Oklahoma Society of Association Executives

Hilton Skirvin Hotel (June 1, 2009) - “Politics is a combat sport,” says Pat Hall, CAE, ASAE Fellow. Although he didn’t wear a helmet, pads or even a bullet-proof vest, Hall certainly demonstrated the combative nature of politics when he dodged a bullet or two from Jim Dunlap, during the June OSAE Luncheon at the Hilton Skirvin Hotel.

Hall’s and Dunlap’s discourse is an OSAE favorite, as the pair reviewed the recently completed session of the Oklahoma Legislative Session, last year’s general election and looked ahead to next year’s general election. The pair also host a television show called “Inside the Issues” which airs in the Oklahoma City and Tulsa markets and can also be seen on the Majority Plus website. Majority plus is the lobbying company owned by Hall and Dunlap.

Hall, a Democrat, clearly relished the opportunity to chant “Hope and Change” just as he did at an OSAE luncheon a year ago to demonstrate his support for President Obama.

Dunlap, a Republican and former state legislator, credited the new president with solidifying Oklahoma’s position as a “conservative” state since voters elected the first Republican majority to the Oklahoma House and Senate during the ’08 elections.

“It’s a new dynamic, and they haven’t screwed up yet,” said Dunlap. Hall said it was more like the legislature received an “extreme makeover.”

Dunlap and Hall praised the legislature and governor for working together to pass a state budget during a tough economic year. They also agreed that the federal economic stimulus package gave the state a buffer from having to dip into the Rainy Day Fund, particularly in the areas of funding common education, higher education, career-tech, and transportation.

“Orange cones are a good thing for our state,” said Dunlap who quoted studies which estimate that road projects in the state, denoted by those orange cones, will provide 30,000 jobs.

Hall was not as gracious when evaluating some of the bills that went through the legislative session, referencing a failed measure he nicknamed “Guns Gone Wild” (guns on college campuses) and other bills involving puppy mills and legislation allowing Oklahomans to hunt wild pigs from helicopters.

“They cussed and discussed more bills involving animals than involving children,” said Hall. “I think that is kind of sad.”

Hall and Dunlap both agreed that the face of politics is changing with the rise of social media connections such as Twitter and Facebook where voters have more ways to connect to and monitor their elected officials.

With next year’s general election already heating up, Hall and Dunlap said that there is no shortage of interesting races to watch. The offices of Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Attorney General and at least one congressional race will be wide open with no incumbents running.

Hall said he expects the campaigns to go negative early and stay negative during the 2010 election cycle.

To Tweet or Not to Tweet

Renaissance Hotel (Cox Convention Center), May 2, 2009 - What are you doing?

If you are among the seven million people worldwide who TWITTER, you might be answering that question in 140-character increments.

If you are on Facebook, you make up the fifth largest world population behind China, India, United States and Indonesia.

Social media, such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, is all the rage. But what are its merits for your association or business? OSAE both asks the question and provides some insights and answers. At the May luncheon, Kurt Bernhardt, MBA, showcased part of the program he will present more indepth at the OSAE annual meeting in Tulsa July, 13 -15.

Although it is yet to be officially defined by the scribes at Webster or other traditional dictionary sources, Social Media is described on wikipedia.com as the “democratization of information, transforming people from content readers into publishers. Social media has become extremely popular because it allows people to connect in the online world to form relationships for personal and business. Businesses also refer to social media as user-generated contect (UGC) or consumer-generated media (CGM).

Bernhardt said Facebook, one of the most popular social media vehicles, was launched only five years ago by Harvard college student who designed it primarily for college students as a networking tool. By August of 2008, FB had 100 million users. It took only eight more months for that number to double to 200 million and for the 35 – 49 year olds to become the dominant demographic.

Twitter hit the Internet in 2006 and is rather simple in its approach. Users either use their cell phone to text or their computer to type in status messages using only 140-characters. In February of 2008, Twitter had about a half million users. A year later, it had seven million users including many celebrities, professional athletes and politicians including President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden.

Bernhardt said the “tweets” (messages) can be useful, such as sharing news, information or current events. But he said users also “tweet” more trivial and personal information such as what they had for breakfast.

“It can be hard to weed out good posts from the more personal information. However, some of the personal posts can also be good for relationship building,” said Bernhardt.

Bernhardt is the web developer for the Oklahoma Society of CPAs, which has fully embraced social media to provide members with news, helpful information, meeting notices and updates.

“My goal for the OSCPA is to use the latest Web technologies to make the Society's site a dynamic and useful tool for members and the public,” said Bernhardt.

Many OSAE members participate in social media as evidenced by the number of hands that were raised when Bernhardt asked the May luncheon audience whether they were on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

Some members, however, question issues such as privacy, content control and simply being able to “keep up” with something else while managing a normal workload. Bernhardt said there are controls that help with some of those issues, and encouraged OSAE members to carefully weigh the merits of social media to see if it would be right for their association.

To hear more from Bernhardt, register for the OSAE annual meeting in Tulsa, July 13 -15.

The June 5, 2009, OSAE luncheon will be held at the Skirvin Hilton Hotel.

The State of the State’s Economy

Waterford Hotel, April 3,2009 - We’re doing fine, Oklahoma, at least when it compares to most of the rest of the country during the recession. Deidre Myers, director of research and policy for the State Commerce Department, provided an economic progress report for Oklahoma during the April luncheon at the Waterford Hotel.

Myers, the daughter of long-time OSAE member Dean Myers, began her talk by reminding us to view economic data with a discerning eye, no matter what the media does with it. She said the media often misinterprets data and does not offer it in the correct perspective.

She concluded her talk by sharing a Louisiana State University research study that evaluated “predictive powers” of economists, meteorologists and “fortune tellers.”

Myers reported that the scholarly study actually found that fortune tellers are more accurate in predicting the future, although economists fared better in accuracy than meteorologists. She said she is not a fortune teller, and the subject of the economy is nebulous, but there are indicators and data sets that provide some promising news for the state’s economic future.

She said key economic indicators to watch are employment, consumer spending and housing.

Myers said Oklahoma has experienced a dip in unemployment in recent months due to losses in manufacturing and lower prices for oil and natural gas. But she said Oklahoma’s unemployment numbers have only recently started to dip unlike many other states. Myers predicts that the spring and summer will see more job losses, but the fall will bring a better job picture for the state.

Myers presented graphs and charts reflecting Oklahoma’s stability in terms of consumer spending and housing. She said big ticket items, especially automobiles, are down but added it is a great time to buy a vehicle or a home, because of low interest rates and retailers who are anxious to sell. She added that confidence runs a capitalist economy. Curent lower prices on a variety of goods and services from building supplies to everyday consumer items will play a part in improving the economy, she said.

Regarding housing and banking, Myers said the Oklahoma has been immune from serious concern. She said foreclosure rates are far from the bottom, and banks are stable.

Myers said a real boon to the state’s coffers would be higher natural gas prices. Taxes on drilling, extraction and rigs help fund Oklahoma’s budget, however, lower prices have caused rigs to close, tax revenue to decline and job losses. She said one potential boost to the energy industry in Oklahoma would tie to a federal bill that would give more incentives for automobiles that are powered by alternative fuels.

Myers luncheon talk followed a morning education session on the economy that also included some of the state’s top experts on the subject. OSAE thanks Myers and the other speakers: Tony Hutchison, former director of the Oklahoma Department of State Finance and current Associate Vice Chancellor of Strategic Planning and Analysis for the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education; Roger Beverage, President and CEO of the Oklahoma Bankers Association and Mike Means, Executive Vice President of the Oklahoma State Homebuilders Association.

The May 1, 2009, luncheon will be held the Renaissance Hotel.

Monson Challenges OSAE Members

Oklahoma Heritage Museum, March 6, 2009- “It won’t work without people like you coming to the table.”

The “it” is transforming the Oklahoma City Public School District to better serve students.

The “you” are the professionals and community leaders who personify OSAE members.

The statement was passionately made by Angela Monson who was elected Chair of the Oklahoma City School District in February. Monson, a former state lawmaker who calls many OSAE members friends said she enjoyed being able to spend time with OSAE and to talk about her new role. Monson currently is associate provost for community partnerships and health policy at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center.

Monson is the recipient of numerous awards, including recognition from the American Psychiatric Association, Oklahoma Public Employees Association, Oklahoma Psychological Association and the National Association of Social Workers and the Oklahoma Academy of Family Physicians. She is a member of the first class inducted into the Child Advocate Hall of Fame, and served as president of the National Conference of State Legislatures.
During her talk to OSAE, Monson outlined five major goals for the Oklahoma City School District. Each goal, she challenged, will not be achieved without the help of the community. The first area involves achieving academic excellence for all of the district’s campuses. The second area is improving attendance by students who are truant or who are suspended.

Third, Monson explained, she wants citizens to become engaged in finding solutions and issues in providing safety and security in our schools. In an age where metal detectors and armed officers are prescribed at many school buildings, Monson also said she would like to see mentors help students reject an atmosphere of solving problems with violence.

Monson also calls for more attention to be given to special needs children. She asks for more resources to be given toward helping special needs children to become productive members of our community when they graduate.

Finally, Monson said her fifth objective involves expanding extracurricular activities for students. That is where, she said, people such as OSAE members could be most involved.

She said the realities of budget constraints that lead to cuts in programs such as the arts and physical education could be made better if community members helped.

"We welcome people like you to come to the table and identify our resources,” she said. “We need parents, business owners, the faith-based community and non-profits. If you are interested in making advances where all children can learn, answer the call.

Monson referenced a local dance studio that comes to a school to provide after-school dance lessons as well as businesses which make its employees available for tutoring.

The April 3, 2009, luncheon will be held at the Waterford Hotel in Oklahoma City.

Serving members through professional development, networking, research and legislative advocacy.

2009 Meetings

Downloads

News and Events

Convention HQ

NEW: We couldn't do it without them!
Click here to visit the 2009 Virtual Tradeshow.

Inside the Issues: OSAE Style

To Tweet or Not to Tweet

The State of the State’s Economy

Monson Challenges OSAE Members

READ MORE OSAE NEWS HERE.

Serving members through professional development, networking, research and legislative advocacy.

2009 Meetings

Downloads

News and Events

Convention HQ

NEW: We couldn't do it without them! Click here to visit the 2009 Virtual Tradeshow.

Inside the Issues: OSAE Style

To Tweet or Not to Tweet

The State of the State’s Economy

Monson Challenges OSAE Members

READ MORE OSAE NEWS HERE.

NEW: We couldn't do it without them!
Click here to visit the 2009 Virtual Tradeshow.