PROCEEDINGS

Rotary Institute

Zones 23 & 24
San Diego, California
Sam Greene, Director/Convenor

September 2-6, 1999

 Opening Banquet—President Ravizza’s  Speech

RI PRESIDENT CARLO RAVIZZA CONGRATULATES, CHALLENGES ROTARIANS AT OPENING BANQUET

An overflow crowd, including more than 700 Rotarians from local clubs, greeted 1999-2000 Rotary International President Carlo Ravizza and his wife Rossana at the opening banquet.  Bill McDade of the Rotary Club of San Diego and District Governor Elect of District 5340 called the session to order.  The Marine Corps Band provided music and later played the national anthems of the United States and Italy.  Pat Crowell, PDG District 4340, introduced the head table, which included: President Ravizza and his wife Rossana, Crowell and his wife Margaret, Alejandro Orfila, McDade and his wife Carol, Rotary Director Sam Greene and his wife Caki, and Zone Institute General Chairs Ron and Vicki Beaubien. Crowell introduced Director Greene, who welcomed the participants and guests, saluted the organizing committee and defined the purpose of the Zone Institute:  “To bring together past, present, and future leaders to be brought up to date and inspired to continue their good work for Rotary.”  Alejandro Orfila, former Ambassador to the United States from Argentina and an honorary member of the Rotary Club of San Diego, made a special presentation to President Ravizza of San Diego county Merlot made with “Consistency, credibility, and continuity.”  Director Greene introduced President Ravizza, who, with Rossana, will be attending eight zone institutes in the next few weeks. 

President Ravizza’s remarks:

He compared the “paradise” of San Diego to the ravages and ruins of  Kosovo, which he recently visited.  We have so much, he said, and they have so little.  They need $3 million just to get through the next winter.  President Carlo listed the challenges Rotary faces:

1.      Polio eradication.  Rotary still needs $400 million to complete the campaign.  It is still a heavy battled.  “We will win the battle and be able to celebrate the certification of a world free of the wild polio virus by the year 2005.”  “Rotary, President Ravizza said, “will have played a major role with our partners in eliminating this scourge from the planet.”

2.      Membership.  Heavy losses have occurred in the last two years, especially in the United States.  In some countries Rotary is in danger of becoming “an old man’s club.” Extension has slowed down and there are problems with extending Rotary into former Communist block countries.  Each country wants to be its own district, but it is not numerically possible or practical.  There are language, cultural, and historical problems involved with combining countries in districts.  A special committee is studying extension in and into Islamic countries. He linked loss of membership to the need for strong programs of membership retention in every club.  He cited the need to keep Rotary simple and to streamline the processes and procedures of our organization and its Foundation.  “If the rules are outdated or too technical, they should be revised or dropped,” he said.  “If we cannot respect the rules—let’s change the rules.”  “I’ve talked to you previously about the three C’s:  consistency, credibility, and continuity.  Let me now add two more C’s:  courage to change.  We must listen to the grass roots in our organization and use their creative ideas to change.  We must not change Rotary for the sake of change, but for the sake of all those who depend on our humanitarian service.”

 President Ravizza complimented the districts represented in Zones 23 and 24 and cited areas in which the zone has led the way in the world of Rotary.  “But there is still much to do and the needs for our service grow each day and each decade,” he said.   “With the quality I see here I know Rotary is in great hands.  We will solve many of the problems of mankind together through Rotary in the years to come.”

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Friday, September 3, 1999—Theme for the Day—Focus on Children

First Plenary Session: Focus on Education

Pat Crowell presided and moderated a panel discussion on “A Street Level View of Challenges in Education.” Crowell identified the goal of the session: to Explore solutions and generate ideas that Rotarian leaders can carry back to their districts and have impact on education.

Paula Cordeiro, Dean of the College of Education at the University of San Diego, was the first presenter.  She began with the assertion: “The key to improving education is: “joint ventures—not monopolies.”   She described three trends, listed the biggest challenges, and suggested how each of us can help with the challenges to public education.

TRENDS

Trend 1: The privatization of schools that is taking place—charter schools, vouchers, private for-profit schooling, and the outsourcing of schooling.

Trend 2: The growth in partnerships between schools and businesses, non-profits, and agencies.

Trend 3: The growth of the idea that education is no longer a monopoly of the schools.

THE CHALLENGES

1.      Inequities in funding.  Educational opportunity varies greatly because of funding discrepancies at the state, city, district, and school levels.

2.      Demographic changes.  Increasingly schools must deal with student language differences and differences in family situations of the students.

3.      The 3 “Rs” are no longer sufficient.  Students must learn at a minimum skills in literacy, numeracy, science, technology, and the skills and values that enable them to be effective participants in society.

WHAT YOU (ROTARIANS) CAN DO

“Use your wealth of wisdom and experience.” 

1.      Vote wisely for school board members.

2.      Be a partner to education through a business-school partnership.

3.      Serve on school advisory committees.

4.      Be an advocate for education.

Larry Rosenstock, Principal of High Tech High (San Diego), a Charter School, spoke next. Rosenstock came to San Diego from Hartford, Connecticut where he was instrumental in establishing an internship program that was highly effective.

Rosenstock quoted Jefferson’s definition of the purpose of education: “To create a community.”  “We must,” he said, “get people engaged in the work of schools and communities” if education is to succeed.

“The idea for the internship program was “born in Hartford of a meeting with a Rotary club that wanted to know how it could help.”  He discussed the internships Hartford schools set up with Polaroid and with Hartford Real Estate.  These well-structured programs, he said, had a completion  rate of 99% among the high school-age students and 85% of the students who completed the program went on to college.

When students were asked what it was about the intern program that made them  succeed, the overwhelming response was:  “because I had access to an adult milieu where I am treated with respect.”

Rosenstock suggested, for the consideration of Rotary, that internships are an effective way to get people involved in education that succeeds with students.  He urged Rotarians to help get people involved in education because of its importance to every one of us and to society.  At the grammar school level, the goal of education is immersion, but at the high school level it is to get the students involved with adults and the world of work.  The purpose of education, he said, quoting John Dewey, “is to transform society—not replicate society.”

Allan Birsin, San Diego Superintendent of Schools, was the final presenter.  Birsin, whose district serves more than 140,000 students, called for the public and the schools to “bond together and get the most good for public education.”  He said “getting involved” was the most critical aspect in making education better.  He cited the passage of bonds in San Diego by a margin of  78.4% last year as an example of what can happen when the public gets involved.  As another example, he cited “San Diego Reads,” a community-wide literacy campaign to place books in classrooms and recruit, train and place literacy volunteers.  “What Rotary can do is get involved,” he said.  “Your involvement counts intellectually and monetarily.  Don’t let others monopolize education.  Involvement counts, knowledge counts.”

QUESTIONS TO THE PANEL

Most of the questions related to how Rotary and Rotary clubs can “partner” with schools.  Some suggestions from the panel:

1.      Check with your school district office.  Many have a partnership group already in place.  Invite the Superintendent to a Rotary club meeting to talk about “partnerships with education.”

2.      Rotary can help provide positive spirit through supporting arts and sports programs.

3.      Continue and enlarge the ways in which you mentor at schools:  “read to me” programs, literacy conferences, career/job fairs.

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Breakout  sessions:  improving  our educational system

Stimulated by the presentation of the panel, Rotarians spent the next hour discussing specific ways Rotary clubs and districts can help improve our educational system.  The discussion leaders included:  Cliff Dochterman, Paul Sandas, Mike Kutsuris, Bill Nystrom, Jerry Barden, Martin Peters, Jim Mealey, Grant Wilkins, Ken Bose, and Charlie Cole.  At the end of each session, participants “voted” for the most important three ideas suggested.  The ideas receiving the most support are summarized elsewhere in this report (see Plenary Session 6, Sunday, September 6).  Because they may serve as a stimulus to action, and to show the volume and variety of the ideas generated, a number of them, in no special order of popularity, are listed below:

1.      Share current Rotary programs that are successful:

a.       Parenting programs

b.      Providing schools with supplies not funded by school system.

c.       Reading programs (books and funding).

2.      Gather information on such programs and share them with Director Sam Greene.

3.      Consolidate the information and communicate it to all clubs in the Zone, using Interact clubs and web sites.

4.      Conduct needs assessments

a.       Solicit recommendations from Rotarians.

b.      Involve current Rotarians who are school superintendents, community leaders, etc.

5.      Rotary clubs partner with other clubs in geographical areas to assist in addressing the economic and cultural conditions that underlie problems and weaknesses in the schools.

6.      Emulate successful programs such as “Caring about Kids” (a mentoring training program for Rotarians) in Auburn, CA.

7.      Create and sponsor ongoing forums with local school board candidates and members.

8.      Use Interact clubs to provide childcare and assist single parents.

9.      Teach or promote the 4-Way Test in the schools.

10.  Support athletic programs as a means of teaching discipline, self-sacrifice, and good citizenship.

11.  Clubs sponsor a school or class.

12.  Recognize students who excel in one area such as science, math and honor teachers who are outstanding.

13.  Be involved directly with schools and students; for example: the “Kids Vote” program in Hawaii.

14.  Provide scholarships to community colleges, not just four-year colleges and universities.

15.  Provide “goods in-kind” to help the schools: paper, computers.

16.  Give a quality dictionary to every third grader as one Northern California district did.

17.  Study funding internships/apprenticeships in lieu of funding of so many ambassadorial scholarships.

18.  Recognize the demographic realities and reach out to Latino’s through membership in ethic associations, recruit members of ethnic groups for membership in Rotary.

19.  Encourage Interact and Rotaract clubs to seek more members from ethnic groups.

20.  Have more than one Rotarian at every Interact/Rotaract club meeting.

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Institute Luncheon, September 3:  “Exciting Opportunities in

Education Today”

(A note about head tables:  The institute committee decided to not have head tables at any of the meal sessions except the opening dinner, featuring RI President Carlo Ravizza.  This helped keep the institute on schedule by reducing the number of introductions.  It also promoted a feeling of unity and equality among the leaders of Rotary.  --Larry Kavanaugh, ed.)

 

Institute General Chair Ron Beaubien presided and introduced the speaker:  Peter Preuss, a University of California Regent.  Preuss’s speech was entitled: “Exciting Opportunities in Education Today.”  He began with two questions:  “Is fixing education worth our while?”  and “Should we get involved and if so, how can we get involved?” A paraphrase of his remarks:

P     Higher education in California is the best in the world but our primary and secondary schools are at the very bottom in terms of funding and achievement and American schools rank poorly worldwide.

P     We are not educating enough doctors and engineers. We must import these skilled people because our schools do not meet our needs.

P     We are not doing a good job of “harvesting” the talent we have.  We need a better stream of students coming to the university and higher education.

P     Affirmative action is not the answer.

So, why am I so optimistic about education in this country?  Because this is America.  What better place in the world to improve education than here in a country where we can realize ideas?

P     We have to decide what we want, we have to decide what it costs, and we have to decide how to get it.

P     There are lots of less privileged people in our state and in our country and we have to make sure they are served.

An example of an idea we think will work is the first charter college-prep school for underprivileged kids that will open next week on the University of California, San Diego campus.  The idea was originally voted down the by the Academic Senate of the university, but the persistence of a citizen’s committee reversed this decision.  Preuss and the committee started a fundraising campaign to raise $40 million to build the physical plant for the school.  Preuss’s group got big donations from the most conservative and the most liberal among the local philanthropists.  The school will start with 150 students.  Undergraduate students from the university  will serve as tutors.  In order to be accepted to the school, prospects must demonstrate both hardship and motivation.  President Clinton supports the concept and hopes the model for such schools will spread across the country.  This is how education can be improved:

            IP Have an idea.

P Discuss it with your associates.

P Sell it to others.

P Figure out how to do it.

We must “pour oil on fires” of imagination and commitment.  What better place than America to do it?  Good education is also good business, and good education is good for everybody.  All we need is imagination, innovation, and action to make it happen.

PPPPPP

Special Presentation:  As a tribute to Director Sam Greene’s partner, Caki,  attendees  brought children’s books to the lunch.  The books, in both English and Spanish, will be distributed under the direction of Caki, a school librarian, in San Diego-area schools and in Tijuana schools.

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Second Plenary Session:  “Challenges Facing Youth.”

Keith Dindinger presided over a session that featured a speech by former U. S. Teacher of the Year Sandy McBrayer followed by a panel discussion on “A Street Level View of Problems Facing Youth.”

  McBrayer agreed with Peter Pruess's assertion that our job was to “pour oil on the fires of imagination and commitment.”  She told of her background in working with underprivileged kids, gang members, and incarcerated youth and of  being honored for her work in San Diego and in Washington, D. C.  She started the first successful school in the United States for homeless and unattended youth.  She began her teaching career with at-risk youth in Juvenile Hall and in Alternative educational programs.  She is now the  Director of “The Children’s Initiative,” an organization dedicated to strengthening children and families through community program. “Like Gandhi,” she said, ”each of us must believe: ‘My life is my message.’”  “We must ask ourselves: ‘What are we willing to stand up for?  What do we sit through?’”  In my work with homeless and incarcerated kids, I tried to see through their eyes and act with my heart, she said.  “In dealing with adults about how to help, I too often heard silence.  We must act, speak, and vote, she said, “We must do right—that’s what makes a difference.”  “All children have a right to grow,” she said.  “What we can do is look around us and see what we can do each and every day—that’s what we can do.”

  Jerry Sanders, former Chief of Police in San Diego and now CEO of the United Way of San Diego, told us people are afraid of kids. “For what we see in kids today, we need to look to the home.”  We are not communicating with them and we’re not spending time with them, “ he said.  We are focusing on the wrong things in our relationships with our kids.  We need to stop assuming that the criminal justice system is the way to control them.  The media is molding our young people, he said.  “What they see is not reality, but it is believed.”  We need a real environment with values such as Scouts or team sports) for our young people.  We need to spend time talking and interacting with them.  We need afterschool programs where kids can relate with adults and we need safe environments for kids.  “It is an issue of time and care on the part of adults,” he said.

  James Milikin, the presiding judge of the Juvenile Division, San Diego Superior Court, was the next panelist.  He is an advocate of new approaches to juvenile reforms and involving parents in the process.  He discussed what the courts have learned about kid offenders.  “In examining the juvenile court system,” he said, “we found that most of the kids on probation were not being supervised after school.”  The court had rules, he said, but did not enforce them.  New programs are addressing the need to provide mentoring, caring, literacy training, and supervision. The results are positive—a decline of 60% in repeat offenders.  “We need,” he said, “volunteers, like Rotarians, who can be role models and who will take time to care about kids.”  More than 250,000 people are in prison out of a population of 30 million, Milikin told us.  “Clearly incarceration is not the solution,” he said.  “We need to get young offenders into treatment programs, provide supervision for them, and teach them the consequences of their actions.”

    The Reverend George Walker Smith spoke next.  Smith has served as the President of the National School Boards Association and participated in the White House Conference on Children and Youth.  A former long-time member of the San Diego Unified School District Board, Smith works with disadvantaged youth in the San Diego area.  The Reverend also is a Paul Harris, an honor he received from the LaJolla Golden Triangle Rotary Club of District 5340.  He made the following points:

P     Gangs are everywhere, not just in the cities.

P     The reason young people belong to gangs is because it is the only place they get a sense of identity and direction—a feeling of family.

P     We need to stop turning away from youth with repulsion.

P      If kids get into trouble we should set them straight and guide them—not “ban them for life.”

P     Instead of just criticizing our educational system, we need to work with them as our panelists urged this morning.

P     Rotary needs to help develop programs, not just give money and rhetoric.

“Kids in trouble need a hand up, not a hand out,” he said, in urging us to get involved.

  Cleophus Harris, a former gang member and former incarcerated youth who now works with gang members, was the final speaker.  Cleophus told how he had been given a “second chance” because of the court system.  He attended court school where he earned his GSE certificate and a high school diploma. He later attended San Diego City College.  “Education takes away the tunnel vision,” he said.  “Young people don’t know how to process hurt,” he said, “and hurt and pain grow into anger and anger into violent behavior.”  We need to help young people know there is something good beyond the pain,” he said.  “Young men in trouble especially need men to show them how to be men and then good citizens.”

  Moderator Keith Dindinger led a discussion on “What Rotary and Rotarians can do to address the problems facing youth.”  Questions and responses from the audience and panel yielded the following suggestions:

            P Provide employment opportunities and internships so young people can learn interaction with adults and the gratification of being paid for their services.

P Never call people “disadvantaged.”  Give ‘em a feeling of belonging and self worth.

P Provide mentoring programs.  Recruit and sponsor mentor training through your local probation department or involve your own club members in mentoring programs coordinated through the courts.

P Adopt a school or a class.  Give talks to classes on success in the world of work.

P Help youth learn how you go about “getting into” your business or profession.

 

P Employment!  Employment!  Employment!

 

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  Third Plenary Session—The Future of Rotary

  Ed Futa, Rotary Long-Range Planning Director (and recently named Associate General Secretary of Rotary International) presided, presented, and served as moderator of the panel discussion at this session.  Cliff Dochterman, past Rotary International President and Chair of Rotary’s “Dream for the Future Committee,” shared some of the 25 recommendations of the committee that will go to the RI board in October.  Among them were recommendations that Rotary:

P     become more involved in dealing with world hunger and poverty.

P     develop a more rapid system of response to disasters, such as regional storehouses of emergency supplies around the world.

P     take a more active role in preserving the environment, perhaps by a campaign to plant 1 million trees a year for ten years.

P     encourage and support efforts to develop underused sources of energy such as that from sun, wind, biomass technology, and water; thereby reducing the world’s dependence on fossil fuels.

P     work more aggressively and actively for a healthier world, perhaps on a regional basis rather than launch another worldwide campaign against a single disease.

P     provide greatly expanded programs of literacy.

P     support the proposition that “every kid is entitled to a primary grade education” and that Rotary especially support the education of girl children.

P     pump up its work to deal with drug and substance abuse problems.

P     work to alleviate the problem of abandoned children.

P     continue and strengthen its efforts to care for and provide for orphans.

P     strengthen its efforts to bring peace in the world.

P     launch a program to have every club in Rotary paired with another club in different country.

P     build its  permanent fund to $1 billion by the year 2005.

P     launch new types of community service projects.

P     establish the seven Centers for International Studies at universities.

P     undertake a series of organizational changes, including

PA new and vigorous public relations campaign to “tell our story”

         and inform people of “who we are” and the many good things we do.

P     Identifying and developing more women leaders in Rotary so that we truly become a “dual gender” organization.

P     Developing new kinds of membership options that are a better fit for the business and professional people we have and want in Rotary.

P     Improving the uses of technology for better efficiency, including using teleconferencing and consolidating training.

P     Providing for continuity of leadership at the RI president’s level—not a whole new program each year.

  In closing, Cliff quoted our founder, Paul Harris:  “Dream good dreams and work to make them come true.”  Cliff urged us:  “Don’t discard the past but recognize Rotary must have new direction in the future.”  “I hope that dreaming”  he said in conclusion, “does not also mean that we have gone to sleep.”

PPPPPP

  Ed Futa and a panel (Cliff Dochterman, Sam Greene, Howard Vann, Carolyn Schuetz) discussed “Where do we go from here?”  Futa provided information on Rotary’s long-range planning process.  A number of the items listed in Dochterman's presentation were elaborated on or enlarged by the panelists. The need to expand and improve training, not just for leaders, but for all Rotarians was supported strongly by the panel.  Carolyn enlarged on the use of technology recommendation by suggesting the creation of a kind of virtual Rotary where “…the experts who are missing Rotary and that Rotary is missing” could add a dimension to our leadership training via technology (for instance at the International Institute).  Recent actions taken by the Board of RI were aired. Vann listed some weaknesses he saw in Rotary: 1) Membership decline and inadequate retention strategies, 2) Publicity and public relations, 3) District conference attendance, 4) lack of consistent communication to the club level, 5) the number of convention sites, and 6) Council on Legislation locations.

  A number of specific suggestions from the audience grew out of the morning session and the discussion topic.  They included the following:

P     Buy laptop computers for incoming governors and teach them how to use them.  Shorten the International Assembly to save the money to pay for them.

P     Computerize the Council on Legislation so that no one has to travel anywhere.

P     Hire a private public relations firm and start spending some money on this important task.

P     Develop a better process for submitting items to the Council on Legislation.

P     Take care of those parts of the world where help is needed now. 

PPPPPP

 Institute Luncheon—Saturday, September 4, 1999

   John Blount, Institute Assistant General Chair presided and introduced Richard King (Past Rotary Director and since nominated to be the President of Rotary International for the year 2001-2002).  A summary of his speech:

“Wither Rotary…Do We Grow…or Die?

By Richard C. King

Richard King began his remarks by calling our attention to the funeral of Frank Sinatra at the end of which a mourner sang  “Put Your Dreams Away for Another Day”.  Richard then indicated that should Rotary put away its dreams, it would wither!

            There have been only two times in the history of Rotary that membership has diminished----during the great depression and for two years during World War II.  Yet in the last two Rotary years for which we have complete records, Rotary has lost approximately 25,000 members worldwide.  You can blame some of it in Asia on the economy, but how can it be that during a period of the greatest prosperity the world has ever known in the West, Rotary is losing membership?

            “How is it,” he said, “that we are successful in very business except the service business?”

            King reviewed a recent article in the “Chronicle of Philanthropy” that featured Rotary and the work it does throughout the world.  The article focused on some of the changes in Rotary which have been brought about by technology, referencing a web site designed to recruit and train new Rotarians.  It discussed the fact that prior to the technology revolution, Rotary membership consisted largely of small business owners, but that has now given way to a world dominated by large corporations. 

            The article pointed out that all Service Clubs are facing declining memberships in spite of research that indicates more than 50% of adults in the U.S. have done volunteer work (1996 poll).  The largest age bracket of those involved in volunteer work was between 25-54 years of age and the issues being addressed were environmental concerns and the homeless, issues that required large amounts of both time and money.

            King reminded the audience that it was 35 years ago that RI President Stan McCaffrey started Rotary Institutes on the West Coast in an effort to strengthen Rotary with the aid of Past District Governors.  This effort grew from  the idea that if Rotary did not build strength internally for the future, it would become a relic of the past.

            Last year, in the USA, Rotary lost 36,000 members, King reiterated.

“ What is wrong that this kind of loss could occur in a period of such prosperity?”

            The lack of better publicity to let Rotarians know of their collective good work and the sharing  of this news with the world is one cause.  Better publicity would not only help attract new members, but also help retain current members.  It was Past President Richard Evans who asked “…What is life all about?  Life is about learning…The problem is people and the greatest solution is, likewise, people.”  “

We’ve all heard about the problem of membership development and retention,” King said, “but we don’t do anything about it.”  Rotarians have repeatedly heard ideas and proposals for keeping membership, but they don’t put them into practice!   Rotarians don’t ask people to join Rotary.  We must talk to people about Rotary and ask them to become members!  We can’t insist that others help obtain and retain members if we haven’t done our part to find and bring a member into Rotary.

            King outlined procedures and listed ideas to can help build membership and retain club members.  While many of these suggestions already are being pursued, others are possibilities that can assist in this critical membership effort.

P Create and maintain retention committees to find out why members are not continuing their memberships.  Have them call on people who are missing meetings.

P Induct ten new members all at one time as a club “rechartering night” activity and celebration.

P See that every member is given a club service assignment of bringing in a new member.

P Set a goal for increasing membership.  Richard challenged Zones 23 & 24 to bring in 700 new members this year.

P Allow Rotarians to transfer their membership to other clubs. This would allow those who move to continue serving Rotary in their new location with a minimum of delay and paperwork.

P Have an annual campaign to bring in new members in every club.

P Create “family memberships” by developing a classification of “Homemaker” for wives of Rotarians who wish to use it.

P Develop Corporate memberships.

P Provide recognition of existing Rotarians on the basis of merit rather than a political “ole boys club” attitude.

P Require new members to complete outlined activities before becoming full “active” members.

P Cultivate youth for future membership through activities in conjunction with Rotaract and Interact Clubs. “We are in competition,” he said, “for the hearts and minds of young people.”

King asked us all to consider why we come to the Zone Institutes?   Is it not because of our love of Rotary, he asked, the desire for fellowship and the continuation of friendships?  If so, we need to keep Rotary healthy and we need to be diligent with our continued attention to membership renewal and retention.

            Richard concluded with a story of a 90 year-old Rotarian he encountered being escorted on a tour around the headquarters of Rotary International in Evanston.  Here was a man who had witnessed the chartering of his Rotary Club in Prague three different times.  The first in the mid 1920’s shortly after Rotary made its appearance in Europe, the second following six years of World War II, and the third at the end of the Communist occupation of Prague. 

During this period of time, this gentleman along with other Rotarians continued to meet in secret under the threat of great physical harm. They pledged to continue to meet “underground” until that day when they could meet again publicly in a recognized Rotary Club in their beloved Prague.  During this period of over 48 years, this Rotarian’s dream was to see the World Headquarters of Rotary, which meant so much to him.  And it was here Richard encountered him, enjoying the fulfillment of his dream.

This example should embolden us all to rise to the challenge of membership development and retention, Rick said.  The challenge of the future of Rotary is ours! The organization needs the best we’ve go.

PPPPPPP

 

Fourth Plenary Session:

“Focus on Membership Development”

  Mike Kutsuris, Past Rotary International Director, chaired a panel discussion on “Broadening Our Membership Base.”  Panel members were:  George Prather, Juan Vargas, Danny Kim, and Director Sam Greene. Kutsuris began the discussion with the assertion: “We cannot just dream—it will be too late. We must act.  Membership must become a priority in every club and every district.”

  Prather, a demographer and a Rotarian, provided information on the areas of the population Rotary serves and the areas from which we get our members. He showed us the age groupings in Rotary and how they would change in the future if we do not find younger members.   He provided graphic detail on the changes in the US population that will come about between 1995 and 2025.  The projections show that the White population will decline as a percentage in this country from 73% to 61%, the Hispanic portion of our population will grow from 10% to 17% and the Black portion of the population will increase from 12% to about 14%.  The implications for Rotary and any service organization are huge. (Editor’s note:  Getting more people from the underrepresented groups of our population is key to being a vital and relevant organization in the future The figures presented confirm that people in Rotary are an older and rapidly aging group.)  “I think every club President’s job,” Prather said, “should be to lower the club’s average age by five years!”

  Vargas, a San Diego City Councilman, talked frankly about race.  He said people are uncomfortable talking about race and yet the reality of race relations has to be addressed by all groups—not just Rotary.  He said people feel more comfortable in their  own group of people and he cited examples of how this has worked with the Latino Chamber of Commerce in the San Diego area. The concern was to benefit the ethnic group and the ethnic community rather that the whole.   He said Latinos like to be part of a group and that clubs with large Latino membership could nurture Latino business and professional people who might then move on into other Rotary clubs.

  Kim, a member of the Koreatown Rotary Club in Los Angeles, told how the Koreatown club was founded as a means of bringing Korean business and professional people together in a comfortable atmosphere.  They are now recruiting second and third generation members.  Community service would not be in their area without the Rotary club, he said.  The club is now also at the point where it wants to bring in other ethnic groups.  Previously it was not possible because of language barriers, but it now can happen as people in the club now have better English skills.

  Sam Greene had a number of suggestions:

            P Bring in additional actives in membership classifications.  Many club members may not be aware another person with their classification can be brought into their club.

            P Hold seminars at large industry complexes to let them know what Rotary is and does in order to recruit new members.  He cited an example that will happen soon in a major complex nearby.

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   Mike Kutsuris introduced the President-elect of  Rotary International Frank Devlyn of Mexico.  Devlyn shared some of his goals for the year, which commences July 1, 2000.  A few of these are:

            P Use proactive task forces instead of committees of people in Rotary who “do things.”  Cliff Dochterman will be coordinating the work of the task forces.

            P Use consultants (people in Rotary leadership) who have the expertise to help with specific projects.

            P Address world population concerns, especially through literacy programs for and education of the girl child.

            P Use the village banking concept to a greater extent in underdeveloped countries.

            P Develop and strengthen urban programs such as those for children who live on the streets in cities in many parts of the world.

            P Focus on job training programs for people with disabilities.

            P Launch a “sight savers” program to help prevent blindness.

            P Speed up disaster relief efforts by Rotary by establishing regional “storehouses” for emergency supplies.

            P Continue and strengthen our partnering with other organizations as we have done with “Polio Plus.”

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  Ann Parode, former chairperson of  the San Diego Community Foundation addressed the session on “The Role of Community Foundations.”  Her purpose:

1.      Acquaint Rotary leaders with community foundations and their potential as partners with Rotary clubs and districts.

2.      Explain the advantages of community foundations as an alternative to setting up club or district foundations.

  Parode presented a brief history of community foundations and explained  some of the benefits:

P Rotary clubs or districts can utilize community foundations to receive modest gifts without the expense and legal hassle of setting up a non-profit foundation.

P Community foundations are close to almost everyone.  There are 523 in the United States.

P Community foundations are set up to work collaboratively with organizations such as Rotary.

P Community foundations have grant-making expertise and can work together with Rotary on community problems.

P The fee the foundations charge groups such as Rotary for accepting and holding funds is low (1% per year).

P Funds can be kept in a “field of interest fund” such as “disadvantaged youth.”  These monies will then be only available for that specific purpose.

P Contributions from Rotary (including reserves) are controlled by the Rotary club board and the funds earn interest while they are “on deposit” for Rotary.

P Most foundations publish a catlog each year that lists funds to which people are invited to contribute.  This brings on-going Rotary projects or campaigns to the attention of individuals as well as estate planners, living trust lawyers, etc.

P Information is readily available about community foundations in your telephone directory or on-line at www.cof.org.

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  Jon Stillman, a Past District Governor and member of the Foundation staff in Evanston, continued the technology emphasis with a presentation on “Navigating Rotary’s Web Sites.”  With help from Rotarian and Webmaster Harriet Schloer of District 5110 in Oregon, Stillman took us online to the Rotary web page (www.rotary.org) and explained some of its features:

            P It is now possible to discover where clubs meet anywhere in the world.

            P You can download the forms you need. 

P Downloading emblems and Rotary artwork of all sorts is easy.

            P You can download the donor recognition form to present it on short notice.

  Jon invited Rotarian leaders who want to know more about the possibilities of web pages to check out the District 5110 site at www.district5110.org or contact Schloer at webmaster@district5110.org. 

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Fifth Plenary Session, Sunday, September 5—“A Different Way of Looking at things.”

  Steve Brown presided and introduced NASA Astronaut Marsha Ivins took us on a tour in space by way of slides and film to “a galaxy we have hardly explored.”  “Look at that,” she said while showing us a view of earth from space, “they forgot to draw the lines in where the borders are.”  The video gave us all a glimpse at life on a spacecraft, including a vivid description of how they “use the facilities.” Her statement: “Astronauts must exercise 20-minutes every day or risk bone loss” reminded us of the importance of exercising our service in Rotary or having it atrophy.  Her description of the16 sunsets and sunrises a day from orbit made many mindful of the “whole earth” program of Rotary, on which the sun never sets.  By taking us outward in her presentation, Ivins made us all look inward and see our planet with new eyes.

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Jon Stillman of the Rotary Foundation staff returned to answer the question:  “Are the Program of the Rotary Foundation Accomplishing Its Mission.”  Jon provided some sample data.  Last year the Foundation sponsored 1,175 Ambassadorial Scholars and supported 564 Group Study Exchange teams.  Zones 23 and 24 sent out 84 of the scholars to 35 different countries and hosted and sent 25 GSE teams.  Ninety-six per cent of our zones’ districts sent at least one GSE team.  Three of our districts donated scholarships to districts in other countries to send ambassadorial scholars to the U.S. or Canada.  He also noted that 25% of all the matching grants in the world originate from zones 23 and 24.

   Stillman provided data on the polio plus effort and its impact on world health.  He particularly cited District 5170 and Past Director Paul Sandus for their efforts on National Immunization Day in Ghana. In summary, Stillman said:  “You do great work in your zones in support of the Foundation and its programs.”

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  Howard Vann, a trustee of The Rotary Foundation, gave a report on the status of the Permanent Fund of the Rotary Foundation. 

            P An endowment in which the principal is never spent, it was started four years ago by Cliff Dochterman.

            P The initial goal was $200 million by the year 2005.  This goal has been reached six years ahead of time.

            P The revised goal is $1 billion by Rotary’s 100^th anniversary in 2005.

P There are many ways to give.  Here are some of  the kinds of gifts the fund has received in the past two years:

P A major gift of $10,000 or more with tax benefit

P Appreciated stock, which provides a tax benefit

P Paid up life insurance with the fund as the beneficiary

P Cash

P Pooled income fund, which pays you a predetermined amount of interest

P Gifts “in-kind” such as land, art, (even) scotch whiskey

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Breakout Sessions—Meeting the Mission of the Rotary Foundation

  Rotarians spent the next hour discussing individuals; clubs and districts can improve support of the Foundation and its programs.  The discussion leaders were: Cliff Dochterman, Jerry Barden, Grant Wilkins, Jack MacKenzie, George Palmer, and Charlie Cole.  At the end of each session, participants “voted” for the most important three ideas suggested.  The ideas receiving the most support are summarized elsewhere in this report (see Plenary Session 6, Sunday, September 6).  However, because they may serve as a stimulus to action, and to show the volume and variety of the ideas generated, a number of them, in no special order of popularity, are listed below:

1.      Make multi-year staggered appointments to Foundation committees, including a vice-chair that the DGE approves.

2.      Separate raising Foundation funds from the dispensing of the funds.  Have two assistants to chair the Foundation committee—one for raising funds and one for dispensing funds.

3.      Track ambassadorial scholars better.

4.      Put the names of all known Foundation alumni in the District Directory.

5.      Recognize Foundation alumni groups on a regional basis.

6.      Hold Foundation alumni “conferences” where non-Rotarian officials and Rotary leaders interface with Foundation alumni.

7.      Do a cost-factor analysis of the Ambassadorial Scholarship program.

8.      Consider shortening the time frame for Ambassadorial Scholars.

9.      Refine the selection process and criteria for selection of GSE team members/leaders.

10.  Plan international youth seminars/summer camps related to Rotary’s Peace Programs.

11.  Provide a “reeducation” program for newer members who know little of the history or work on “Polio Plus.”

12.  Develop two-week Rotary Volunteer programs.

13.  Emphasize the tax benefits on contributing to the Permanent Fund.

14.  Improve the reporting by RI on Foundation activities.

15.  Consider funding Youth Exchange in part from the Foundation to get more “bang for the buck” than from the Ambassadorial Scholarship program.

16.  Make a portion of the DDF (District Designated Fund) available for local projects.

17.  Improve the efficiency of record keeping by the Rotary Foundation.

18.  Establish an “exchange club” for returning youth exchange students so they have the opportunity to discuss their experience with others.

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Institute Luncheon, Sunday, September 5

  Rotary International Director Sam Greene presided.  RI President-elect Frank Devlyn substituted for Francisco Creo in issuing an invitation to attend the Rotary International Convention in Buenos Aires, June 4-7, 2000.    Frank described the beauty of the city and the great welcome Argentina is planning for all Rotarians.  “When Rotarians meet Rotarians,” he said, “good things happen.”

  Phil Sperl and his committee provided a dazzling multi-medium invitation to the Rotary Zone Institute in Portland, September 6-8, 2000.  The theme is “Everything’s Coming up Roses.”   Those who registered for Portland at the San Diego meeting will be receiving a Jackson and Perkins rose as a gift, courtesy of the Portland committee.  Phil reminded us of the programs, projects, entertainment, tours, fun and fellowship that always characterize the zone institutes.

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Sixth Plenary Session, Sunday, September 5, 1999

 

Rotary leaders identify ways clubs and districts

Can improve education, support the foundation

  In brainstorming sessions at San Diego institute

 

  More than 110 Rotarians put their heads together, waved their arms, and exercised their vocal cords at “breakout” sessions during the San Diego Zone Institute held in early September under the leadership of Rotary International Director Sam Greene.  After hearing discussions and presentations on “Education” by experts in the field, Rotarians met in small groups to discuss ways in which Rotary can help improve education. 

  After an hour of discussion each Rotarian was asked to vote for the three ideas they thought had the most merit.  The “votes” were tabulated and reported out by Jim Hawkins at a session on Sunday. 

  In the order of their level of support among group members, the eight ideas related to education were:

            1. Create mentoring and job shadowing programs that bring young people into contact with adults in the business or professional setting.

            2.  Emphasize the importance of literacy and math (numeracy) in our schools.

            3.  Support efforts to reduce class size.

            4.  Teach the 4-Way Test and sponsor speech and essay contests based on it.

            5. Promote curriculum improvement at all levels.

            6. Raise funds to improve programs and/or donate materials “in-kind.”

            7. Give scholarships, awards, and recognition to students and teachers.

            8. Support mentoring efforts that help bring ethnic-group students into organizations such as Interact and Rotaract.

  On Sunday, Rotarians heard presentations on “Meeting the Mission of the Rotary Foundation.”  At breakout sessions following the presentations, Rotarians came up with the following, prioritized, ways in which clubs, districts, and the Rotary organization can improve support of the Rotary Foundation:

1.      Utilize Rotary Scholars and GSE members and other alumni better in making clubs and individual Rotarians more aware of the impact and scope of Rotary Foundation programs.

2.      Provide better continuing education and better reports from RI regarding foundation contributions on all levels.

3.      Create or strengthen machinery to provide communication and solicitation of funds on a regular basis.

4.      Provide better quality instruction on Foundation procedures.

5.      Create more simplified ways to explain the Foundation and the SHARE program.

6.      Create interest in world affairs and local activities through improved publicity about Rotary and what it does.

7.      Improve the process and criteria for recruiting GSE team members and leaders.

  Hawkins, in reporting the results and commented on the 500 different ideas and responses that grew out the breakout sessions.  “The responses show Rotarians are extremely sensitive to the needs of people,” Jim said in his report.  “The passion for the Foundation and its work created high levels of enthusiasm in the discussion groups,” he said.  It was generally agreed that the voting and tabulation of responses resulted in a valid measurement of the sentiments of Rotarians at the institute.  The aggregate responses represented the opinions of more than 40% of all the Rotarians registered, Hawkins said.

 

         

            Jon Grant, Regional Rotary Foundation Coordinator, and his committee brought the final plenary session of the institute a resounding close with what could only be called a production celebrating the Rotary Foundation and its accomplishments in our zones.  Utilizing slides, videos, music, and live presentations, the audience was treated to a blend of statistics, facts, and descriptions of projects and programs supported by clubs and districts in zones 23 and 24.  No attempt is made here to capture the intensity, poignancy, and breadth of the presentations and descriptions.  You had to be there.  What follows is a list of in brief of the information and projects described in the two-hour program.

            P Foundation programs include matching grants, helping grants, discovery grants, 3-H grants, children’s opportunity grants, new opportunity grants, group study exchanges, peace program, disaster relief, ambassadorial scholarships, cultural scholarship, and university teacher scholarships.

            P Zones 23 and 24 led the Rotary world with over 704 open matching grants last year out of approximately 1700 approved world wide.  An example:  District 5000 (Hawaii)—solar powered safe drinking water systems in Western Samoa and the Philippines.

            P Our zones had 15 3-H grants, 76 children’s opportunity grants, 99 ambassadorial scholars, nine discovery grants, and a GSE team in every district.

            P 12 of the 20 districts in our zones exceeded their goals for annual/unrestricted giving to the Foundation. Seven governors exceeded $100 per capita in their districts.

            P Rotarians in zones 23 and 24 gave $5,078,138 to the annual program fund of TRF, an increase of more than $1 million over the previous year.

            P Polio plus is “on target” to help eradicate polio by the year 2000 and certify a polio-free world by 2005.  Rotary, however, must continue to support the National Immunization Days and can do so through the Polio Plus Partners campaign to reach the goal of eradication.

            P Polio victim Bob Mutchler of District 5180 has personally secured pledges of over $2 million for Polio Plus with motorcycle rides to the capitals of the lower 48 states and across the 12 provinces of Canada.

            P The one-time Children’s Opportunity Grant program last year set aside $20 million for projects.  8000 proposals were received requesting more than $150 million.  So far, awards have been made to 467 districts in 107 counties, including 76 grants obtained by districts in our zones.  A few examples:

P District 5110 brought Rotary and many community agencies together to provide immunizations through the “Shots for Tots” program.

P     District 5000 launched a “Books for Newborns” program.

P     District 5050 improved the lives and health of many children in Guatemala through an “Adopt a Village” program.

P A 3-H grant to District 5280 will provide polio corrective surgeries in India.  The district also sponsored a corrective surgery project in Africa.

P Helping grants provide funds for projects in countries that have not Rotary clubs or few Rotary clubs.  Such grants made it possible for District 5130 to provide a potable water system in Viet Nam and District 5170 to carry out a water project.

P Disaster relief efforts are a magnet for Rotary attention and support.  District 5170 responded to the devastation of Hurricane Mitch by raising funds to rebuild an entire village in Honduras.

P In our zones, 14 Rotarians were honored with the Meritorious Service Award of the Rotary Foundation. Two Rotarians received TRF’s highest award: The Distinguished Service Award.

P Fifteen clubs in our zone are “100% Paul Harris” clubs.  Only 106 of the world’s 29,367 clubs have reached that plateau.

P Matching grants are one of the strongest elements in our zones’ service through foundation programs. Several were highlighted as examples of cooperation and sustained effort.

P District 5330 provided toilets in Baja California—reflecting Rotary’s history of attention to important human needs.  The first service project in Rotary was a public convenience station in Chicago.  Rotary is not sitting down on the job.

P Districts 5110 and 5150 teamed up with TRF to produce wheelchairs for needy people in Uganda, Mexico, and, soon, in Guatemala. A zone-wide effort is underway to sponsor wheelchair shops in several other countries.

P     One Mexican district and 18 Districts in zones 23 and 24 combined resources and effort to purchase a fire truck. Firemen, Rotarians, and city officials from Ensenada were at the session to thank Rotary and accept the keys to the fire engine.

A slide show and song concluded the final plenary session of the institute.

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District Governors-elect Presentation Dinner,

“The Zoo Crew” Shows It’s Ready for “Prime (mate) Time.”

 

  Jack Mayo presided over a gala evening, during which the governors-elect for 2000-2001 were introduced, escorted by the present governors of the districts.  They are:

District 5000               Linda Coble

District 5010               Philip K. Livingston

District 5020               Robert L. Lovely

District 5030               John Nelson

District 5040               David B. Kirk

District 5050               James W. Caldwell

District 5060               Marvin L. Munro

District 5080               James Chiu

District 5100               Laurie Carlson

District 5110               Carl E. Nelson

District 5130               Harry N. Johnson

District 5150               Erich Zorr

District 5160               Ron R. Piret

District 5170               Karl Stucki

District 5180               Fred E. Croy

District 5190               Charles Vincent Elizondo

District 5220               J. Gordon Kennedy

District 5230               Gerald F. Roberts

District 5240                Felix G. Masci

District 5260               Emilio M. Basile

District 5280               Victoria Radel

District 5300               Sal Briguglio

District 5320               Price L. Shapiro

District 5330               Joseph F. Laguess

District 5340               William C. McDade

District 5360               Monty J. Audenart

District 5370               Michael Horrocks

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  Cliff Dochterman served as the “operator” and allowed the audience to share a  “Special Phone Call to Paul Harris” from Hiram, the tailor, in the early days of Rotary.  The substance of the phone call showed with puckish humor that concerns about the structure, organization, and traditions of Rotary haven’t changed all that much in 94 years.

  Cliff also mused with us on what he would do “If I could be Rotary International President Again.”  Among his observations, laced as always with humor, were the following:

            P I would have expected more. By giving more direction and given it in a timely way, I’m sure I would have gotten it.

            P I’d take a new look at the International Assembly and how we provide the basics to our future governors.

            P I’d have spent more time enhancing Rotary in the parts of the world where it can be done.

          P I’d have put to use the large clubs in our organization and get their members more involved in the mainstream of Rotary.

            P I’d spend more time helping people see that Rotary is composed of two different entities: Rotary and the Rotary Foundation.

            P I would work to strengthen the International part of Rotary, perhaps by pairing clubs in different countries throughout the world.

            P I’d change or eliminate worn out policies, such as those that don’t allow for members to easily transfer from club to club when they relocate.

            P I would appoint regional activity people to help the Governor’s.

            P I’d reach out more to people in need.

            P I’d use good judgment and take a few risks.

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  Director Sam Greene closed the festivities by thanking all that came to the institute and inviting them to join in fellowship next year in Portland.

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The Credits…

  Director/Convener Sam Greene and General Chair Ron Beaubien were assisted by many Rotarians and partners in organizing the Institute and coordinating it with the GETS.  The members of the 1999 Institute Committe are:

Jack MacKenzie

Rick King

Paul Sandas

Mary Margaret Fleming

Frederick P. Crowell

John Blount

Dennis Benko

Frank Mead

Carol Wylie

Floyd Olsen

Ken Miller

John Nugent

Paul Netzel

Ken Boyd

Steve Brown

Tom Harris

Al Ficker

Ernie Jensen

Jim deBoom

Fred Ford

Dave Hossler

Jack Mayo

Howard Durbin

Al Frumkin

Joe Chiappino

Mike Abdalla

Peter Faye

Jerry Hall

Caki Greene

Vicki Beaubien

Milt Levinson

Jim Matteson

Jon Grant

Keith Dindinger

Dave Williams

Chungsam Doh

Doyle Dannenberg

Phil Philsperi

Bill McDade

Werner Schwarz

Gary Giersch

Bob Bitter

Kaye Boyles

Chuck Swensen

Lou Bartolini

Finis Jeffers

Del Raby

Dwight Perry

Steve Moore

Jack Horner

Vaughn Kelly

Paul Thielen

Larry Kavanaugh

George Palmer

Tony DeAngelis

Jerry Barden

Wayne Cusick

Ed Cleve

Ben Clark

Chet Lathrop

Gene Scarbrough

Marty Peters

Larry Willison

Tony Brockington

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