Page 23 - 2024 April report

GRANT PROGRAM COMMITTEE MINUTES (DRAFT)
March 17, 2024
Members Present: Angelique Albert, Bea Awoniyi, Sherry Salway Black, David Blaikie, William Corwin, I. King Jordan, Jr., Richard Krause, Robert Krause (non-voting), Malcolm Macleod,
Mike Miller (via Zoom)
Others Present: Hannah Deadman-Arnst, Lady Hereford, Tommy Pence, Sharon Wood
Malcolm chaired the meeting.
1. December 2023 meeting minutes
The minutes of the Committee’s December 2023 meeting had been circulated and were approved with the following corrections:
• On page 1, the first sentence of the second paragraph under the heading of business arising from the minutes should read “the status of the UPS scholarships.”
• On page 3, the Indigenous consultant update should exclude details about the consultant’s dismissal. Stating that he was not a good fit for the organization is adequate.
2. Business arising from the minutes/Update on programs
Bobby explained there have been several meetings and touchpoints with representatives of UPS since December. JSF extended the scholarship application from March 1 to March 15, and the number of completed applications will be available soon. This extension might help the numbers slightly, but it demonstrates JSF’s willingness to help the program. Bobby recently held an in-person meeting with the company’s highest-ranking executive in Florida, Ms. Alex Suliscalleja. After his meeting with Alex, Bobby met with attorney Nat Nason to discuss options for the UPS partnership going forward. From those discussions, it appears that working toward a remedy between the Foundation and UPS may be the most practical option. Alex seemed open to the concept of having JSF fund only qualified applicants rather than making one large annual grant for scholarships, currently $1.3 million. This would prevent the excess funding to students that has taken place in the form of bonus awards. Changes in the program would likely require working with other high-level officials besides Alex. Alex agreed to work to connect Bobby with UPS leadership with the authority to approve modifications to the agreement. If this could be accomplished by September, it could result in JSF being able to redistribute some of the UPS funds as discretionary grants in 2024.
A question was raised whether there is still a need for the scholarships at all. During her meeting with Bobby, Alex communicated that the need is there, but internal restructuring over the years has changed the way the scholarship is promoted within the company. Employee communications now take place on a national level rather than at the state level as they once were. The Committee briefly discussed the possible merits of changing the program to a national one. Ted Johnson Sr. knew the company offered its own national scholarships, and he designed this one as a way to avoid competing with those. A comment was made that JSF might consider funding some initiative in the Indigenous Peoples or Disability categories to help the children of UPS employees. Another suggestion is that social media could be a way JSF could help UPS promote the program within the state.
3. Update on programs
Reports and updates involving the following organizations had been circulated: University of New Brunswick, American Indian College Fund, American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) and UPS.
Education / A Powerful force for change Page 21