Next council president-elect TBD

Members of the Professional and Scientific Council will have to wait another month to find out who will be their next president-elect. Tera Lawson was announced as the winner of the three-way race at the Jan. 9 meeting, but further examination of the bylaws showed that a runoff is required if there is not a majority vote.

"I deeply regret the oversight," said council president Steve Mayberry, in an email to council members. "This situation has been discussed with the three candidates, expressing the need for full transparency of the matter and the need to correct the election."

A runoff election will be held during the Feb. 6 council meeting. Lawson (School of Education) will face the candidate who received the next highest vote count in the January ballot -- either Ann Greazel (ISU Extension and Outreach) or Mike Wilson (IT Services).

Health care fee

Kris Koerner, chair of the policies and procedures committee, told council members that Iowa State will waive the mandatory health fee for employees who are taking credits on campus, beginning this semester. The $98 fee is assessed on employees enrolled with four or more campus credits.

"It's been requested to be waived for [decades]," Koerner said. "This is not just for P&S staff and includes merit employees. We are grateful for that."

Save the date

The P&S Council will host a professional development conference on April 17 in the Scheman Building. This year's event adds a resource fair.