AAEA Foundation Governing Board Minutes
Saturday, July 27, 2002
Renaissance Long Beach Hotel
Board Room II

I. Welcome

President Pro-tem Mary Marchant called the meeting to order at 1:10 p.m. President Eduardo Segarra was not able to attend the meeting due to a family emergency. He donated a gavel for the Foundation's use.

Marchant lead the introductions of all current and new Foundation Board members and the AAEA staff members present. New Director Kathleen Segerson was absent. New Director Robert Hauser will be arriving in Long Beach later this evening but was not able to make this afternoon's meeting due to an emergency. He asked that his regrets be communicated to the Foundation Board.

II. Minutes from Previous Meeting

Ron Knutson moved to approve the minutes of the Foundation's January meeting as presented, David Zilberman seconded. The motion carried unanimously.

I. Financial Update
a. Audit Report
AAEA CFO Betty Eckebrecht reviewed the report of the audit firm. The auditors raised a concern regarding internal controls and the separation of cash handling duties, but given the size of the AAEA staff it is very difficult to segregate duties as completely as the audit firm would prefer. The value of the Foundation investments is down, given the current stock market conditions.

b. Current Financial Statements
The financial statements for the Foundation as of June 30 were distributed. The loss of investment value was discussed. It was noted that all three of the new Appreciation Clubs have reached the full endowment level of $25,000, an event that has never occurred before. Marchant was recognized for her efforts as chair of the organizing committee for the McCalla Club. Jean Kinsey will contact the remaining Sundquist Club organizers and contributors to bring that club to the endowed level.

c. Investment Report
The value of the invest account has decreased significantly as a result of the recent volatility in the markets. It was noted that the Vanguard Group has discretionary authority to adjust the asset allocation up as much as 5 percent of down as much as 10 percent; any moves of a larger magnitude must be approved by the Board. Previous experience has shown that Vanguard is fairly conservative in terms of its asset strategy. After the expenses incurred for the annual meeting have been paid, the excess funds from recent contributions will be placed in the investment account.

III. Foundation Enhancement Task Force Report

a. Report of the Task Force
Alan Randall, chair of the Foundation Enhancement Task Force, reported on the work of that group. The task force was formed in October of last year and was charged with re-evaluating the mission and vision of the AAEA Foundation and generating ideas that might enhance the Foundation and its work. The group has met in a series of monthly teleconferences and created the two documents that were distributed to the Foundation Board - a statement of how the "new" Foundation will differ from its current role, and a listing of the proposed new vision and goals of the Foundation. Randall believes the vision and document goals is the more mature of the two documents and is based on the new, outward-looking vision of the Association that was drafted last year. The task force envisions the reorganized Foundation reaching out to the public with a bigger mission than it has had in the past. The Foundation's current five interest areas, especially the area dealing with industry involvement, fit well with the task force's recommendations.

It was discussed that with the growth of sections within AAEA, proposals could be solicited that deal with cross-cutting issues. The growth of sections may provide an opportunity to marry the Foundation's resource-generating power with the sections' ability to increase the Association's knowledge and membership.

The Foundation Board commended Randall and his group - Otto Doering, Joyce Cacho, Todd Petzel, Zilberman and Segarra - for their work and for the amount of thought that has gone into the two documents presented.

b. Results of Discussions with AAEA Executive Board
Randall presented a report of the task force's preliminary recommendations to the AAEA Executive Board at its meeting yesterday. The Executive Board expressed some concerns about how the restructured Foundation would fit into the organization of the association and how the Executive Board can maintain communication with and oversight of the Foundation's activities. It was noted that much more communication is needed between the two boards and that the Foundation's new direction would require much more work and interaction than could be accomplished in two yearly face-to-face meetings. The Executive Board was interested in the task force's findings and encouraged the group to proceed with its deliberations and planning processes.

c. Next Steps
Randall communicated that the first step for the Foundation to begin implementing the task force's recommendation is to adopt the new vision and goals at the January 2003 meeting. Once those principles are adopted, the second document he distributed outlines several new initiatives and activities the Foundation might pursue.

IV. Report from C-FARE

Tamara Wagester, executive director of the Council on Food, Agricultural and Resource Economics (C-FARE), presented an update on one of C-FARE's latest initiatives for which it had requested Foundation funding. C-FARE had submitted a proposal to the Foundation in January for funding the update the list of professional priorities for 2005. The listing of priorities was last revised in 1997. C-FARE consulted with the NAAEA and other stakeholder groups to obtain input, and circulated a survey to AAEA members at the 2001 annual meeting. C-FARE is now asking university departments to seek feedback at the state level on the draft listing of priorities and to suggest more stakeholder groups that might have an interest in the list.

The final results of this endeavor will be transformed into a brochure with the help of a professional writer. Another document will be created to give information to Capitol Hill policymakers, and a more scientific document will be circulated in the research community. C-FARE is requesting $8,000 to offset the bulk of the production and distribution costs for these documents.

Knutson moved to accept the proposal and fund it at the full $8,000 request. Roberta Cook seconded. The motion carried unanimously.

VI. 2003-2004 Appreciation Club Possibilities

a. Harold Breimyer
A possible club honoring Harold Breimyer was discussed at the Board's January meeting. Dr. Breimyer passed away recently, but he still has many colleagues and former students who may be interested in supporting a club in his honor. Joyce Cacho will follow up with the individuals who may be interested in heading that club's organization.

b. Extension economicsts from Michigan State
Cook is looking into a club honoring two outstanding extension economists from Michigan State. She is planning to seek large corporate donations to finance the majority of this club's endowment and will keep the Board apprised of her progress.

c. George Ladd
A possible club honoring George Ladd has been discussed several times, and a family foundation has already contributed $5,000 towards this club. It was suggested that the possible organizers for this club be encouraged to aim for chartering this club at the 2003 meeting.

d. Other possible clubs
Other possible clubs were discussed for chartering in 2003.

VII. Election of Officers

The following slate of officers for 2002-2003 was presented.
President - Alan Randall
Vice-president of Finance - Joyce Cacho
Vice-president of Programs - Roberta Cook

Knutson moved to approve the slate as presented. Mickey Paggi seconded. The motion carried unanimously.

VIII. Other Business

a. Contact Listing
A new Foundation Board contact listing was distributed, and Board members were asked to verify their information. It was noted that Joe Glauber is new appointed Foundation representative from the Executive Board.

b. Leadership Council Brunch
The Leadership Council Brunch will be held tomorrow morning, and all board members, editors and section and committee leaders are invited to attend. The Foundation Breakfast is scheduled for 6:45 Tuesday morning in the Renaissance hotel. All Foundation donors and travel grant recipients are invited to attend, and 110 individuals have respondent that they will be there. Randall will give Segarra's prepared remarks at both the breakfast and the AAEA Membership Meeting Tuesday morning. Marchant and Bruce Gardner will be filling in for Segarra at Tuesday evening's Awards Ceremony.

c. John Kenneth Galbraith
The fact that noted economist John Kenneth Galbraith is a long-time member of AAEA was discussed.

Zilberman moved to form a committee to enact a Galbraith celebration and attendant fundraising as a kick-off activity to celebrate AAEA's road to its 100th anniversary. Cook seconded. Motion carried unanimously.

d. Broadening the range of appreciation club honorees and donors
It was noted that the Foundation needs to start thinking about how to broaden the range of appreciation club honorees and donors and provide leadership in showing that there are other skills sets and interests that need to be recognized. The Board discussed the fact that many different groups and interests have contributed to the Association's 100-year history, and those contributions should be recognized in the years leading up to the anniversary celebrations.

e. Expressions of Appreciation
Members of the Board expressed their appreciation to outgoing officers Marchant, Knutson, Bruce Gardner and Stan Johnson. The Board expressed special appreciation for Segarra's efforts as Foundation president. Marchant thanked all the Board members who had contributed to this year's appreciation clubs, and mentioned what a pleasure it has been working with all the Board members.

IX. Adjourn

The meeting adjourned at 3:39 p.m.