AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 02/19/08

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 4:45 pm at the AHEM office.

Those present included:
Anoka Cluster:  Tom Powers
Blaine Cluster: Scott Schaefer, Julie Jagusch, Barb Rice
Champlin Cluster: LeMoyne Corgard, Sheila Davies
Coon Rapids Cluster: Chris Martino, Paul Goupil, Jill Stoltenburg
At Large: Janet Dixon
AHEM Officers: Sandy Skaar, Lisa Sorenson, Jody Anderson, John FitzSimons
AHEM Leadership Cadre: John Belpedio
Education Minnesota Governing Board Members: John Belpedio, Julie Blaha, Sandy Skaar
Education Minnesota Staff:

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent with changes

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 01/22/08 with spelling changes. (Proposed and FitzSimons)

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:

1. Treasurer’s Report -J. FitzSimons—See Blue flyer. See letter to Education Minnesota, requesting reimbursement for settlement action activities.
2. Buttons for Convention- This went well at last year’s convention.  Sandy will ask Julie to contact Barb Rice about possible Rule of 90 activities at this year’s convention.
3. EdMN Rep Assembly-Sandy will have meetings for delegates to the EdMn Representative Convention next week, before and after AHEM Rep. Assembly. Dinner at the Convention will be on Friday evening at 5:00PM. Breakfast will be reimbursed on a meal voucher.  More information will come at the meetings.
4. Labor Management Committee Discussion-Belpedio:  This topic will be discussed at the Thursday Meet and Confer. A request for joint labor-management training has been submitted to BMS by the school district and AHEM.  Both sides will need to work together to set up a framework of people involved, term limits, and training. We expect that there will be approximately 8-10 people on the committee from AHEM.  Forming a labor-management committee represents a commitment to organizational change.  The AHEM process for the committee may need to go into the AHEM Constitution in the future.  Training schedule will be in March or April.
5. School Board Task Forces-Sorenson, FitzSimons, Pasmanter, VanJoske, Anderson, Davies, Corgard - Committees met and set dates and times. There may be more meetings if necessary. Updates from these committees will continue as an agenda item.
6. Legislative Update- J. Blaha, J. Stoltenburg:  Please see lilac colored flyer.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

1. Staff Development Chair Training:  The training will be on March 12, 2008 with Garnet Franklin at the AHEM office.
2. Meet and Confer-Please attend on Thursday, Feb. 21, 2008. Agenda items: MCA’s, Task Forces, Survey on School Climate, and Labor Management Discussion. There will be an e-mail reminder tomorrow.

PROPOSED BUSINESS

Next agenda item do another survey.

Meeting was adjourned at 6:20 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Jody Anderson

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 01/22/08

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 4:45 pm at the AHEM office.

Those present included:
Anoka Cluster:  Tom Powers, Cindy Kaufman
Blaine Cluster: Scott Schaefer, Greg Monahan, Barb Rice
Champlin Cluster: Sandy Pasmanter
Coon Rapids Cluster: Chris Martino
At Large: Janet Dixon
AHEM Officers: Sandy Skaar, Lisa Sorenson, Jody Anderson, John FitzSimons
AHEM Leadership Cadre: John Belpedio, Julie Blaha, Michelle Gabrielli, Jana Rieck,
Education Minnesota Governing Board Members: John Belpedio, Julie Blaha, Sandy Skaar

Education Minnesota Staff: David Moracco and Gary Christofferson

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent with one addition.

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 12/12/07.

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:

1. Delegates to EDMN Rep Convention:  J. FitzSimons made a motion to accept the additional volunteers (Goupil and Stoltenburg) as delegates to the EDMN Representative Convention. B. Rice second.  Motion carried.
2. Election Guidelines-J. Rieck:  Please see white flyer. Please see Roman Numeral III. See Inter-school mailings. Roman numeral IV: There is a blue flyer detailing the calendar and timelines. Roman numeral VI: Update Issue is explained. Roman numeral VII: Election process and Timetable options are detailed. There are two options for voting—at central sites or in the buildings. The elections committee is concerned that the membership votes in this election. Roman Numeral VIII: This details the recommendations of the Elections Committee. S. Pasmanter moved to use Option One—voting at the sites.   S. Schaefer second. Motion carried. There will be a second day of voting at the AHEM office. There will be no need to have a witness for use of a picture or statement recommending a particular candidate for president.  J. FirzSimons moved to pass the AHEM 2008 Officer Election Procedures. C. Kaufman second. Motion carried.
3. Treasurer’s Report/Expense Update-J. FitzSimons:  Please see Blue Flyer. The audit is complete. The audit cost is a little more than budgeted.  Settlement action activities for negotiations were costly. 80% will come back from the Education Minnesota Crisis Fund. J. FitzSimons made a motion to accept the treasurer’s report. Committee second. Motion carried.
4. Audit Report-J. FitzSimons:  Please see Salmon Flyer.  Education Minnesota and AFT require that we send a copy of the audit. The 990-tax form is now completed.  John FitzSimons reviewed the findings of the auditor.  We are in good financial shape.  There are three union people that have detailed accounts of the budget:  J. FitzSimons; S. Skaar; and J. Hemmelgarn. However, the executive board is kept very well informed with monthly treasurer’s reports. J. FitzSimons moved to accept the audit for the year ending 2006-07. Committee second. Motion carried.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

1. Workload Task Force Appointments-
   1. Secondary Appointments: Lisa Sorenson, John FitzSimons, Corey Hubble, Doug Bakkum are recommended.  There are three alternates. B. Rice moved to accept the secondary appointments. T. Powers second. Motion Passed.
   2. Special Education/Support Services: Kathy Belpedio, Karen Gabriel, Sheila Davies, Sandy Pasmanter are recommended. C. Kaufman made a motion to approve these appointments. Second by L. Sorenson.  Motion carried.
   3. Elementary Appointments are LeMoyne Corgard, Sue Olson, and two others to be voted on by Executive Board members.  Executive Board Voted for 2 of the 4 volunteers. Jody Anderson and Chris VanJoske were elected. J. Blaha moved to accept the elementary appointees. C. Martino second. Motion carried.
2. Union Representation: There was a concern about members not be represented by an appropriate AHEM representative. Teacher rights are important. When in doubt, ask for a representative. This is important. Make it clear you are asking for representation from the AHEM Office, if needed.

PROPSED BUSINESS:

A.     Budget Additions: Compensation for Task Forces –See Blue Flyer.   There will be approximately ten 2 -hour taskforce meetings. The School Board tasks forces are temporary. There is $10,200 in a Crisis Fund, which is Line Item 8050.  Sandy Skaar is recommending compensation for 12 AHEM taskforce members of up to $500.00 per person, for a total of $6000, to be taken out of 8050 and placed into a new line item 5365. J. FitzSimons moved to establish a line item 5365 for $6000, to pay AHEM taskforce members, with the $6000 coming out of line item 8050. Committee second. Motion Carried.  J. FitzSimons moved to put an additional $500.00 in Line item 5860 to support school board campaigns. The funds going into 5860 will come from the reserve fund. Committee second. Motion carried. 

·        History Project-This will cost $1000.00. Payment will go to Paul Rogne.

B.     Labor Management Membership Committee: Terms and Process- This will be addressed next month. Committee membership will be addressed at a later date. Maybe 8-10 members and then term limits will be important to decide.

Meeting was adjourned at 6:10 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Jody Anderson

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 12/12/07

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 4:45 pm at the AHEM office.

Those present included:

Anoka Cluster:  Tom Powers, Chris VanJoske, Cindy Kaufman, Dan Larson
Blaine Cluster: Scott Schaefer, Greg Monahan, Julie Jagusch, Barb Rice
Champlin Cluster: LeMoyne Corgard, Sandy Pasmanter, Mike Kempenich, Sheila Davies
Coon Rapids Cluster: Marsha Ellingson, Chris Martino, Paul Goupil, Jill Stoltenburg
At Large: Janet Dixon
AHEM Officers: Sandy Skaar, Lisa Sorenson, Jody Anderson, John FitzSimons
AHEM Leadership Cadre: John Belpedio, Julie Blaha
Education Minnesota Governing Board Members: John Belpedio, Sandy Skaar
Education Minnesota Staff: Gary Christofferson, David Kundin, D. Moracco

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent.

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 11/19/07.

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:  None

UNFINISHED BUSINESS: None

PROPOSED BUSINESS:

1. Tentative Agreement-J. Belpedio and Negotiations Team: J. FitzSimons moved to go into Executive Session. Second by P. Goupil. Motion carried.    J. FitzSimons moved to leave Executive Session. T. Powers Second. Motion carried.

• B. Rice moved to approve the Memorandum of Understanding. M. Kempenich second. Motion carried. Please see white flyer.
• M. Ellingson moved to send the Tentative Settlement to the membership with No Recommendation.  G. Monahan second. Motion Failed.
• M. Kempenich moved to bring the Tentative Settlement to the membership with a Recommendation of Support. B. Rice second. Motion Carried.
• Thank you to the Negotiations Team!! This was a huge job. Your extra time and effort was greatly appreciated.

2. Voting Procedures-M. Kempenich moved to accept the information meetings and voting procedures. Second by J. FitzSimons. Motion carried. Please see yellow flyer.

Meeting was adjourned at 6:35 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Jody Anderson

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 11/19/2007

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 4:45 pm at the AHEM office.

Those present included:

Anoka Cluster:  Chris VanJoske, Cindy Kaufman
Blaine Cluster: Scott Schaefer, Greg Monahan, Barb Rice
Champlin Cluster: Mike Kempenich, Sheila Davies, Sandy Pasmanter, LeMoyne Corgard
Coon Rapids Cluster: Marsha Ellingson, Chris Martino, Paul Goupil, Jill Stoltenburg
At Large: Janet Dixon
AHEM Officers: Sandy Skaar, Lisa Sorensonn, John FitzSimons
Education Minnesota Governing Board Members: John Belpedio, Sandy Skaar
Education Minnesota Staff: Gary Christofferson, David Kundin

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent.

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for October 15, 2007

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:

1. Treasurer’s Report - J. FitzSimons – Auditor gathering material, John will complete 990 over winter break. Item 5860, $13,500 will be reimbursed by EdMn. Item 8030, NPC is over budget, we will get 80% reimbursed by the EdMn Crisis Fund.
2. President’s Report – S. Skaar – Letter from Denise Specht confirmed acceptance of EdMn Crisis Fund monies up to the amount of $59,750 for unusual contract negotiations expenses. Sandy shared letter sent to principals regarding Work to Rule and offered some clarifications about Work to Rule.
3. Legal Report – D. Kundin – Re: Wenzel issue discussed. Motion for David to write a letter of complaint to the Anoka and Hennepin County Attorney/or MN Attorney General asking for them to investigate. Seconded by Barb Rice. Motion carried unanimously.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

A. Education Minnesota Representative Convention Sign-Up

PROPOSED BUSINESS:

     A. Report on Mediation – John Belpedio – See negotiations handout.

     B. Settlement Activities – Chris Martino – Send ideas to Chris. Chris encouraged    

buildings to set up e-mail and phone trees. Chris suggested workload quotes on future Organizers.

     C. Teacher sub coverage at middle school level. Teachers covering for teachers,   

          should we (CRMS) continue doing this?

     D. School Board Election – Motion made by Barb Rice, seconded by Chris Martino to 

          notify Scott Wenzel’s local, Education Minnesota and Star Tribune of Wenzel’s

          literature.

Meeting was adjourned at 6:20 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Lisa Sorenson

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 10/15/07

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 4:47 pm at the AHEM office.

Those present included:

Anoka Cluster:  Tom Powers, Chris VanJoske, Cindy Kaufman,
Blaine Cluster: Scott Schaefer, Greg Monahan, Barb Rice
Champlin Cluster: LeMoyne Corgard, Sandy Pasmanter, Sheila Davies
Coon Rapids Cluster: Marsha Ellingson, Chris Martino, Paul Goupil, Jill Stoltenburg
At Large: Janet Dixon
AHEM Officers: Sandy Skaar, Lisa Sorenson, Jody Anderson, John FitzSimons
AHEM Leadership Cadre: John Belpedio, Julie Blaha
Education Minnesota Governing Board Members: John Belpedio, Julie Blaha, Sandy Skaar
Education Minnesota Staff: Gary Christofferson, David Kundin

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent (with one addition to Unfinished business)

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 5/16/05.

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:

A.     Treasurer’s Report/Expense Update-J. FitzSimons—Please see blue flyer 06-07 will end with a carry over. 07-08 bills are coming in

B.     President’s Report- S.Skaar: Crisis Assessment went very well. Decision will be made by Education Minnesota Executive Committee on Nov. 3, 2007.

·        Please see yellow flyer about David Kundin. This went to all members of Education Minnesota governing board. Larry Wicks resigned. Greg Burns and Harley Ogata have also left Education Minnesota. J. Belpedio is on the personnel committee. Legal counsel position at Education Minnesota is open. David Kundin has been hired as Interim General Counsel/ Program Manager. David will be here half the time and at Education Minnesota half the time. He will be here Mondays for meetings and will continue to help with negotiations. There will be a national search for a new Education Minnesota Executive Director.  This person will be hired by Jan. 1, 2008. 

·        Please see flyer about Midwest Leadership Conference.  You will need one association day to attend, which AHEM will provide. Please let Sandy know if you are interested.

·        Northern Stars Ball tickets are available. Please let Sandy know if you would like to attend. This is at the Northland Inn. Currently, five tickets are available.

·        On Monday, Nov. 12, EDMN President Tom Dooher will be present at the RA. He will be here to talk about the Rule of 90 and other local issues.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

A.     Negotiations Updates and Future Actions-J. Belpedio:  There have been some tentative agreements on contract language items, but the three main goals have not been settled.  Mediators are extremely busy right now, with many local teacher unions in mediation. The next negotiations meeting is Nov. 16. By then we will know if the levy has failed or passed.  John asked for input on the different scenarios. There was much discussion.

B.     Levy /School Board Campaign update and Action-J. Blaha/J. Stoltenburg: Please see purple flyer. Marci Anderson is having a door knock on Sunday, Oct. 21 and could use our assistance.  Please see testimonial postcard examples. Election Day is Nov. 6, 2007. Please support the principals in calling parents.  Warren Harder and Marci Anderson will be invited to the next RA. Levy postcards will also be ready at the RA and the opportunity to write the testimonial postcards will be available. We have to be ready to do a quick turn around on the postcards.

C.    Contributions to Parent Yes Committee- We have contributed $10,000.00 to this committee. We have been informed that they are running out of money. Sandy will meet with the committee chairs on Thursday. Cindy Kaufman moved to contribute another $5000.00 to the Vote Yes levy Committee. Second by Paul Goupil. AHEM giving History to date: $5000.00 in May and $5000.00 in July.  Motion passed.

PROPOSED BUSINESS:

A.     AHEM History Project:  J. Wilkins suggested we should have a historical record of the Union. There will be some cost to this project. Both a stipend for the leader and copying costs will be needed. The product might include two products: a shorter pamphlet to give to new members and perhaps a longer, more exhaustive history that could be in an electronic format.  J.Belpedio moved to approve the AHEM History Project with a $1000.00 stipend for Paul Rogne.  Lisa Sorenson second. Motion passed.

B.     Settlement Action Committee Input:   Wear red and stickers at the Oct. 29 staff development day. There will be an all “workload” Meet and Confer on Thursday, Nov. 8.  T-shirts will be ordered soon.  Stickers will come with the next Organizer. This RA will be a joint meeting with the Negotiations Council and will be very important.  Chris will be on the Agenda at the RA to discuss various settlement activities. 

C.    Arbitration Approval- There are two grievances. The Teachers’ Rights Committee has recommended that these grievances go to arbitration. B. Rice moved to have the executive board approve these grievances to go to arbitration.  S. Schaefer second. Motion passed.

Meeting was adjourned at 6:07 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Jody Anderson

SPECIAL AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MEETING MINUTES: 09/06/07

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 4:51 pm at the AHEM office.

Those present included:

Anoka Cluster:  Tom Powers, Dan Larson
Blaine Cluster: Scott Schaefer, Greg Monahan, Julie Jagusch, Barb Rice
Champlin Cluster: LeMoyne Corgard, Mike Kempenich, Sheila Davies
Coon Rapids Cluster: Marsha Ellingson, Chris Martino, Paul Goupil, Jill Stoltenburg
At Large: Janet Dixon
AHEM Officers: Sandy Skaar, Lisa Sorenson, Jody Anderson, John FitzSimons
AHEM Leadership Cadre: John Belpedio, Julie Blaha, Bill Davids
Education Minnesota Governing Board Members: John Belpedio, Julie Blaha, Sandy Skaar
Education Minnesota Staff: Gary Christofferson, David Kundin

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent with one addition.

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 08/22/07.

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:

PROPOSED BUSINESS:

1. Levy/School Board Campaign Update and Action-J. Blaha and J. Stoltenburg: The parent levy committee will not send out an all-voter mailing.  We will assist the parent committee with targeting lists.  Labor groups have completed some phone calling and door knocking for Harder. The reaction to Harder has been positive. 

Door to door responses to the levy have NOT been as positive as we would like to see.  There appears to be strongest support for Question 1.   Targeted mailing and get-out-the-vote phoning is the most effective in an off-year election. Please attend the public meetings on the levy. They are on Sept. 13 at CPHS and Sept. 18 at BHS. AHEM is supporting Heidemann, Harder and Anderson in the school board races.  We will complete GOTV phoning on Monday.  Please help with this effort.

2. Negotiations Updates and Future Actions-J. Belpedio:  There was resolution to one language item at the last mediation session.  Health insurance is a big problem. The district is proposing a huge increase in our contribution to health premiums.  AHEM wanted a settlement before school started. There are three major barriers: salary, health insurance, and time/workload issues.  The next mediation meeting is on Sept. 11, 2007. The district does not appear to be ready to settle and has not moved on their economic package since July.  The Negotiations Planning Committee will be stepping forward with action plans for the upcoming weeks. L. Corgard moved to put together a Crisis Assessment.  Second by C. Martino. Motion passed unanimously. Please listen to the HOTLINE!!

3. Shirts- B. Davids: Bill suggested that we look into purchasing shirts with the AHEM logo (and local number 7007) to wear at events. Bill has found one shirt at a union shop for approximately $25.   Bill was given the go-ahead to look into this idea further. 

4. There will be a Negotiations Council meeting on Sept. 17. Executive Board members should attend, if possible

Meeting was adjourned at 6:05 pm.

Respectfully submitted,
Jody Anderson

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 08/22/07

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 10:05AM at the AHEM office.

Those present included:
Anoka Cluster:  Tom Powers, Cindy Kaufman, Dan Larson
Blaine Cluster: Scott Schaefer, Julie Jagusch, Barb Rice
Champlin Cluster: LeMoyne Corgard, Mike Kempenich, Sheila Davies
Coon Rapids Cluster: Chris Martino, Jill Stoltenburg

At Large:

AHEM Officers: Sandy Skaar, Lisa Sorenson, Jody Anderson, John FitzSimons
AHEM Leadership Cadre: John Belpedio, Julie Blaha,
Education Minnesota Governing Board Members: John Belpedio, Julie Blaha, Sandy Skaar
Education Minnesota Staff: Gary Christofferson, David Kundin

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent.

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 07/17/07.

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:

1. Treasurer’s Report/Expense Update-J. FitzSimons:  Please see blue flyer. J. Stoltenburg is the new assistant GR chair.  We will begin paying her a stipend. This budget will continue until Aug. 31 but bills continue to come in after that. Audit will be done after all bills are in.
2. President’s Report-S. Skaar:  AHEM now has a presentation cart! Thank you Scott Schaefer for helping purchase and set up this new equipment for presentations! We also have a screen available, if needed.

L. Sorenson moved to go into executive session. L. Corgard second.  Motion passed.
J. Jagusch moved to leave executive session.  J. FitzSimons second. Motion passed.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

1. Negotiations Updates and Future Actions-J.  Belpedio:  There are many language items that are not settled. The mediator asked that we discuss language items only at the first mediation session. AHEM presented a revised language proposal on Aug. 15. Language issues include time/workload.  The district needs to come back with an economic proposal. Metro negotiators met. There were 20 metro locals present at the last meeting. Only one local present had less than 100% single coverage on health insurance. Many other locals have better family insurance. Wayzata has settled. West St. Paul has settled. Duluth has settled. There is mediation on Aug. 30 and 31 with no end time.  In order to reach a fair settlement, teachers need to support our efforts.
2. Levy/School Board Campaign Update and Action-J. Blaha: Please see purple flyer. Screenings for School Board are completed.

J. Blaha moved with the screening team’s second, that AHEM recommend Tom Heidemann for school board in subdistrict 1 and make a $300 donation to his campaign. After much discussion:  Motion amended-J. Blaha moved to add: “After August 31” Second by B. Rice. Amendment carried. Main motion carried.

J. Blaha moved with the screening team’s second, that AHEM recommend Marci Anderson for school board in subdistrict 2 and make a $300 donation to her campaign after August 31; and send a mailing in support of her candidacy to our members before the primary on September 11.  Motion carried.

Please see purple flyer for more information. Some highlights are:
Phone calls were made for Harder by SEIU.
Public hearings will be completed for the levy.  There will be door knocking for Harder this Sunday, August 26.
Harder has done well and has raised $5000 from the unions for his campaign.
Tom Dooher will be coming to listening sessions. Dates have not been finalized.
Rule of 90 issue is important and our work on this issue will be continued.
Legislator visits will be arranged again this year.

PROPOSED BUSINESS:
A. There will be a special Executive Board meeting on September 6 at 4:45 at the
AHEM office.
B. Martino will be researching action plans.
Please send well wishes to Marsha Ellingson at Hoover Elementary.
District nurses are working under extremely stressful conditions. This issue will be discussed at a future meeting.

Meeting was adjourned at 11:55 AM. A delicious pizza lunch was served.
Respectfully submitted,
Jody Anderson

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 7/17/07

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order 10:03 AM at the AHEM office.

Those present included: Anoka Cluster:  Tom Powers, Chris VanJoske, Cindy Kaufman, Dan Larson
Blaine Cluster: Scott Schaefer, Greg Monahan, Julie Jagusch, Barb Rice
Champlin Park Cluster: Lemoyne Corgard, Sheila Davies
Coon Rapids Cluster: Marsha Ellingson, Chris Martino, Paul Goupil, Jill Stoltenburg
At Large:
AHEM Officers: Sandy Skaar, Lisa Sorenson, Jody Anderson, John FitzSimons
Education Minnesota Governing Board Members: John Belpedio, Sandy Skaar
Education Minnesota Staff: Gary Christofferson, David Kundin

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent.
APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 6/04/07.
COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:

1. Parent Levy Committee Campaign Plan:  Dawn Heidemann and Deb Day discussed message, strategies and calendar of events for the levy campaign. Welcome to Dawn and Deb!!  Please see levy packet. This is a draft as the school board needs to approve final levy questions.
2. Treasurer’s Report/Expense Update-J. FitzSimons:  Original Executive Board motion was to give up to $15,000 to the Parent Levy Yes campaign. We have given $5000 to date. Paul Goupil moved to contribute the remainder of the budgeted amount of $10,000. J. FitzSimons second.  Motion Failed. L. Corgard moved to contribute $5000 today and on Aug. 2 to contribute another $5000, contingent on the positive recommendation of the Negotiation Team. J. FitzSimons seconded. Motion passed.

Please see yellow flyer for Treasurer’s Report.

3. President’s Report-S. Skaar: Sandy gave update on Levy, in Julie Blaha’s absence.  Please see Purple flyer on Governmental Relations from Julie Blaha. The flyer provides a written summary of the levy questions and of the District Levy Survey results.  The levy plan will include mailings to specific groups. Warren Harder has filed to fun against Scott Wenzel.  Harder is looking for union attendance at his August 2 fundraiser. Bill Davids has been sworn in as an AHEM rep to the Minneapolis Central Labor Council of the AFL-CIO. Congratulations Bill!!!

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

1. Contribution to Parent Levy Committee- See Treasurer’s report above for the motion regarding this contribution.
2. Update on Bargaining-J. Belpedio: There was some movement by the district on June 27.  We need to remember our bargaining goals as we proceed. What should our focus be for a good settlement? The faculty representatives have approved goals for salaries, insurance, time workload, and other needs of our members.  As of this date, there have been five negotiation sessions. The next session will be held today, July 17, 2007. Please listen to the hotline 952-736-6471 for updates.

PROPOSED BUSINESS:

1. New Teacher Workshop Volunteers- The workshop at the Andover Courtyards is on Tuesday, August 21. This year there will be only one day at the Courtyards.  Please sign up to assist with the AHEM presentation.
2. Unrequested Leave of Absence Contract Language- J. Belpedio brought forward issues regarding provisions in the contract that cover unrequested leaves of absence.  The language could come into play if there needs to be a large reduction in teaching staff.  There was much discussion.
   

Meeting was adjourned at 12:00 PM. Lunch was served!
Respectfully submitted,
Jody Anderson

Top of Page

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 06/04/07

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 4:45 pm at the AHEM office.

Those present included: M. Kempenich, D. Larson, S. Schaefer, G. Monahan, B. Rice, L. Corgard, S. Pasmanter, M. Ellingson, C. Martino, P. Goupil, J. Stoltenburg, J. Dixon, S. Skaar, L. Sorenson, J. FitzSimons, S. Kurdziel, J. Belpedio, J. Jagusch, T. Powers, S. Davies, B. Davids, G. Christofferson, D. Kundin

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent.

Meeting started with discussing issues with EM President-Elect Tom Dooher (30 min.)

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 05/07/07 (change approved secretary’s minutes from 05/09/07 to 04/09/07)

President’s Report:

A.     None

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:

1. Treasurer’s report – J. FitzSimons explained updates to the budget
2. Negotiations report – update on negotiations, 28 items presented by AHEM (mostly contract language items); money will be discussed at tomorrow’s negotiation session, district should respond to some of AHEM’s language proposals tomorrow, future sessions include June 5, June 20 and June 27, reiterated that AHEM will work on the contract first before discussing ATPPS
3. Legislative Wrap-up – discussed the veto of Statewide Health Insurance and Education Minnesota’s response, discussed governmental update (purple flyers), discussed the Employee Free Choice Act, reviewed Anoka-Hennepin’s preliminary estimate of increase revenue for FY08-09

PROPOSED BUSINESS:

1. Summer Meeting Dates – August 22 @ 10 am (lunch will be ordered); July 17 @10am; Executive Board may need to schedule a special meeting if we have a tentative agreement
2. Levy/School Board Recommendations – Committee motion and second is to endorse Warren Harder for School Board, motion passed unanimously; our GR members will notify both candidates; update of levy and an additional $5,000 donation – motion made to make decision about the next $5,000 donation from AHEM at the July 17 Exec. Board meeting, where Deb and Dawn will be invited to explain the actions, progress and strategies of the Levy Yes Committee, motioned by J. FitzSimons, seconded by M. Ellingson, passed unanimously

Meeting was adjourned at 6:15 pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Lisa Sorenson

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 05/07/07

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 4:43 pm at the AHEM office.

Those present included: M. Kempenich, S. Schaefer, G. Monahan, S. Kurdziel, L. Corgard, S. Pasmanter, J. Jagusch, C. Martino, P. Goupil, J. Stoltenburg, J. Dixon, S. Skaar, L. Sorenson, J. Anderson, J. FitzSimons, J. Belpedio, J. Blaha, S. Kurdziel, G. Christofferson, D. Kundin

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent.

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 05/09/07.

President’s Report:

A.     Executive Board: See yellow flyer-All positions filled

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:

1. Report on May 7 Negotiations Session-J. Belpedio: Met at 1:00 until 1:45 PM today, May 7, 2007. Next bargaining session will be May 22, 2007.  Not very much to report.   AHEM presented a number of language items.  The district said they’d respond at next meeting.
2. Negotiation’s planning committee: Phone tree needs to be made for each building and hot line phone number should be published again. The committee will meet on May 24, 2007 at 4:45.
3. The Negotiation’s Steering committee will meet on May 23, 2007 at 4:45 p.m.
4. Legislative Update-J. Blaha/S. Kurdziel:  Statewide health insurance will be discussed in committee tomorrow, May 8, 2007.  Problems may have developed in the progress of the bill, unfortunately. We’ll be working on Rule of 90 efforts locally. See white flyer about School Board Screening questions. The bolded questions were used in 2005 screenings. There are other questions that could be asked.  Only 6 or 7 questions will be used.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

1. Treasurer’s Report: Second Reading of 2007-08 AHEM Budget-J. FitzSimons:  Please see salmon colored flyer. There will be one more budget reading at the RA on May 21.

PROPOSED BUSINESS:

Budget for Levy/School Board Races-J. Blaha: J. Blaha moved to go into Executive Session. J. FitzSimons second. J. Jagusch made a motion to leave Executive Session.

Second by L. Sorenson. Motion carried.

1. J. Blaha moved to donate $5000.00 to the Parent Levy Yes Committee. J. FitzSimons second. Motion passed.
2. District Building Climate Survey-S. Skaar: This was a school board goal from last year that is finally being done now.  Please see white flyer concerning a Teacher Survey done through the University of Minnesota. The survey is scheduled to come out the week of May 7 and be out for the remainder of the school year. It is a building climate survey. It would be tallied (by building) through the University of Minnesota, a reputable organization. There are a variety of questions and it is long. L. Corgard made a motion to encourage member participation in the survey. S. Pasmanter second. Motion carried.

3. Education Minnesota Staff Retreat-L. Sorenson:  Our field staff and office support staff are taken away toward the end of the school year. April was the month this year. The staff retreat is usually done in the spring. We would like the retreat to be at a better time. The staff retreat will be brought up on the June 4 agenda. President-elect Tom Dooher will be attending the June 4 meeting.

Welcome to Tom Powers a new Executive Board member.

Meeting was adjourned at 5:35 pm.

Respectfully submitted,

Jody Anderson

Top of Page

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 04/09/07

President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 4:45 pm at the AHEM office.

Those present included: M. Kempenich, C. Kaufman, S. Schaefer, G. Monahan, B. Rice, L. Corgard, S. Pasmanter, J. Jagusch, M. Ellingson, C. Martino, P. Goupil, J. Stoltenburg, J. Dixon, S. Skaar, L. Sorenson, J. Anderson,, J. FitzSimons, J. Belpedio, J. Blaha, G. Christofferson, D. Kundin

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent.

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 3/19/07 with changes: Approval of any ATPPS plan needs 75% of the voting membership to pass NOT 70%.

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:

A.     Treasurer’s Report/Expense Update-J. FitzSimons:  See Yellow flyer. The Budget Committee will meet on April 19 not the 17^th. Our financial situation looks good.

B.     Governmental Relations Update-Blaha/Kurdziel: Please see purple flyer. The State Senate has passed the State Health Insurance bill. Mike Jungbauer sent a survey to teachers and then a summary of his results.  At the federal level, a Congressional Action Team is being set up.  Please sign up. This will be a quick response group. Hopefully, a Rule of 90 story will be coming out in the Educator. April 18 is the date Julie proposes to meet on further actions concerning Rule of 90. There will be screening of school board candidates if there are several candidates.

C.    Negotiations- Belpedio:   See pink Negotiations Goals Flyer. The Representative Assembly has approved the goals. These will be the goals for the next round of bargaining for 2007-2009. AHEM still needs members for the Negotiations Council!! The negotiations team will be meeting tomorrow with the district representatives to set up meeting dates.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

A. Meet and Confer-this will be on Thursday, April 19 at the Learning Center at    

     6:30. The session will be about settling the contract early, the Levy, and Specialists’ issues.     

     This is the last Meet and Confer of the school year. Encourage members to attend.

PROPOSED BUSINESS:

A.     Parent Levy Team Presentation-Deb Day and Dawn Heidemann (5:00-5:30 PM)The vote in the fall will be to renew the levy. Deb and Dawn distributed a pamphlet and spoke about some of the issues.  Here are some highlights:  Only 58% of the budget is controlled by the board. Many other budget items are controlled by mandates.  There will be a list of cuts from this 58% if the levy does not pass. The message will be targeted to district staff and interested parents. 30,000 yes votes are needed. We need to share the information with the entire community. The parent levy team has set a budget for the campaign, and money will need to be raised.

The parent levy team needs one parent captain and one staff member captain from each building. Teacher involvement in every building is very important. In order for the levy to pass, teacher support is very important.  If the levy doesn’t pass, the cuts will be enormous!

There are approximately 140,000 voters in the district.  The recent increases in property taxes will make it more difficult to pass the levy.  Renewal of the levy requires $25 million per year, plus another $6 a year to cover inflation. There will be additional informational meetings coming up soon. 

AHEM will have a discussion about formal and monetary support for the levy effort. This will be done in the next few meetings.

B.     AHEM Lifetime Achievement Award:   J. Jagusch made a motion to nominate two individuals for this special award. M. Ellingson second. Motion passed.
Meeting was adjourned at 5:50 pm.
Respectfully submitted,

Jody Anderson

Top of Page

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 03/19/07

1. Questions for Education Minnesota Candidates-The candidates will be coming to the Monday, Feb. 12 RA. Three of the four presidential candidates will be here. Local issues should be addressed. Send in any questions members may have to Sandy. The list of questions will then be sent out to Exec. Bd. This will be done by e-mail.  Send your proposed questions to Sandy by Feb. 5.  Please attend the RA on Feb. 12, especially if you are a delegate to the state Representative Convention.
   
   C. AHEM Staffing-There was a suggestion made at a fall RA that another release time officer be added to help with the workload. This item was referred to the executive board for discussion. Association days are available for other leaders doing union work. After a thoughtful discussion, J. FitzSimons made a motion to report back to the RA that there is no need for a release time officer at this time.  S. Kurdziel seconded. Motion passed.
   
   D.  Discussion on the administrative survey will continue at the next meeting.
   Meeting was adjourned at 6:00 pm.
   Respectfully submitted,
   Jody Anderson
   

Top of Page

AHEM EXECUTIVE BOARD MINUTES: 7/17/06
President Sandy Skaar called the meeting to order at 10:10 am at the AHEM office.

Those present included: S. Schaefer, G. Monahan, J. Jagusch, B. Rice, L.Corgard, S. Pasmanter, S. Skaar, L. Sorenson, J.FitzSimons, J. Belpedio, P. Goupil, M. Ellingson, J. Stoltenburg, J. Blaha

APPROVE AGENDA: By unanimous consent.

APPROVE SECRETARY MINUTES: By unanimous consent, for 6/6/06.

COUNCIL/STAFF REPORTS:
A. Treasurer’s Report/Expense Update-J. FitzSimons See Green flyer. The expense report was reviewed.

B. Report/Discussion on Alternative Comp Bargaining-J. Belpedio
The team met with the District on June 20, 2006. The District did not have a written Alternative Comp. proposal to share with AHEM at this time. J. Belpedio stated that Alternative Comp. would not begin this school year because the deadline to submit a proposal to the State Dept. of Education has passed. The Alternative Comp. committee will continue to meet with the District to develop a plan for the 07-08 school year. There will be a summer Update mailed to member’s homes the third week in August that details AHEM’s position on Alternative Comp. M. Ellingson moved that Sandy write a letter expressing AHEM’s concern over the lack of progress on Alternative Comp., and read it at the August 28 school board meeting open forum. S. Pasmanter seconded. Motion passed.

C. Legislative Wrap Up and Screenings-J. Blaha See white flyer. The flyer listed all the 2006 legislative candidates within Anoka-Hennepin School District boundaries. The Wetterling campaign, located in downtown Anoka, will have an open house on July 20 at 5:00pm. The AHEM office will be used for phone banking by UDF on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays exact dates TBA.

UNFINISHED BUSINESS:
A. Springboard Update-L. Sorenson See three white flyers. L. Sorenson reviewed the Springboard curriculum process that occurred during the 05-06 school year. L. Sorenson reviewed the District’s proposed 6/12/06 ILA Articulation Review Process document that was mailed to the homes of all ILA/English teachers the second week in July. S. Skaar spoke about the email she sent to Denny Holt detailing concerns about the Articulation Review Process. Discussion followed. L. Sorenson requested that Springboard be placed on the first RA agenda for discussion.
B. District Level Social Studies Position- S. Skaar See the letter dated 6/12/06. S. Skaar reviewed the letter she wrote in support of the district level social studies position. S. Skaar read the letter at the June 12 school board meeting open forum.
C. Elementary Specialization/Integration Pilot Projects- S. Skaar See the letter dated 7/10/06. S. Skaar reviewed the letter she wrote regarding the lack of involvement of teaching staff in the expansion process. The letter was sent to school board members and copied to district administration.

PROPOSED BUSINESS:
A. New Teacher Workshop-S. Skaar asked for volunteers to attend the new teacher workshop and recruit membership.
B. NEA Convention Report- L. Sorenson, J. Jagusch and M. Kempenich attended the convention July 1-5, 2006 and it was valuable experience.


Meeting was adjourned at 11:50 a.m.

Respectfully submitted,
Michelle Johnson

Top of Page