ASSOCIATION OF COLOMBIAN AND CARIBBEAN AMERICAN SCHOOLS (ACCAS)

EVENT:                                 Annual Meeting
PLACE:                                 Llanos Meeting Room, 3rdFloor
                                   Hyatt Regency
                                   San Antonio, Texas

DATE:                                    Tuesday, December 3, 2002

TIME: 

MEMBER SCHOOLS
IN ATTENDANCE:
     American School of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
    Carol Morgan School, Dominican Republic
    Colegio Albania, Colombia
    Colegio Bolivar, Colombia
    Colegio Dominico-Americano, Dominican Republic
    Colegio Granadino, Colombia
    Colegio Jorge Washington, Colombia
    Colegio Karl C. Parrish, Colombia
    Colegio Nueva Granada, Colombia
    Colegio Panamericano, Colombia
    Columbus School, Colombia
    Fundacion Liceo Ingles, Colombia
    Gimnasio Ingles, Colombia
    International School of Sosua, Dominican Republic
    MC School, Dominican Republic
    Saint Joseph School, Dominican Republic
Santiago Christian School, Dominican Republic
Union School, Haiti

AGENDA:                            

1.  Call to Order
2.  Approval of Minutes
3.  Treasurer's Report
4.  Requests for ACCAS membership
5.  Website and Logo
6.  Staff Development
7.  Additional Business
8.  Adjournment

1.  Call to Order
The Meeting was called to order at 4:15 p.m. by President Jack Delman.  Members were asked to introduce themselves for the benefit of new members.

2.  Approval of Minutes
The minutes from the previous meeting had been made available to members on the ACCAS website and were unanimously approved.

3.  Treasurer's Report
Dr. John Schober presented the Treasurer's Report showing that the Association finished the 2001-2002 fiscal year with a positive fund balance. The 11/28/01-10/31/02 financial report was distributed to the members present.  Dr. Schober reported that the account had been subject to high taxes, probably due to the fact that the Association is not incorporated in the U. S., and asked the members for suggestions as to how this could be handled in the future. 

After extensive discussion about whether or not to use ACCAS funds, for the first year only, to pay for EBSCO affiliation for all member schools, Dr. Schober made a motion to approve payment.  The motion was seconded by Dr. McCombs and unanimously approved.  Regarding future payments by individual schools, Mr. Delman will consult with Mary Virginia and inform the members about the method of payment preferred.  Dr. Schober reminded the members to submit their annual dues promptly. 

Dr. Schober suggested that other individuals in addition to himself ought to be named as ACCAS account holders, and asked for the members' ideas at the next meeting.

4.  Requests for ACCAS Membership
Two schools from the Dominican Republic, Saint Joseph and Saint Thomas, have requested membership in ACCAS.  Both are under consideration for pre-candidate status by SACS.  A discussion took place about the ACCAS selection criteria.  Mr. Delman read aloud Article 2, Section 3 from the ACCAS Constitution to determine that both schools were eligible for membership, and commented that if a school is granted pre-candidate status by SACS, there is no reason why it should not be accepted as a member of ACCAS.  On the assumption that the schools in question will be granted pre-candidate status, a motion was made to accept both schools as members.  The motion was seconded and passed.    

5.  Website and Logo
Mr. Delman explained that the contents of the website include the minutes to all meetings, school contact information, a history of ACCAS, (written with the help of Dr. Burton Fox) and links to other sites.  If errors are found, or to suggest additional links, members can send their suggestions to Mr. Delman.  Two of the most important features on the site are the bulletin board and chat room.  Mr. Delman emphasized their importance as a means of communication among ACCAS directors and encouraged members to register and create a password.

It was decided to continue using the logo that appears on the website.  Members were encouraged to submit suggestions for a new logo to Mr. Delman.

6.  Staff Development
On December 1st, thirteen directors attended the workshop presented by ESL consultant Gini Rojas, who is scheduled to visit Colombia and the Dominican Republic during the first week in April.   When Mr. Delman receives additional information regarding the visit, he will post it on the website and inform members.   ACCAS will provide Ms. Rojas' travel expenses and honorarium.  Schools will be responsible for the travel expenses of their teachers to the site of the conference.  $250 will be given to schools outside Colombia and the Dominican Republic to offset travel costs, as in the past.  Mr. Delman will provide a link on the ACCAS website to Ms. Rojas website.

Consultant Rene Soulis has also been contacted.  She is involved with an OSAC grant on substance abuse and health programs.  Dr. Felton reported that at their annual Board Members/Directors conference, the Colombian schools agreed that professional develoment activities might be developed independently by different regions.  Since these schools will attend Colegio Bolivar's forum in Cali in the spring, this event can be considered an alternative to the Soulis workshop. The directors would like to know if some of the ACCAS funds can be allocated to the Colombian schools for the expense of hiring a presenter.  Mr. Delman reminded the directors that the Tri-Association was providing additional funds for Rene Soulis.  He agreed that the Colombian schools could plan separate activities, and asked the directors to post information about the forum on the ACCAS website. Further information will be coming about the Renee Soulis visit.

Janie Pollock has been asked to visit our region at the end of August.  Mary Virginia has been asked to provide a Principals' Training Conference in September in Colombia or the Dominican Republic or in both countries promoted by NAESP.  Dr. Felton suggested having the dates coincide with the date of the Cali forum so that schools can use a curriculum day.  Mr. Delman will confirm the dates with Mary Virginia.

A suggestion was made to create guidelines for schools requesting financial support from ACCAS.  This would guarantee an equitable way of providing access to funds, which are necessarily limited by the number of member schools.  Dr. Schober congratulated Mr. Delman on his success in bringing in new members.   Mr. Delman and Mr. Adams will bring a suggestion for guidelines to a future meeting.  Mr. Delman has been trying to get the Tri-Association to underwrite some of ACCAS' plans. 

7. Additional Business
Mr. Delman presented Dr. Felton with an engraved tray in appreciation for his almost 25  years of service to ACCAS. Dr. Felton will retire as director of Colegio Bolivar in Cali, Colombia at the end of this school year.

8.  Adjournment
A motion was made and seconded to adjourn the meeting.  The meeting ended at 5:30 p.m.