Absent were Gilbert Head from Academic Affairs; Esther Sherman from Business and Finance; Peter Anderson from Development and Alumni Relations; Anita Miller from the College of Education; Kathy Burkes from the School of Law; Ian Gray from Research; Martha Daniel from Social Work, and Allison Wright from the College of Veterinary Medicine. Since 30 voting members were present, 16 would constitute a majority.
Minutes of the April 1, 1998 meeting were accepted as sent out.
Old Business
Because this meeting was scheduled to be brief in order to allow time for a special presentation, there were no committee reports and the council moved immediately to old business.
Prior to the meeting, Clyde sent representatives a memo that clarified Elizabeth Pape's original motion regarding voting procedures for the upcoming Executive Committee election. The memo proposed that representatives vote for one of two methods: Method A provided for casting three votes at once; Method B provided for designation of three separate offices with individual votes for each office.
In discussion, Michael Albert supported the single ballot method, saying it enabled everyone to vote their preferences and guaranteed office to the candidates receiving the most votes. He pointed out Method B enables election of candidates who could possibly receive a minority of votes. He said Method A assures Executive Committee support by most of Staff Council.
Linda Slaney pointed out that anyone can be nominated from the floor, and with Method A two candidates from the same vice presidential area could be elected. The bylaws prohibit two members from the same area serving on the Executive Committee. Clyde said that situation could be addressed by having one candidate withdraw or by having a runoff between the two candidates.
In a show of hands, each method received 15 votes. Staff Council agreed that Clyde should break the tie and Clyde voted for Method A. He stressed that this procedure is only for the upcoming election in August; subsequent election procedures should be written into the bylaws.
Jeannie Dawson distributed nominations for officers. She asked that anyone planning to nominate from the floor let her know in advance so she can prepare a biographical statement about the candidate to distribute to representatives.
The business meeting adjourned at 2:20 and Clyde introduced Peggy Herrman, an alternative dispute resolution facilitator and veteran mediator from the Carl Vinson Institute of Government. Peggy explained that the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) Taskforce is a source of help on campus. She stressed it is healthy to have a lot of discussion, whether or not it is painful or uncomfortable, because it allows a group to work through issues and heal, and to help each other deal with stuff but not leave bodies littering the floor. Although our culture teaches that conflict is bad, confrontation is healthy. Organizations that don't fight eventually die, but it is possible to fight in a nurturing way. The goal of conflict resolution is to make tough decisions without destroying the group. The main steps in resolution are to build the process, to share perspectives, to develop ideas, and to develop clarity. Each step was explained and discussed. Peggy provided handouts on "The Circle of Conflict" and "Hints for De-escalating Anger" (copies are available from Brenda Keen). Noting it is difficult to cover the many aspects of communication and dispute resolution in a short period of time, she offered her assistance to Staff Council for future meetings, either as a whole or in small groups.
The next meeting will be Wednesday, June 3, 1998 at 2:00 in Room E/F
of the Georgia Center for Continuing Education.
Submitted by Brenda Keen, Secretary