The regular meeting of the Washington Geographic Alliance (WGA) Board of Directors was called to order at 6:40 p.m. by Tim Scharks in the home of Richard Kennedy and Heidi Morgan, 18825 6th Avenue SW, Normandy Park, Washington.
Present: President Tim Scharks of Green River Community College (GRCC), Vice-President Meghan Hoyer of St. Philomena School, Treasurer Heidi Morgan of the National Geographic Society's (NGS) Grosvenor Council, Secretary Richard Kennedy of the NGS's Grosvenor Council, and Director Pat LeRoy of St. Francis of Assisi School.
A motion to approve the draft minutes of the Board of Directors meeting of January 13, 2009 was made by Tim and seconded by Pat. The motion passed unanimously.
Tim contacted GRCC and they made travel and lodging arrangements for Richard and himself to attend the National Geographic Education Foundation (NGEF) Winter Meeting in Washington, DC. Tim emailed WGA members about the availability of the NGS Giant Traveling Map of North America on January 16. The list of prospective printers for the Giant Traveling Washington State map was sent to GRCC on February 6. The rental contract for the Founder's Room at Benaroya Hall was signed by Tim and returned on January 27. Tim explained the problem with GRCC paying our deposit to Wolfgang Puck Catering. Green River's Business Office evidently has a problem or policy with paying deposits in advance of service. Tim has asked Kathi at Wolfgang Puck whether they can accept a purchase order in place of a deposit. Furthermore, the business office has requested a guest list and meeting agenda so that we can process a "meals with meetings" form, without which it is impossible to order food and/or beverages. Tim will provide a list of the current WGA membership as invitees and will draft an agenda based on last year's event. The job description for WAG Steering Committee members and the list of persons to be invited to the WGA reception is on tonight's agenda. The issue of credit for our Summer Institute is on tonight's agenda. Tim's choices for the six food choices from the Wolfgang Puck Catering menu are tempura prawns, baby chicken lollipops, chinois beef, spinach and feta turnovers, tomato tart, and vegetable empanadas. GRCC has now paid for the rental of the stanchions used at the Puyallup Fair. The GuideStar profile has been updated. George Scarola of the League of Education Voters was again contacted on January 9, and again on February 9 requesting their support for the WGA endowment. Tim has requested a meeting with the Governor on March 3 at 3 p.m. in Olympia. The community college Advanced Placement (AP) Survey is pending. Tim has recommended and GRCC has agreed to give 100-level geography credit for a three or higher on the AP exam and it is his understanding that other colleges in the system are reviewing their AP policies. The list of persons for a WGA Steering Committee is on the agenda. The Assessment of Geographic Knowledge for 5th, 8th, and 12th grade students is pending.
Meghan said that the NGS has suspended the printing of the giant map of Europe. The list of persons to be invited to the WGA reception, including those from Woodland Park Zoo and Washington State Council for the Social Studies, and possible activities for the giant traveling Washington State map are on tonight's agenda. The repurposing of the WGA brochure and the Newspapers In Education Program are pending. The menu choices are on the agenda. The NGS map schedule follows.
| School | City | Contact | Dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| Star of the Sea School | Bremerton | Kristen Walker | 03/24/09-03/27/09 |
| Sacred Heart School | Bellevue | Connie Gray or Nicole St. Mary |
04/02/09-04/03/09 |
| Mason Middle School | Tacoma | Marilyn O'Malley-Hicks | 04/04/09-04/06/09 |
| School | City | Contact | Dates |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sharpstein Elementary | Walla Walla | Mary Cortinas | 03/05/09-03/10/09 |
| Cougar Ridge Elementary | Bellevue | Victoria Evans or Teri Feely |
03/11/09-03/13/09 |
| Villa Academy | Seattle | Barbara Purn | 03/16/09-03/17/09 |
| Ridgetop Jr. High | Silverdale | Rachel Rummell | 03/18/09-03/20/09 |
| Cascade High School | Everett | Melissa Webster | 03/23/09-03/24/09 |
| St. George School | Seattle | Claire Plehal | 03/25/09-03/27/09 |
| Lopez Island School | Lopez Island | Colleen Currie | 03/30/09-03/31/09 |
| Shaw Island School | Shaw Island | Joanne Colman Wester | 04/01/09-04/03/09 |
Pat's report of the Geography Awareness Week postcard contest is on the agenda. She requested that her nephew's fiance's CPA firm be contacted by the WGA directly. The list of persons to be invited to the WGA reception, possible activities for the giant traveling Washington State map, and the menu choices are on tonight's agenda.
Heidi's list of printers for the traveling giant Washington State map was emailed to Tim. The list of persons to be invited to the WGA reception and the menu choices are on tonight's agenda.
Richard emailed all board members a copy of their action items. He re-emailed Meghan the information he received on the Newspapers In Education program from Emily M. Schell, Ed.D., National Geographic's liaison to the WGA. The Adobe Acrobat software was ordered on January 27. The list of persons to be invited to the WGA reception and the menu choices are on tonight's agenda. Replies from Chris Shearer of NGS on the D&O insurance and accepting gifts for the WGA are still pending. The status of the endowment legislation is on the agenda. Dan Beaupré of NGS thinks that Richard McEnery, who took photos of the giant North America map at the Puyallup Fair, may be on an extended trip outside the country. The proposed revisions to the travel and expense policy are pending.
The checking account balance as of January 31, 2009 is $544.01. There were three withdrawals during January:
Richard is still awaiting Chris Shearer's answer if NGS could accept and have Boeing match gifts designated for the WGA.
The final files for the giant Washington State map have been received from Allan Cartography of Medford, Oregon. GRCC has paid their invoice of $3,300 from WGA funds.
A Request For Proposal (RFP) has been sent to the following printers by GRCC:
The bids are due February 27 and will be opened March 2 at GRCC. Richard and Heidi will attend. The printing will be completed in time for our reception at Benaroya Hall.
Meghan and Pat need to determine the activities for the Giant Traveling Washington State Map. They will present a plan for developing the activities at the next board meeting.
A visitor log is now available showing the location of the most recent 100 visitors to the web site. International visitors came from Canada, Spain, England, Germany, Sweden, Russia, Turkey, India, and Singapore.
Our reception is scheduled before the Monday, May 11, 2009 NGS Live! Lecture by Mattias Klum entitled "Borneo: Paradise Under Siege."
A motion to select the following six menu items was made by Tim and seconded by Pat. The motion passed unanimously.
Richard will notify Wolfgang Puck Catering of the menu choices.
Heidi has purchased portfolio covers to distribute WGA and NGS materials. Tim will bring 75 maps from his supply at Green River. Meghan will bring the Mapping the Americas toolkit. She will also finish repurposing her brochure and email it to Tim. Richard will check with Boeing about printing the brochure Meghan is creating.
Richard and Heidi met with Stan Cross, Education Building Superintendent at the Puyallup Fair, on February 10. Stan offered the WGA booths 6-8 and 13-15 in first floor of the Education Pavilion on:
As the National Council for Geography Education (NCGE) annual meeting is scheduled for September 23-27, it was the consensus of the board to select Sept. 13 through Sept. 15. Richard will notify Stan of our decision by month's end.
The booth would need to be staffed from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. (11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday). Stan asked if we could have shoe protectors available for those who did not want to take off their shoes. The Fair will provide half-walls to protect the map. We may place a banner on the exterior of the building advertising the giant map.
Meghan will contact NGS to see if they can supply maps and other handouts. Last year the World map was very popular and there were requests for Middle East maps.
A list of persons to staff the booth must be made. Three shifts of volunteers per day are recommended. We need to tell Stan the number of tickets needed in early August.
Richard will check with Stan to see if we could send out flyers with the free student tickets that are distributed. Tim will email Washington State Council for the Social Studies members in early June or late August.
For the steering committee, Richard recommended Rep. Tina Orwall, Jim Glennon (an instructor at Highline Community College), and Katharyne Mitchell (Professor and Chair of the Geography Department at the University of Washington). Tim recommended Richard Morrill (UW emeritus), Katharyne Mitchell (UW), Sarah Elwood (UW), JW Harrington (UW), Nancy Hultquist (CWU), Naomi Jeffrey Peterson (CWU), Martha Henderson (Evergreen), Mary Weir-Cortinas (Elementary), Jan Watson (AP), Kyle Dye (Middle), and Rik Katz (AP).
Richard suggested that the first meeting be before the NGS Live! reception so that the steering committee members could be invited to the reception.
At the National Geographic Education Foundation (NGEF) winter meeting, Tim and Richard will ask them for guidance in drafting a job description for steering committee members.
The revised WGA slide shown before the current NGS Live! lectures follows.
The 2009 Basic Summer Institute will be held July 6-10 (M-F). Tim has made the necessary arrangements with GRCC for classrooms and transportation. Lodging needs to be addressed. In addition, the institute application form needs to be updated.
Seattle Pacific University (SPU) wrote that they would be "pleased to partner with you [WGA] on your summer institute. The credit that we offer through the Center for Professional Education is 5000 level—that is graduate level so cannot be used by students pursuing an undergraduate degree but is very helpful for the K-12 educator." Three credits would be offered. Tim also wants to have SPU process clock hours (Continuing Education Credits or CEUs). Tim will also try to submit a course description by February 20 so that it will be listed in the catalog.
Pat is still gathering information on the Oklahoma and Texas Geographic Alliances poster contests. They will serve as models for our contest.
The Alliance Winter Meeting is scheduled for February 24 (Tuesday) -28th (Saturday) in Washington, DC. Tim and Richard will represent the WGA.
Hill Day is scheduled for Thursday, February 26. Tim and Richard have confirmed appointments with Education legislative aides for Senators Cantwell (WA) and Murray (WA) and Representative Smith (WA-9th). Appointments have been requested with Representatives Rodgers (WA-5th) and Grijalva (AZ-7th).
All day Friday will be spent in an Alliance Coordinators meeting. This will include sessions with our alliance liaison Emily Schell, Ed.D.
NGS asked us to answer the following questions and return the answers by February 18. The board consensus was:
During the discussion, Meghan mentioned that we should set up a meeting with Randy Dorn, the new State Superintendent of Public Instruction, to discuss geographic education and the WGA. She also mentioned that she will be see Caleb Perkins of the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction at the WSCSS conference in March.
On February 11, Richard spoke at length with Representative Orwall regarding the status of the bill funding the Washington Geographic Alliance endowment. In spite of Speaker Chopp's support, she received advice from several Education Committee members that this was not the time to bring our bill forward. Apparently, the state budget shortfall has risen from 6 to 8 billion dollars. Higher education budgets are being cut 10-15% and there is talk of cutting K-12 budgets. She felt that going against their advice would create ill will toward funding the endowment now and in the future.
She suggested waiting until next year's session before introducing our bill. She offered to work with us over the summer to gather additional support for the bill. Richard asked her to contact Speaker Chopp to see if he concurs with this plan of action. While she has yet to get back with Richard, he suspects that Speaker Chopp will concur.
At the January 13 meeting, Kyle Dye was nominated for the Grosvenor Teacher Fellowship Program. The deadline for submitting nominations is May 1. Tim will present a draft of the required paperwork at the next board meeting.
The WGA was registered (#25264) with the state and the current registration lasts until May 31, 2010. The state reports on their web site that the WGA devoted 72% of total expenses to program services during the period July 1, 2007 to June 30, 2008.
The 2009 National Conference of the National Council for Geographic Education will be held in San Juan, Puerto Rico on September 23 – 27, 2009. Before June 22, the conference registration rates are $295 for NCGE members and $370 for non-members. As of January 4, 2009, the cheapest roundtrip airfare from Seattle to San Juan is $463 (traveling the day before and the day after the conference). The conference hotel rates are $159/night for a single/double, $199/night for a triple, $239/night for a quadruple, and $650-$750/night for a suite. There is an 11% room tax.
Presentation proposals are due April 13, 2009. Meghan is planning to submit two proposals. Pat and Tim expressed an interest in attending. Richard might attend if we could exhibit the giant traveling Washington State map.
"Earth Station One" was an exhibit at NGS's Explorers Hall until a few years ago. This interactive show was presented in a 72-seat amphitheater that simulates an orbital flight 23,000 miles above the earth. It is built around an 11-foot globe that is suspended on a cushion of air.
Richard received the following reply from Richard M. McWalters, Director of Exhibits at the National Geographic Museum. "Most of the elements that comprised Earth Station One have been dispersed or recycled with one exception - the big globe. We disassembled the globe and have it in storage. Recently it was determined that NGTV would no longer be using the space where ESO was and so the museum will be reclaiming it for exhibition purposes. We thought about reintroducing the globe since it was an icon that many of our visitors still ask about but ultimately determined that it would not work as it is for our future plans. We have been thinking about donating it to some still unidentified group who might be able to make use of it for educational purposes. If your interest is in the globe itself we would be glad to discuss this with you further."
Tim and Richard plan to meet with Mr. McWalters during the Alliance Winter Meeting.
Heidi has offered warehouse space for assembling Earth Station One.
Heidi reported on International Baccalaureate (IB) Certification Training. The Armand Hammer United World College (UWC) of the American West offers International Baccalaureate (IB) training workshops at its campus in Montezuma, New Mexico. They offer three levels of IB training:
In 2009, the college offers two courses related to geography:
The registration fee is $1,089 rising to $1,139 after May 1 and $1,189 after May 15. The fee includes all instruction, accommodation in a UWC dormitory room, workbook, supplement workbook if provided by workshop leader, dinner on Monday, three meals a day plus refreshments at break times for Tuesday-Thursday, breakfast on Friday, four evening receptions, internet access, access to printers, transportation to and from airport (at stated times—see below), access to athletic facilities and game room, free laundry facilities, parking.
As of February 15, 2009, the lowest airfare from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport to Albuquerque is $450 roundtrip.
Tim and Richard will ask the NGEF their attitude about supporting IB teachers before we consider sponsoring anyone. Tim will also determine if similar courses are available for AP.
This year's National Science Teachers Association conference will be in New Orleans on March 19-22nd. National Geographic Education Programs staff presentations will range from the introduction of National Geographic FieldScope - a pioneering web-based GIS tools for the classroom, to demonstrations of the rich resources available in Google Earth's new Oceans layer. Attendees will learn how to weave geography and science content together in your curriculum, breaking boundaries between topics in literacy, language arts, social studies and science. Get outside with your students with help from programs that combine National Geographic resources with the National Park Service and learn more about "What every science teacher should know about Geography, but is afraid to ask."
National Geographic staff, alliance coordinators and environmental organization leaders will lead you through it all and provide materials, activities, and inspiration that you can take back with you to your classrooms, community and home.
To see a schedule of National Geographic presentations and many others at the NSTA calendar of sessions, please click on the following link:
http://www.nsta.org/conferences/schedule.aspx?id=2009new&action=search&format=Presentation
To attend any of these presentations, you can register for one day, or for a longer period, by simply going to the registration link below:
https://ecommerce.nsta.org/2009NEW/
Meghan asked to attend, the board concurred, and Tim is having GRCC process her travel and registration.
Meghan is giving a presentation on March 13 to the Washington State Council for the Social Studies Annual Leadership Conference at Lake Chelan.
A motion was made by Tim and seconded by Heidi to reimburse Meghan for one night's hotel accommodations and mileage to and from Lake Chelan. The motion passed unanimously with Meghan abstaining.
The next regular meeting of the WGA Board of Directors will be held on Tuesday, March 31, 2009 at 6:30 p.m. in the home of Richard Kennedy and Heidi Morgan, 18825 6th Avenue SW, Normandy Park, Washington.
Respectfully submitted,
/ss/ Richard T. Kennedy
Richard T. Kennedy
Secretary
Approved March 31, 2009