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Agenda
Agenda
Saint John’s Arboretum Advisory Council Meeting
Monday, October 3, 2005
Room 150 New Science Building, Saint John’s University
10:00-11:30 PR/Membership Committee Meeting (Meet in New Science Center, Room 150) - See attached agenda and list of committee members. Optional, but all are welcome.
11:30 – 12:30 Lunch (optional, meet at office in New Science Building)
12:45 – 2:00 Land Stewardship Committee Meeting (Meet in New Science Center, Room 108- Tom’s Office) See attached agenda and list of committee members. Optional, but all are welcome.
Or take optional self-guided walk on Arboretum trails
2:00 - 2:30 Gather for refreshments and conversation (Meet in New Science Center, Room 150)
2:30 Full Council Meeting (Tom)
Welcome & Introductions-Emily Franklin (Fellow), Abby Johnstone (CSB Senate Rep), Matthew Voight (SJU Senate Rep) and Mike Brown (new AAC member)
Tom provides overview on time in Texas aiding evacuees of Hurricane Katrina
2:45 Review of Annual Report (Emily)
University budget update (CSB/SJU Academic Affairs)
Revisit and reaffirm goals and existing accomplishments for FY 06 (Sarah)
3:15 Committee Reports:
Fundraising Committee:
Update on totals for EE Endowment Fund (Larry)
Institutional Advancement update (John Taylor)
Grants (Emily)
Plans for silent auction at membership appreciation party (Scott)
3:45 Community Education: (Sarah)
Fee Structure
Homecoming and Collegeville Colors
K-12 Education: (Sarah)
New Curriculum
ISD 742 Grade Level Meetings
CSB/SJU Education: (Sarah)
Student Senate Representatives
Environmental Studies Department connections
4:15 Lands: (Tom Haeg)
Vision for Walz property (Tom)
Chapel trail and Chapel renovation update
Environmental Education/Ski building
Beneficial use of ash on trails
4:45 PR/membership:
Discuss ideas generated at the MN Landscape Arboretum (Sarah/Emily)
CSB/SJU marketing class participation in member survey (Sarah/Emily)
Water bottles and patches (Scott)
5:15 Admin/Volunteers:
Set schedule for future meeting dates in February and May
Introduction to Collegeville, Mike and Michael Sipe book
Time for other business
5:30 Meeting closes
Next Arboretum Council meeting is scheduled for Friday, Dec. 2, 2005
Our member appreciation open house will also be that evening.
Committee Updates – for October 3, 2005
PreK-12 Education
We hosted Kindergarten, 1st, 4th and 5th grade teachers this August for our annual teacher training. 35 teachers attended and we showed them our new on-site curriculum.
The MN DNR awarded us with a grant to make new Kindergarten and 1st grade trunks filled with pre and post activities for the teachers to do with their classes surrounding their visit to the Arboretum. We hope to get the trunks out to the schools soon!
We are already booked with classes through the second week of November. We are looking forward to a busy fall full of classes.
CSB/SJU Education
The Arboretum played a role during freshman orientation for the first time this year. Every freshman who attended orientation got a brief talk about the Arboretum and spent some time walking on the trails with our staff.
The Arboretum is employing 5 student naturalists, 15 student naturalist aides, 2 land laborers, and 1 environmental studies intern and 1 Avon Hills intern this fall semester.
Community Education
Richard Bresnahan gave a tour of his pottery studio and Johanna kiln to 23 Arboretum members in late September. He is getting ready for the firing of the kiln in October and we appreciated the time he took to explain the process to us!
This summer saw a number of events for members and the community including Work Day Wednesdays, a Buckthorn Removal Clinic, a Watercolor class, and a Prairie Wildflower Walk. We reached a number of new people with our events and welcome them to the Arboretum community.
See website for listing of other upcoming events. http://www.csbsju.edu/arboretum
Public Relations and Membership Benefits
Expansion of membership benefits in order to retain and attract members. Ideas include:
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Become member of the American Horticultural Society in order to offer our members reciprocal admissions at over 180 select arboreta and gardens nationwide (Minnesota Landscape Arboretum is a member of AHS)
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Explore options with the bookstore (new partnership) to perhaps offer a one time discount on “Arboretum books”
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Coupon book to insert in new member packets or in a newsletter mailing. Coupons could be from local garden centers/greenhouses, perhaps SJU bookstore as well.
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Explore option of including estate planning on our membership card (this will need to be cleared with Institutional Advancement before implementation)
We will be working with current CSB/SJU students enrolled in a marketing class to conduct a membership survey for the Arboretum. Potential questions include the types of programs members would like to see offered, soliciting writers for the newsletter, and ways to increase membership involvement.
General brochures and Environmental Education brochures were created during the summer months. General brochures contain a membership form. Membership forms were also made available online this summer.
Water bottles have been offered as new incentive for membership and will be sold at CSB/SJU events. They are currently “all the rage” with students and provide renewing members with a new incentive to continue membership. Arboretum patches have also been offered to students as another alternative.
Fundraising
EE endowment now totals 30, 505 as of August 5, 2005. Endowment donations are still trickling in, and periodically are included in a general membership donation (i.e. $40 for a membership, $20 for the EE fund).
We received two grants this summer in order to continue to fund busing costs and provide traveling trunks to kindergarten and 1st grade teachers. Xcel Energy granted us $3,500 for expansion of the K-6 environmental education field study program. The DNR granted us $5,000. We have already used $1600 of the total $5000 grant to provide trunks to kindergarten and 1st grade students and teachers for the 2005-2006 academic year. These sources will be solicited again for busing and other EE costs this coming spring, as we have historically had success with these sources.
We did not receive funding from the EPA proposal ($10,000 grant proposal). We solicited and received score sheets from EPA which provided us with constructive criticism to improve our proposal this coming December.
A spreadsheet was created this past summer which tracks our grant proposals, successful funding sources, and unsuccessful sources. This tool will aide future fellows in soliciting proposals and tracking when proposals must be closed out.
Currently, grant research has been narrowed to general operating grants until a focus for EE programming can be determined. Potential funders include the Steven C. Leuthold Foundation and the Osilas Foundation. Proposals will also be submitted to the DNR, EPA, and Xcel Energy. Emily will be attending two grant writing workshops in the coming months.
Lands
Tom Kroll and Br. Benedict met with the Walz family to express our interest in helping them retain the rural nature of the landscape. The Walz property consists of 400 acres and connects Saint Ben’s and Saint John’s.
Tom K is part of a committee of the Prep School and Br. Linus that has met several times with a donor and architect regarding the design and cost of reconstructing the Chapel and Chapel trail as a gift from the Prep School to Saint John’s in honor of the Sesquicentennial.
Tom and Dan Vogel walked the entire Chapel Trail with University of MN Professor Mel Baughman to determine the repair needs. Mel specializes in trails.
Trail upgrade work continued on the Chapel trail and on the Boardwalk loop this summer.
Tree planting was successful this spring and the survival ration is high. All planted conifer seedlings were also been treated with a deer repellant in September.
56 applicants have applied for the 32 deer hunting slots.
Program Administration and Volunteer Management
The Annual Report for FY 05 was completed in July. Highlights include:
Increase in preK-12 participation in the EE field study program (4,387 in FY 05)
Increase in CSB/SJU participation in Arboretum events, classes and volunteer opportunities (882 participants in FY 05)
Increase in Community Ed participation (1,888 in FY 05)
Increase in total memberships (276 in FY 05)
Completion of Strategic Plan for 2005-2010
Agenda for Lands Committee on October 3rd, 2005
12:45 – 2:00 Land Stewardship Committee Meeting (Meet in New Science Center, Room 108- Tom’s Office) See list of committee members. All are welcome.
Wind Energy towers (Tom)
Vision for Walz property (Tom)
Orienteering course
New trail signs
Chapel trail and Chapel renovation update
Frisbee golf course
Environmental Education/Ski building
Beneficial use of ash on trails
Members of the Lands Committee of Saint John’s Arboretum Advisory Council: September, 2005
Tom Kroll, tkroll@csbsju.edu
Br. Isadore Gleyer, O.S.B., Iglyer@csbsju.edu
David Hartwell
Steve Saupe, ssaupe@csbsju.edu
Ron Wienhold
Dave Johnson, djskinordic@csbsju.edu
Sister Phyllis Plantenberg, O.S.B, pplantenberg@csbsju.edu
Fr. Bruce Wollmering, O.S.B., bwollmering@csbsju.edu
John Elton, jelton@csbsju.edu
Agenda for PR/ Membership Committee Meeting
10:00-11:30 PR/Membership Committee Meeting (Meet in New Science Center, Room 150) - See attached list of committee members. All are welcome.
Suggestions from Landscape Arboretum visit-what to adopt/change
Membership benefits-changes and additions
Marketing survey by student group
New merchandise-waterbottles and patches
Membership numbers report
Members of the PR & Membership Committee of Saint John’s Arboretum Advisory Council: September 2005
Janette Monear, jmonear@aol.com
Scott May, jsm@cloudnet.com
Larry Schwietz, larryschwietz@aol.com
Emily Franklin, efranklin@csbsju.edu
Stephanie O'Keefe, smokeefe@aol.com