IMHPAC: Development Subcommittee Approved Minutes: 05/23/2024

Meeting Minutes - May 23, 2024 - 2:00 pm via WebEx

Approved by member on August 29, 2024

Members Present: Nanette Larson (DMH), Ray Connor, Shirley Davis, Mike Davis

Members Absent: Fred Friedman, Sarah Scruggs

Other State Staff Present: Melissa Guy (DMH), Nic Pleshe (DMH)

  • Call to Order/Introductions/Opening Remarks: Nanette called the meeting to order at 3:14pm. Melissa began the recording.
  • Approval of Minutes: Nanette apologized for not having the Minutes completed for the previous meeting. She asked for a volunteer to assist with the Minutes going forward. Mike offered to facilitate the meetings if Nanette could be responsible for the Minutes. Also, a reminder that these meetings are recorded, which can be a tool for getting the Minutes done.
  • Member Resignation: Emily LeFew sent an email indicating that she took a position in another state and is submitting her resignation from the Council and the Children/Adolescents subcommittee. Per the member spreadsheet, Nanette indicated that she was from Region 2 and self-identified as a provider. Full Council will be notified that this resignation has occurred and that there is an opening on the Council (see next item for procedures).
  • Procedure for New Member Nominations: The Committee agreed they would like to recommend adding the steps for new members to the by-laws, as outlined below:
    • Council and Committee members are recommended to assist with strategic recruitment based on Council needs (i.e., region and classification).
    • A person is referred, self-referred, or recommended.
    • The person attends/observes a minimum of one meeting, providing the person the opportunity to determine if they want to be considered for membership.
    • If the person is interested, they are asked to submit a letter of interest and a brief description of personal and/or professional experience to either the Council or Development Committee Co-Chair(s). If they send the information to the Council Co-Chair, it will be forwarded to the Development Committee Co-Chairs.
    • The Development Committee reviews information submitted by the new member candidate and considers various demographics of the candidate and how that relates to the current composition of the Council.
    • The Development Committee makes a recommendation to the full Council. The Council votes on approval of new member.
    • The new member completes new member orientation and mandatory training prior to attending the next meeting of the Council.
  • Review of By-Laws: Nanette shared a copy of the by-laws with suggested edits in "Track Changes" mode.
    • Article I: Name: recommend adding "IMHPAC"
    • Article II: Mission, Vision, and Purpose
      • Mission: no changes recommended
      • Vision: no changes recommended
      • Purpose: minor cosmetic changes recommended
    • Article III: Membership
      • Section 1 - Qualifications:
      • Section 2 - Election of Members:
        • Section 2 (a) is where the procedure for adding new members will be proposed (as described in #4 above) to be added as a new Section 2 (b), starting with "The Committee shall solicit nominees…"
        • A discussion of the term "sufficient" ["the ratio of parents of children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances to the other members of the Council is sufficient to provide adequate representation to such parents"] ensued with consideration of whether such terminology is clear and regarding who makes the determination of what number is "sufficient"? Ray recommended that the language be left very general, and it be up to the Development Committee to determine what's "sufficient." Nanette asked if there should also be a similar statement regarding the ratio of persons with mental illnesses. The Committee agreed that the language about parents should be copied/edited to add a similar statement about people who self-identify as consumers/people in recovery.
        • Adding a new subpart to Section 2 led to formatting challenges in the document. This will need attention later.
    • Review of the by-laws will continue during the next meeting of the Committee, starting with Article III, Section 3.
  • Shirley raised a matter she considered to be a grievance and noted that there are no provisions in the by-laws for how a Council member can submit a grievance (this will be noted for the continued review of the by-laws). Shirley's grievance relates to not having received reimbursement for participation in Council and Committee meetings. Nanette offered to inquire about the procedure for reimbursement and suggested that this Committee consider developing written procedures for future reference. Shirley mentioned that this also ties into our discussion of new member candidates in that, if they're not otherwise paid for their participation, we tell them they will receive reimbursement, while it's very difficult to get reimbursed. That diminishes the motivation to recruit new members.
  • Public Comment: There were no members of the public present.
  • Adjourn: Shirley moved to adjourn. Ray seconded. Meeting adjourned at 3:58pm.