Board of Directors Meeting March 20, 2012

10:00 am - 1:00 pm DoubleTree Biltmore Hotel

Asheville

Agenda •  Welcome and Introductions •  Approval of the Minutes •  Standing Committee Reports •  Special Committee Reports •  State Conference Reports •  Report from the State MG Coordinator •  Old Business •  New Business •  Future Board Meetings •  Other Announcements •  Adjourn

•  Budget/Finance Committee •  Membership Committee

Standing Committee Reports

Treasurer’s Report: Financial Status (11/25-12/31/11)

Treasurer’s Report: Financial Status (1/1/12-3/20/12)

Treasurer’s Report: Reconciliation

Membership Committee Report (as of 3/18/12)

Regular Members 758 Associate Members 7

Increase from 12/11 129 (21% increase)

Renewal overdue 227

Membership Committee Report (as of 3/18/12)

0 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800

4/1/

09

6/1/

09

8/1/

09

10/1

/09

12/1

/09

2/1/

10

4/1/

10

6/1/

10

8/1/

10

10/1

/10

12/1

/10

2/1/

11

4/1/

11

6/1/

11

8/1/

11

10/1

/11

12/1

/11

2/1/

12

NCMGVA Membership

Special Committee Reports •  License Plate Committee

–  Janie Taylor, Chair –  Barbara Walters –  Carol Holman

Applications to Date: 157

Special Committee Reports

•  Newsletter –  Fall Issue (posted September 9)

•  Emailed to 557, Mailed 140 •  Opened 50% (279), Clicked to Download 37% (197)

–  Winter Issue – 16 pages (posted November 22) •  Emailed to 582, Mailed 141 •  Opened: 48% (279), Clicked to Download 29% (188)

–  Spring Issue – 16 pages (posted February 17) •  Emailed to 651, Mailed 151 •  Opened 61% (367), Clicked to Download 37% (321)

West

South Central

North Central Northeast

Southeast

Fundraising

•  Look at options: mugs, note cards, plant markers, engraved river stones, and other garden art

•  Consider a fundraiser for the EMG program operating fund.

Conference Reports

•  2012 Conference Update •  Future Conferences

Conference Reports

•  2012 Conference Update •  Future Conferences

2013 Membership Meeting

•  VII. Organization E. There shall also be one statewide

business meeting of all members in each election year. This meeting shall be held in conjunction with a Master Gardener educational activity. Additional business meetings may be called at the discretion of the Board of Directors.

Master Gardener Coordinator

•  Program Update (Lucy Bradley)

Old Business

•  Survey of Extension Agents (Gaissert/Kellam)

Survey of Extension Agents

•  At our 12/6 meeting we approved the final survey.

•  On March 3, the survey was emailed to 64 agents with responsibility for Master Gardener programs

•  As of March 18, 32 agents (50%) have responded.

Survey of Extension Agents

Survey of Extension Agents

Responses to Question 10

•  The answer to 9 is not really accurate, but I couldn't find an appropriate answer. We chose not to participate for the last few years because we had to concentrate on rebuilding the group. Since we are up & running again, I suspect we will be more involved. As to it's effectiveness, I'd say its advocacy role is fine, but does it need to do more? Coordinating Fundraising efforts on a state level for agent resources, manual updates, etc, would go a LONG way toward establishing its effectiveness.

•  I train Extension Master Gardener Volunteers to help me, the Horticulture Agent, with horticulture programs in our county. The Master Gardener Program was developed to train volunteers to help county horticulture agents. That is what we do.

•  As budgets are cut, it is even more vital to have the valuable contributions in time, talent and treasures from the NCMGVA.

Responses to Question 10 (cont.)

Responses to Question 10

•  Y'all are doing a great job. Best it has ever been in NC!!!

•  I think that you all are doing a great job. Your support really helps to improve programs across the state through the sharing of information related to what different counties are engaged in. Thanks!

•  Don't think there is much membership from the western part of the state. Perhaps some type of better promotion could drum up some interest in membership?

•  Answers to #5 and #7 would be "somewhat useful on occasion" if that option had been available.

•  I feel this group should raise enough funds to hire and continue to pay for a state EMG coordinator.

•  I appreciate all the Association does for Master Gardeners across the state.

Responses to Question 10 (cont.)

•  I am a new extension agent, and don't fully know the role of the state MG program or how much of an advocacy role it plays.

•  The newsletter is too long, usually about 8 pages. I have found that if a newsletter is over 2-4 pages information gets lost or never read. When they are so long they get skimmed at best.

Responses to Question 10 (cont.)

•  I do appreciate the work that you do but I feel that the whole state does not get the benefits of the organization. I would like to see more regional things from the NCMGVA that would include counties that are located far from Raleigh...perhaps regional chapters of the State organization. Our members do not get much out of the Elluminate board meetings due to the difficulties that often accompany the broadcasts. They feel left out and don't feel very valuable to the organization.

Responses to Question 10 (cont.)

Responses to Question 10 (cont.)

•  On number 8 we have in the past but are currently not doing that. On number 9 I didn't like any of the options. I fall somewhere between the first and second option .

My Take

•  Most have a basic understanding of what we do.

•  There’s also a general understanding of our programs with the exception of Landscape Design and Competitive Grants.

•  Evenly split on delegates

•  100% found the website useful (but 6 skipped)

•  85% found the newsletter useful (but some lied)

•  Almost a half don’t report in the newsletter.

•  Overall, the Association is somewhere between a “valuable contribution” and “a helpful advocate” but one quarter don’t pay any attention to us.

•  We need to raise funds, shorten the newsletter, promote in the West, and sponsor more regional things.

New Business

•  Membership Year (re-proposal)

•  Association Name Change

•  501(c)(3) Group Determination

Changing the Membership Year

•  Our current membership year is from Jan 1 – Dec 31

•  In the past, this choice provided some administrative efficiency in reminding members of the expiration date.

•  However, with the advent of registration discounts for members, changes in the dates of the conferences, and growth in the membership, this policy has increasingly caused problems.

•  In addition, we now have a web provider that not only can keep track of expiration dates whenever they occur, but can send email reminders in advance.

What are the Problems? •  Equity: We do not provide a year’s membership for a

year’s dues. In many cases, we either grant members informal extensions of up to several months beyond a year or short them by several months depending on when they join.

•  Grace Period: The 90-day grace period allows members to “play the float” with regard to eligibility for the conference discounts when the grace and registration periods overlap, as they have the past 2 years.

•  Work Load: With all the renewals coming due at the end of the year, we get a glut of applications that have to be responded to in a timely fashion.

The Arguments Against the Change

•  Tradition: This has been our policy since 1991.

•  Cost: It’s only $10 a year. Who’s going to complain?

•  Wild Apricot: The system is untested. We’re not sure it will deliver the efficiencies predicted.

The Proposed Change

IX. DUES A. Any changes in annual dues of the Association shall

be voted on at a statewide meeting. Membership shall begin on the date that the application for membership is approved and expire one calendar year later. each year on January 1. It is the responsibility of each member to see that his/her dues are paid.

B. Annual dues are payable on or before January 1 the expiration date each year.

C. A member who does not pay dues by March 1 their expiration date shall be removed from the Association rolls.

New Business

•  Membership Year (re-proposal)

•  Association Name Change

•  501(c)(3) Group Determination

Renaming the Association in Support of Cooperative Extension

•  Over the past several years there has been a concerted effort on the part of Extension to better communicate the goals of the program.

•  Well known programs like 4H and Master Gardeners are not always recognized as part of Extension.

•  These connections need to be made to help provide Extension with the name recognition necessary to better weather the battle of the budgets at the State and county level.

•  Adding “Extension” to the Association name will help with this “re-branding” effort.

Proposal: Amend the NCMGVA bylaws to change our name to the North Carolina Extension

Master Gardener Association (NCEMGA) by editing Section I as follows:

I.  NAME The name of this association shall be “North Carolina Extension Master Gardener Volunteer Association” hereinafter referred to as the “Association.”

New Business

•  Membership Year (re-proposal)

•  Association Name Change

•  501(c)(3) Group Determination

Apply for a “Group Exemption” with the IRS to allow the Association to offer county MG

associations coverage under our 501(c)(3) umbrella

•  Allows “affiliated organization” to enjoy the benefits of non-profit status without having to spend the time and money to get their own designation.

•  The cost to us would be $3,000.00 which would be recovered by a fee charged to the county associations who signed up.

•  NCMGVA and the counties would also have administrative requirements described in the proposal.

•  The proposal recognizes that the number of counties who might want to participate is currently unknown.

Future Board Meetings

May 22, 2012 Asheville Membership Meeting

June 12, 2012 Iredell County, Statesville

Oct-Nov, 2012 Onslow County, Jacksonville

Other Announcements, Comments, Suggestions, Volunteers?

Thank You We are adjourned.