Board Meeting Highlights
June 23, 2007 1
Brief Highlights of the Board Meeting
June 23, 2007
The National Board met on June 23, 2007in MontrealQuebec. Mr. Picard, Chair of the Division, personally hosted a special dinner on Friday for members of the Division and National Boards.
A special thank you with the presentation of a plaque, was extended to Mr. Picard and Mr. Charles-Albert Poissant, for their financial contributions and involvement in the establishment of a Chair of Ophthalmology in the newly- created Eye Institute at the University of Montreal. In particular, this Chair will be related to research in cornea transplants. CNIB has also contributed funding over a five year period through the McNulty Fund, which is dedicated to this type of research.
Ross C. Purse Doctoral Fellowship was presented at the dinner by Dr. Gene Lechelt, to Judy Renaud, OD who will be commencing her Ph.D. in “Quality of Life, Participation in Society and Timing of Rehabilitation Interventions involving SeniorsLiving with Visual Impairment”.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
Grace Worts Staff Service Award
The Grace Worts Award recipient for 2007isFlorence CarterofToronto. Florence will be the 24th recipient of the Grace Worts award, established to honour Ms. Worts’ 42 years of dedication to the CNIB working with Col. Baker and subsequently with the National Board. Ms. Carter has been involved with CNIB for approximately 60 years and is highly devoted to CNIB clients. She worked as a Rehabilitation Teacher for 45 years and continues to be actively involved as a volunteer in CNIB programs. Presentation to take place later this year.
In-Memoriam
As most of you are aware, earlier this year we said goodbye to a dear friend and colleague Denis White, who passed away in April. Denis battled cancer for more than four years, continuing to attend meetings and special events when his health would allow. Denis joined the Ontario Board in 1990 and chaired many committees along with his role as the division chair between 1992 and 1995. He was a member of the National Board from 1996 – 2003 and also chaired the National Finance Committee for a number of years with special dedication and commitment. Denis received the Queen’s Jubilee Medal in 2002 and the CNIB Arthur Napier Magill Award in 2003. In-memoriam donationswere directed to CNIB.
President’s Report (Appendix A)
In addition to the attached report the President announced the following:
LakeJoseph Centre – Congratulations were extended to the Ontario Division on the success of the Lake Joseph Campaignreaching $7 million with an $8 million goal planned for mid-August. Two million dollars will be set aside for maintenance costs. The centre will be fully operational by mid-July.
Early Childhood Intervention – An agreement was signed recently with the Kiwanis Clubs across Canadathathave committed to contributing approximately$1,000 a Clubtoward the CNIB Early Childhood Intervention Programs.
Canadian Braille Authority (CBA) – Ann MacCuspie, Ph.D. has been appointed the new President of CBA. Dr. MacCuspie is a member of the CNIB Research Committee and the Ross Purse Doctoral Fellowship Selection Committee. She has recently retired from Atlantic Provinces Special Education Authority (APSEA), having spent her professional career working with special needs children.
CNIB Library Digital Conversion
Concerns were raised on the proposed 10 year conversion rate for the CNIB analog master collection. It was noted that this lengthy timeframe is essentially due to lack of funds. Following discussion, it was agreed the matter will be addressed further at the September Board meeting.
Council of Chairs
The Council of Chairs reported on their telephone meeting of May 29, 2007, which included discussions on the finalized budget and also the new management structure. It was noted that the President is addressing the concerns raised by the Quebec Division relating to the new structure. The Chairs also stated the importance of involving local people in Division fundraising efforts. The meeting was noted as positive and interactive. The next meeting of the Council of Chairs is to take place in Halifax in September.
Change to Division Boundaries
The Board approved the change to move NunavutTerritory to the Ontario Division from Alberta, to be more in keeping with lines of service.
Division names will be amended to:
Ontario and Nunavut Division
Alberta-NWT Division
Programs and Services Committee
The Programs and Services Committee has met twice since the last Board meeting. At the May 30 meeting, the Committee reviewed and endorsed the Client Relations Management System (CRMS) Case for Support. At the June 19 meeting, the committee received reports on advocacy, consumer products/CNIB demonstration centre model, and the CNIB Programs and Services Year-end Review. Management will be addressing comments and concerns raised by the Committee and Board members. The year-end review will be circulated to Board members.
Finance Report
The year end consolidated draft audited statements for March 31, 2007,were approved for presentation to the membership in September. The Auditors were very thorough and expressed positive comments on the work of CNIB management.
The year-end Pension statements as at December 31, 2006 were also approved and will be presented to the appropriate authorities at the end of June. The Pension plan continues to report excellent return on investment. Following a recent actuarial review the Board has approved pension adjustments to retirees who retired prior to December 2006, effective January 2008.
Client Relations Management System (CRMS)
Approval was granted to immediately commence negotiations with Lighthouse International to purchase the Electronic Vision Rehabilitation Record (EVRR) solution developed and used by that organization, with a goal to move to installation as expeditiously as possible. It was noted that this is the only system presently available to meet the needs of CNIB.
OntarioOttawa Lease
Approval was granted to the Ontario Division to renew the lease on the Ottawa Service Centre on Prince of Wales Drive for a further six years.
Canadian Ophthalmological Society Convention (COS)
Edward G. Buckely, MD was the recipient of the Baker Lectureship at the COS in Montreallast Thursday speaking in the low vision session.
A Press Conference was held on June 22, to announce the results of the Canadian Glaucoma Study a multi centred research project funded through CNIB E. A. Baker Foundation over an 11 year period in the amount of $1.8 million. It originally commenced as a special project to celebrate the 75th Anniversary of CNIB.
Governance Report
The nominations to the National Board for 2007 – 2008 were presented and will be mailed with the Notice of Annual Meeting in August to the membership. These individuals are:
Nominations
New Three Year Terms – 2007-2010
Clint Castle-Manitoba
Aloke Chatterjee-New Brunswick
Greg Dimmer-Ontario
Lorne Janes-Newfoundland
Jean Picard-Quebec
Remaining
Two Year Term – 2007-2009
Jane Beaumont-Ontario
John Chandler-Nova Scotia
Al Jameson-Ontario
Terry Kelly-Nova Scotia
Rand Simpson-Ontario
Remaining
One Year Term – 2007-2008
Eugene Lechelt- British Columbia
Omer Melanson- Ontario
Greg Pope-British Columbia
Myra Rodrigues- Ontario
Barry Styles- Alberta
Immediate Past Chair – Dick Hale-Sanders
The Governance Committee will be reviewing the membership to thestanding committees at a meeting in early September.
A Self-Evaluation form has been completed by Board members with some interesting feedback, which will be further analyzed and taken into consideration in planning orientation and training programs. A further evaluation form for the work of the Board as a whole is being developedand will be distributed in September through the Governance Committee.
Annual General meeting
The 89th Annual General meeting of the CNIB will take place on Sunday, September 30, 2007, at 2:00 pm at the Delta Hotel, Halifax, Nova Scotia. Mr. Frank Clegg, Chairman – Nevantis Inc
has agreed to be the featured speaker this year.
Prepared by:
Barbara Marjeram
CorporateSecretary