Minutes of the Winter Meeting of the Illinois Classical Conference Advisory Council held on Saturday, February 3, 2007, at the Corner Bakery, 224 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL.

Members present: Elisa Denja*, Marilyn Brusherd*, Virginia Anderson*, Alice Mulberry*, Elizabeth Skoryi*, Jennifer Draper*, William N. L. Draper, Lanetta Warrenburg*, Vicki Wine*, James Chochola*, John Makowski, and Stephen Pilewski*.

Members present by proxy: Lois Dion*, William Napiwocki*, Mary Lee Muniz*, Victoria Henderson*, Rickie Crown*, Laurie Jolicoeur*, Thomas Sienkewicz*, Anna Dybis*, and Mary Ann Beatty*.

Call to order: With a quorum present (7 required) President Alice Mulberry called the meeting to order at 8:35am. President Mulberry welcomed everyone and thanked them for attending on such a cold day.

Secretary’s Report: Stephen Pilewski reported that the minutes of the 3 previous meetings (Advisory Council on 10/6/06, First General Business on 10/7/06, and Second General Business on 10/8/06) held at the State House Inn in Springfield were published both on the ICC website and in the Augur (Jan., 2007, pp. 9-13). Since there were no corrections to the minutes, Elisa Denja moved, seconded by Elizabeth Skoryi, to approve the minutes of the 3 previous meetings as published. The motion passed by acclamation.

Treasurer’s Report: Elizabeth Skoryi presented the ICC’s financial report and listed the status of each account. Regarding the Harvard Commencement DVD of Caitlin Gillespie, 100 were made, 10 sold, and remittance is pending on 5. Discussion ensued on various ideas for marketing the remaining 85 copies, including outlets such as ACL and CAMWS. Jennifer Draper then moved, seconded by Marilyn Brusherd, to accept the Annual Treasurer’s Report as of 2/3/07. The motion passed by acclamation.

Newsletter Editor’s Report: Marilyn Brusherd thanked all for their submissions to the Augur and encouraged existing as well as new contributors to submit material to her. She is always looking for material that may benefit the readers of the Augur. Marilyn reported that 135 copies of the January, 2007 Augur were mailed out, and that $40 were saved due to limiting the edition to 28 pages. She commended Elizabeth Skoryi for all her help in duplicating, compiling, and mailing the Augur. James Chochola asked about the idea raised at the previous Advisory Council meeting (10/6/06) of charging advertisers the published rate in order to use the revenue for rising postage and material/duplication costs. The discussion that followed seemed to indicate that drawing the line between advertisers and entities with announcements would be difficult. For example, should the Augur charge for listing teacher vacancies, contest results, scholarship announcements, and opportunities for professional development, or would the charge discourage entities from listing their information in the Augur? No decision was reached.

Registered Agent: Stephen Pilewski reported that Lois Dion gave him the required Annual Report form with the check from Elizabeth Skoryi at the conference in Springfield. He completed and mailed the report with payment to the Secretary of State on time.

ICC Website: Jennifer Draper commented that the website is up-to-date and working well. Lanetta Warrenburg suggested that a link to Chicago Classical Club’s new website be added to the ICC website.

Illinois Latin Tournament: Jennifer Draper reported that 322 students had registered for the contest and that typically 23-25 schools participate. A site for the State Finals was still needed. Eventually Jennifer hoped to find various locations for the State Finals and then rotate between them on a permanent basis. Such a plan would eliminate the need to search for a site each year.

Auditing Committee: Elizabeth Skoryi distributed the Audit Report from Anna Dybis who examined the ICC’s financial records on 1/29/07 and found them to be in good order. Virginia Anderson then moved, seconded by James Chochola, to accept the Audit Report. The motion passed by acclamation.

Membership Committee: Vicki Wine expressed concern at the loss of institutional members. Elizabeth Skoryi reported that only 4 institutions were current with their dues. Vicki and Elizabeth thought that institutional members could be listed in the Augur and that their teachers and programs could be highlighted. Marilyn Brusherd suggested that a link be put on the ICC website to the member institutions. Jennifer Draper suggested that only member institutions be listed on ICC’s database of Illinois colleges with Latin and Greek programs.

Nominating Committee: President Mulberry announced that Laurie Jolicoeur was appointed the new chair of this committee.

Awards Committee: In order to do its work, this committee needs to be apprised of retirees and receive nominations for the Latin Teacher of the Year, Calder and Matres awards. Discussion also addressed disseminating information about teacher recruitment and the Pedagogy Workshop. A separate mailing at an estimated cost of $100 was proposed with Elizabeth Skoryi coordinating this effort with Thomas Sienkewicz. When the issue of where to draw the funds came up, Jennifer Draper moved, seconded by Elizabeth Skoryi, to draw $100 from the Illinois Latin Tournament for this special Awards mailing. The motion passed.

Memorator Invocatorque: No additions to Necrologia MMVI that appeared in the Augur (Jan., 2007, p.13) were received from William Napiwocki.

Teachers’ Idea Exchange/Speakers’ Bureau: No report was received.

Pedagogy Workshop: Unfortunately the report which was to appear in the Jan., 2007 issue of the Augur was mailed to the Newsletter Editor’s previous address and was lost in the mail. James Chochola updated the members on ideas for sources for scholarship funds for the Pedagogy Workshop, such as the possibility of $286 from the Book Exchange. Discussion then ensued on the criteria for the scholarships, such as:

1. Should out-of-state applicants be considered?
2. If so, then should preference be given to Illinois applicants?
3. Should out-of-state applicants be considered if they plan to teach in Illinois?
4. Should preference be given to new over veteran teachers?

After further discussion, President Mulberry called for a motion that the ICC offer two scholarships of $150 each for the years 2007, 2009 and 2011, and that preference be given to Latin or Greek teachers residing in Illinois or to teachers who will teach Latin or Greek in Illinois. Marilyn Brusherd so moved, seconded by Elisa Denja. The motion passed.

Resolutions Committee: James Chochola pointed out that the Resolutions for the Oct. 6-8, 2006 ICC Conference were published in the Augur (Jan., 2007, pp. 6-7). President Mulberry then announced that she is accepting nominations to replace James, who will remain until a replacement is found.

Liaison to Schools and Colleges: Although Thomas Sienkewicz resigned from this appointment earlier and there was some discussion of abolishing this title, President Mulberry felt that the function was important enough to continue. She is particularly looking for a voice that could work with the ICC conference planners to insure that the program will appeal to colleges and universities.

IJCLN: President Mulberry was pleased to announce the birth of a son to co-chair Victoria Henderson on 1/22/07. She reminded everyone that the annual IJCLN convention would be held at the Holiday Inn in Tinley Park on Feb. 22-24, 2007, and that 362 (students and adults) plan to attend.

IJCLS: Stephen Pilewski pointed out that the results of the Nov. 18, 2006 convention were published in the Augur (Jan., 2007, pp. 20-21).

Illinois Certamen League: Elizabeth Skoryi called attention to her report in the Augur (Jan., 2007, pp. 22-23), and presented the latest updates in this effort. Discussion ensued on the latest logistics in handling the various schools.

ICTFL/ACTFL: Virginia Anderson updated her report that appeared in the Augur (Jan., 2007, p. 16). She then passed around 2 brochures that elicited favorable comments: the first, a recruitment brochure as part of a student effort that listed celebrity names of those who studied Latin, and second, an ICTFL brochure promoting the study of foreign languages. Virginia called attention to the upcoming ICTFL and ACTFL meetings that appeared in the Augur (Jan., 2007, p. 16), and encouraged everyone to consider attending.

CAMWS: Vicki Wine provided the latest updates to her report in the Augur (Jan., 2007, p. 17), and reminded everyone that Caristia Grants of $50 are still available for Latin-related projects.

ACL: James Chochola requested an increase in funds to help with transportation and registration expenses for attending ACL’s Annual Institute. After some discussion, Lanetta Warrenburg moved, seconded by Elisa Denja, to increase the allocation to $300. The motion passed.

APA/AIA: Substituting for Thomas Sienkewicz, President Mulberry was pleased to announce that the meeting of the APA/AIA will be held in Chicago at the Hyatt Regency Hotel on Jan. 3-6, 2008. The AIA is particularly interested in getting teachers involved with archeology. President Mulberry encouraged attendance at this huge event and reminded all that volunteers will be rewarded with discounts at convention events.

2006 Conference: Elizabeth Skoryi circulated a handout with the details of income and expenses. She was pleased to report a profit of $567.12.

2007 Conference: President Mulberry thanked the Tetrarchs (Brian Lavelle, John Makowski, James Keenan and Edwin Menes) for their assistance, and she and John Makowski presented an update on conference developments. President Mulberry has toured the meeting rooms of the Crown Center at Loyola University’s Lakeshore Campus. She hopes to invite elementary and college teachers for an articulation meeting. The dates have been set for Oct. 5-7 (Columbus Day weekend). Discussion then centered on the amenities and costs of several area hotels. The traditional Saturday luncheon was being planned with CCC, but the location had not been settled yet. When the costs for the hotels and the convention were discussed, Jennifer Draper voiced concern that the steeper (than Springfield) costs could dissuade cost conscious teachers from attending. This concern led to a discussion of listing fees separately as opposed to inclusively. One possibility was offering different package deals that might appeal to cost conscious attendees.

2008 Conference: Plans are afoot to hold the conference in the Quad Cities area. Vicki Wine is working with Emil Kramer on the choice of hotels.

ICC Banner: Jennifer Draper was still working on this effort but questioned the cost. Because the ICC does not have the necessary software, the artwork would have to be reproduced by a sign manufacturer. The cost estimate is about $100. Discussion debated the pros and cons of having an all-weather banner. Jennifer felt that the publicity would be worth the investment since the banner could be displayed at the fall conferences, ILT Finals and joint conferences with other organizations. Discussion then turned to choice of colors with the features being the ICC logo, ILLINOIS CLASSICAL CONFERENCE, and the web address. When a consensus was reached, Jennifer said that she will go ahead and place the order. (Authorization for the banner with funding to come from the Contingency Fund was voted on at the Advisory Council Meeting on 10/8/04.)

Database of Colleges and Universities offering Latin and Greek: Jennifer Draper distributed a handout with the results of her survey which sparked a lively discussion on what was revealed. Ideas for improvement were discussed, such as identifying schools that offer teacher certification and enhancing the format. Jennifer said that she will incorporate the suggested changes. The report will eventually be posted on the ICC website with links to the schools, and it will be referenced in the Augur.

ListServe: Responding to suggestions of publicizing this popular communication method, James Chochola said that he is thinking of writing up an introduction to ListServe, which could appear in the next Augur. The introduction should help members new to the site.

Upcoming Events: President Mulberry reminded everyone that the date for the Latin Olympics will be Mar. 17, 2007.

Teacher Vacancies and Tutor Contact List: Teacher vacancies already appear on ListServe, the ICC website, and in the Augur. Jennifer Draper suggested listing teachers on the ICC website who are willing to tutor. Vicki Wine added that the tutors’ names be sent to her for posting to the website along with their rates and distances that they are willing to travel.

New Business:

Virtual Latin: Virginia Anderson reported that she, Lois Dion and Cornelia Bannister are working on compiling a listing of the Virtual High School Latin courses that are available. She encouraged teachers to think about joining the Virtual Latin faculty and welcomed any inquiries.

Adjournment: There being no other business and having the necessity to conclude in time for the Chicago Classical Club luncheon at the Berghoff Restaurant, President Mulberry thanked all for attending and called for a motion to adjourn the meeting. James Chochola so moved, seconded by Elisa Denja. The motion passed by acclamation, and the meeting was adjourned at 11:20am.

Respectfully submitted,

Stephen Pilewski
Secretary