APSA Council Meeting, Saturday, April 14, 2007, Palmer House Hilton, Chicago, IL

Present: Martha Ackelsberg, Tony Affigne (Treasurer), Robert Axelrod (President), Lisa Baldez, Catherine Boone, Janet Box-Steffensmeier, Henry Brady, Michael Brintnall (Executive Director), Susan Burgess, Dennis Chong, Elisabeth Gerber, Michael Doyle, Donald Green, Kerry Haynie, Bryan Jones, Michael Jones-Correa, Timothy Kaufman-Osborn, Jack Levy, Arthur Lupia, Dianne Pinderhughes (President-Elect) Anna Sampaio, Andrea Simpson, Melissa Williams

Not Attending: Luis Ricardo Fraga, James Johnson, David Lake, Helen Milner, Lee Sigelman

Staff: Jeff Biggs, Rob Hauck, Polly Karpowicz, Kim Mealy, Bahram Rajaee, Robin Smith, Lauren Tighe

Guests: Jane Junn, Edmond Keller, Ken Meier, Ronald Rogowski, Dan Treisman, Joan Tronto

The meeting was called to order at 9:30 a.m.

I. Report of the President

President Axelrod welcomed the Council. He gave a short update on the association as well as an update on his travels to the regional associations' meetings. He reported on his two non-APSA activities; an upcoming trip to China with the People-to-People program as well as his recent involvement with a program on Middle East politics. Further, he apprised the Council of the situation with Perspectives on Politics editor Jim Johnson and advised he would call Jim to give condolences from the Council.

II. Report of the Executive Director

APSA Executive Director Michael Brintnall reported that APSA as an association is doing well, and everything at the national office is in order. He welcomed Kim Mealy who recently joined the staff as the new Program Director of Education, Professional, and Minority Initiatives. Further, he indicated that he would like to engage in more writing about freedom, peer review, and learned societies in the future and would keep the Council informed of his endeavors.

III. Items for Review/Approval on Consent Agenda

The Council approved the minutes from the prior administrative committee and Council meetings and accepted all Committee minutes.

The Council reviewed the statement on academic freedom put forth by the Ethics Committee (Council Book page 213). Jeff Biggs indicated that this statement evolved from an April 2006 controversy at UCLA concerning academic freedom. Biggs reiterated that the Council recommended that APSA be a signatory of the ACE statement on Academic Freedom. However, it was decided that the statement was too general and the Council asked the Ethics Committee to author an additional piece that was more pertinent to political science.

Biggs pointed out that the statement puts a major burden on universities to come to the support of their faculty in these situations. The new statement would be posted on APSA's web site, circulated to departments, and sent to universities when issues called for it. Biggs also indicated that if APSA was asked to intercede, this statement would reiterate where we as a scholarly association stand on this issue and that an intercession of this manner frequently makes a difference.

Bryan Jones pointed to language in paragraph 5 of the statement and indicated that APSA should support academic freedom regardless of whether or not it is an increasing problem.

Arthur Lupia recommended that the language in paragraph 5 be changed to read “Political scientists as well as other academics have been subject to harassment and intimidation because of their political views, such harassment…” This new language removes the paragraph lead in of “It is increasingly common on U.S. campuses to subject…”

Martha Ackelsberg moved to vote on the approval of the new language, with changes in language to be reviewed by the Ethics and Administrative Committees.

[bull ] MOTION TO AMEND LANGUAGE IN PARAGRAPH 5 OF THE ETHICS COMMITTEE STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC FREEDOM IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

Michael Doyle and Donald Green asked about language in paragraph 3 asking whether or not APSA would censure certain universities (specifically those associated with a religious denomination) who don't subscribe to unfettered political discussion.

Michael Brintnall responded that APSA does not censure institutions and this statement does give APSA a way to express our views quickly when an issue concerning academic freedom arises on a campus.

Melissa Williams asked about the propriety of telling universities what their objectives are to commit certain resources. She agreed they have an obligation to defend academic freedom. Williams suggested new language to clarify this distinction and moved to have it changed to read “Third, the association encourages universities to …” as opposed to the original “Third, the university has an obligation …”

[bull ] MOTION TO AMEND LANGUAGE IN THE LAST PARAGRAPH OF THE ETHICS COMMITTEE STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC FREEDOM IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

Susan Burgess expressed her view that religious universities have a strong need for statements such as this one. In response, Anna Sampaio gave an example of professors from Liberty University who were released because their teachings went against the religious values of the University.

[bull ] MOTION TO APPROVE ETHICS COMMITTEE STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC FREEDOM IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

IV. Financial Reports

APSA Treasurer Tony Affigne reported that he is working with staff to improve the clarity and easy communication of the budget to the Council and staff. He pointed to the various financial handouts as evidence of the efforts to improve the process, and that this is just a first step.

Treasurer Affigne reported that the total value of the APSA trust portfolio is $11.8 million while the CFP fund is at $13.3 million and the working capital fund is at $2.2 million. He also reported that the current value of the building at 1527 New Hampshire is $6.4 million while the building at 1528 18^th Street is valued at $1.9 million. He indicated that the total value of all asses is $35.4 million and that the portfolio has grown nicely as there has been a 7.2% increase in the value of the APSA trust portfolio and a slightly larger increase in the CFP portfolio. Further, he indicated that the association's commitment to socially responsible investing is outlined in item 5.5 of the association's by-laws and was also published in the January 2007 issue of PS.

Treasurer Affigne informed the Council that the Trust and Development Committee was beginning the process of the customary 5 year review of our investment manager Loren Ross and Cedarpoint Capital. The Committee is seeking the advice of a consultant who will assess whether or not the association still needs an active investment firm or manager. Affigne reported that the Trust and Development Committee will be meeting with Vanguard Group at the end of July to learn about how a major funds group could serve APSA.

Affigne also indicated that he is working with staff to explore new affinity program partnerships.

Robin Smith, APSA Director of Finance and Administration, reported that the building at 1527 New Hampshire is receiving energy efficient upgrades. We will be installing new storm windows and have switched to more energy efficient light bulbs throughout the building. We have also rehabbed the building's roof.

Michael Brintnall updated the Council concerning the building at 1528 18^th Street. He reported unexpected difficulty in finding long-term tenants. The market in the foreseeable figure is stronger for sale of the building than lease. A sale could now result in gains. Holding the building incurs risk of operating losses outpacing long term gains. He indicated that the Trust and Development Committee has agreed that the building be put up for sale while still attempting to find some short term lease opportunities.

President Axelrod informed the Council that the Administrative Committee recommended the creation of an ad hoc Building Committee that would handle negotiations associated with the building's sale. The Building Committee would be comprised of the President, President-Elect, Treasurer, and one member of the Trust and Development Committee to be named at a later date. He affirmed however that the final approval for the sale of the building would rest with the Council.

Henry Brady felt that it might be worth a discussion of possibilities of usage of the building by APSA. Michael Brintnall responded that APSA has explored the possibility of moving the Centennial Center or using the space for housing for CFP fellows or students. However, he indicated that any of these options would only produce about 2/3 of the revenue that APSA would get from a long term tenant. The inability to find a long term tenant for the space has motivated the decision to put the building up for sale.

Michael Jones-Correa asked where the funds from the sale of the building would go. Michael Brintnall responded by reminding the Council first, that APSA's endowment investments at no time was encumbered or reduced by the building purchase. The building was purchased by borrowing against the original building. The funds would be used to pay off the mortgage and any leftover funds would go back into the portfolio. Treasurer Affigne furthered this point by indicating that the resale value reimburses the association's existing balance sheet and reimburses the banks.

Henry Brady moved to authorize the pursuit of the sale of the 18^th Street building as well as create a Building Committee to oversee negotiations.

[bull ] MOTION TO AUTHORIZE THE SALE OF THE BUILDING AT 1528 18^th STREET IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

[bull ] MOTION TO APPROVE THE CREATION OF A BUILDING COMMITTTEE TO OVERSEE THE SALE IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

Treasurer Affigne directed the Council's attention to the audit report. He indicated the Audit Committee has discussed the audit and has approved it. He pointed out that the net assets for the last fiscal year grew by $2 million. He also noted that there was no management letter.

Treasurer Affigne moved to accept the audit.

[bull ] MOTION TO ACCEPT THE AUDIT IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

Treasurer Affigne informed the Council that APSA had signed a reauthorization letter to reappoint McGladrey and Pullen as the audit firm. He also indicated that the auditing firm has been asked to review the council fiscal governance structure. Further, the Audit Committee will bring a list of possible changes to the fiscal governance structure to the Council meeting in August.

Donald Green commended Treasurer Affigne for his work on financial matters and endorsed the move to request a council fiscal governance structure.

Green also inquired into how funds are allocated to individual awards.

Lisa Baldez then asked if there were restrictions on reallocation of funds. Rob Hauck responded by saying that this issue has previously been looked into and to change a restricted account APSA would have to go back to all the original donors to get authorization. Hauck indicated that they will continue to review this issue.

Treasurer Affigne directed the Council's attention to the newly created whistleblower statement reviewed by the Audit Committee. Michael Brintnall indicated that there is an expectation of a whistleblower policy that provides a vehicle and protections for people who wish to identify financial malpractice within the association. Treasurer Affigne called for approval of the whistleblower policy.

[bull ] MOTION TO APPROVE THE WHISTLEBLOWER POLICY IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

Treasurer Affigne introduced the proposed FY08 budget to the Council. He indicated the budget included a 7.2% increase in expenses and a 7.8% increase in revenues.

Michael Brintnall told the Council that there were no dramatic changes in this budget and that it was built on the previous year's experience. Robin Smith informed the Council that she projects a little over $5.071 million in revenue and $5.06 million in expenses thus making the bottom line roughly $11,000. She indicated that membership dues would increase by 3% which is standard. Departmental dues will also increase by 3%. Journal revenue is projected to be higher. The fee for the annual meeting will rise by 5% and Smith expects that exhibitor revenue will increase. She also indicated that staff salary and benefits costs are the most expensive parts of the budget.

Kerry Haynie questioned why departmental dues are based on the number of faculty in a department rather than on the school's resources and ability to pay for the membership. Michael Brintnall responded by saying that the dues structure is based on the potential for eJobs postings and the cost of those listings. Brintnall indicated that it was possible to ask the Departmental Services Committee to think about this issue.

Melissa Williams asked how APSA determines that exhibitor revenue will increase. Rob Hauck responded by saying that fees will be higher and that the there will be a larger exhibit hall.

Bryan Jones asked to have a clearer breakdown of the budget by object and noted the Council's important role in financial oversight.

Treasurer Affigne informed the Council that the form 990 submitted by the association is available as a public document and documents the salary of the executive director and the 5 highest paid employees. He also informed the Council that any Council member has the legal right to receive any fiduciary information about the association.

Bryan Jones asked whether or not APSA could release a statement that these documents are available and explain how the Council would go about viewing them. Kerry Haynie supported Jones' idea and asked that we distribute the forms at the Council meetings.

Treasurer Affigne proposed the idea of creating an Executive Compensation Committee. Henry Brady supported Affigne's idea.

Lisa Baldez questioned the dramatic increase in survey costs in the FY08 budget. Brintnall responded that the departmental survey is a major service requested by the Departmental Services Committee and by Chairs. This survey amount is not an increase over amounts historically budgeted. He indicated he has receiving increasing pressure from department chairs to get various data sets.

Baldez asked a second question regarding the increased cost of exhibits and signs and audio visual equipment at the annual meeting. Rob Hauck answered that the Hyatt in Chicago does not allow APSA to use hotel resources that we typically solicit. He also indicated that the Hyatt is a very difficult hotel to get around and that there will be a slightly larger exhibit hall than in most hotels.

Treasurer Affigne moves to approved the draft FY08 budget

[bull ] MOTION TO APPROVE THE DRAFT FY08 BUDGET IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

Treasurer Affigne asked Michael Brintnall if in the future APSA could include more information about staff in the Council book. This information would include length of service and age of each staff member.

V. Journals and Publications

Ronald Rogowski and Dan Treisman from UCLA updated the Council on the transition of APSR to UCLA this summer. Rogowski informed the Council that they have hired a managing editor and chosen Editorial Manager as their manuscript managing software. Rogowski also introduced the selections for the new APSR editorial board.

Lisa Baldez asked about the Editorial Manager software's ability to access reviewer databases from other journals. Ron Rogowski responded by saying this was possible and that they could incorporate whole membership lists to solicit reviewers.

The editor provided the Council with a provisional list of editorial board members for Council advice and consent.

Susan Burgess asked Ronald Rogowski what the UCLA team's principles were in selecting their editorial board. Rogowski indicated they intended to follow Lee Sigelman's example and keep even representation. He also indicated they tried to get more foreign members and smaller institutions on the board.

Martha Ackelsberg, Treasurer Affigne, and Henry Brady all expressed concern over the lack of diversity in fields of the scholars on the list as well as a lack of

Susan Burgess was also concerned about the lack of institutional diversity on the board.

Dan Treisman responded to the above questions and comments by saying that they received a disappointing response from organized sections about suggestions for board members.

Anna Sampaio indicated that the Latino Caucus has a list of scholars expressly for this purpose but was not consulted for names. Sampaio also asked whether there could be a process of selection that creates a more middle-ground.

Treasurer Affigne asked how any new additions to the board to fill the aforementioned gaps will be integrated into the existing categories.

Anna Sampaio expressed her opinion that there is perhaps a generational gap in terms of suggestions of names. She indicated that the current head of the Race, Ethnicity and Politics section might be of a younger generation and not have knowledge of scholars who could serve on the board. Sampaio also asked Rogowski and Treisman to consider deselection of some candidates on the board.

Martha Ackelsberg wondered if there should be a cap imposed on the number of individuals from any one institution on the board.

President Axelrod asked the UCLA team to continue to work on their list and return to the Council later. Council members were advised to send names to Rogowski via email if they have suggestions.

VI. Governance

Michael Brintnall reported that APSA staff had recently drafted a conflict of interest statement. He said this was good practice to have in place and was not precipitated by any problems.

Martha Ackelsberg asked if this statement was only pertinent to financial matters or if it included things like conflict of interest on award committees. Brintnall responded that it was financial and that the issue with award committees will be dealt with in the appointment letters sent to members who agree to serve on those committees.

[bull ] MOTION TO APPROVE THE CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

VII. Journals and Publications

Michael Brintnall briefed the Council on eJobs and indicated that they were exploring ways to comply with the Department of Labor guidelines in hiring foreign workers that require posting jobs in a print journal. He said staff were looking at ways to put job listings in print and that we had included a budget item to allow this.

President Axelrod brought up the issue of Perspectives on Politics and explained that Jim Johnson had a brief review last summer and was granted a one year extension to his contract. The renewal for his final years is now up in the air given the recent tragedy. Axelrod indicated he will be in touch with Jim and will talk about this issue.

VIII. Meetings and Conferences

Liz Gerber, a 2007 Program Co-Chair, gave an update on preparations for the 2007 annual meeting in Chicago and reported things are going well. She thanked the APSA staff for their help in organizing the meeting. She also thanked the organized sections for their role in shaping the program.

President-Elect Dianne Pinderhughes explained to the Council that she was forced to replace one of her original selections for 2008 Program Co-Chair. Gwendolyn Mink of Smith College was originally selected, but could not continue. In her place, Pinderhughes selected Jane Junn of Rutgers University to join Ed Keller of UCLA as the 2008 Program Co-Chairs

[bull ] MOTION TO APPROVE JANE JUNN AS NEW PROGRAM CHAIR TO REPLACE GWENDOLYN MINK IS UNANIMOUSLY APPROVED.

Jane Junn and Ed Keller briefed the Council on their progress to date with the 2008 annual meeting. They shared their working title for a theme statement and expressed their eagerness to create a great annual meeting.

Joan Tronto, chair of the Annual Meeting Review Committee, presented the committee's report to the Council. She indicated that this report was preliminary and that pending comment, the committee is willing to make revisions. Tronto reported that the most important thing was that any recommendations the committee made could not compromise the overall purpose and success of the annual meeting. Tronto also distributed a handout to the Council showing the overall proposal acceptance rates for each of the divisions.

Martha Ackelsberg commented on the fact that new divisions might not be generating the same number of proposals as some divisions so it was important to consider whether or not the percentage rates of acceptance were skewed. Tronto replied that when it comes to allocating panels, divisions are not penalized for having higher acceptance rates, just higher rejections rates.

Arthur Lupia expressed his opinion that any change in the proposal deadline would not have an impact because people would still submit their proposals at the last minute regardless. Lupia worried about the consequences of scholars not showing up to present at their panels and felt that the committee should consider forcing scholars to submit their entire paper at the time of submission to improve the intellectual quality of panels.

Timothy Kaufman-Osborn commented that requiring scholars to submit entire papers would place a burden on the division chairs who review the proposals. Tronto also indicated that many people use the summer prior to the meeting to write their paper.

Bryan Jones indicated that he felt there was a real quality problem on panels. He asked whether the submission process could continue as is, but impose an earlier date for paper completion and submission.

Catherine Boone indicated that she did not feel there was a problem with intellectual quality on panels and perhaps quality of papers is field specific.

Kerry Haynie indicated that he felt changing the submission expectations would make scholars adjust and submit their papers ahead of time. Martha Ackelsberg added that she felt requiring scholars to submit their work so early would take away from the presence of fresh material. Jack Levy also indicated that an earlier submission deadline would impact graduate students who present at the meeting.

Joan Tronto addressed questions regarding changes to the participation rule by indicating that the norm is one piece of substantive work person at the conference. She expressed the view that a change in the rules would not stop collaboration but would stop a scholar from being listed multiple times in the program. Henry Brady then asked whether a system could be imposed to allow scholars to indicate which paper is their primary work and still collaborate with others.

Joan Tronto concluded her report by saying that a webpage would be set up to allow for member comment and the committee would submit a more final report in August.

Kim Mealy gave the Council an update on the 2007 Teaching and Learning Conference in Charlotte, NC and indicated that planning for the 2008 conference is underway and APSA should be ready to announce the location very soon.

IX. APSA Programs

Kim Mealy gave the Council an update on the 2007 Teaching and Learning Conference in Charlotte, NC and indicated that planning for the 2008 conference is underway and APSA should be ready to announce the location very soon.

President Axelrod gave an update on his Task Force on Interdisciplinarity. He indicated that the ultimate goal of the Task Force is to publish a work on best practices in interdisciplinarity and that he would keep the Council updated on the further workings of the group.

Jeff Biggs delivered an update on the Congressional Fellowship Program citing that the current class was very strong and that CFP continues to have a perennially strong application pool. He also indicated that the program has returned to an even keel of outside funds supporting CFP.

Timothy Kaufman-Osborn updated the Council on the progress of the Council committee on BA/MA initiatives. He shared the committee's findings that faculty at non-PhD granting institutions are more likely to attend the annual meeting to gain teaching experience. He also indicated that there is a stark difference between BA granting public institutions and all other institutions. He concluded by saying that the committee will hopefully have a more extensive and substantive report for the Council at its August meeting.

Michael Brintnall presented to the Council a proposal to create a new organized section entitled “Sexuality and Politics”. He indicated that pending the appropriate number of signatures on the petition and Council consent, the section would be approved.

[bull ] MOTION TO APPROVE THE CREATION OF A NEW SEXUALITY AND POLITICS ORGANIZED SECTION IS APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY.

Ken Meier, chair of the Minority Programs Implementation Committee, delivered a report to the Council on the progress of APSA's minority initiatives. He indicated that first and only priority in terms of minority programs is securing ongoing funding for the Bunche Institute. The fundraising goal is $3million and the committee will look to identify outside sources to contribute funding. He also informed the Council that it was time to think about establishing alternative institutes similar to Bunche at other institutions. Further, he indicated that there would be a renewal of a program where current faculty visit campuses to talk to minority students about graduate studies in political science. Meier also reported that the committee would work to establish ties to the McNair database through the Department of Education to encourage recruitment of minority graduate school candidates.

X. Additional Items

President Axelrod engaged the Council in a discussion of the long-term future of the discipline.

The meeting concluded at 4:25pm.

2006 Executive Director's Report Tables