The NAAE Board of Directors conducted a board meeting during July 28-30, 2000. The meeting was held at the National FFA Center in Indianapolis, Indiana. All board sessions were conducted in the George Washington Carver Room at the National FFA Center. All members of the board and the executive director were present for the meeting including: Mike Cox (VA), President; Paul Jaure (TX), President Elect; Sue Poland (ID), Region I Vice President; James Dawley (TX), Region II Vice President; Chuck Stranberg (MN), Region III Vice President; Bryan Gause (IN), Region IV Vice President; Roger Teeple (NC), Region V Vice President; Sarah Osborn Welty (MD), Region VI Vice President; and Jay Jackman (VA), Executive Director. Guests who attended portions of the meeting included: Mr. Bernie Staller and Ms. Anna Melodia, National FFA Organization; and Ms. Kay Kaufman and Mr. Ed Jackson, AgKnowledge. The minutes of the meeting are as follows.

Friday, July 28, 2000; 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.

1.  Call to Order—President Mike Cox called the meeting to order at 8:15 a.m. and welcomed the board members to the meeting. In addition, Mike seated Sarah Osborn Welty as the new NAAE Region VI Vice President.

2.  Approval of Agenda—Sue Poland moved to adopt, with flexibility, the agenda for the July 2000 board meeting. James Dawley seconded the motion. The motion carried.

3.  Approval of Minutes of Previous Meetings—Bryan Gause moved to approve the minutes from the March 5-7, 2000 board meeting and the June 9, 2000 executive committee conference call. Sarah Osborn Welty seconded the motion. The motion carried.

4.  Board Members’ Reports—Each board member gave a brief report of their NAAE activities since the March 2000 NAAE board meeting.

The session was recessed at 9:30 a.m. so that the NAAE board members could host a get-acquainted reception with the staff of the National FFA Organization. The session reconvened at 10:30 a.m.

5.  New National FFA Organization Division Directors—Bernie Staller, Chief Operations Officer for the National FFA Organization, addressed the board members then introduced Anna Melodia, the new National FFA Organization Educational Programs Division Director. Anna also addressed the group. Due to travel schedules, the other two new FFA division directors were not available to meet with the board. However, Bernie reviewed the positions and credentials of Kent Schescke, Partnerships and Development, and Tom Kapostasy, business operations.

6.  AgKnowledge—Ed Jackson and Kay Kaufman from the staff of AgKnowledge, a new ag-related periodical publication, presented to the board. They have offered NAAE two pages in each issue of the publication to highlight agricultural education. They are also interested in providing copies of the publication to all ag ed programs in the United States and providing a lesson plan to accompany each issue that would assist ag teachers in using the publication in their classrooms. They plan to mail the first issue on November 7, 2000.

Revise Tabletop Display to Include Team Ag Ed – Paul Jaure moved, Bryan Gause seconded, to revise the NAAE tabletop display to incorporate the Team Ag Ed logo into the banner that goes across the top of the display. The motion carried.

Ag Day – America’s Largest Ag Classroom – Ag Day is coordinated by the Ag Council of America (ACA), which is now managed by the National Agri-Marketing Association (NAMA). NAAE has participated in "Ag Day – America’s Largest Ag Classroom" in Washington, D.C. the past two years. ACA has invited NAAE to provide an ag teacher (preferably urban, minority, and female) to make a presentation to the Washington, D.C. elementary children who participate in the program in March 2001. The event is well attended by USDA officials (sometimes the Secretary and/or the Deputy Secretary) and other DC dignitaries. Roger Teeple moved, Sarah Osborn Welty seconded, for NAAE to pay the costs (travel, lodging, per diem and honorarium) for an ag teacher to teach a lesson during "Ag Day – America’s Largest Ag Classroom" in Washington, D.C. in March 2001. The motion carried.

Trust for Insuring Educators Business Meeting and Familiarization Tour – Jay Jackman will be participating in this meeting in Minneapolis, September 6-9, 2000. Travel, lodging and most meals are covered by the host city for this meeting. The expense to NAAE is minimal. By consensus, it was agreed that having Jay Jackman serve on the executive committee of this group would be a valuable use of NAAE time and resources.

Hydroponics CD – Harley Smith, Superior Growers Supply – Superior Growers Supply is an NAAE Organizational Member. Harley Smith has presented hydroponics workshops at the past two NAAE conventions with rave reviews. He has offered to develop a master copy of a CD-ROM with all sort of hydroponics instructional resources. He will provide the master copy to NAAE. NAAE can duplicate and sell the CD. NAAE would keep 80 percent of the revenue and pay 20 percent to Harley Smith and/or Superior Growers Supply. Paul Jaure moved, James Dawley seconded, for NAAE to pursue this opportunity with Harley Smith. The motion carried by a vote of six to one.

Hydroponics Conference at Flowing Wells High School in Arizona – Curt Bertelson – Curt Bertelson is an ag teacher in Tucson, Arizona. This workshop will be at Curt’s school January 2-6, 2001. Bryan Gause moved, Chuck Stranberg seconded, for NAAE to support the workshop and encourage participation in it. The motion carried.

Bridge Articles – Dr. Dennis Avery – Dr. Avery is providing copies of his editorials that go in the Bridge publication. I am forwarding the articles on to the U.S. Ag Ed and AAAE Listservs. This has been well received by members – teachers, state staff, and university educators. Dr. Avery is also still planning to provide a copy of the 2^nd edition of his book and a CD of instructional materials to all ag educators. It was agreed that NAAE is not endorsing any of this information.

Teacher Recruitment Issue – Teacher recruitment issues were discussed by the board, including the new brochure and website and the white paper developed by FFA. Sue Poland moved, Chuck Stranberg seconded, for NAAE to develop a new tabletop display with a teacher recruitment theme. The motion carried.

Leadership Development for State and National Ag Ed Association Leaders Proposal – This proposal was approved for special project funding by the National FFA Foundation Board of Trustees at the June 2000 meeting. Paul Jaure presented the proposal. Jay Jackman will work with the National FFA Foundation staff on fine tuning the proposal and submitting it to prospective sponsors.

Sales of NAAE Members’ Mailing Labels – Jay Jackman reported that the new price per label is 10 cents per label.

Sales of Advertising Space in News & Views – Jay Jackman reported on the pricing for advertisement sales in News & Views. Organizational members can upgrade the size of their ad by paying the difference. Costs are quarter page = $350 per issue; half page = $600 per issue; and full page = $1,000 per issue. Ads will be sold on a "space as available" basis. Caution will be used to ensure that the content of the newsletter does not become weighted too heavily toward advertisements to keep the newsletter within the limits of non-profit mailing rates and to prevent the newsletter from becoming too commercial.

Agriscience Teacher of the Year and Teacher of Teachers Award – FFA has expressed interest in collaborating with NAAE on these two award programs. Sue Poland moved, Bryan Gause seconded, for NAAE to send a letter to the National FFA Organization expressing our interest in discussing such a collaboration. The motion carried.

National FFA Ag Ed Proficiency or Career Development Event – The National FFA Board recently rejected a proposal to create a program to recognize students for their accomplishments in preparing for careers in agricultural education. Bryan Gause moved, Paul Jaure seconded, for NAAE to send a letter to the National FFA Organization expressing our interest in discussing such an event as a NAAE/FFA collaboration. The motion carried.

Excel Communications Fundraiser Program – Paul Jaure moved, Sue Poland seconded, to discontinue the program as an official NAAE activity. The motion carried.

NYFEA Report and Status – Chuck Stranberg moved, Sue Poland seconded, to refer the issue of NAAE support to NYFEA to both the Public Relations and Finance Committees in San Diego. The motion carried.

Saturday, August 29, 2000; 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

2.  Finance Report—The board reviewed the financial documents including the May 2000 compilation, report from the investment accounts, and the 2000-01 budget with explanatory notes.

3.  Council Report—A report from the National Council for Agricultural Education was provided in the board books.

4.  2000 NAAE Convention Planning—The board discussed plans for the 2000 NAAE Convention in San Diego. Specifics of the discussion were as follows:

General Session Speakers/Presentations

It was preferred that the general session presentations be as follows: Session I -- Georgia State Senator Brooks Coleman (sponsored by Applied Technologies); Session II -- Dr. Scott Vernon, California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo ($500 maximum honorarium); Session III -- Ag Literacy Panel (to include Ag in the Classroom and Food, Land, and People). A brief presentation regarding Risk Management in American Agriculture will also be included in one general session. Persons invited to bring brief remarks/greetings (two or three at each session dispersed between award presentations) would include representatives from: USDE, FFA/FFA Foundation, The Council (teacher shortage and Center of Excellence), ACTE, NASAE, AAAE, PAS, NYFEA, and NFRBMEA.

Scholarship Auctions

It was agreed that both the live and silent auctions need to occur at the host state social. NAAE can assist with the costs of transporting members from the hotel to Marina Village if necessary. Lots of "collectors" need to be available at the end of the silent auction. Members of the Finance Committee (one per region) will assist with collecting money during the silent auction.

Off-site Workshops

Off-site workshops under development include: Sea World, San Diego Zoo, Wild Animal Park; Paul Ecke Poinsettia Ranch; and a Southern California Production Ag Tour. It was agreed that the workshops should depart the hotel at 1:00 p.m. rather than 12:00 Noon and/or adjust the morning sessions to earlier in the day (start at 8:00 a.m. or so) to provide for a lunch opportunity before the tour buses depart.

Room Arrangements

Place a head table for all board members for each session and the luncheon. If the luncheon has a two-tiered head table, place the podium on the lower tier.

Convention "Gimmie" Item

Suggestions for a give-away item for the convention included a CD case or a mouse pad.

Meet the Candidates Piece in News & Views

The two candidates agreed to place the Meet the Candidates piece in the October/November 2000 issue of News & Views.

News Releases

It was agreed that a news release template would be provided for winners of state-level awards, sponsors to use in their publications, and newly elected NAAE officers.

Session Agendas

Jay Jackman will send blank session agendas to all board members. Mike Cox and Paul Jaure will fill in the specific assignments (reflections, etc.) on the session agendas.

Public Relations Workshop and Committee Meeting

It was agreed that Jeri Mattics, Rocky Mountain Marketing and Communications, would be invited to deliver a workshop on Saturday afternoon on developing public relations/communications plans for state ag ed associations (and perhaps local ag ed programs). The workshop may be carried into the Public Relations Committee Meeting if more time is needed for follow-up.

ACTE Convention Registration

Paul Jaure moved, Chuck Stranberg seconded, that NAAE cover the registration fees for NAAE board members and the executive director who attend the ACTE convention following the NAAE convention. The motion carried with two abstentions. It was agreed that these expenses would be charged to the NAAE general board travel budget line rather than the NAAE convention board travel budget line.

On-site Workshops

It was agreed that Jerry Schoenfeld, Minnesota Association of Agricultural Educators Executive Director, would be invited to present a legislative affairs workshop at the convention on Tuesday afternoon. Jim Aschwanden, California Agriculture Teachers Association Executive Director, will be invited if Jerry Schoenfeld is not available. Other possible workshop ideas presented included: Global Positioning Systems presented by Keith Frick from Minnesota West Community College. Regarding the Income Tax Workshop, it would be essential that the workshop focus on Schedule F. Regarding the Carolina Biological Supply Company workshops, the priority of the workshops would be: first – fetal pig anatomy; second – owl pellets; and third – leaf, seed, crop, twig, and tree identification.

5.  2000 NAAE Awards Approval—The lists of award winners (recommended from the 2000 NAAE regional meetings) for Outstanding Young Member, Outstanding Teacher, Outstanding Program, Postsecondary All-Star Team, Ideas Unlimited, Honorary Life Membership, Outstanding Service, and Outstanding Cooperation were reviewed. Bryan Gause moved, Sarah Osborn Welty seconded, to accept the lists of award winners. The motion carried.

6.  2000 Upper Division Agricultural Education Scholarships—Two summaries of the board members’ rankings of the applicants for the upper division scholarships were presented. One summary included all board members’ ranking; another summary was tallied with the highest and lowest ranking for each applicant removed to control for any potential reviewer bias. Sue Poland moved, Bryan Gause seconded, to accept the final ranking with the highest and lowest rankings per applicant removed. The motion carried.

7.  Florida Department of Citrus New Freshman Scholarship Program—Jay Jackman reported that the new freshman scholarship program will be continuing to 2001 thanks to the sponsorship of the Florida Department of Citrus.

8.  Board and Committee Appointments—The board members discussed the selection of the three recommendations for the Region II position as USDE representative to the National FFA Board. Chuck Stranberg moved, Sarah Osborn Welty seconded, to hold the selection of these three nominees until the pre-convention NAAE board meeting in December 2000. The motion carried. It was agreed that James Dawley will bring credentials of all interested Region II members to the December meeting.

a.  Policy and Bylaws—James Dawley, chair, presented the report. Sarah Osborn Welty moved for adoption of the report. Roger Teeple seconded the motion. The motion carried.

b.  Finance—Bryan Gause, chair, presented the report and moved for adoption of the report. Sue Poland seconded the motion. The motion carried.

c.  Member Services—Roger Teeple, chair, presented the report. Sarah Osborn Welty moved for adoption of the report. James Dawley seconded the motion. The motion carried.

d.  Legislative Affairs—Chuck Stranberg, chair, presented the report and moved for adoption of the report. Sue Poland seconded the motion. The motion carried.

e.  Public Relations—Sarah Osborn Welty, chair, presented the report. Sue Poland moved for adoption of the report. Roger Teeple seconded the motion. The motion carried.

f.  Diversity—Sue Poland, chair, presented the report. Chuck Stranberg moved for adoption of the report. Roger Teeple seconded the motion. The motion carried.

g.  Strategic Planning—Paul Jaure, chair, presented the report. Chuck Stranberg moved for adoption of the report. Roger Teeple seconded the motion. The motion carried.

2.  Adjournment—Sarah Osborn Welty moved to adjourn the board meeting. Paul Jaure seconded the motion. The motion carried.