Executive Council Meeting Report
March 23, 2017
The NSSLHA Executive Council met on March 23, 2017, at the National NSSLHA Office in Rockville, Maryland. Here you'll find the Summary Report of the meeting.
Executive Council members in attendance were President Chelsea Walker, Vice President for Finance Tatiana Windley, Vice President for Academic Affairs Sally Wilson, Vice President for Student State Officers (AuD) Madison Saunders, Vice President for Student State Officers (SLP) Margaret Pierce, Vice President for Audiology Programming Erica Gardner, Vice President for Government Relations and Public Policy Garrett Nathan, and National NSSLHA Advisor Kathy Shapley.
Executive Council members Vice President for Speech-Language Pathology Programming Melanie Riland and Vice President for Planning Katrina Killian were not in attendance.
Program Director Tracy White and Program Manager Sara Mischo were in attendance.
Opening Remarks
President-Elect Schramm welcomed the Executive Council and opened the meeting promptly at 8:30 a.m.
Program Director Updates
In addition to welcoming the Council, White shared updates about ASHA’s new food reimbursement policy and schedule for Hill Day.
Election Updates
White and Mischo shared updates about the Executive Council and Regional Council election schedule, process, and promotion plans, as well as statistics on how many applications have been started to date.
New Leadership Transition Plans
Walker shared the proposed process and schedule for on-boarding new leadership. The Executive Council engaged in discussion about how to onboard new leadership without having an in-person meeting.
Honors Program Update
Mischo shared updates about the Honors Program schedule and statistics on how many submissions are in the queue. Vice Presidents of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology Student State Officers will contact Regional Councilors and Student State Officers to encourage members and chapters to apply for the Honors Program.
2017–2018 NSSLHA Loves Recipient Discussion
Gardner shared a list of potential 2017–2018 NSSLHA Loves recipients and facilitated a discussion and vote. The NSSLHA Executive Council selected the John Tracy Clinic as the NSSLHA Loves recipient for the 2017–2018 academic year. The John Tracy Clinic is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that provides clinical services for children who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families.
Reporting Out from Council Members
Executive Council members provided updates about their role:
Vice President for Finance—Windley shared updates about NSSLHA’s 2016 budget, compared to 2015. The Executive Council discussed the role of the National Office versus the Executive Council to meet financial and planning goals. The auditors are still closing out the 2016 books, but it is expected that NSSLHA will finish 2016 with $116,843 revenue over expense.
Vice Presidents for Programming—Gardner shared updates about work on the Council for Clinical Certification (CFCC) committee. The committee is discussing audiology assistants and speech-language pathology assistants and how they play a part in the professions. Erica also provided updates on the Special Interest Group committee and the future plans for its newsletter to engage members.
Vice Presidents for Student State Officers—Pierce and Saunders shared updates about (a) transition plans for outgoing Regional Councilors and Student State Officers and (b) ongoing discussions to identify what responsibilities can be changed and/or added between the Regional Councilors and the Student State Officers. The Executive Council discussed the need to increase National NSSLHA membership and ensure that the transition is smooth.
Vice President for Government Relations and Public Policy—Nathan shared an update about advocacy, Hill Day, Virtual Advocacy Day, Student Hill Day in the fall, and his involvement on NSSLHA’s Governmental Relations and Public Policy Committee.
Vice President for Academic Affairs—Wilson shared an update about the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) Academic Affairs Board planning to create PhD-focused information at the ASHA Convention for students. Sally discussed the possibility of working with both Vice Presidents of Student State Officers to find ways to solicit member input for the Academic Affairs Board.
Vice President for Planning—On behalf of Katrina Killian, White shared an update about Killian’s meeting with the ASHA Multicultural Issues Board (MIB) and plans to partner with NSSLHA to create educational webinars and seminars. The MIB has a strong interest in partnering with NSSLHA to increase diversity in both organizations.
President—Walker shared an update about her attendance at the Committee for Leadership Cultivation meeting and the conversations they had about engaging young professionals and speech-language pathology students who are in their clinical fellowship and are transitioning between NSSLHA and ASHA membership. Walker and Schramm will be presenting to ASHA about student leadership development at the local and national levels.
President-Elect—In addition to Walker’s update, Schramm shared an update about (a) attending and maintaining a booth at the Audiology Now! conference and (b) setting up a meeting with her new ASHA mentor, ASHA President-Elect Elise Davis-McFarland.
National Office Update
Tracy White shared updates about the execution of tasks related to NSSLHA’s Strategic Plan. The Executive Council is steadily making progress. In the past year, the Executive Council has focused its efforts on the area of Strategic Goal 1: Improving operational performance. In 2017, the Executive Council and National Office staff will continue their work—in particular, developing tools to help NSSLHA achieve the other three goals enumerated in the Strategic Plan.
Generative Discussion
The Executive Council engaged in a discussion about website content improvements in preparation for launching a new website.
Report from NSSLHA National Advisor
Shapley congratulated the Executive Council on its accomplishments during the past year under the new governance structure.
Report from ASHA Chief Executive Officer
ASHA Chief Executive Officer Arlene A. Pietranton updated the Executive Council on issues currently being addressed by ASHA and answered questions from the Executive Council members. Pietranton provided an overview of the interstate compact for licensure that ASHA is currently underwriting regarding the opportunity for the Council of State Governance to put together an interstate compact. In addition, Pietranton discussed the Value of the CCCs campaign that helps policymakers and decision makers understand who is qualified to provide services, who should have access to services, and how services are paid for.
Closing Remarks
The meeting was adjourned at 4:06 p.m.