Volume XIX, November 2013

CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS 11/14- 403(b) Compliance for non-ERISA Schools 11/18- PAISBOOKS: Tuition Collection Using EFT 11/22- PAISBIG Annual Meeting 12/11- Health Insurance Update and Holiday Reception 12/19- Save the Date- Plant Manager's Holiday Meeting 1/15- Save the Date- Purchasing Consortium Annual Meeting *Click on event to register*

In This Issue

MEWA Update

PA Green and Healthy Schools Workshop

PAISBOA: Out and About

Information Security Awareness

Retirement

Edu-Tech Academy

Record Number of Schools Complete the 2013 Data Survey Emily Miller, PAISBOA

PAISBOA's 2013 Data Survey was completed by 85 schools, a net 15 increase from last year. While a few schools opted out this year, 20 new schools added their data providing a rich and powerful tool for budgeting and strategic planning purposes. Data guru, Jim Pugh, presented the results of the survey to nearly 60

Jim Pugh presents to a full house.

VDI Webinar

Five Steps to Powerful Meetings

PFM Monthly Market Update

Quick Link

Calendar of Events

PAISBOA is Now on Twitter!

Get up to date PAISBOA information! Follow @PAISBOA on Twitter!

PAISBOA Welcomes New Faces!

Michael Folensbee Director of Administration

and Finanace, Gratz College

attendees on Wednesday, November 6, and explained in detail how to manipulate and present the data using templates of charts and graphs that he created. In addition, Jim provided instructions for "snagging" and extracting data for those Business Officers wishing to create their own graphs. Schools who have participated in the survey since its inception in 2010 now have access to invaluable trends and historical information-in addition to the peer comparisons. While Jim was here, he took the opportunity to show attendees a peek at the cloud-based survey that is being developed and will be available next year. Many thanks goes to Mandy Steier who called every PAISBOA school and encouraged them to complete the survey, while Jim was totally flexible in extending his deadlines to help as many Business Officers get their survey included. While the survey does not currently include higher ed institutions, several PAISBOA colleges are considering working with Jim to create their own regional survey that will capture salary and benefit data. PAISBOA met with Jim and a few colleges after the survey meeting Wednesday to begin the planning process. Stay tuned for more information as this survey is developed.

Emily Miller presented flowers to Mandy Steier.

MEWA Update Bob Mueller, Delaware Valley Friends School

The Philadelphia Area Independent School Insurance Group (PAISIG) health insurance program of PAISBOA is engaged in gaining formal Multi-Employer Welfare Arrangement (MEWA) status from the Department of Labor. This official recognition is appropriate to the history and workings of our 145 member school program and will prove essential to our program

meeting requirements of the Affordable Care Act. PAISIG and its attorneys are making great progress toward achieving MEWA status and are now looking forward to making the next step: finding and hiring a Third Party Administrator (TPA) to assist the MEWA in billing, collection, and invoice reconciliation. In other words, we need a highly sophisticated and automated enterprise to be an electronic intermediary between the members and the insurance company. PAISIG will soon begin the process of reviewing, interviewing and selecting the TPA that the MEWA will use for the 2014/2015 plan year. If your institution has had successful contact with such a consultant, or if you have any interest in joining the TPA selection committee, please

Maureen Cumpstone

Business Manager, Norwood-Fontbonne Academy

Ventina Hershey Director of Finance and

Administration, Haddonfield Friends School

Article: "Why Ad Agencies Aren't Going Away Any Time Soon"

In connection with this year's Small School's Symposium's theme "Marketing and Branding", PAISBOA would like to keep schools updated with the latest information

email John Manion or John Doyle at jmanion@adcbenefits.com or jdoyle@adcbenefits.com.

PA Green and Healthy Schools Partnership Strategic Planning Workshop: An Exciting Start Judy Asselin, Westtown School

Westtown School's Sustainability Coordinator, Judy Asselin and Senior student Shuangcheng Du, along with PAISBOA Executive Director Emily Miller, attended the PA Green and Healthy Schools Partnership Strategic Planning Workshop in Harrisburg, PA on October 28. As a US Department of Education Green Ribbon School, Westtown was one of only a handful

of schools invited to the table, joining representatives from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the PA Department of Environmental Protection, the Delaware Valley Green Building Council, the Central PA Green Building Council, PASBO, other education stakeholders, and health organizations such as the American Lung Association to discuss the vision and strategies necessary to put every child in Pennsylvania in a green school within a generation. This exciting initiative aims to encourage schools to put Education for Sustainability at the top of the list of curricular and operational innovation. More to come in the months ahead! Read more about Green Power Partnership here.

Shuangcheng Du and Emily Miller attending workshop.

The PAISBOA Team: Out and About PACS Conference

PAISBOA helped sponsor the first annual Philadelphia Area Christian Schools Conference last Thursday, October 31. The association offered professional development to administrative and teaching staff of member schools. PAISBOA was

honored to be part of the day and meet administrators from the area. Pennsylvania Conference for Women

PACS members attend conference at Enon Tabernacle Church in Philadelphia.

from the marketing and branding world. Attached is an article by Al Ries, Chairman of Ries and Ries, an Atlanta based marketing firm. Jim Murphy, presenter at the Small School Symposium, recommended the article.

Click here to read "Why Ad Agencies Aren't Going Away Any Time Soon".

SafeSchools Act 126 Courses Approved in PA and Ready to Use!

As part of our partnership with SafeSchools Training, Utica National Insurance Group and Willis of Pennsylvania are making online training resources available to PAISBIG schools, to help meet the training requirements of Act 126. These training courses will be available via the usual SafeSchools Training access method. They are now available under the Social and Behavioral category of the SafeSchools Library. The courses are approved for use in complying with the PA state mandated training. Please remember that access to these courses is available without cost to PAISBIG schools insured by Utica National via our partnership with SafeSchools Training.

Request Your PAISBOA

The PAISBOA women attended the PA Conference for Women on Friday, November 1. The day was full of inspirational speeches and experiences. Surrounded by 7,000 women (and some men) who came from all over Pennsylvania and beyond to attend, we heard from inspirational women leaders like Madeleine Albright, Glenda Hatchett, and Hillary Rodham Clinton. It was truly a day to remember!

Smart Lunches Tasting Night New vendor Smart Lunches hosted a tasting night on Wednesday, November 7 for local schools and families who wanted to learn more about the food they offer. Emily Miller was able to taste the fresh, healthy selection of foods Smart Lunches has to offer, and was impressed by the spread! A successful night, guests were able to leave full and ready to order Smart Lunches at their schools!

MISBO Annual Conference On October 28-29, Al Greenough attended the annual MISBO conference in Atlanta. PAISBOA has a long standing relationship with MISBO, as they shared their insight with us when we started our own Purchasing Consortium in 1997. MISBO is primarily a purchasing organization with over 300 members spread over 13 states. For the second year, they coordinated annual meetings with a day of overlap with SAIS, an organization of School Heads who are also the accrediting authority for schools spread over the Southeast. A notable presentation was by Dr. Richard Soghoian, Headmaster of Columbia Grammar and Preparatory School on his book "Minding the Gap", the story about how his school reduced the loss from operations to zero as a new business model for his school. This might be valuable reading for all Business Officers.

Colleen Atwood, Emily Miller, and Brittany Gullone pose at

the Women's Conference.

Wellness Calendar!

PAISBOA's Wellness Calendar will be finalized next week and printed shortly after. The calendar is choc full of wellness tips, resources, and quotes from your PAISBOA peers! We have allotted two calendars per school. If you would like to request additional calendars, contact Colleen Atwood by Tuesday, November 12.

Information Security Awareness-Don't Get Hooked! Mary Williams, Willis

Phishing - the act of attempting to acquire information via email such as usernames, password, and credit card details by masquerading as a trustworthy entity - is an everyday occurrence.

Being able to spot and respond to email attacks is very important. As email remains the dominant tool for managing relationships with our clients, family members, banks and others, it remains the most common way for hackers to gain access to our information. Each day, criminal hackers are trying to get you to disclose personal information, open files and click on links. The following tips can help you avoid getting hooked.

Be aware that phishers may forge the sender's address to make it look as though it came from a known source, even when it didn't. Bottom line: If any email asks you to reveal any personal information, you should not respond.

If an email directs you to a website, check the link before clicking it. Did you know that you can look at the address of a link in your email before you click on it? Most email programs will display the address if you "hover" your mouse over the link. One strategy is not to click on email links at all and instead go to the site directly. An example would be a message from your bank asking you to go to its website. Rather than clicking the link provided in the in the email, just type the address into your browser manually. Note that phishers often make fake websites that look like the real thing. Always check the address bar of your browser to make sure you are visiting the site you think you are visiting.

Never enter your user ID or password unless you have initiated the action. Entering your user ID or password to log on to a legitimate system is fine. However, you should never enter your credentials if requested in an email.

Remember: No one, not even IT, should ask you for your user ID and password in an email. If an email asks you for this information, delete or use your "phish" button to report it!

If you think your user ID and/or password have been compromised, change your password immediately and report this to your IT Department.

Copyright © 2013 Willis Group Holdings

It's Not Too Late to Participate in the Wellness Rewards

Program! As you have (hopefully) already heard, on 11/1/13 we rolled out a Wellness Rewards Program, in partnership with Independence Blue Cross. All PAISIG-covered employees (but not dependents) are eligible to participate, but only the first 2,500 who go online and complete four health-related activities will have an opportunity to earn a $100 VISA debit card. Full details about program requirements and details are attached.

What We Need You To Do: Please send an e-mail (a sample e-mail that you can end out is pasted below, for your convenience) with the three attachments (FAQs, Rewards Details, and Screen Prints) to your eligible employees. If you would prefer that I send out this e-mail for you, please provide me with an e-mail distribution list and I would be happy to do so. Sample e-mail you can send: "Dear PAISIG-covered employees, We are happy to announce the kick-off of a new Rewards Program, in conjunction with Independence Blue Cross. Starting on 11/1/13, the first 2,500 people who login in to their Ibx.com homepage, access the WebMD Rewards link, and complete the four (three required and one other from a list of options) wellness activities will earn a $100-VISA gift card. Please view the attached documents for more program specifics, FAQs, and screen-printed instructions. If you have programmatic questions, you may contact Suzanne Smith, MS, CHES, Wellness Coordinator with Armstrong, Doyle, and Carroll, Inc. at ssmith@adcbenefits.com or (610) 225-1534. Thank you for your continued support and participation!" Click here for PAISIG FAQ's Click here PAISIG Rewards Details Click here for PAISIG Screen Prints

Are Your Employees Ready for Retirement? Chizoba Egbuonu, J.D., Carroll Consultants

Studies show that many American workers are either not saving at all or not saving enough for retirement. To combat this issue, some people have suggested the United States implement a mandatory retirement system similar to the one in place in Australia. In 1992, Australia passed a law that requires employers to divert 3% of most workers'

salary into retirement accounts. There are reports that indicate that about 90% of the workforce in Australia has a retirement savings account. This is vastly different from the United States where it has been reported that less than half of the workforce participate in an employer-sponsored retirement plan. And even those who are participating are not contributing anywhere close to the 10 to 15% of pay that is recommended by most financial advisers. Many United States workers rely on the prospect of social security benefit. However, given that social security only covers approximately 30% of the income needed at retirement and the high probability that many young people of today will be lucky to get any social security benefit when they retire, it is clear that most Americans will not be prepared for retirement. Unfortunately, until the day when retirement savings become mandatory in the U.S., the burden really falls on employers to make sure their employees are saving for retirement. Employers need to encourage their employees to participate in the employer-sponsored retirement plans by educating them about the benefits of saving for retirement. This can be achieved through group education meetings with a retirement plan consultant, or individual financial planning sessions with a Certified Financial Planner. Financial planners are beneficial because they assist participants with selection of the proper asset allocations, and they ensure participants are on course to meet their individual retirement goals. To read the full article, click here.

Energy and Natural Gas Update Al Greenough, PAISBOA

This week, schools participating in the Energy Program received historical information and an update on our programs to purchase Natural Gas and Electricity. If a picture is worth 1000 words, the graphs for each commodity below describe the report. The full report is attached. Generally, we have been able to take advantage of a falling

market, while using strategies to protect us from the upside market risk. In addition, the schools received budget reports that forecast the energy costs for each commodity for the next two fiscal years.

For a larger view of the graphs and a detailed report, click here.

Edu-Tech Academy: Only Three Classes Left! Bob Sager, Edu-Tech

Don't miss out! Only three classes remain in the fall schedule! Register today for one of the classes below before time runs out on this great offer! Faculty and staff from any PAISBOA member school can take any class for just $100 (includes breakfast and lunch service). Microsoft Word Training (Mac & PC) Intermediate to Advanced Class - Thursday, November 14th

In this class you discover how much you didn't know about Microsoft Word and it's capabilities. Discover how to merge data with Excel and PowerPoint. Design page layouts for newsletters, create charts, design custom templates and customize mail merge content like a pro! Click here for more details and to register for this very popular class. Microsoft PowerPoint Training (Mac & PC) Intro to Intermediate Class - Tuesday, November 19

th

Intermediate to Advanced Class - Thursday, November 21st These are the classes that everyone should take! How many times have you worked on a presentation and felt that it just didn't "SNAP". Whether you are presenting data to your board of trustees, or to an audience of hundreds at a national conference, the design skills you learn in these two courses will take you to a whole new level and help you capture the attention of your audience like never before! Click here for more details and to register for the "Intro to Intermediate" class. Click here for more details and to register for the "Intermediate to Advanced" class. Click here for Edu-Tech's Training Website.

Don't miss Next Week's VDI webinar on "The Value of VDI and Thin Clients" Jon Kertesz, CDW-G

Please join CDW-G and EdTech magazine Thursday, November 14, 2013 at 2 pm to learn about implementing virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI). Topics include insights on what infrastructure is needed to support the environment, how and why participating K-12 and higher ed institutions selected the setups they did, and some lessons they learned along

the way. Speakers include:

Christopher P. Grubbe, System Administrator, Columbus State Community College (Ohio)

Marvin Reece, Director of Technology, Southwestern Jefferson County (Ind.) Schools

Kathi Grumke, Solution Manager, CDW You will learn:

How these institutions developed and built out their VDI and thin client environments

Which technologies they're using - and why

How they overcame obstacles and capitalized on successes

Which best practices they recommend to institutions considering their own VDI and thin client implementations

The webinar will be moderated by Tara E. Buck, managing editor of EdTech: Focus on Higher Education magazine. We look forward to a frank exchange of ideas between the panelists and the audience, so please pre-register now to participate in this complimentary webinar. Click here to register!

Five Steps to Powerful Meetings Amy Myers, School Office Services

Effective team meetings take planning and should focus on no more than three action items. How many times have you been in a meeting that you knew right away would be dull and potentially pointless? The ineffectiveness of meetings can be remedied simply by revamping the first and last five minutes. Beginning the planning process with a clear vision and mission will help you lead more

successful meetings. Standup comics live by a performance adage: open strong, close strong. By using the same philosophy when leading a meeting, you will get better interaction and engagement and be known for productive meetings.

Set an example from the start. Start on time and end on time. If you want employees to be friendly, upbeat and engaged, you have to be friendly, upbeat, and engaged. Lead by example. Have a clear goal in mind as you begin planning your meeting and make that goal known from the beginning.

Remind everyone of your greater mission. Don't get so focused on the minutia of a meeting that you forget to step back and see the big picture. Remind everyone they are working towards a higher purpose and not just clocking meeting minutes. How does this meeting fit into the overall vision? How will it benefit the team? How will the discussion move things forward? You will get more engagement if everyone sees the bigger picture.

Provide action steps. Before everyone scatters to their next appointment, make sure they know their next action steps. Rather than delegating or reading off who is in charge of doing what, ask everyone in the room to say a few words about what they are personally responsible for. This helps make sure everyone is on the same page and gives you an opportunity to listen and observe. Pay attention to what they say and how they say it. Have they "bought in" to the idea? Is their body language congruent with what they are saying? This is your chance to do some preemptive damage control. You miss out on such valuable information when you dictate the do-to list at the end of the meeting.

Click here to read more tips.

PAISBOA Investment Program's Monthly Market Update Jennifer Gill, PFM

The partial government shutdown and threat of a debt ceiling crisis caused widespread uncertainty and roiled the short-term Treasury market before Congress and President Obama agreed to a temporary fix.

Estimates are that the crisis cost the economy $24 billion. However, because the release of economic statistics compiled by the federal government was delayed-an indirect result of the shutdown-the true economic cost may not be known for months.

President Obama nominated Janet Yellen, current vice chair of the Federal Reserve (Fed), to succeed Ben Bernanke when his term expires in January 2014. Ms. Yellen is expected to continue the current Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) policy of pumping money into the financial system, and indeed some believe she will tilt the Fed even further toward its dovish direction.

To read the full article, click here.

If you have any questions about this article or if you'd like to discuss its contents in more detail, please contact Jennifer Gill at 717-232-2723. The views expressed within this material constitute the perspective and judgment of PFM Asset Management LLC (PFMAM) at the time of distribution and are subject to change. Information is obtained from sources generally believed to be reliable and available to the public; however, PFMAM cannot guarantee its accuracy, completeness or suitability. This material is for general information purposes only and is not intended to provide specific advice or recommendation. The information contained in this report is not an offer to purchase or sell any securities.

The current rates can be found at: http://www.paisboainvest.com/CurrentRates.aspx?id=38.