Unapproved draft minutes

UTAH YOUTH SOCCER ASSOCIATION
Minutes of the Meeting of the Board of Directors
September 16, 2004

CALL TO ORDER

The regular monthly meeting of the Board of Directors of the Utah Youth Soccer Association was called to order by Vice President Scott Maxfield at 8:00 p.m. at the State Office of the Utah Youth Soccer Association in Salt Lake City, Utah. The following Board members were present during the meeting:

Paul C. Burke, President
Scott Maxfield, Vice President
Jodi Wells, Secretary
Rick Henage, Treasurer
Bruce Cuppett, Director of Development
Debbie Haycock, Girls Competition Director
David Malchenson, Boys Competition Director
Arnold Wilcox, Chairman of District 1 (Salt Lake City)
Leisa Vineyard, Chairperson of District 2 (West Salt Lake County)
John Lowery, Chairman of District 3 (Sandy/Draper)
Dave Mills, Chairman of District 4 (North Davis & Weber County)
Mike Tate, Chairman of District 5 (Utah County)
Richard Messenger, Chairman of District 6 (Davis County)
Günther Haidenthaller, State Youth Referee Administrator

Also present were Scott Harward (Executive Director), Linda Kay Messenger (Rules Committee Chairperson), Teresa Ortiz (State Cup Chair), Luca Paccelli (Affinity Development Group), Tina Patterson (State Registrar), Jodene Smith (Risk Management), and Richard Yoder (Discipline Committee Chairman).

Members who were excused or absent included Delon Brower, Chairman of District 7 (Cache & Box Elder Counties).

WELCOME

Because President Paul C. Burke's arrival from his team's match was delayed, Vice President Scott Maxfield opened the meeting and welcomed those in attendance.

ROSTERS FOR 2005 STATE CUP

Motion was made, seconded, and approved to notify, via registered mail, teams participating in the fall portion of the 2005 State Cup tournament as necessary to submit an official roster form and copies of players' birth certificates by September 30, 2004.

REPORT ON REGIONAL AND NATIONAL WORKSHOPS

President Paul C. Burke invited Bruce Cuppett, the Chairman of the Host Committee, to report on preparations for the Region IV Workshop, which will be held in Salt Lake City from October 15-17, and the US Youth Soccer National Workshop, which will be held in Salt Lake City from February 17-19, 2005. Cuppett reported that preparations are moving forward, but additional volunteers will be needed during both events.

The Region IV Workshops will open at the Prime Hotel on Friday, October 15, 2004. Utah President Paul C. Burke will be chairing the opening session, a meeting of the state presidents from the fourteen western states. Burke was appointed by Region IV Director Darl Rose to develop an agenda focusing on long-term planning for the Region and US Youth Soccer. On Saturday, October 15th, there will be a full day of seminars and meetings for administrators, followed by a buffet dinner and a social event. The state presidents are scheduled to meet again on Sunday morning before the workshop closes. Cuppett reported that volunteers are needed on Friday evening to assist with registration and Saturday evening to help with the "Casino Night" activity.

Cuppett also reported on preparations for the US Youth Soccer National Workshop, which will be held in the Salt Palace Convention Center from February 17-19, 2005. Numerous downtown hotels will be hosting the hundreds of visitors expected from around the country. This event will represent an excellent opportunity for members of the Utah Youth Soccer Association to attend administrative seminars and coaching clinics conducted by some of the most distinguished youth coaches in the country.

Cuppett concluded his report by recommending that the Utah Youth Soccer Association hold its annual general meeting in January, before the national workshop arrives. President Burke responded that Vice-President Scott Maxfield will soon set the date for the state association's annual general meeting. Burke then thanked Cuppett and his committee for their efforts preparing to host the workshops.

ADOPTION OF MINUTES OF PREVIOUS MEETINGS

Motion was made, seconded, and approved to defer review of minutes from previous Board meetings until the next meeting of the Board of Directors.

ONLINE MANAGEMENT SYSTEM REPORT

District 3 Chairman John Lowery, who serves the project manager and the chairman of the committee responsible for implementing the new online management system, introduced Luca Pacelli from Affinity Development Group. Pacelli said that ADG wanted to collect feedback from the Association so that the online management system could be improved and increasingly customized to meet the Association's needs.

Pacelli responded to a series of questions and comments from Board members regarding the customization of the system. Pacelli explained that the system could be modified in accordance with most requests, although some of the requests ADG had received sought customizations that are not consistent with rules or bylaws of the state association.

Pacelli also responded to the suggestion that the system further distinguish between recreation and competition level players so as to simply the data entry process for recreation players. Pacelli and Lowery said that such improvements are under consideration. Pacelli also said that ADG hoped to work with focus groups from the Association in order to obtain more feedback and direction on how to improve the management system.

Vice President Scott Maxfield and Lowery then invited registrars, coaches, and administrators to forward suggestions to Leisa Vineyard on how the system could be improved. Maxfield encouraged the submission of such feedback as soon as possible, and hopefully by the end of the month. Once the fall season is complete, ADG and Lowery will be focusing on preparing changes to the system for the spring season and the next registration cycle.

President Paul C. Burke thanked Pacelli for traveling from San Diego to attend the Board meeting. Burke also thanked the committee of John Lowery, Leisa Vineyard, Richard Yoder, and Scott Harwood for its efforts to develop, customize, and implement the online management system.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S REPORT

Executive Director Scott Harward reported on the scheduling process for the State Competition League. Harward reported that he and Programs Director Amy Oakeson were pleased with the scheduling module that is part of ADG's Online Management System. Harward explained that the new system was more powerful, more flexible, and more efficient than the software previously used for scheduling the State Competition League.

Despite the improvement in the technology available to the Association, problems remain in the scheduling process, Harward reported. The schedule was delayed and took many weeks to produce because much of the schedule had to be generated by hand. The power of the new scheduling system could not be put to use because of constraints created when certain time slots were published for each age group and division. The process became one of slotting rather than scheduling. Not only did the resulting process take longer, but it resulted in a less efficient use of available fields. Vice President Scott Maxfield agreed with this conclusion, citing an example of uneven field usage in West Jordan.

Haward announced that, beginning next spring, the schedule for the State Competition League will be generated without slotting each division into a single set of time slots. Although the schedules will be less predictable for a team on a weekly basis-a team might play on Tuesday one week, and Wednesday the next-the resulting schedule will allow the Association to make more efficient use of scare resources, namely fields and referees. In addition, the simplified scheduling process should allow the Association to release the schedule earlier. Predictability will be traded for more advance notice and better use of resources.

District 2 Chairperson Leisa Vineyard said that her district had discussed this change, and supported these changes to improve the scheduling process.

TREASURER'S REPORT

Treasurer Rick Henage reported that, on August 31, 2004, the state association reached the end of its 2003-04 fiscal year. During this period, expenditures exceeded revenues by approximately $2,100 based on a budget of approximately $730,000 (excluding the Olympic Development Program, which is no longer operated out of the Association's general treasury). Henage said that the operational deficit of approximately $2,100 was significantly less than the $14,000 deficit that was budgeted. Henage explained that the projected deficit had been based on the designation of reserves to cover the Association's investment in the Southern Utah Soccer Association.

Henage expressed satisfaction that the deficit was both a small percentage of the budget and smaller than anticipated. Henage also noted that, to improve the Association's bookkeeping methods by more closely aligning seasonal revenues with the fiscal year, the Association had deferred deposit of player fees received in August until September. Had the Association deposited those fees in accordance with historic practice, the small deficit would have been more than erased.

Despite his satisfaction with the Association's current financial performance and its fiscal management, Henage encouraged the Board of Directors to review the fee structure for the next seasonal year. The Association's costs are increasing, Henage reported. Premiums for the Association's insurance policies have jumped substantially, for example. Henage therefore predicted that the Association would need a commensurate increase in its revenues in order to achieve a balanced operating budget in the future.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST DISCLOSURES

President Paul C. Burke reminded members of the Board of Directors of the need to submit supplemental disclosures of potential conflicts of interest. Several Board members, including Burke, then provided Secretary Jodi Wells with amended disclosure forms.

DISTRICT 5 ETHICS REVIEW

President Paul C. Burke deferred this subject until next month so that District Five's Board of Directors might have the opportunity to review the situation involving League 26 and certain officers of the district. Burke announced, however, that he intended to revisit this topic at the next Board meeting because it is vital for the Association to maintain the highest levels of integrity. Burke said that he expected the Board of Directors to uphold its responsibility to enforce the Association's high ethical standards for Board members.

EXECUTIVE SESSION

Motion was made, seconded, and approved to enter into Executive Session to discuss personnel matters and sponsorship proposals. Upon returning from Executive Session, the Board announced that it had approved a sponsorship agreement with Full 90 and had also authorized President Paul C. Burke to execute a sponsorship agreement with Score Goal. The Board also announced that it had approved a cost-of-living salary increase for Technical Director Greg Maas.

ADJOURNMENT

Motion was made, seconded, and approved to adjourn at 11:15 p.m. The next meeting of the Board of Directors of the Utah Youth Soccer Association is scheduled for Thursday, October 21, 2004 at 8:00 p.m. at the State Office of Utah Youth Soccer Association.

These draft minutes were prepared by Secretary Jodi Wells.
Please direct any corrections or clarifications to ewells@networld.com