DeKalb County Community Mental Health Board
245 West Exchange Street, Sycamore, Illinois 60178

May 19, 2008

                                Approved

Board Members Present:  Charles G. Rose, Doug Fraley, Eileen Dubin, Cynthia Luxton,

                                             Donna Schoenfeld, Thomas Kirts, Janice Abizaid                         

Board Members -Excused Absence:  Robert Krogman

Board Members - Absent:  None. 

Other Persons Present:  None

Office Staff Present:  Elizabeth Carney, Kathy Ostdick                                                                          

1.  CALL TO ORDER

The meeting was called to order by the President, Mr. Rose, at 7:02 p.m.

2.  AGENDA

Ms. Dubin moved to approve the agenda as presented; seconded by Dr. Kirts.  The motion passed unanimously on a voice vote.

3.  INTRODUCTIONS

No introductions were needed.

4.  MINUTES 

Dr. Kirts moved to approve the minutes of the April 2008 Board meeting; seconded by Mr. Fraley. The motion passed unanimously on a voice vote.

Due to a family emergency, Ms. Carney asked to give the Director’s Report in this time slot, so she could attend to the family member.  She gave a brief report on the agenda items and left the meeting. 

5.  COMMUNITY INPUT

There was no community input.

6.  CORRESPONDENCE AND ANNOUNCEMENTS

There were none. 

7.  FINANCE REPORTS

Ms. Abizaid moved to approve the May 2008 agency claims in the amount of $125,586.04; seconded by Ms. Schoenfeld.  The motion passed unanimously on a roll call vote.

Ms. Abizaid moved to approve the May 2008 office claims in the amount of $2,261.14; seconded by Ms. Dubin.  The motion passed unanimously on a roll call vote.

8.  BOARD MEMBER ISSUES

Mr. Fraley discussed three articles that he brought in for members.  The first was “Invisible Wounds of War,” on psychological and cognitive injuries, another on  post-war suicide, and a third on the care of soldiers leaving Afghanistan and Iraq.

9.  DIRECTOR’S REPORT

The Director’s Report was given earlier in the meeting.

10.  COMMITTEE REPORTS

Executive Committee: 

Mr. Rose gave a brief summary of the May Executive Committee meeting.  Ms. Carney is working with Joel Cowen on the Community Assessment survey and will bring the final product to the Board when it is finished.  Hiring a consultant for strategic planning was discussed.  The candidate that the Board requested be appointed has been approved by the County Board Executive Committee but still requires the approval of the County Board.  The Committee also discussed the recommendation of John Farrell, State’s Attorney’s office, for a best practice for Board compliance with the Freedom of Information Act. And lastly the Board office has requested a January and July schedule for reviewing closed meeting minutes. 

Finance Committee: 

Ms. Dubin gave a brief summary of the May Finance Committee meeting.  The committee discussed the remaining items open for allocation, including the Ben Gordon Center’s Advanced Practice Nurse allocation.  

Personnel and Nominations Committee: 

Mr. Fraley reported that the Committee met and discussed a slate of officers for the upcoming term.  Mr. Rose has agreed to be nominated for the position of President for a second year, and Ms. Luxton has agreed to be nominated for the position of Vice-President for another year.  There is not yet a nominee for Secretary. 

The Committee also discussed Board communication and the Executive Director’s job description was reviewed.

11.  OLD BUSINESS

Strategic Planning Consultant: Ms. Carney discussed the Board’s request for strategic planning consultation with Ms. Nancy Sylvester and she submitted a letter with information about her services.

The Board reviewed this information. 

Ms. Luxton moved to accept the proposal by Nancy Sylvester for Strategic Planning training for the Board; seconded by Mr. Rose.  The motion passed on a roll call vote.

Outcomes Training: Ms. Schoenfeld will be conducting a training on Outcomes Management Systems for the Board before the June meeting.

GY09Allocations:   Remaining funding requests and appeals were discussed.

The appeal letter from the DeKalb County Youth Service Bureau was reviewed.

Ms. Abizaid moved to allocate an additional $10,000 to the DeKalb County Youth Service Bureau; seconded by Ms. Dubin.  The motion passed on a roll call vote.

The appeal letter from Safe Passage was reviewed.  It was decided to ask Safe Passage to provide figures for a full-time counseling position for further review.

The appeal letter from Opportunity House for capital funds over a three-year period was reviewed.  This allocation was tabled to another meeting when further information can be provided.  There was also discussion about the Board’s preference to allocate on a yearly basis, rather than approving an allocation that would be distributed over several years. 

The Ben Gordon Center Advanced Practice Nurse allocation was discussed. 

Mr. Fraley moved that for GY09, to complete the GY08 Advanced Practice Nurse funding of up-to $105,000 and to allocate up-to an additional $70,000 to be utilized through the end of Grant Year 2009, out of line item 8201; seconded by Ms. Dubin.  The motion passed on a roll call vote.

The Ben Gordon Center additional positions were discussed.  It was decided to fund 3 of the requested positions.

Mr. Fraley moved to fund the following 3 positions up to a total for all positions of $150,000 out of line item 8201; one adult mental health masters level non-licensed professional at $35,000 plus 25% fringe benefits, one BA level case manager/vocational specialist at $27,000 plus 25% fringe benefits, and one FTE Psychiatric RN at $60,000 plus 25% fringe benefits.  Seconded by Dr. Kirts.  The motion passed on a roll call vote. 

Community Assessment Contract:  The Community Assessment contract had been previously discussed and the questions about the Board’s insurance have been resolved.  The contract needs signature by the President and the Board directed the President to sign the contract.

State’s Attorney FOIA recommendation:  The Board discussed options for compliance with the Freedom of Information Act.  It was decided that a stapled packet of current meeting information would be brought to each Board meeting for viewing.

12.  NEW BUSINESS

Schedule approval and release of closed session minutes:  It was decided to review the closed session minutes every January and July for determination of whether they will remain closed or be opened for public posting.

FY2007 Audit Recommendations:  This will be discussed with the Auditor at a Board meeting.

Board Financial Policy:  The policy will also be discussed with the Auditor at a Board meeting.

13.  ADJOURNMENT

The meeting was adjourned at 9:10 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,

_____________________________________

 Charles G. Rose, President     

_________________________________

Kathy Ostdick, Recording Secretary

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