IMHPAC: Development Subcommittee Approved Minutes: 12/21/2023

Meeting Minutes - December 21, 2023 - 2:00 pm via WebEx

Approved by member on March 6, 2024

  • Members Present: Nanette Larson (DMH), Mike Davis, Ray Connor
  • Members Absent: Fred Friedman
  • Other State Staff Present: Melissa Guy (DMH), Nic Pleshe (DMH), Christina Smith (DMH).
  • Call to Order/Introductions/Opening Remarks: Nanette called the meeting to order at 3:08pm. Nic, Mike, and Ray introduced themselves.
  • Approval of Minutes: Nanette shared that there were no Minutes taken during the last meeting. It was her first meeting to Chair, and she had overlooked that being one of the responsibilities. Therefore, there were no Minutes to be approved by the Committee.
  • Development Committee
    • Membership: According to the By-Laws, the Development Committee must consist of five members. With Ron's resignation, the Committee currently has four members (Nanette Larson, Ray Connor, Mike Davis, and Fred Friedman). Sarah Scruggs expressed interest in serving on the Committee. All members present were in agreement that Sarah be recommended to the Council to serve on the Development Committee.
    • Co-chair: Nanette shared that Ron's resignation has left a vacancy for a co-chair for this Committee. Mike Davis volunteered to serve as co-chair. All members present were in agreement that Mike will serve as co-chair.
  • Full Council Membership
    • Continuation - Nic conducted outreach to the slate of members whose terms are set to expire in 2023. The following members responded that they wish to continue their terms: Ray Connor, Mike Davis, Dr. Laura Gilbert Gerber, Sharonda Giles, C.J. O'Hara, Joan Lodge, Sue Schroeder, and Sarah Scruggs. The Committee approved these members for continuation.
    • Unidentified Term - Cindy Backstein's term was not identified on any of the membership lists, nor is she aware of when her term began or is supposed to end. The Committee asked Nic to reach out to her to see if she is interested in continuing. If so, the Committee agreed to have her added to the list of members for Council approval, with her term identified as starting in 2024 with the others.
    • Discontinuation - Two members whose terms are expiring in 2023 responded that they do not wish to continue: Joan Hartman and Mike Miroux. They will be removed from the membership roster, with gratitude for their service to the Council.
    • Four members have not yet responded to the outreach inquiry regarding continuation of membership: Cindy Backstein, Fred Friedman, Robert Dean Phillips, and Rashad Saafir. The Committee decided that, if any of them are present for the January Council meeting, they will be asked at that time if they want to continue. If so, they'll be added to the slate of continuing members. If any of them are not present for the January Council meeting, Nic will continue to outreach them to obtain a response. The Committee agreed that the opportunity for them to respond would be left open for six months, after which time their membership would be discontinued by the Committee if there has been no response. [Per discussion in the Full Council meeting on 1/4/24, no decisions will be made regarding these four names until either the individual(s) respond, or 6 months have passed.]
  • Slate for January Council meeting:
    • Continuing membership:
      • Ray Connor
      • Mike Davis
      • Dr. Laura Gilbert Gerber
      • Sharonda Giles
      • C.J. O'Hara
      • Joan Lodge
      • Sue Schroeder
      • Sarah Scruggs
    • Tentative continuing membership, based on response or presence in the meeting:
      • Cindy Backstein
      • Fred Friedman
      • Robert Dean Phillips
      • Rashad Saafir [Note: Per Matt Fishback, Dr. Saafir has retired from his position, so if the email on file is a work email, that may be why we haven't heard back from him.]
    • Discontinuing membership:
      • Joan Hartman
      • Mike Miroux
  • Survey of membership (classification and geography/region designation) - Melissa (DMH) shared a draft survey, designed to allow Council members to self-identify how they wish to be classified for the Council. The Committee was in favor of the survey and requested that DMH identify how SAMHSA defines the classifications and incorporate those definitions in the survey. Christina & Nic will do the research to obtain the requested information. The Committee also discussed the possibility of allowing members to choose a primary classification and, if applicable, a secondary classification. This may help DMH have more options for meeting SAMHSA's membership requirements. The Committee was in favor of allowing this, with the caveat that the member would be contacted by DMH prior to their classification being changed. Melissa will work on updating the survey with these changes.
  • Public Comment: There were no members of the public present.
  • Adjourn: Meeting adjourned at 3:44pm.