ILR Show Division

JUDGES' COMMITTEE Minutes
January 15, 2013

Present: Philip Feiner - Acting Secretary, Tami Lash, Ken Austin, Kay Berg, Sean Hart        

Absent: Kathi (Kat) McKinney

Meeting called to order at 8:04 PM EST 

New Business:

The Judges Committee welcomes new member Sean Hart to the committee and thanks him for his service.

Tami was nominated to serve as Chair of the Judges Committee. Philip moved to accept Tami as Chair, Kay seconded. No further discussion. Motion approved.

Philip was nominated to serve as Secretary of the Judges' Committee. Ken moved to accept Philip as Secretary, Kay seconded. No further discussion. Motion approved. 

Current Guidelines do not address the number of apprentices a Teaching Judge may have at an event. It is generally understood that no more than two apprentices be permitted as long as the Teaching Judge (TJ) is confident that the additional apprentice will not affect the judging, pace of the show, etc. The committee recommends that in the event of two apprentices, the TJ get approval from the show organizers. (Apprentices are required to get permission as well)            

The JC is in the process of developing the annual Open Book test to be submitted by all Judges and Apprentices. Tami will reach out to the Fleece Committee to see if they would like to submit questions to the JC for inclusion in the test. We hope to have the test distributed to all Judges and Apprentices no later than Feb. 01, 2013. As per the Guidelines, the tests are due back to the Judges Committee no later than February 28, 2013.  

The committee discussed a letter addressed to all judges and apprentices reminding them of the Open Book Test requirement as well as their annual dues, receipt of a hard copy of the Guidelines, etc. Philip has composed the letter and will distribute it to the committee for their review and approval, and then off to the Judges and Apprentices.

The committee's goal is to send out a quarterly informational email/newsletter to all Judges and Apprentices. Anyone who would like to submit material for inclusion in the newsletter is welcome to send it off to the JC.  

Sarah Nichols has requested acceptance as a HPY judge. She had apprenticed with Mary Jo Miller at Jingle Bells in July 2011 and again in 2012 under Linda Hayes. The JC feels that Sarah would benefit from an additional HPY apprentice and in keeping with the current apprentice requirements as adopted in November of 2012, the JC recommends an additional apprenticeship with positive evaluations prior to acceptance. In November of 2012, the JC voted to increase the minimum number of apprenticeships required to three. Ken moved that Sarah apprentice another event, Kay seconded. No further discussion. Motion approved.

Vanessa Benaugh has requested permission to act as the second judge in performance. Hank's Kaufman's July evaluation was positive and recommended another apprenticeship. Beth Myers September evaluation was also positive and recommended another performance focused apprenticeship. Given the recommendations, the JC feels that Vanessa would benefit from another performance-based apprenticeship prior to adjudicating any events. Ken moved that Vanessa apprentice another performance-based event, Kay seconded. No further discussion. Motion approved.

Old Business:

The JC has been working on a spreadsheet containing information on Judges and Apprentice Judges to give the Committee members an indication of where these individuals stand in regards to completed apprenticeships, Open Book Test, etc. at a glance. Philip created a document for review. The committee members reviewed the document and will leave it as currently modified.

The JC has been working on an ILR-SD Seminar Planning Guide. The revised guide was sent to Mark Smith and Harvey Pool for comments and review, as they are both hosting upcoming seminars. No feedback has been received to date.  

Roles & Responsibilities of JC members have been discussed in the past. In brief, committee members are responsible for attending all JC meetings and responding to all committee e-mails and communications on a timely basis. 

The Chair is responsible for interfacing with the Governing Board, maintaining open lines of communication with SD members, judges and apprentices. Participate in all JC and GB meetings. Report actions of the GB in summary back to the JC.

The Secretary should acknowledge receipt of all communications, create minutes for all JC meetings and distribute to the committee for review. Once accepted, send minutes to Dar at ILR for posting. Maintain spreadsheet with judges/apprentice information. Notify judges and apprentices of any decisions by the JC, etc.

The Youth Committee has previously submitted information regarding a Youth Judging program to the Governing Board. The program has been adopted by the GB and will be included in the 2013 Guidelines. The JC looks forward to working to implement the Youth Judging program.

Darrell Anderson is listed as a HPY judge on the ILR-SD web site and as a Teaching Judge as well. He does not currently judge Performance and Youth. Philip will notify Dar and ask that the information be updated to reflect Halter only.

Kay moved to adjourn the meeting at 8:50 PM EST. Sean seconded. No further discussion. Meeting adjourned.

Respectfully submitted,

Philip Feiner, Secretary