COMMISSIONERS PRESENT
Mr. Earl Steenstra, Chairperson
Dr. Velma Allen
Mr. Donald Bowman
Ms. Peeti Greene
Mr. Steve Handschu

COMMISSIONERS ABSENT
None

MCB STAFF PRESENT
Mr. Patrick Cannon
Ms. Connie Kreiner
Mr. James Buscetta
Mr. Larry Best
Ms. Melody Lindsey
Mr. Bernard Kramer
Mr. Fred Wurtzel
Mr. Larry King
Ms. Lisa Kisiel
Ms. Sherry Gordon
Ms. Ella Harrington
Ms. Corda Moss
Mr. William Droll
Mr. Bob Tinney
Ms. Barb Wile

GUESTS
Ms. Virginia LePine
Mr. Casey Dutmer
Ms. Charis Austin
Ms. Beth Harvey
Ms. Elizabeth Lennon
Ms. Mary Wurtzel
Ms. Sherry Valdez
Mr. Bob Holderbaum
Ms. Annie Davey
Mr. David Davey
Ms. Galyn Barnum
Mr. Denny Frey

COMMITTEE OF THE WHOLE
Chairperson Steenstra called the meeting to order at 9:25 a.m. The Commissioners discussed the Vision 2020 process. The process is designed to involve all Commissioners, staff and stakeholders. The MCB website now includes information about the 2020 initiative.
Mr. Steenstra said that the organizational policy will be discussed in August. Dr. Allen suggested that a daylong retreat be scheduled where the Commissioners would be able to discuss items more completely rather than in the small timeframe that is allowed in the Committee of the Whole meetings. Mr. Handschu suggested that braille be one of the discussion items.

REGULAR MEETING

CALL TO ORDER, ROLL CALL, AND DETERMINATION OF QUORUM
Chairperson Steenstra called the regular meeting to order at 10:20 a.m. Roll call was taken and a quorum was present.

APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES

DR. ALLEN MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS. GREENE, TO APPROVE THE MAY 15, 2000 MINUTES AS PRESENTED. THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

PUBLIC COMMENT
Ms. Beth Harvey, Director, Statewide Independent Living Council, said that the next Statewide Independent Living Council State Plan is due July 2001. The planning process will begin in the fall. She said that one goal of the planning process is to get the issues of people with blindness and visual impairments into the agenda more fully than has been done in the past. After hearing the morning’s discussion on the Vision 2020 process, it was her hope that the two procedures could be linked.
Mr. Casey Dutmer, Michigan Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired and Chair of the Elected Operator’s Committee, expressed his pleasure that the Commissioners were discussing the Vision 2020 process. He also said that he felt the Vision 2020 document was a good document and was glad that there is opportunity for consumer participation.
Ms. Elizabeth Lennon welcomed the Commission to Kalamazoo on behalf of the Kalamazoo Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired.
Ms. Virginia LePine said that she had just begun training at the Center and thanked the Board for the opportunity to participate in training at the Center and to be at the meeting.
Chairperson Steenstra asked Mr. Bowman to provide an update on the Elected Operator’s Committee meeting he had attended the previous weekend. Mr. Bowman said that he had been excited to be at the meeting and that there was lots of positive discussion.

DIRECTOR’S REPORT
Mr. Cannon reported that the Governor had signed the braille literacy legislation, Senate Bill 658, into law on May 30, 2000. The Commission, the Michigan Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired (MCBVI), the National Federation of the Blind/Michigan, the parent’s groups and the Department of Education were all represented at the signing.
He also reported that the Rehabilitation Services Administration had held a meeting in Chicago for agency directors and field services administrators from Regions V and VII. Bernie Kramer had attended the meeting along with Mr. Cannon. Items discussed were the Workforce Investment Act, the Ticket to Work and Work Incentives Improvement Act and also the Comprehensive System for Personnel Development.
Mr. Cannon said that Ms. Shannon Hengesbach, a student intern from Central Michigan University has been working to enhance the agency’s website. The website address is www.mfia.state.mi.usmcb.
Finally, Mr. Cannon reported that the first meeting of the internal MCB Communications Committee had been held on June 1. Eight staffpersons are serving on the Committee.
Discussion centered on the role of the Mini-Adjustment Programs. Mr. Handschu asked that the following ideas be referred to the 2020 Committee: What place do Mini-Adjustments have in our future? Do we want to have a full-time Mini-Adjustment team functioning year round? Do we want to see Mini-Adjustments able to come back to the same place with some frequency? Then Mr. Steenstra suggested that tele-conferencing be considered as a communication option.

MR. HANDSCHU MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS. GREENE, TO ACCEPT THE DIRECTOR’S REPORT AS PRESENTED. THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

MCB TRAINING CENTER REPORT
Ms. Lindsay said that the Center Beautification and Interior Upgrades Committee is continuing to meet. The Committee is working with interior design students from Western Michigan University.
She also reported that she and Larry Best had met with a consulting firm regarding improvements to the building, such as a new roof, new sidewalks, a back-up generator and creating a separate area for BEP training.
Ms. Lindsay introduced her new secretary at the Center, Ms. Corda Moss. Ms. Moss said that she had previously worked in the Department of Corrections and that she was very happy to be at the Center. Ms. Lindsay also said that Frank Driscoll, Maintenance Supervisor, had retired as of May 31. Ms. Lindsay said she hopes to have that position filled by the beginning of August.
Regarding the Omvig report, Ms. Lindsay said that it, as well as staff recommendations, were continuing to be discussed and she was very pleased with the discussions and feels very confident and positive with what the end results will be.
Ms. Lindsay asked Mr. Will Droll, the Center’s new industrial arts instructor, to share with the Board his experience from his recent training in Iowa in industrial arts. Mr. Droll said that he had enjoyed the training and had been blindfolded and treated as though he were one of the regular students at the Iowa Center so that he would receive the full experience.
The Omvig Report and staff recommendations will be an item for discussion at the Commission Board retreat.

MS. GREENE MOVED, SUPPORTED BY DR. ALLEN, TO ACCEPT THE TRAINING CENTER REPORT AS PRESENTED. THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

CONSUMER SERVICES REPORT
Mr. Buscetta reported that a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) had been signed with the U.S. Department of Agriculture which will increase awareness by both agencies of what the other does. A number of information-sharing/training meetings have been arranged. An MOU has also been signed with the State Court Administrative Offices which will provide mediation services to MCB consumers. Seven out of twenty-seven MOU’s have been signed with Michigan Works Offices in the state.
Mr. Buscetta also reported that a Small Business Committee has been established and Ms. Beth White is chairing the Committee that includes staff, people from the community and the Small Business Association. The purpose of the committee is to study the MCB small business policy and to begin to differentiate between self-employment and small business.
Finally, Mr. Buscetta reported that Mike Welch and Bob Utrup are establishing a pilot project with senior centers in the Upper Peninsula that will aid in providing information to the state’s older blind population. The project will be called “VIVA” which stands for “Visually Impaired Volunteer Assistants.” The pilot project will be in Escanaba and more information will be presented on this program at the Commission meeting to be held in Escanaba in September.
Mr. Handschu recommended that the two consumer groups be represented on the Small Business Committee.

MR. HANDSCHU MOVED, SUPPORTED BY DR. ALLEN, TO ACCEPT THE CONSUMER SERVICES REPORT AS PRESENTED. THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

REGIONAL UPDATE
Ms. Sherry Gordon, Assistant Regional Supervisor, introduced Ms. Lisa Kisiel, Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor in the region which serves nine counties in the southwest part of the state. Ms. Kisiel said that the regional office had been receiving lots of referrals, a significant amount of which were coming from the schools. She said that she was sitting on a School-To-Work Transition Board in Berrien County and representing the Commission on several other committees.
Ms. Gordon said that she and Lisa are coordinators for the College Preparatory Program and that there would be six students in the program this summer. The program runs for seven-and-a-half weeks. Ms. Gordon also assists with the Career Days Program which moves around the state. The program is for high school students, age 14 and up.
Mr. Handschu asked how many of the region’s clients were using Braille effectively. Ms. Gordon estimated five percent. Mr. Handschu requested that the Commission keep track of this type of information.

DR. ALLEN MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS. GREENE, TO ACCEPT THE REGIONAL REPORT AS PRESENTED. THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

REPORT ON TECHNOLOGY INNOVATIONS
Mr. Bob Tinney said that he and Mike Ellis had attended the California Southern University Northridge Technology Conference for Disabilities. He noted that a couple of new high-tech items had impressed him at the conference. One was an item called a “Braille Note,” which runs on Windows, has an 18 or 32 cell Braille display, and other features including the ability to receive e-mail through any phone line.
Mr. Tinney said that one request he hears most from consumers is for voice-recognition programs. He said that the error rate is relatively high at about five percent, which is about one in twenty words. Therefore, he recommends inputting data by keyboard if at all possible.
In response to Ms. Greene’s question regarding the provision of computer assistance to clients and staff, Mr. Tinney responded that more people are needed to do access technology. He said that he and Mr. Ellis spend most of their time dealing with more critical situations and very seldom get to the college students and homemakers who need help.

DR. ALLEN MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MR. HANDSCHU, TO APPROVE THE TECHNOLOGY REPORT AS PRESENTED. THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

TRIBUTE TO MR. DAVID DAVEY
Mr. Bernie Kramer introduced Mr. David Davey, Retired Executive Director of the Kalamazoo-Area Goodwill Industries, and presented him with a plaque for his exceptional collaborative service to the Michigan Commission for the Blind and its clients. Mr. Davey expressed his appreciation for the partnership that the Commission and the Kalamazoo-Area Goodwill Industries have shared and also his appreciation for the recognition being paid to him.

The meeting was adjourned for lunch at 12:15 p.m.

The meeting was called back to order at 1:20 p.m.

ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES REPORT
Mr. Best said that the Department of Management and Budget (DMB) has expanded the space allowed for a facility to 3500 square feet in the 525 Building. This is not enough space for a full-service cafeteria but will suffice for a “fast food” operation which will cost about $400,000. As there are no funds in the budget this year, FIA Director Howard is assisting with DMB to find the means to fund the facility.
Mr. Best reported that the training grant was renewed for another five years at the rate of $19,975 per year.

MS. GREEN MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MR. HANDSCHU, TO ACCEPT THE ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES REPORT AS PRESENTED. THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

PRESENTATION OF CERTIFICATE OF APPRECIATION
Mr. Steenstra noted that the following presentation was not on the agenda. Ms. Lindsey and Mr. Davey presented Ms. Marlene Schwartz with a certificate of appreciation for the training in technology that she conducts at the Training Center through a partnership with Goodwill Industries of Kalamazoo.

BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PROGRAM REPORT
Mr. Wurtzel informed the Board that the Flint BEP Promotional Agent, Mr. Dale Heckmann, had suffered a stroke and was continuing on long-term disability.
Mr. Wurtzel said that BEP had just recently hosted a conference for BEP training for the Region V area. He commended Carol Curneal and Vickie Rolison who had made arrangements for the meeting. He further expressed his appreciation for all that Ms. Curneal has accomplished since she began her job at the Commission one year ago. He also said that Yvette Maniece was approaching her one-year anniversary at the Commission and said that she too was performing in an exemplary manner.
Mr. Steenstra noted that there was an administrative hearing decision by the Administrative Law Judge on which the Board needed to vote.

DR. ALLEN MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MR. HANDSCHU, TO AGREE WITH THE FINAL AGENCY DECISION IN THE MATTER OF MS. CAROL OSMAR. THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

Mr. Casey Dutmer was present to give the Elected Operator’s Committee report. He said that the EOC had held their meeting the previous weekend and several positive actions had come out of the meeting including rules of conduct for the meeting. Another outcome of the meeting was a position description for a secretary for the Elected Operator’s Committee. The Committee also voted in favor of having a two-day retreat. Mr. Dutmer asked the Board to approve Commissioner Bowman’s participation in the retreat.

MR. HANDSCHU MOVED, SUPPORTED BY DR. ALLEN, TO ACCEPT THE BUSINESS ENTERPRISE PROGRAM REPORT AS PRESENTED. THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.

PUBLIC COMMENT
There was no public comment at this time.

ADJOURNMENT

MR. HANDSCHU MOVED, SUPPORTED BY MS. GREENE, TO ADJOURN THE MEETING. THE MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY.