by Vernice McCullough, Classified Council President

Hello and welcome to the spring semester 2002. I would like to take this opportunity to introduce myself. I'm Vernice McCullough, the new president of Classified Council. I was selected president after my predecessor relinquished the position for personal reasons. Please join me in wishing Heather Glenn all the best in her future endeavors and thanking her for a wonderful and very productive fall semester.

When I was asked to take over for Ms. Glenn, I took just about a week to decide. Did I want the extra work? Could I bring substantial and positive contributions to Classified Council? Would the Council be receptive to my way of thinking?  Could I live up to everyone's expectations?

Having had the first full council meeting on March 11, 2002 to discuss spring events, I quickly noticed that not only am I not alone in this enterprise, but that there are wonderful and talented people that make up the executive board, willing to go above and beyond the call of duty to make our events a success. With that support and dedication, Classified Council is planning an impressive list of spring activities.

Open Council Meetings: Our next meeting speaker will be Vicki Nicholson, Director of Human Resources. She will discuss how budget cuts may affect Human Resources and the classified staff and will also be responding to questions about HR. Future guest speakers will include Elizabeth Fremgen, Staff Development Officer (April) and Larry Serot, Vice President of Administrative Services (May).

April: Our April fundraiser will be $1 candy bars. I know everyone is used to having See's candy just in time for Easter; however, Easter came early this year and with the change in the Council, we missed the deadline to begin.

June: We will be holding our annual picnic on June 14, 2002. The theme this year is "Dance Party 2002." We will have a DJ and will be holding a dance contest and raffling off great prizes such as a Circle Drive parking space and lottery tickets. Please mark your calendars to attend!

You can help support these activities by becoming a member of the Classified Council. Membership is only $8 per year. Members are able to participate in Classified Institute Day and the end-of-the-year Classified Picnic at no charge, receive a discount for the annual Holiday Party, receive a birthday card with a lottery ticket, and help sponsor scholarships for Glendale College students. If you have any questions about membership, you can contact our treasurer, Nancy Brace, in the Instructional Services Office x5897.

I want to encourage all classified staff to become more involved in the activities we hold this semester and during the rest of the year. I'm lucky that working with Staff Development has afforded me the opportunity to get to know so many classified employees. How many of your co-workers do you know beyond your office? Classified Council offers you a way to meet and greet your fellow co-workers, have a shared learning experience, and share opportunities for growth and appreciation of each other as well as Glendale College. Don't limit yourself to the office part of our community, come out and join the whole.

Please feel free to e-mail me at vernicem@glendale.edu or call me at x5134 with any ideas or suggestions for activities the Classified Council can sponsor.

I look forward to hearing from you. *