School Nutrition Association of Connecticut
Executive Board Meeting Minutes
September 17, 2013 at Pond House Café, West Hartford CT

Voting members present: Nick Aldi, Jim Bondi , Lonnie Burt, Lynn Bustamante, Diane Carsten, Maggie Dreher, Diane Edwards, Eileen Faustich ,Roberta Jacobs, Abby Kassman-Harned, Ernie Koschmieder, Susan Maffe, Trish Malloy, Maureen Nuzzo, Beth Pratt, Christine Wallace, Nya Wellinkski, Sue Yazdzik

Voting members absent: Jessica D’Agnese , Joann Fitzpatrick, Eileen Girgenti,

Other members present: Cindy Brooks, Diane Burbank, Dawn Crayco, Linda Fenton, Linda Hubeny, Carrie Hunnicutt, Brunella Ibarbolla, Mary Ann Lopez, Mary Ann Martin, Tim Malley, Amanda Muellar, David Nichols, Dennis O’Connor, Liz Paternostro, Patti Patton, Lynn Pelligrini, Barry Sbordy, Jackie Schipke, Jeff Sidewater, Allison Thurston, Tim Thurston, Tracy Winser

12:10 PM. Meeting called to order followed by pledge of allegiance & Thought of the day .

Approval for the September 17th Meeting Agenda- Approved unanimously

Approval of Minutes from May7, 2013 meeting held at Pond House Café West Hartford, CT. & SNACT Summer conference meeting on June 27th, 2013- Approved unanimously

Amanda Meullar talked about the “new” SNACT web site and a slide demonstration on the site was shown. Highlights of the site was the new upcoming events and the ability to now register on-line with that tool. Amanda also commented that there were still lots of opportunity to add to the site. The question was brought up about the Nuttmegger, are we keeping it or eliminating it? Lonnie Burt mentioned at this time it makes sense to keep the Nuttmegger for a couple reasons, such as, industry likes to see it in print and the association wants to keep the write off aspect of the booklet. Amanda also mentioned that the new site was adaptable to handle mobile devices.

Action Items:

A motion was made to the appointment of Christine Wallace to Member Services Chair and was approved unanimously.

A motion was made to the appointment of Tracy Winser to Ways and Means Coordinator and was approved unanimously.

A Motion by Beth Pratt to accept the Operating Agreement as submitted passed unanimously.

Trish discussed the Conflict of interest Policy for all Board members to sign and hand in. Lonnie asked the reason for the new policy; Trish commented that it was just mirroring other State and National practices. Cindy commented that only voting members needed to sign.

A motion was made to Accept the Conflict of interest policy for all Executive Board members. When assigned to the Board they will sign it and it will be kept on file.

Susan Maffe motioned to accept the 2013/2014 budget revision as presented with changes to Education & Program development. A discussion took place regarding the revisions and ANC. Boston is the focus & the committee felt it was in the best interest to eliminate the Summer Conference, thus freeing up more funds.

Trish commented that the Education committee should try to keep costs down to promote more regional training with Industry support. That savings was shown on the proposed new adjusted budget. Motion passed unanimously.

Events: Trish talked about support for Share our Strength & Taste of New Haven events. The Executive committee was asked about how to proceed with these types of support as we go further. Trish discussed the New Haven event as well as End Hunger Events and that it made sense to create an avenue to follow. Marketing Committee should be the Committee that would handle these types of requests. Jeff Sidewater commented that it should benefit SNACT if we were to go forward. Lonnie said it was important to make sure we are clear of the amount of exposure we will get. Carrie Hunnicutt commented that we be need to have very specific guidelines and that’s why Marketing needs to develop these guidelines.
A motion to adopt the plan was made and approved unanimously.

Dawn Crayco of End Hunger commented on how Share our Strength is funded and what programs it funds. Trish discussed the amended motion and expressed how important it is as to know how we spend our money as an Association.

Motion to have the Marketing Committee establish guidelines on how to support events was made as requested. Amended motion was passed unanimously.

Original motion of $1,000.00 approved unanimously.

Presidents Report:

*Executive Director Carrie Hunnicutt will be staying on until the Food Show in November. Currently there are 24 applicants that have been submitted. Review of applications is in full swing and moving along. The goal is to have a new Director by the Food Show.

*Strategic plans are coming along such as a Financial Adhoc Committee. The Committee will work closely with Jim Bondi on payments, Webster Bank, and on-line Credit card payment systems. Also, they will assist in the setup of the new lock box and on line registrations, etc.

*By-Laws Adhoc Committee, you will work with Susan Maffee and Diane Carsten to finish up where we left off last year. This should only take 1 more meeting to accomplish. Anyone interested should send Trish a note with interest.

* The next Hot Topics is coming up on October 4th. At the USS Chowder Pot in Hartford. (topic –Marketing School Meals to students and parents).

*The Nutmegger is coming out in October, January will be the second edition, and April will be the 3rd. edition.

* Interim Final Rule please go to the SNA web site to add comments, this is especially important to voice your opinions.

Treasurer’s Report:

Jim went line by line of expenses and income. The check book balance as of 7/31/13 was $105,392.00

Professional Development Report:

Susan Maffe discussed the upcoming Winter Academy 2/7-2/9 and lots of great sessions are to be available. Please note that when registering, the meeting does start promptly at 8:00 AM so please plan accordingly. The Food Show has currently over a hundred vendors signed up.

Education Committee Report:

Roberta talked about the upcoming Regional Training. They have combined Chapter meetings with the regional training workshops. So far the four sites scheduled are Milford, Windham, Montville, and Enfield. The Sponsors will provide the meal at each location and the Education Committee will provide the courses & bring the training to the districts at their cost. Roberta did ask the Board before they get too far along, what exactly is the function and direction you would like them to go in. Trish commented on what a great job the committee has done by providing these great resourceful opportunities to all our members.

Membership Committee:

Christine Wallace asked if they could do membership presentations at the Regional Trainings and Chapter meetings.

Legislation Committee:

Maggie Dreher talked about Legislation Day and how important everyone’s involvement is. Also discussed was the importance of Advocacy training before the meeting. Lonnie commented that there are more Dieticians at the event & so minimal directors & SNA members, and wondered what we can do to get more participation from directors. It is important that the CT. Legislatures know what we do!

Other:

SDE Jackie Schipke talked about the new Meal Pattern Menu Planner and it’s still in process. There will not be any training for Directors this year. October 15, 2013 is the date by which, if you are getting a review, you will be notified by the state. There are lots of new items the state will be looking at this year and it will be a learning curve for both parties. December the state begins reviewing.

DAS:

Linday Hubeny reported that meal counts went down last year. Connecticut is running short on meals served and thus creating a 3 million dollar short fall.

Cindy Story will be a guest speaker at the next Food Show.

Meeting Adjourned at 2:05 PM.

Respectfully submitted by Ernie Koschmieder, SNACT Secretary