY 2010. Total income in FY09 was $637,524.29 and expenses totaled $731,808.05. Al reported that there were still some additional monies to be received that will be credited to the FY09 income. Total income for July 2009 totaled $14,610.22 and expenses totaled $55,528.79.

Staff Update

Al Kulczewski reported that Rosemary Schone retired from her Mercer County FNP position as of the end of June. Also, Linda Lee Blaine and Cathy St. George were laid off from their positions with the Warren County WIEDP Office as of June 30^th. Al is waiting to see what the fiscal resources will be for FY2010 before moving to fill any of the vacated positions.

Future Council Meetings

It was the consensus of the Council members present to conduct meeting sfor the next year on the following dates and locations:

Thursday, November 5, 2009 – Henderson County Office, Stronghurst

Thursday, January 7, 2010 – Warren County Office, Monmouth

Thursday, March 4, 2010 – Mercer County Office, Aledo

Thursday, May 6, 2010 – Henderson County Office, Stronghurst

Thursday, September 2, 2010 – Warren County Office, Monmouth

All meetings will begin at 6:30 p.m. Council members in each county will provide a light supper at 6:00 pm.

Programming Updates

Carol Wilcoxen shared the following updates:

· Distributed copies of the new 4-H Clover to Council members

· Met recently with the new State 4-H Director Denise Legvold

· Reported that there are now new legal documents that need to be completed for all 4-H activities

· Carol and Al were present for the conduct of Welcome to the Real World in Muscatine, Iowa in August. This is the first time that WRW has been held in the State of Iowa.

· Provided an update on the Lincoln Learning Trails Before and After School Program

Al also provided some updates on programs currently being conducted and being planned to be held in the HMW Unit.

Review of U of I Extension Survey

Al Kulczewski distributed to Council members present a copy of the data collected from the 114 people residing Henderson, Mercer and Warren Counties who completed the "Together We Can … Tell Us How" on-line survey. It was agreed that the Council would review the document in more depth at the next Council meeting in November.

Miscellaneous

It was suggested that Al collect e-mail addresses from all Council members who have e-mail accounts and use e-mail to communicate in the future with Council members to save on postage.

Bob Vickrey moved, Janet Monville seconded a motion that the meeting be adjourned. Motion carried.

Respectfully submitted,

Al Kulczewski

Acting Secretary

Henderson-Mercer-Warren Extension Council

Thursday, May 20, 2009; 6:30 p.m.

Henderson County Extension Office, Stronghurst

Attendance: Brian Sterett, Steve Oaks, Cathy Good, Janet Monville, Cathy Olson, Teresa Schwass, Al Kulczewski & Carol Wilcoxen

Get Acquainted Activity

None.

Minutes

Steve Oaks moved, Janet Monville seconded a motion that the minutes of the last Council meeting held on March 26, 2009 be approved as printed. Motion carried.

Correspondence

None.

Fiscal Update

Al Kulczewski distributed a fiscal report showing income and expenses for the first ten months of FY 09. Income to date for FY2009 totals $352,477.93 and expenses total $575,473.54. Al reported that we have now received two quarters of state county board match.

Northwest Regional Advisory Council Meeting

Al Kulczewski shared with the Council an e-mail message he had recently received from the NW Region Office stating that Gerald Correthers has scheduled a meeting with the NW Region Extension Advisory Council on Tuesday, June 16^th at 6:00 p.m. at the Bureau County Extension Office in Princeton. Cathy Good stated that she does plan to participate in the meeting via telenet.

Staff Updates

Al Kulczewski reported that Jenny Garner and Al will be interviewing candidates for the Mercer EDP secretary position on Thursday, May 27^th. The position will be filled at 20 hours per week. Also, Rosemary Schone is retiring at the end of June and Becky Zwilling is leaving her position with U of I Extension the end of May. Al shared that he will seek candidates to fill both positions; however, he is reducing the Mercer County 4-H Program Coordinator position to a 60% appointment for budgetary reasons.

WIEDP Report

No report.

Mercer County EDP Report

Al Kulczewski distributed to everyone a copy of the one page summary report of activities by the Mercer EDP Office for the time period April 16, 2008 thru March 15, 2009.

Program Review in 2009

Al Kulczewski reported that the Program Review was conducted on May 14^th and 15^th and that we had a good participation in the client interviews. Deb Plasterer will be sending a report to Al on behalf of the committee

Recruitment of Council members for 2009-10

Al Kulczewski reviewed with the Council the position that will need to filled for the 2009-2010 program year. Brian Sterett (Henderson County) and Rick Holdsworth (Mercer County) will be completing four years of service on the Extension Council and, therefore, replacements for both must be found. Also the council members who are completing their first 2-yaer term need to be contacted to see if they have interest in being reappointed to a second two year term on the Council. Al asked that Council members report back to him any contacts with potential new members that have been made.

U of I Extension Survey

Al Kulczewski distributed to Council members a summary of data collected from residents of Henderson, Mercer and Warren Counties that completed the "Tell Us How" program needs assessment survey. Al suggested that Council members review this information and that the Council will discuss this further at the next meeting on September 3^rd.

Update on Learn and Serve Grant

Al Kulczewski reported that he, Jenny Garner, and Carol Wilcoxen met yesterday at Augustana College with representatives of Augustana, Monmouth College and St. Ambrose University to discuss further the possibility of partnering together to write a Learn and Serve America Higher Education grant. At the conclusion of the meeting it was agreed to meet in another month again and to invite representatives of additional schools including Knox College, Western Illinois University, Spoon River Community College and others serving the region.

Proposed FY 2010 Budget

Al Kulczewski presented a proposed budget for FY10 to the Council showing projected income of $559,514 and anticipated expenses of $565,125. The difference of $5,611 will be made up with carry-over funds from FY09. A motion was made by Cathy Olson to approve the budget as presented and seconded by Cathy Good. Motion approved.

Proposed FY 2011 Budget

Al Kulczewski presented a proposed budget for FY11 to the Council showing projected income of $574,000 and anticipated expenses of $574,000. The Council is being asked to take action to approve at this time only the request that will be made to the individual county boards for funding for FY11. Cathy Good moved, Cathy Olson seconded a motion that the Council approve a request of $66,000 from Warren County; $25,000 from Henderson County; and $69,000 from Mercer County for FY11. Motion carried.

Meeting of Extension Board

Al Kulczewski reported that the next step in the FY11 budget process is to take the Council recommendation for funding from each county to a meeting of the HMW Extension Board, which consists of 4 Council members and a county board member from each of the 3 county boards. It was agreed to conduct the Extension Board meeting on Wednesday, June 10, 2009 at 12:00 Noon at the Barnstormer Restaurant in Monmouth. Following a meeting of this board, the proposed budget is then taken to each of the individual county finance committees and eventually the full county boards for final approval.

Programming Updates

· Live Well Be Well – Carol Wilcoxen and Amy Griswold have started recently a new series of seven lessons in Aledo.

· Welcome to the Real World – Was conducted on May 8^th at Carl Sandburg College in Galesburg with 127 volunteers present. The program was also conducted at Aledo Junior High School on Monday, May 11^th. Carol and Al will also be participating in WRW in Muscatine, Iowa on August 20^th.

· Child Care Clinics – Three clinics are planned, one in each county in June.

· 4-H Tech Club - University of Nebraska is conducting a weeklong camp for youth June 21 – 26 at Monmouth College. The focus is on geospatial and robotics technology.

· 4-H Program Updates – Reports of upcoming 4-H activities in Warren and Mercer Counties was distributed to all Council members.

· Hispanic Outreach – The third annual Hispanic Health Fair was conducted on Sunday afternoon, April 26^th at Immaculate ICS School in Monmouth. A $4,999 mini-grant will be distributed to Starting Point in Monmouth to be used to implement a series of family night programs for the Hispanic community.

· Community Garden – 35 families are now signed up to participate in the Monmouth Community Garden. Extension conducted a Basic Gardening 101 Class on May 19^th and a will conduct a Twilight Garden Walk on July 7^th.

Miscellaneous

None.

Next Meeting

The next HMW Extension Council meeting will be held on Thursday, September 3, 2009 at 6:30 p.m. at the Mercer County Extension Office in Aledo.

A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Cathy Good, seconded by Janet Monville. Motion carried.

Respectfully submitted,

Steve Oaks,

Secretary

Henderson-Mercer-Warren Extension Council

Thursday, March 26, 2009; 6:30 p.m.

Prairie Tech Learning Center, Monmouth

Attendance: Brian Sterett, Steve Oaks, Cathy Good, Janet Monville, Bob Vickrey, Rick Holdsworth, Al Kulczewski & Linda Lee Blaine

Get Acquainted Activity

None.

Minutes

Bob Vickrey moved, Cathy Good seconded a motion that the minutes of the last Council meeting held on January 22, 2009 be approved as printed. Motion carried.

Correspondence

None.

Fiscal Update

Al Kulczewski distributed a fiscal report showing income and expenses for the first eight months of FY 09. Income to date for FY2009 totals $231,932.16 and expenses total $450,606.98. Al reported that he will soon be reminding those who have signed agreements to provide funding support this year that their contributions must be received by June 30^th.

Northwest Regional Advisory Council Meeting

No meeting has been held.

WIEDP Report

Linda Lee Blaine provided a summary of activities that the Jolene Willis, Cathy St. George, and Linda Lee have been engaged in. These include two workshops on wind turbines, a Women's Lifestyle Fair, a Video Production Camp that will take place on March 28^th at Monmouth College, and the 2009 Green Solutions Expo which will be held on April 22^nd at Knox College.

Mercer County EDP Report

Al Kulczewski distributed to everyone a copy of the one page summary report of activities by the Mercer EDP Office for the time period February 16 thru March 15, 2009. Also Jenny Garner and four other persons from Mercer County participated in a trip recently to Washington, D.C.

Program Review in 2009

Al Kulczewski reported that a Program Review will be conducted on May 14^th and 15^th within the HMW Unit. Deb Plasterer is chairing a team of three people that will on May 14^th listen to staff presentations summarizing program impact and cost recovery, conduct two one-hour sessions of client interviewed and review office files. On May 15^th Deb will travel to Aledo and tour the two offices, then conduct a one hour session of client interviews. Al asked the Council members to suggest to him names of clients that we might invite to participate in the client interviews. He reported that it is important that we have clients that represent all four Extension program areas and the 3 counties.

Recruitment of Council members for 2009-10

Al Kulczewski reported that Brian Sterett (Henderson County) and Rick Holdsworth (Mercer County) will be completing four years of service on the Extension Council and, therefore, replacements for both must be found. Also the council members who are completing their first 2-yaer term should be contacted to see if they have interest in being reappointed to a second two year term on the Council. Al asked that contacts be made and that new Council members be identified by the time of the next Council meeting on May 21^st.

Review of HMW Unit scholarship policy

Al Kulczewski distributed a copy of the HMW Extension Unit scholarship policy that was adopted by the Council in 2006. Following review it was the consensus of the Council to retain the policy as it is currently written.

Henderson County Extension Foundation Members

Al Kulczewski shared with the Council a portion of the by-laws of the Henderson County Extension Education Foundation that state that the Board of Directors shall "consist of seven (7) members total from Henderson County, which include the three (3) elected Henderson County officers of the Warren Henderson Unit Extension Council, plus two appointed by the Extension Council, and (2) members chosen from the community at large." Al reported that currently the Foundation has two vacancies on the Board of Directors. However, it was the consensus of the Council that the language of the by-laws is confusing, so Al suggested that he will discuss this further with the Foundation Board at their next meeting in May.

U of I Extension Survey

Al Kulczewski encouraged Council members to complete the "Tell Us How" program needs assessment survey that Extension has available now for the public to complete thru the middle of April. It can be accomplished either on-line or by completing a printed hard copy.

Learn and Serve Grant

Al Kulczewski reported that he and Jenny Garner had conversation recently with staff at Monmouth College, St. Ambrose College and Augustana College regarding the possibility of partnering together to write a Learn and Serve America Higher Education grant. Augustana is currently prepar8ing a grant application, however all parties were interested in engaging in further conversation regarding the possibility of partnering together in future grant opportunities. Al and Jenny will meet on May 20^th at Noon at Augustana College with all three schools to continue conversation about potential future grant opportunities.

Programming Updates

· Live Well Be Well – Carol Wilcoxen and Amy Griswold have completed a series of seven lessons in Roseville.

· Welcome to the Real World – Will be conducted on May 8^th at Carl Sandburg College in Galesburg.

· 4-H Program Updates – Reports of upcoming 4-H activities in Warren and Mercer Counties was distributed to all Council members.

· Hispanic Outreach – The third annual Hispanic Health Fair will be conducted on Sunday afternoon, April 26^th from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. at Immaculate ICS School in Monmouth. Copies of the most recent edition of the Hispanic Health newsletter were distributed to Council members.

· Community Garden – Plans are underway to host a Community Garden again this year in collaboration with the River of Life Church in the Monmouth area. Nearly 30 families are already registered to participate. In addition Extension is offering several educational opportunities including three hort telenets, a Basics Gardening 101 Class, and a Twilight Garden Walk.

· Gear-Tech 21 Camp – University of Nebraska is conducting a weeklong camp for youth June 21 – 26 at Monmouth College. The focus is on geospatial and robotics technology.

· Duncan Narrow Row Corn Plot – Wayne Duncan has agreed to host again a narrow row corn plot in southern Mercer County in partnership with the HMW Extension Unit.

· Leadership Academy – The Mercer County Leadership Academy conducted graduation last Friday with 12 people participating in the 2009 class.

Miscellaneous

None.

Next Meeting

The next HMW Extension Council meeting will be held on Thursday, May 21, 2009 at 6:30 p.m. at the Henderson County Extension Office in Stronghurst.

A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Bob Vickrey, seconded by Rick Holdsworth. Motion carried.

Respectfully submitted,

Steve Oaks,

Secretary

Henderson-Mercer-Warren Extension Council Minutes

Thursday, January 22, 2009; 7:00 p.m.

Mercer County Economic Development Partnership Office, Aledo

Attendance: Brian Sterett, Steve Oaks, Cathy Good, Janet Monville, Al Kulczewski & Jennifer Garner

Welcome & Introductions

Chair Brian Sterett asked everyone to go around the table and introduce themselves.

Minutes

No minutes were available from the November Extension Council meeting.

Correspondence

None.

Fiscal Update

Al Kulczewski distributed a fiscal report showing income and expenses for the first six months of FY 09. Income to date for FY2009 totals $229,463.92 and expenses total $349,008.80.

Northwest Regional Advisory Council Meeting

No meeting has been held.

Mercer County EDP Report

Jenny Garner provided an update on the Mercer County Economic Development Partnership including a review of the Strategic Plan developed by the EDP.

WIEDP Report

No report.

Hazard Mitigation Planning in Henderson & Mercer Counties

Al Kulczewski reported that the Henderson County and Mercer County Boards are contracting with the U of I Extension CAD's team to facilitate the creation of Hazard Mitigation Plans for each county. Each county will be receiving a grant of $22,500 from FEMA with an additional $7,500 to be provided as in-kind match. Jenny and Marilyn are working with the Mercer County Health Department in the implementation of the planning process while Cathy St. George is working with Carrie McKillip to implement the planning process for Henderson County. Everything is on hold right now awaiting the awarding of the FEMA grant funds.

Program Review in 2009

Al Kulczewski reported that the HMW Unit will be participating in a Program Review on May 14, 2009. Al distributed to the council members a copy of the Program Review Action Plan that was created following our last review in 2004.

Update on Hispanic Outreach

Al Kulczewski reported that the next edition of the quarterly Hispanic Health newsletter has been completed and is going to print. The Warren County Hispanic Health Task Force is also currently working with Dr. Karen Peters with the University of Illinois Chicago in the implementation of a Community Mental Health research project involving members of the Hispanic community. The third annual Hispanic Health Fair will be conducted on Sunday afternoon, April 26^th from 1 to 3 pm at ICS School in Monmouth.

Programming Updates

· Live Well Be Well – Carol Wilcoxen and Amy Griswold are currently conducting a series of lessons in Roseville and plan, in the future, to conduct the program in Aledo.

· Welcome to the Real World – Will be conducted on May 8^th at Carl Sandburg College in Galesburg. It was also suggested that we consider offering this training to parents on a Saturday morning.

· Leadership Programming – 7 adults are currently enrolled in the West Central Leadership program and 11 adults in the Mercer County Leadership Academy. Leadership Luncheon Series are also underway using John Maxwell's book "Developing the Leader Within". A total of 22 people are participating in Monmouth and 6 in Aledo.

· Community Garden – Plans are underway to host a Community Garden again this year in collaboration with the River of Life Church in the Monmouth area.

· Winter Ag Programs – Al Kulczewski distributed a copy of the December 2008 Ag Newsletter which has information regarding workshops that the HMW Unit is hosting in the winter of 2009 including an Alfalfa Workshop, a Soil and Water Management Workshop, PSEP Training and Testing, and a FAST Tools Workshop.

· Local Government Tele-Institutes – the HMW Unit is hosting telenets on January 22, February 26, March 26 and April 23 for County and other local government officials.

· Master Gardener Training – The HMW Unit has 4 people, 2 from Warren County and 2 from Henderson County, enrolled in Master Gardener training that meets weekly on Wednesday for 10 weeks at the Knox County Extension Office in Galesburg. There is also one more individual from Henderson County that is enrolled in the master Gardener training on-line.

· 2009 Hort Telenet Series – The HMW Unit is hosting 3 Hort Telenet programs each quarter on Tuesday afternoons at the Warren and Mercer County Offices.

Miscellaneous

None.

Next Meeting

The next HMW Extension Council meeting will be held on Thursday, March 26, 2009 at 7:00 p.m. at the Prairie Tech Learning Center in Monmouth.

A motion to adjourn the meeting was made by Cathy Good, seconded by Steve Oaks. Motion carried.

Respectfully submitted,

Steve Oaks,

Secretary

Attendance: Brian Sterett, Steve Oaks, Cathy Good, Bob Vickrey, Cathy Olson, Marion Brown, Al Kulczewski & Carol Wilcoxen

Welcome & Introductions

Chair Brian Sterett asked everyone to go around the table and introd