Regional Meeting Tomorrow In Long Beach

Tomorrow there will be a regional meeting at CSU Long Beach, for southern chapters of CSUEU. Here's the agenda sent out earlier this week by Chapter 315 (Long Beach) President Peggy O'Neil-Rosales:

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AGENDA FOR FEB. 13 SOUTHERN REGIONAL MEETING:
THE CRISIS: WHAT CAN CSUEU DO TO HELP OUR MEMBERS?

SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2010, from 10 AM to 4 PM, CSULB PYRAMID ANNEX BLDG.

Facilitators: Gerry Daley, Brian Young, Brenda Brown;	Time Keeper: Janine Licausi
10 AM INTROS, GROUND RULES, BRIEF RECAP OF BUDGET'S IMPACT ON CSU	15 minutes
10:15 QUICK SMALL GROUP EXERCISE: WHAT ARE SOURCES OF UNION'S POWER?	15 minutes
10:30 BRAINSTORMING SESSION: WHAT ARE OUR OPTIONS IN THIS CRISIS?	15 minutes
10:45 EDITING THE LIST, NARROWING OUR OPTIONS: THE GOAL	45 minutes
11:30 BREAK	10 minutes
11:40 SWOT ANALYSIS OF CSUEU	50 minutes
12:30 WORKING LUNCH: DOES OUR SWOT FIT OUR CHOSEN GOAL?	60 minutes
1:30 IF ANSWER IS YES, LAY OUT THE PLAN TO MAKE A PLAN	60 minutes
OR…
1:30 IF ANSWER IS NO, REDEFINE OUR GOAL	60 minutes
2:30 BREAK	10 minutes
2:40 TAKING IT OUT TO THE CHAPTERS AND THE MEMBERS	50 minutes
3:40 WRAPPING UP: COMMITMENTS, NEXT STEPS	20 minutes
4 PM ADJOURN

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Notes on the agenda:

• SWOT apparently stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. The Wikipedia article on SWOT describes it as a strategic planning method which involves specifying the objective of the business venture or project and identifying the internal and external factors that are favorable and unfavorable to achieving that objective.
• Gerry Daley, Brian Young, and Brenda Brown, listed as facilitators, are CSUEU staff (Labor Relations Representatives, or LRRs).
• Janine Licausi, the timekeeper, is the Chapter 315 secretary.

Accompanying the agenda were these rules:

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FEBRUARY 13 SO. REGIONAL
GROUND RULES FOR SOUTHERN REGIONAL MEETING

1. Raise your hand to get on the speakers' list, do not speak out of turn.

2. Stick to the time limits, make your points, obey the time keeper.

3. NO PERSONAL ATTACKS OR INSULTS. In the words of Ben Franklin: If we don't hang together, we shall certainly all hang separately!

4. Allow others to question your position, and don't take it personally. In the words of Michael Corleone: It isn't personal, it's just business.

5. Listen more than you talk. DON'T INTERRUPT OTHERS unless you're asking them to clarify something — for that, raise your hand and say CLARIFICATION, PLEASE and when facilitator recognizes you, ask your question to the speaker (NO SPEECH MAKING! If you don't ask a question seeking clarification of something the speaker said, the facilitator will rule you out of order).

6. Don't repeat or rehash points others have already made, it's a time-waster.

7. Have a sincere interest in what the other is saying.

8. Respect each others' opinion: Realize that others will have different realities; ask questions to demonstrate you're open/receptive.

9. Avoid sarcasm.

10. Body language: no eye rolling, crossing arms, heavy sighs. Admit it when you're getting defensive. Maintain eye contact. Nod to show you're hearing what's being said (or at least that you're still awake).

11. Speak in the first person (I not they or you).

12. Stick to the subject being discussed; facilitators will rule you out of order if you go off the rails.

13. Everyone is here as a volunteer, and their time is valuable — don't waste it.

14. Don't rehash the past or try to settle old grudges — we're here to figure out if we can make a plan to win GOING FORWARD, not LOOKING BACKWARD.

15. Try to have some fun — humor is allowed, even encouraged. We want bread, yes, but roses too.

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