Alumni Council
Mike reported on the January 29, 2005 Alumni Council meeting, his first meeting as the society's representative. All constituency groups reported on their activities and Mike updated the council on the 2005 reunion.  Mike noted that the Alumni Involvement Index was reviewed as a means of measuring involvement of alumni.  President Gora's Inauguration Scholarship was also discussed. Jenell said she was interested in the presentation by Wayne Estopinal on the Foundation. The Foundation added three board members recently and had investment returns at 19.2 percent that were pretty good considering the time frame. She requested more information on the new Student Investment Program.  Sue will ask a Foundation board member to attend the next meeting to answer these questions.

Reunion Updates   – "Embracing the Past – Steppin' Into the Future"
Linda requested that reunion committee reports be emailed to members in advance so that less board time is spent covering them in depth.

Accommodations. There was much discussion on area hotel accommodations and concern about the cost and quality of some of the rooms.  In addition, many rooms at area hotels will not be released in blocks due to the Brickyard 400 and Muncie events occurring the same weekend. Ben encouraged the board to make their reservations early.  Linda suggested that the BSUAA send an RFP to area hotels for 2 year rate contracts versus one year at a time. Linda stated that the hotel situation might best be addressed by the university and President Gora. She noted that if one is marketing the institution to parents then the hotels have to be more acceptable. Jenell suggested that the university consider building a hotel like I.U. has. A hotel would be an investment and there would be more quality control.

Publicity. Fred reminded the board to send radio, TV and news contact information for their market to him for reunion publicity. Al requested that board members personally invite previous award winners to return to the reunion. Ben agreed that personal contact will be effective and asked each member to contact two previous award recipients to invite them to the reunion. Sue will have a list of past award winners for the next meeting. Ben suggested the pool of nominees be personally invited as well. Mike said that past award winners who attend should be recognized in some fashion at the reunion.

Nancy Jo requested that the board members wear special ribbons and be introduced at the reunion. Joyce said that the board should be introduced in some way at every reunion event.

Special Invites. Ben indicated he would write a special reunion invite letter to those who were considered for the keynote. Several additional alumni in Indianapolis were suggested by the board to be invited as guests.  It was requested that board funds be used to pay for special guests and one additional guest to attend Saturday evening. Fred seconded and the motion was approved.  There was discussion on reaching out to students, such as, the president of the BSA. It was decided that the students should be contacted after their elections are held to determine their interest and availability since school will not be in session during the reunion. The vote was tabled.

Family. The board was presented with a copy of the survey mailed to graduates from 1985-04. They were targeted as they were most likely to have younger children. The survey is due on March 11, 2005 and Joyce will have more information to present at the next meeting and after the results are reviewed.

Keynote. After much discussion, it was decided to ask Connie Bentley McGhee, '69, a New Jersey criminal defense attorney, to be the keynote speaker.

Program.   Fred provided the board with a sample program for Saturday evening. He would like to find a way to utilize the back page of the program with board news, web links, award winner information and things of that nature. It was suggested that song lyrics be printed as an additional page insert.

Entertainment. Fred reported that DJ Thomas Griffin and Ambience will attend Saturday evening. Ambience will start the dancing. Fred added that Thomas will play more upbeat music and he won't play all steppin' music. It was requested Fred find out if Ambience would be available to provide lessons or a demonstration during the picnic lunch.

Fred reported that Mike White, '79 will take pictures Friday and Saturday. The university photographer will take the large group picture. Mike's pictures will be available on Sunday at the brunch for $5 per CD. He requested the board charge $6 and one dollar could go for a scholarship fund. Ben noted that individuals purchasing the CD should sign a form so we can determine how much was raised for the scholarship.

Food. There was discussion over food quality in previous years and at various events across campus. It was decided that food concerns be addressed in a subcommittee of those working on the menu and with Sue.

Hospitality. Al stated that the hospitality committee was entertaining suggestions on what people would like to see in the Hospitality Room. Suggestions included a broader mix of music, dominos, cards and karaoke (Al has a machine).

Friday, August 5, 2005
President Gora has a conflict and will not be able to attend on Saturday evening. She has offered to hold a reception Friday night at Bracken House. The board agreed that this was a great opportunity to meet and socialize with the president and with one another. Afterwards, the attendees will return to the Alumni Center and hold their reception. Sue will check with the president on holding the Bracken House reception from 6:00 – 7:30 p.m. and returning to the Alumni Center for a reception until 10:00 p.m.

The menu for the Alumni Center reception was tentatively selected as a cash bar with vegetable, cheese and fruit trays, mini bun sandwiches, meatballs, etc.

If vendors are lined up for the reception, it was requested that they be asked to arrive by 7:30 p.m. However, they can also set up earlier in the day.

Saturday, August 6, 2005
The picnic lunch will be held in the pavilion northwest of the football stadium. The ultimate outdoor BBQ menu will include hot dogs to make it more kid friendly.

After a discussion on chicken southwestern and how spicy it might be, the board voted to make Saturday's dinner the chicken cordon bleu.

Sunday, August 7, 2005
The brunch will include a breakfast buffet.  Mike White's CD of photos will be available for purchase.

Multicultural Awards
The board received nomination information for the Multicultural Center awards. Al noted that the board used to participate and that it was a great way to connect with students. He would like to talk to Derick Virgil about presenting an award from the Alumni Society. Joyce agreed and suggested that the board award certificates or help pass out awards.  Mike suggested the Constituency Award or the Dave Davis Award.  Ben suggested that a committee explore the possibility of a Black Alumni Constituency Award for students. Al will chair the committee which will include Joyce and Nancy Jo.

Scholarships
Ben spoke to Alice Prettyman in the Foundation about establishing a scholarship fund. It will require $25,000 before it can be endowed. Jenell and Bill Joiner have made a significant gift that is earmarked for this scholarship. When the criteria are established, the board can publicize the scholarship at the reunion. Mike noted that this is an admirable pursuit. He said that we should get people thinking about charitable contributions in terms of their estate. While individuals might not have the money now, they can specify a portion of their estate or insurance check go towards these endeavors. Annual gifts, required for board membership, may also be designated to the account.

Website
Linda reported her concerns on the functionality of the Ball State University website. She noted that while she understood the need to protect staff information from spam, it made the website very difficult to navigate. Someone who is not that familiar with the web would have an extremely difficult time finding information.  In addition, she had difficulty finding scholarship information even after phoning and being transferred to various departments. She also noted that minority scholarships should have an identifier that they were for minorities. Al agreed and said that the lack of black enrollment is due to a perceived lack of minority scholarships. He said that Indiana State does a better job of promoting what they offer and we need to do the same. Mike noted that the difficulty of navigating the Ball State website was brought up at Alumni Council.

Linda requested that Randy Hyman, acting Vice President of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, be invited to an upcoming meeting. Concerns can be addressed at that time and the board can find out how they can be an asset to the university's goals.  There was some discussion on meeting with President Gora and a means for determining concerns to be addressed.  Joyce suggested that if a concern came up at a meeting, the board could formulate a letter requesting a response by the next meeting.

Alumnus
The March Alumnus features the Black Alumni Constituent Society and reunion.

Constitution
Discussion on the Constitution was tabled due to time constraints. It will be on the agenda at the next meeting. If board members have changes or questions to be addressed, please send them to Fred prior to the next meeting.

Next Meeting Date
The meeting was adjourned at 2:40 p.m.  The next meeting will be held on Saturday, April 9, 2005 at 10:30 a.m. (Muncie time) in the Alumni Center.  

As a calendar note, the board has tentatively set a meeting for Saturday, May 14, 2005 at 10:00 a.m. (Muncie time) in the Alumni Center.