July 28, 2002

Nolan Clark, Chair Present
James Steele, Past Chair Present
Ken Lomax, District 1 Rep. Present
Billy Barfield, District 2 Rep Absent
John Reid, District 3 Rep. Absent
John Miles, District 4 Rep. Present
Gary Anderson, District 5 Rep. Present
Larry Jacobson, Awards Committee Rep. Present
Dennis Buffington, Education Rep. Present
Michael Delwiche, BE Rep. Present
Adel Shirmohammadi, SW Rep Present
Conley Hansen, FPEI Rep. Absent
Gary Riskowski, SE Rep. Present
Robert Graves, PEI Rep. Absent
Scott Shearer, PM Rep. Present
Jeremiah Davis, Preprofessional Rep. Present
Russell Persyn, Student Organizations Present
John Worley, Section Steering Committee Rep. Present
Michael Ngadi, CSAE/SCGR Rep. Absent
Paul Heinemann, NABEC Rep. Present
Zach Henry, International Commission Rep. Present
Marilyn Dumolien, BOT Liaison Present
Kelly Detra, BOT Liaison Present
Mark Crossley, Secretary Present

Guests: Neil Detra, Billy Lawson, Wayne Coates, Bill Koenig, Fred Payne, Neil McLaughlin, Curt Weller, Lalit Verma, John Cundiff, Qin Zhang, Lal Kushwaha, Lyle Stephens, Wayne Skaggs, Bob Gustafson

The meeting was called to order at 1:35 p.m. and introductions of the attendees were made.

Confirmation of Quorum Present
MDC bylaws state that there must be a quorum of no less that 40% of Council members present in order to conduct MDC business. There was a quorum present.

Review of Agenda
The agendas for both MDC meetings were then reviewed and additions to the agenda were requested. There were no additions.

Approval of Minutes
After review of the minutes from the 7/29/01 and 8/2/01 Sacramento meetings and the 11/20/01 and 5/14/02 conference call meetings (Attachment A), the following corrections were made.

- Wayne Coates should have been listed as the International Commission representative instead of Zach Henry at the 7/29/01 meeting.
- Wayne was in attendance at the 8/2/01 meeting.

The minutes will be edited to reflect the changes. With these changes, the following motion was made:

Motion: To approve the minutes from the four meetings as written. Seconded and passed.

Results of E-Mail Ballots for the Period 8/2/01 - 7/27/02
Four e-mail ballots were put before the MDC during this period (Attachment B). One to conceptually approve and support the funding proposal brought forth by P-414 Engineering Registration Committee and to forward the proposal to the Foundation for further funding consideration; one to establish a student mechanization branch at Utah State University, Logan UT; one to endorse and lend support to the cooperative agreement between AOCABFE and ASAE; and one to establish a student branch at The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. All were approved. The following motion was made:

Motion: To officially confirm and approve the results of the four e-mail ballots. Seconded and passed.

Grass Roots Section Funding Update
The program would enable sections to obtain monies from the ASAE Foundation to assist with local section activities such as bringing in a section speaker or supporting administrative costs associated with a fundraiser. If the section makes a profit on the event, they would be expected to pay the money back to the Foundation. If not, the monies would be forgiven. Guidelines and a submittal form are now ready for promotion to sections (Attachment C) and this program will be announced at the Section Steering Committee (SSC) meeting on Monday, 7/29.

The approval process stipulates that the MDC lend their endorsement to a proposal before it goes to the Foundation for funding consideration. Nolan proposed that a committee of four MDC members comprised of the chair; current vice chair or past chair (depending on the year); the district representative from where the proposal originated; and the SSC representative be established to review each section submittal.

Motion: To accept the Grass Roots Section Funding Program guidelines as written and to establish a four-person MDC review committee as outlined above. Seconded.

Discussion: It was pointed out that only active sections should be allowed to apply for funding. There was unanimous agreement with this comment.
The motion passed.

Quarter Scale Initiative Fund Proposal Update
Nolan gave an overview of the proposal, which was presented by P-126 in Sacramento. They asked for funding for the purchase of display and promotional materials to outfit a walk-through trailer to take to farm shows, schools and other related events. They requested funding for two display booths and graphics for the outside of the trailer for a total of $20,189. This would not only benefit the Quarter Scale Competition, but would create awareness for ASAE in general.

After this proposal was brought forward last year, it went to the Foundation with endorsement from the MDC. The Foundation chose not to fund it, so it went to the Initiative Fund committee. The Committee recently reviewed the proposal, were divided on the outcome and brought it to the Board of Trustees for a vote at their meeting earlier today. The Board voted to fund the proposal at $20,000. P-126 will begin work on putting the displays together and getting decals for the trailer. Everything may be ready by this fall.

Career Brochure Revision
Nolan took this time to hand out the newly revised ASAE Career Brochure, which was updated to reflect more of the biological side of ASAE. The brochures are available from headquarters for distribution.

Reports from ASAE Leadership
Wayne Skaggs and Lyle Stephens stopped by to highlight a few issues of importance. They began by thanking MDC members for their hard work over the last year. The strategic goals were addressed which included emphasizing the biological component and how ASAE is the home for biological engineering.

They reported that ASAE would be withdrawing our membership in the American Association of Engineering Societies (AAES) as of 12/31/02, because we feel we are not getting enough benefits to justify the amount of dues paid.

Wayne Skaggs stated that over the last year we have raised over $20,000 in pledges and contributions through the Foundation for the Legacy Fund to put pre-2001 technical publications on the ASAE Technical Library. To date, 2000 journals have been added and some 1999 issues have been added as well.

Bob Gustafson and Lal Kushwaha were then introduced as the ASAE President designate and CSAE President respectively.

Fred Payne, liaison from the Finance Committee gave an overview of the current year ASAE budget forecast. Dues income has been reduced due to a reduction in the average dues amount per member as well as a reduction in retention rates. This is mainly due to negative effects from the dues increase. He stated that budgeting for 2003 would be more realistic with an emphasis on balancing the budget.

He also reported that the restricted reserve is currently at 45.5%, which is below the target of 50%. With this in mind, it is predicted that there will most likely not be an Initiative Fund for 2003.

ABET Certification Issues (P-204)
Lalit Verma began with an overview of P-204 activities and how in June of 2000, a single criterion for agricultural engineering was established and presented to ABET. P-204 and P-210 Academic Program Administrators Committee held a joint meeting to determine how to best consolidate and name academic programs. Should they be named agricultural or biological engineering? It was unanimously determined that biological engineering was the way to go. This was then taken to the ABET board and in 2001, the program criteria was accepted. The question that is now at the forefront in ABET is which professional society will be the home for biological engineering? Lalit feels that ASAE needs to develop a position paper that illustrates why the Society needs to be the leader for in this area. Other associations such as AIChE pose a direct threat, as they want to be the home for biological engineering as well. There will be an article in the August issue of Resource on this matter. It was pointed out that it is critical that ASAE act on this immediately. Whoever the lead society is on this issue needs to garner support from societies within ABET.

Engineering Registration Issues (P414)
Curt Weller began by stating that only 20% of all eligible agricultural engineers ever sit for the PE exam and that civil engineers hold the bulk of PE licenses. He further said that approximately 50 agricultural engineers take the exam each year and only 60% pass.

As it currently stands, ASAE pays all expenses for exam preparation. There is currently a study guide available, but it is in a draft format and will be presented later this week. He also reported that the fundamentals of engineering (FE) exam is undergoing format changes as well. He urged that students take the FE exam before graduation, as it is excellent practice for taking the PE exam later.

Retiree Dues Subcommittee Update
Jim Stele reported that the subcommittee had no report to give at this time. They are in need of more time to look at the current dues structure for retirees and to develop something further if it is deemed necessary. Jim asked for input from the MDC and suggested that a survey of retirees may need to be conducted to obtain further information. The Subcommittee will meet before the Thursday meeting and will report back at that time.

Bylaws Subcommittee Update
Nolan distributed a handout of the current MDC bylaws with some suggested revisions (Attachment D). He stated that any changes made to the bylaws must be voted on by written ballot within 30 days of discussion at any MDC meeting. The changes the Subcommittee is suggesting revolve around the composition of the Council and how the Executive Committee handles urgent situations. There were a few other editorial changes as well. Please see the attachment for further details.

MDC Vice Chair Nomination
Jim Steele reported that the subcommittee had a short list of potential nominees after requesting input from the MDC and that they were asked to rank their choices. He then stated that Gary Anderson was the top nominee and has agreed to serve the one-year term as vice chair for 2002/2003.

Motion: To elect Gary Anderson as Vice Chair of the MDC for 2002/2003. Seconded and passed.

With no further business before the Council the meeting adjourned at 3:15 p.m. The next MDC meeting will be on Thursday, 8/1/02 at 8:00 a.m.

Membership Development Council Meeting
August 1, 2002

Nolan Clark, Chair Present
James Steele, Past Chair Present
Ken Lomax, District 1 Rep. Present
Billy Barfield, District 2 Rep Absent
John Reid, District 3 Rep. Absent
John Miles, District 4 Rep. Present
Gary Anderson, District 5 Rep. Present
Larry Jacobson, Awards Committee Rep. Present
Dennis Buffington, Education Rep. Absent
Michael Delwiche, BE Rep. Absent
Adel Shirmohammadi, SW Rep Present
Conley Hansen, FPEI Rep. Present
Gary Riskowski, SE Rep. Absent
Robert Graves, PEI Rep. Absent
Scott Shearer, PM Rep. Absent
Jeremiah Davis, Preprofessional Rep. Present
Russell Persyn, Student Organizations Present
John Worley, Section Steering Committee Rep. Present
Michael Ngadi, CSAE/SCGR Rep. Absent
Paul Heinemann, NABEC Rep. Present
Zach Henry, International Commission Rep. Absent
Marilyn Dumolien, BOT Liaison Present
Kelly Detra, BOT Liaison Present
Mark Crossley, Secretary Present

Guests: Wayne Coates, Neil McLaughlin, Fred Payne, Qin Zhang, Peter Ling, Jin Zhu

The meeting was called to order at 8:05 a.m. and introductions of the attendees were made.

Additions to the Agenda
Report on life membership issues.

Retiree Dues Report
Jim Steele reported that he and Paul Heinemann met and determined that they need further time to gather information and feedback. Jim requested that he be allowed to stay on as chair of the committee even though his term on the MDC is concluding at the end of this meeting. He will chair the subcommittee and Russell Persyn and Paul Heinemann will assist.

It was suggested from other MDC members that we determine what it is we have to draw senior members into the Society and what we offer that will keep them. We may need to develop a Retiree Committee to determine this.

2003 ASAE Strategic Goals & MDC Responsibilities
Marilyn Dumolien began with an overview of the background behind the creation of the 2003 strategic goals. About 1.5 years ago, the Councils were asked for input as to what goals ASAE should focus on in the near future. The BOT took the list, grouped similar ideas together and created a list of possible goals and corresponding metrics. A subcommittee of the BOT then pared the list down to its current form (Attachment E). During the BOT discussion of the goals, it was decided that "biological" would be emphasized as the primary focus. It is the Board's belief that if the goals are achieved, the Society will grow.

Marilyn then outlined the timeline and the goals and associated strategies for which the MDC may have responsibility. She pointed out that the BOT is only suggesting that the Councils may wish to tackle a specific strategy. This is not direction from the Board. The decision is ultimately up to the individual Council. Each goal with MDC responsibility was then reviewed.

Goal #1 Promote ASAE leadership in biological engineering.
The first goal was changed by the BOT on Sunday. It should now read "Promote ASAE leadership in biological engineering." The MDC felt that the second strategy under goal one "Publicize ASAE member participation in biological science professional meetings" belongs under the Meeting Council and not the MDC and that the wording was ambiguous.

Goal #2 Be a global resource for information and technology related to engineering in agricultural, food, and biological systems.
Under the strategy "Promote communication and connectivity among the members", it was
pointed out that we do this already.

Goal #3 Promote and strengthen the profession of engineering in agricultural, food, and biological engineering.
It was agreed that the strategy "Develop a mentoring program" was a good one on which the MDC should focus.

Goal #4 Be a global center for engineering standards and practices for agricultural, food, and biological systems and associated industries.
The MDC has no direct responsibility under any of the strategies here.

Goal #5 Develop and maintain a partnership with industry.
Under "Identify and pursue opportunities for partnering with industries that apply engineering to
biological systems" the MDC felt that another metric should be added which measures the number of industry contacts made through specialty conference outreach. All of the remaining strategies seemed attainable by the MDC with the assistance of the Standards Council as well.

Goal #6 Ensure that the Society and its members are recognized worldwide as central to the profession of engineering in agricultural, food, and biological systems.
The MDC felt that all of the strategies were attainable, but felt that the Meetings Council needed to be involved with "Establishing a bureau of speakers."

Member Statistics to Date
Please see Attachment F for a complete list of member statistics. Concerns were raised about the low student retention rate and how to best increase it.

Member Surveys
The CESSE member satisfaction survey was then discussed. This survey is written by CESSE and is offered every two years to its members. 2,000 randomly selected full ASAE members were surveyed and their responses were compiled and analyzed. Overall, the trends show that most areas of satisfaction are up from two years ago. Please see the survey summary for further details.

In early April, exit surveys were mailed to all members who let their memberships lapse. Their responses were then tallied and may be found in Attachment G. Overall, the main reasons for not reinstating memberships seems to point to the dues increase and the price of retiree dues.

Budget 2003
Nolan then asked for additions to the 2003 budget. There were none. He then appointed the Budget Subcommittee for 2002-2003, which consists of Nolan, Gary Anderson, John Miles and Gary Riskowski. They will be reviewing the 2003 budget shortly and making a recommendation to the rest of the MDC by mid-September.

Awards and Student Competitions
M-102 Awards Coordinating - Larry Jacobson reported that the Committee is looking into going from a three to a two page online submission form for the Young Engineering Awards and that direction is more explicit concerning letters of recommendation. He also stated that AGCO has dropped their sponsorship and funding of the student design competition.

P-120 Student Organizations - Russell Persyn stated that they have passed their new bylaws. The MDC now needs to review and approve the bylaws and will do so via e-mail ballot after the meeting. When the P-120 bylaws have final approval, P-120 will complete the Graduate Student Research Award rules and bylaws.

Russell also reported that there is a new biological engineering student design competition in the works, which has yet to be named. It will encompass biosensors in some manner and ASAE members from NASA are involved as well.

The ASAE Foundation has approved funding through the Gunlogson Fund to fund the Environmental Design Student Competition. Next year's competition will revolved around fountains and is tentatively entitled Fountain Wars.

Lastly, Russell reported that submissions the new student scholarship available through the Foundation were up this year.

Life Membership
The Life Membership Subcommittee, appointed by Nolan at a past meeting, took a closer look at life membership issues. After a quick definition, Nolan said that the Subcommittee was considering making it a prerequisite that a member have at least 15 years of full membership before they could be eligible to pay life member dues. The Subcommittee will continue to look at this issue.

Reports
-IET Division - Peter Ling reported that the division has been approached about the development of a student robotic competition. There will be a demonstration at the Las Vegas Annual International Meeting next summer
.
-Section Steering - John Worley said that the Committee discussed the new Grass Roots Incentive Funding Program, section member online search capabilities now available to section chairs and an overview of all benefits and services available to sections from headquarters. The Committee also has requested that they be given a committee number like the others have. The number will be MDC-S02.

-District #1 Attachment H
-District #2 No report
-District #3 No report
-District #4 Attachment I
-District #5 No report

-International Commission - It was reported that to date there are 166 members taking advantage of the low-income country electronic memberships. There has also been a request from some Chinese members to offer a more deeply discounted dues rate to members living on mainland China if they pay for 4 or 5 years in one lump sum. The International Commission feels that making exception to the already discounted rates may not set a good precedent. The financial ramifications need to be studied before a final decision is made.

The cooperative agreement with the Indian Society of Agricultural Engineers seems to have hit a few snags along the way and nothing has been finalized yet. Considering the problems with this it was suggested that ASAE look at establishing international sections instead of cooperative agreements.

In the past there was some question as to who from ASAE serves as the CIGR representative. The representative comes through the International Commission to the MDC and finally to the BOT. Wayne Coates is the current CIGR representative.

-Preprofessional Council - Jeremiah Davis reported that the preprofessional officers had their winter retreat at headquarters this past December. They had a great meeting and got to learn more about headquarters. He also reported that the preprofessional mixer held on Saturday was a great success with double the amount of students who were expected to attend.

-Headquarters - Attachment J. It was requested that the quarterly reports that are prepared for the BOT also be sent to the MDC as well in the future.

Mark Crossley reported that headquarters was considering only publishing the names of officers in the Member Roster and listing the full committee listing on the Web. After short deliberation the following motion was offered.

Motion: To keep the full committee listings in the Member Roster and to not abbreviate them in any way. Seconded and passed.

-BOT Liaisons Report given under 2003 ASAE Strategic Goals & MDC Responsibilities section above.

-SW Division - Adel Shirmohammadi stated that a request from SW-02 was submitted to M-102 which requested that each division have their own paper awards judged and ranked by the Paper Awards Committee of each division. The maximum number of paper awards would be based on the number of papers published by that division.

Organization of the MDC for 2002-2003 and Schedule for Council Meetings
Nolan Clark presented certificates of appreciation for those MDC whose terms concluded at this meeting and thanked them for their service.

The MDC meeting schedule for the next year is as follows:

2002
-November Conference Call - time yet to be determined.

2003
-April Conference Call - time yet to be determined.
-July 20, 1:30 - 3:30 p.m., Annual International Meeting, Riviera Hotel, Las Vegas
-July 24, 8:00 - 10:00 a.m., Annual International Meeting, Riviera Hotel, Las Vegas
-November Conference Call - time yet to be determined

With no further business before the MDC, the meeting adjourned at 9:55 a.m.