The University of Iowa

Faculty Senate

Charter Committee Annual Report to the Shared Governance Council

Committee: Family Issues Charter Committee
Report Year: FY2023–2024

Committee Chair(s)	Neda Barrett & Kelly Messingham
Committee Members	Elana Buch, Faith Cequena, Nai-Ching Chi, Maddie Hoberg, Hans Hoerschelman, Emma Kirk-Alvarez, Carrie Means, Kay Ramey, Lisa Schumacher, Arsha Vaddadi Administrative Liaisons/Non-Voting members: Erin Litton (UI Wellness), Diana Kremzar (Family Services), Michelle Kongable (FSDS), Aarin Harper (Hospital Leave & Disability), Andrea French (UHR)
Committee Charge	The Family Issues Charter Committee (FICC) reviews and makes recommendations on the development and implementation of programs, plans, and policies that promote a positive climate for families of faculty, staff, and students throughout the life span. The committee also reviews and makes recommendations about the implementation of University of Iowa child or dependent care programs and plans.
Current Year Meeting Dates	9/27/2023, 10/25/2023, 11/27/2023, 01/31/2024, 3/1/2024; 3/29/2024, 5/6/2024
Please indicate the typical frequency of meetings (e.g., first Tuesday of month at 4 pm). If there are subcommittees, please indicate the frequency of those meetings, too.	The Committee meets approximately once per month during the Academic year. We spread out the days of the week to meet committee members' scheduling needs. Because our members are spread out over campus, meetings were held using Zoom for convenience. The two co-chairs also held monthly meetings to prepare for the full committee meetings.
Current Year Activities	FY24 Plan: Recognize the challenges posed by mismatched schedules for parents and caregivers, especially regarding childcare and University involvement (UI). Continue efforts to improve communication and feedback channels between the shared governance council and charter committees. Diversify representation within the committee. Conduct a comprehensive review of campus lactation rooms with a focus on design and accessibility. Explore potential issues and solutions for shipping breast milk for traveling UI parents. Volunteer with the Childcare Taskforce to address childcare needs and solutions. Year to Date Actions Completed Supported a program for employee reimbursement for milk shipment for traveling UI parents. Expressed the need for more information needed regarding wellbeing during preboarding and onboarding phase and supported and promoted the creation of a consolidated Health and Wellbeing Resource Guide. Collaborated with various University bodies including the Faculty Senate, Committee on Committees, and Staff Council HR Committee. Created internship that completed a thorough review of campus lactation rooms, including cold storage, utilization, functionality, and benchmarking. Partnered with the College of Education to establish a partnership in UI Wild for backup care. Received central approval to add faculty as co-chair of this committee. Added male representation to diversify membership.
Topics your committee anticipates addressing during the coming year	Fold in the work of the Childcare Taskforce. Continue to collaborate with shared governance groups. Continue collaborations with SC Committee on Committees. Continue conversation with Iowa City Community School District about aligning school calendars and exploring emergency childcare. Reach out to local Parks and Recreation departments about additional childcare collaboration options.
Other issues of concern	Work on strategies to retain student member participation on this committee.
What should we tell applicants for this committee regarding expectations of members (anticipated workload, existence of subcommittees, etc.)?	The workload is typically no more than one-two hours per month outside of meetings.
Does your committee have a website? If so, what is the URL?	https://president.uiowa.edu/family-issues-committee
What is your process for passing on previous agendas and minutes to the new committee chair(s)?	Andrea French took meeting minutes, stored by committee liaison Diana Kremzar.
Recommendations, if any, to the shared governance groups.	The Family Issues Charter Committee 2023/2024 has the following recommendations for the shared governance council. Recommendation 1 This committee seeks to continue to work with the College of Education to plan, communicate, and execute offering of UI Wild camps to faculty and staff parents on days when local schools are closed. Recommendation 2 Execute action plan from lactation room analysis, including updating webpage, creating a GIS map of rooms, and improving onboarding.