Midland Section ACS Board of Directors Meeting Minutes

May 2, 2016

Midland Benter for the Arts Board Room

Midland, MI

Voting Board Members present indicated by * (10 required for a quorum):

* / Kelly-Rowley, Anne / Smith, Janet / * / Wier, Kevin
Patankar, Kshitish / * / Stickles, Dave / * / Huang, Wenyi
* / Howell, Bob / * / Leaym, Tina / Cummings, Michelle
* / Dilling, Wendell / * / LeCaptain, Dale / Chen, Shawn
* / Keinath, Steve / * / Flory, Wendy / * / Sivy, Tami
* / Kilos, Beata / Smith, Patrick
* / Malczewski, Gina / * / Curtis-Fisk, Jaime

Non-Voting Board Members (Committee Chairs):

Diana Deese / Michael Tulchinsky (phone) / Matthews, Tamlin
Greg Cushing

Other Attendees

Lane, Tom / Doug Beyer

Ø  7:00PM Discussion of Agenda and Request

·  Jaime Curtis-Fisk opened the meeting and attendees introduced themselves. Meeting minutes from April were approved unanimously, pending addition of corrections requested by Wendell Dilling.

·  A paper was distributed listing recent events; Board members were asked to indicate which ones they attended.

·  Minutes are being recorded by Gina Malczewski in Kshitish's absence.

Ø  7:05PM Annual Awards Banquet Report--Diana Deese

·  The Awards Banquet on 4/27 was very successful; there was high attendance and the talk by Andrew Liveris, CEO of Dow Chemical, was given front page coverage by the Midland Daily News. Other media publicity included reporting by Channel 5 (WNEM) and WSGW (radio).

·  The event cost was slightly higher than initially planned but the overage was pre-approved.

·  Many things were added this year, including pre-meeting demos, a cash bar, and a PayPal option.

·  Diana suggested National Award winner lists be added to the web site, and Greg (webmaster) and Diana were told where to find those names.

·  Awards committee membership is changing; Janet Smith is leaving and several others are potential new members. The Board expressed appreciation for the all the efforts of Diana and the committee.

Ø  7:15PM Jackie Barton Dinner report--Beata Kilos

·  This dinner and technical seminar was attended by over 100 people; the $25 meal was subsidized so attendees paid only $5. The presence and support of Dow and Dow Corning leadership was highly significant.

·  There were difficulties with RSVPs and the multiple systems for registration and payment; reconciliation of these was very time-consuming. Improvement will be sought for the future.

·  The Section is still in need of a Publicity Chair; Amy Tesolin-Gee has still been assisting although she no longer officially has the role; tools (like lists of media contacts and templates for press releases) are available from her and she is willing to train someone new. Those who do not read the entire newsletter are requested to consult at least the last two pages for a list of upcoming events. Contacts at Dow and Dow Corning are still posting events to corporate news sites.

Ø  7:20PM Google Drive and Website--Greg Cushing

·  Greg requested all committees review website content to make sure descriptions are current.

·  He encouraged use of the Google drive to store documents. Folders have been set up for each committee and once given the names of those who should have access, he has sent and will send links for sign-in. These folders may not be accessible from work computers at Dow Corning.

·  It is optimal to have a gmail account to ensure access--some have had trouble without one.

·  Folders can be added if requests are sent to Greg--he added a "Temp" folder for items such as photos that will be eventually saved elsewhere. Sci-Fest and CERM 2019 folders were also added by the end of the meeting.

·  Greg is using Google Analytics to track metrics associated with the website and newsletter that he will be communicating.

·  Facebook is not currently used to maximum potential and the Twitter account needs an administrator. Facebook, Twitter and linked-in feeds are available on the homepage of the website.

Ø  7:30PM Communication about Strategic Initiatives--All

Some have been asking questions related to their work on strategic planning objectives. Questions or issues can be brought to the Board each month as needed.

Ø  7:40 PM Future Programming--Anne Kelly-Rowley

·  Potential new programs were discussed, including one suggested by Wendell that might involve Congressman John Moolenaar (who was a co-initiator of the bi-partisan Congressional Chemistry Caucus).

·  Tom Lane or others could contact Mr. Molenaar or additional possible speakers if there are specific topic ideas. He indicated that ACS and other Award winners might be interesting presenters; for example, Dr. Michael A. Brook, a Kipping Award winner from McMaster University, is nearby geographically and willing to come.

·  Chair-elect Anne Kelly-Rowley is Program Chair, but she is looking for volunteers to help on the committee.

·  Recent successful programs have included Jackie Barton's presentation and the Masten seminar on the Flint Water Crisis. We have collaborated with MCFTA in the past; this and other venues charge fees, and inclusion of dinner will increase costs (the Jackie Barton event was ~$2500.) Dinner for the latter was subsidized by a WCC grant from Dow. Dinner promotes networking, but without meals, costs can be minimal. Where fee are charged, a two-tier structure was suggested where members would pay more than non-members. Section funding IS available to host seminars.

Ø  7:45PM CERM Update-- slide from Dimi Katsoulis

Co-chairs have been identified along with working dates. Venues are being investigated.

Ø  7:50PM CERM membership roster and other comments--Tamlin Matthews

Tamlin offered to share recent rosters with those who need them to send emails; she has made an effort to remove those who don't wish to be contacted, and can also provide subsets of the roster sorted by birthdate or other descriptor. Tamlin also suggested a web-based survey for dinner events that can be used as an RSVP, while asking about membership and dietary restrictions.

Ø  8:00PM June meeting--Jaime Curtis-Fisk

·  Jaime indicated the June meeting would be at Grand Traverse Pie Company unless there were other suggestions.

·  She requested input on the meeting agenda: Gina Malczewski suggested Paul Schroll report out about the ACS scholarships awarded.

Ø  8:07 PM Adjournment

A motion made by Wendy Flory for adjournment and seconded by Anne Kelly-Rowley was passed unanimously.