Minutes - FC Bozeman Board Meeting – July 10, 2002

Board Members Present: Tim Owen, Carson Taylor, Jeff Pearce, Carol O’Neil, Jack Dockery, Rick Sojda, Bill Locke

Others in Attendance: Pam Smith, Jen Gummer, Jeff McGuire, Steve Birrell, Marta Plante, Ric Plante

Meeting Called to Order – 7:10 pm

NOTE: MSP – Motion, Seconded, Passed

MSP – Approve June 5 Minutes

• President’s Report – Tim Owen
• Tim wants to put on the record from the June Board Meeting that we now have 10 Board Members. The by-laws say 9. Therefore, we are not in compliance with our by-laws. Tim has no problem, but thinks that we need a motion to clear this up so that everyone understands that the Board is in agreement.

• MSP – 1 NO, 1 Abstain

• For the purpose of conducting board meetings from now until time of the next election all agree to operate “out of compliance” with 10 board members instead of 9.
• Comment - For the amount of work to be done, this is probably a very good thing.
• FC Bozeman had a decent Regionals. Fours teams from Bozeman. No one extremely happy with the results. Hopefully everyone learned where the bar is in the rest of the Region. The real world in soccer is not where we are in Montana at this time. We represented the State well. Represented the Club well. Just not in the results.

• Treasurer’s Report – Jeff McGuire
• Jeff submitted a Balance Sheet and a Profit & Loss as of July 10 as part of the record. A copy of the 2002 Budget was also submitted as part of the record.
• Tim O. asked Jeff McGuire and Carson to check with Franco to be sure that the refs for the Helena games which were rescheduled to Bozeman have been paid.
• Regarding the Pizza Hut fundraiser – The miscellaneous income on the P&L reflects the approximately $1500 that went to the club. Approximately $5000 went to the teams who participated. The $1500 now listed under miscellaneous needs to be identified as the Fund Raiser. Jeff will do this.
• Tim O. would like for “better reading” some kind of description for each of the endowment funds. Jeff as Treasurer and Carol as Budget Director will work together to develop a thorough understanding of the endowment funds. It is important for the board that we work and get a budget together. Nice to start soon so we know where we are going.

• MSP – For the 2003 Budget, there will be a minimum allocation of $1500 for coaching education/development to make good the promise that the club’s portion of the fundraiser money be used for this purpose.

• All coaches who made application and completed the E Clinic will be refunded the $65.00 application fee.
• Tim O. would like for Jack Dockery and Jeff McGuire to prepare a report on the assets the club has purchased. This would be kept as an on-going report – goals, anything that will last over one year – to be able to show where the money has been going.

• MSP – Motion to approve Treasurer’s Report.

· Micro – Lisa not here

• Manager’s Liaison – Jen Gummer
• She is going to have a meeting this week with Pam Ransom to sign the card and be added to the checking account.

· Web Site – Bill Locke - No Report

· Registrar’s Report – Jen Gummer - No Report

• Policy Committee – Rick Sojda
• Minutes from the Policy Committee meeting from June 20, 12002, submitted as part of the record. Next meeting of the policy committee will be Friday, July 12.

• Fund Raising – Tim Owen
• Tim is personally very embarrassed on the results of this project and the way the final accounting had to be handled. This was really hard on Pizza Hut. Tim apologized to Jeff Pearce.

· Program/Tournament Committee – No Report

• Facilities – Jack Dockery
• We need a place to store our goals. The AYSO goals are stored on city property at the soft ball complex. We should consider locking them and storing them there.
• Before August 10 Jack needs people to help paint the high school goals. It will either be the evening of August 8 or on August 9. Jack will get info out.
• He still has a few teams who have not turned in their equipment. Jack will hold their final checks until he gets the equipment.

· Risk Management – Martie Stewart not here

· Scholarship Committee – No Report

• Bronken Fields – Tim Owen
• Gave a brief report from Phil Rotherham. The field was fertilized today. The city has just put a $5000 stainless steel screen in the pump to keep out debris. The fertilizer is being done properly for the soil type. Kentucky Blue grass is coming up. In the fall you will really see the difference.

• Competition Committee – Dave Bowen not here
• There needs to be a resolution made on the Casey Bronken issue.

· New Business – No New Business

• For the Good of the Game –
• Ric Plante – Head of Women’s Coaches
• Carson Taylor asked Rick several questions – should there be 2 or one Head of Coaches?; Should the polices be the same or different?; Will Rick do it again next year?; How to make it better?
• Ric said that both sides should be on the same page. It is difficult for the Head of Coaches to also be coaching a team. But the big problem is that there are not enough qualified people to coach.
• Ric was very happy with his coaches. Good people are able to do their thing. It would be nice for the HOC just to be able to go around and watch all of the teams.
• It should be the same for the boys and girls. The money should be the same. Did the board hear any “why are they doing it one way and why are they doing it different?”
• Does Ric prefer to have a paid assistant? Yes. Thinks assistant coach should be paid. But also would only want to have a qualified assistant. This year he did not have one – did not have anyone he felt qualified.
• Budget things need to be cleared up with a set formula for paying coaches.
• Ric doesn’t think that it is possible for the board to come up with one policy that will fit every team.
• The idea that some teams just want to have fun should be addressed. Maybe team should just have a parent manager instead of a coach and just play games on Saturday – no practice required.
• Next year U11 will just be 8v8. The following year U12 will be 8v8.
• Tim O. – From your perspective, should “parent coach” be paid the same as a licensed assistant coach?
• Ric – Would probably see more of this a U11-U12 level. Should they be paid $200 or $500?? That would be coaches’ decision.
• Ric – Pay scale should be based on license level range and experience. Board should set guidelines. Heads of Coaches decide how paid.
• Getting people on the same page - Maybe have each Head of Coaches write something – what they see for the program. Then the two can be compared. If a decision cannot be made, then it goes to the board.
• Rich Brauss will not be coaching next year. We’ve lost a great coach.
• Question for Ric - What can board do to fix big problems? Were there really any big problems? No.
• Ric brought “I Just Wanna Have Fun” – his thoughts on the levels of soccer commitment. Submitted as part of the record. Players have to determine what level of play they want. We have three leagues – rec, competitive, and adult. They have to decide.
• Lack of Commitment – Both players and parents. The problem is not only here, but statewide. Ric is having to ask for guest players when he goes out of town to tournaments.
• Level of commitment – A team decision – A coach’s decision. Competitive – Not Competitive. This will be an individual decision. The coach sets the standard.
• Is there value of having the Head of Coaches as a guest coach – YES. Is there a way to encourage this? Would like to, but there is a time element. Both Ric and Tim made appearances at numerous other practices and games. Does have tremendous value. Just the way another coach approaches the same topic.
• Tim O. – Questions for Ric –
• Do you feel January – Mid February once a week in the gym across the board is productive? Would it be more productive to focus on mid June – mid July?
• Ric – Having season ending July 15 and not with the State Tournament would be incredible! Focus on later season tournaments. Although he does like having his team together early, training outdoors during the summer is much more productive. You could take a month off one end and add it to the other. Ric would give up December and January if they could train in June and July. This is an important issue for coaches. Consider saying that the end of the season is July 15 after “whatever” tournament.
• How do we raise the bar? We have to GET OUT OF STATE and play QUALITY games.
• Without a doubt, we will add quality of players and programs if we are still playing June and July!
• Would the idea of a “Letter Jacket” or something for those going to Regionals be a good idea? A State Champ shirt? Would definitely be something to give more thought. Board would pay portion.

• Next meeting – August 7. Lots to do before the September meeting and Annual Meeting: Player/Parent Consent Form, Policy, Team Formation, When and How to sign Up, Try Out Dates and Try Out format from Heads of Coaches.

• Meeting adjourned – 9:40 pm