2) To reimburse P/Stf/C John Kern, AP, for attending the San Antonio Governing Board Meeting at the request of the Educational Department. 3) To dissolve Youngstown/11. 4) To recommend defeating the District 5 Resolution to prevent USPS meetings from held on religious holidays. The rationale is that the resolution is impractical, too broad, and guidelines for setting the national meetings calendar are published in the Operations Manual, Section 2.12. 5) To transfer the Wiz software contract from R/C Jim Strothers, SN, to USPS. 6) To allow the USCG Auxiliary to use the Depth Wiz software in conjunction with its Cooperative Charting Program. 7) To present 2014 Honorary Memberships to: Capt. F. Thomas Boross Chris Edmonston Ken Forster Joe Gatfield Tom Hayward Jeff Hoedt Rachel Johnson Tom Mallison Admiral Robert J. Papp Bert Rogers Safe Harbor Maritime Academy Discussions: SueLee Waller, Headquarters Outreach Coordinator, reported receiving an extension to 31 March 2014 for the Reducing Recreational Boating through Advanced Risk Analysis Grant. 2) Waller reported that the USPS Partnering Grant for 2012 ended on 30 Sept. 2013. The final report will be submitted to the USCG by 31 Dec. 2013. 3) Waller reported that approximately125 training events, more than 915 individual training sessions, 662 student trainings and 253 instructor-level courses had been held in conjunction with the On-the-Water Training Program. The USPS POTW vessel, Water
31) The Squadron Activities Committee is updating information on SERAT, the Squadron Emergency Response Assistance Team, and will develop standard training modules. 32) The Member Benefits Committee is updating the Member Benefits brochure. Member Benefits can be viewed at . 33) V/C Ojeda opened a discussion on why USPS membership continues to drop and what could be done to reverse the trend. Discussions focused on USPS’ mission and how to remain viable. One suggestion was to meet with marketing departments from successful membership organizations to learn how they maintain and increase membership. V/C Ojeda will solicit ideas from the Board and develop a list of priorities. Adjourned 1630 16 Nov. 2013 Called to order 0830 1) V/C Bob Brandenstein, SN, reported that Educational Department sales through 31 Oct. 2013 were up slightly over the same period one year ago. Year-to-date online course sales were $4,118. He reported a 15 percent decline in online ABC3 sales compared to one year ago. He noted that Educational Department expenses were $17,000 less than one year ago. 2) V/C Brandenstein reported that 48 students had taken the online Partner in Command Seminar. Boating on Rivers, Locks and Lakes launched on 30 Oct. 2013, and 12 students had taken the course to date. Of that number, 73 percent are nonmembers, and 26 are members of BoatU.S. He reported that Cruise Planning is the next online course planned, followed by VHF/DSC Marine Radio, Radar and Weather. 3) V/C Brandenstein reported that the Boat Handling Simulator project is moving forward to develop a moderately-priced wheel-and-throttle simulator that demonstrates realistic boat handling scenarios. 4) V/C Brandenstein reported that 125 squadrons are participating in the Brunswick Dealer Advantage Program, which is slightly over 30 percent of total squadrons. Brunswick will host a conference call with participating squadrons and DEO’s to discuss lessons learned, program successes, and any negative influences that may have occurred.