Administrative and Professional Assembly
Feb. 9, 2006
3:00 – 4:00 pm in 213 Foy Union
Approved 03/22/06

The meeting was called to order at 3:05 PM by Chairperson Harriette Huggins. 

The Assembly roll was called by the Secretary. 

Assembly member who were present:  Barnese Adair-Wallace, Drew Burgering, Pat Deery, Amy Douglas, Lisa Fleming, Maria Folmar, Harriette Huggins, Teresa Logiotatos, Missy Long, Ellen McManus, Melissa Morris, Julie Nolen, John Owen, Cathy Ramey, Melvin Smith, April Staton, Todd Storey, and Tony Ventimiglia.

Assembly members who were not in attendance:  Keith Camp, Vivian Miller, Kirsten Perkins and Martha Taylor.

The minutes from the 01/12/06 A&P Assembly meeting were approved.

Special guests, Dr. Johnny Green, Special Assistant to the Provost, and Tissie Walker, Staff Council, were introduced.  Dr. Green remarked that with so much changing on our campus it is important that all voices be heard.  He will be attending future A&P meetings as a representative of the Administration.  He will share our issues with them and vice versa.  Welcome, Dr. Green.

Comments from the Chair
I would like to fill you in on events since the last meeting of the A&P Assembly in January:

1. University Senate 01/17/06. The Evaluation Committee announced plans for the Administrator Evaluation which will take place this term.  Faculty will login to a secure survey. I asked if any provisions were made for participation of A&P and Staff employees who work for those same administrators. That wasn’t the charge of the committee. The chair said they would share with us the mechanics of carrying out such a survey.

2. Drew and I attended President’s Cabinet meeting 01/19/06, to review the agenda for the February 3 Board of Trustees meeting.

3. Thursday, 01/26/06, I attended the luncheon honoring Ambassador Andrew Young, sponsored by the Center for Government Services and was followed by a teleconference on Disaster Response later in the day. It was a remarkable event. I urge you to take advantage of any opportunity you might have to hear Ambassador Young speak. He is very warm and down to earth. He also “tells it like it is!”

4. Wednesday, 02/01/06, Drew and I also attended the Founders Day Ceremony and Luncheon following. Hats off to the Department of Communications and Marketing for their work on the Birthday Bash Saturday. I want to recognize John Hachtel, Asst. V-P for C&M, who is leaving Auburn and taking a position at Case Western Reserve University in Ohio. John has developed this department and created mechanisms for presenting a unified image of AU. Those efforts are being recognized with awards from Professional Associations. Thank you John and Godspeed.

5. Thursday, 02/02/06 Drew and I attend the Board of Trustees Committee meetings and then the Board meeting Friday Morning at AUM. Paul Spina presided at the BoT meeting. There was no discussion of the much anticipated Fisher Report, though there were several references to the report in remarks from John Tatum, Willie Larkin, and President Richardson. President Pro-Tem Earlon McWhorter has appointed an Ad-Hoc committee of Sam Ginn, Charles McCrary, Sarah Newton, and himself to review the document and prioritize the recommendations and report back to the full Board at a possible called meeting, but for sure by the April 14 meeting. Mr. Spina took time to recognize the past chairs and chair-elects the governance groups – Senate, University Staff Council and A&P Assembly. At his request I am passing on to you representatives the sincere thanks of the Board of Trustees for the work accomplished by these organizations and the contributions they make to the well-being of Auburn University. “Keep up the good work!”

6. Finally, I would like to call your attention to the Fisher Report available online at http://www.auburn.edu/administration/specialreports/fisher_report.pdf   I encourage you to read and digest it. This is a logically organized document that includes some 142 recommendations. The report is formatted in such a way that the rationale for each recommendation appears close to it in the text. The recommendations are numbered and in bold so they are easily found as you scroll through the 140-page document. Action on the recommendations I believe has the possibility setting Auburn University on a path from “good to great.” I do want to call your attention particularly to Chapter XIII – Gover-nance (Page 81 of the report, p 83 of the PDF file). Please note the last paragraph: “We offer no pointed suggestions about the University Staff Council and the Administrative and Professional Assembly…Both groups deserve attention and a serious ear.”
1. President Richardson did not think the report would delay the Presidential Search. He hopes the Ad-hoc committee will develop a logical order sequence of dealing with recommendations. He commended the BoT for commissioning the report. “Auburn will be well-served as a result of action on the recommendations.
2. Trustee Jack Miller shared comments of John Kuhnle: “It was bold of the trustees to receive the report; it is a first-rate, professional report; it is the keystone for a successful search for President.” Mr. Miller also said he thought implementation of the commendations would result in a new course.

7. The legislature is in session. Auburn is again working with the University of Alabama. The relationship was successful last year and the President anticipates the same this year. Goals: increasing state dollars in Research and Economic Development, full-funding of benefits; and salary increases in line with K-12.

8. Future events
1. Friday, February 10 – Student Academic Grievance Committee
2. Monday, February 13 – Budget Advisory Committee
3. Tuesday, February 14 – University Senate
4. Thursday, March 2 – A&P Assembly Annual Meeting
5. Tuesday, March 7 – University Senate
6. Tuesday, March 14 – University Faculty
7. Thursday, March 16 – President’s Cabinet (Agenda for the April BoT meeting)
8. March 27-31 – Spring Break
9. April 13-14 – Board of Trustees

Action Items
Karen Rankin, Chair of the Nominations & Elections committee, conducted the election of officers for the 2006-07 term (Chair-elect, Secretary, Executive committee-at-large (3) members).  These terms begin on April 1, 2006. 

• Candidates for Chair-Elect: Maria Folmar, Missy Long.  No nominations from the floor. 
• Candidates for Secretary: April Staton, Missy Long.  No nominations from the floor.
• Candidates for (3) At-large Positions:  Pat Deery, Lisa Fleming, Missy Long, Vivian Miller, Todd Storey.  Lisa Fleming withdrew her name from consideration.  April Staton was nominated from the floor. 
  

• What kind of tests will be used? 
• Will nicotine gum elicit a positive test result?
• How will spouses or dependent children be tested/certified?
• Why didn’t we receive advance notice that this was going to happen?
• Who are our representatives on the Insurance and Benefits committee?
• At least one current A&P representative on the Insurance & Benefits committee was not serving on the committee at the time this decision was made; another did not feel qualified to discuss. The Chair contacted some other members of I&B who provided some background.  We were facing an increase in health insurance premiums of at least 15%.  This step was taken to off-set that increase, following PHIP as a model.  When AU employees retire they are insured by PHIP and this provides transition.
• It was suggested that all committees provide reports to the Assembly each March to ensure we are aware of what is happening in the committees.
• Do only those who have insurance with AU get the forms?  No.  Several A&P members who do not have AU health insurance received the forms.

Respectfully submitted,

Cathy Ramey
Secretary, A&P Assembly