Professional Development Award
from the Endowment Account
Montana Extension Association of Family Consumer Sciences

Approved during MEAFCS member meeting
October 23, 2018

The purpose of this document is to provide background for the name, management criteria, supervision and control, selection criteria and application procedure for the Professional Development Award of the Montana Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (MEAFCS).

NAME OF PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AWARD from the Endowment Account:

The award shall be known as the Montana Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (MEAFCS) Professional Development Award in honor of the 75th anniversary in 2009 of the National Extension Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (NEAFCS).  There are two financial components of the Professional Development award; endowed funds  (restricted) and spendable funds.  The “spendable portion” of the account consists of interest and earnings from the endowment and other funds designed by MEAFCS membership. 

ACCOUNT SUPERVISION AND CONTROL of Endowment Account:

  1. The principal of the endowment account shall be open-ended and may be added to at any time. 
  2. The principal and spendable portion presently in the account and received in the future (specifically designated for the endowment account) shall be invested by the MEAFCS treasurer.
  3. The MEAFCS Treasurer shall invest the monies in appropriate investments.
  4. Interest earnings will be added to the “spendable” funds. 
  5. The value and number of yearly awards are determined by a Professional Development Committee (hereafter referred to as the “committee”) of MEAFCS that is appointed by the President.    
  6. A donor who makes a gift to MEAFCS will be asked  if the gift should be (1) added to the Endowment fund that is designated as restricted (added to the principal and maintained as an endowment) (2) added to the spendable funds or (3) designated in some other manner.
  7. The treasurer will report annually to the MEAFCS membership the endowed and spendable balances in the endowment.

USE OF AWARD from Endowment Account:

Recipients shall use the award for professional development activities such as:

  1. Educational credits toward a Master’s or Ph.D. program.
  2. Attendance and/or presentation participation at regional, national, or international professional development conferences.
  3. Course-work at a university.
  4. Internship with a business, non-profit, or other University Extension.
  5. Obtaining a professional designation such as a Certified Financial Planner (CFP) or Registered Dietician (RD).
  6. Continuing Education Credit for a professional designation such as Accredited Financial Counselor (AFC) or Certified Personal and Family Finance Educator (CPFFE) or other certification.
  7. Speaker for FCS Updates
    • A proposal for speaker at FCS update or Professional Development for the MEAFCS membership must first be approved by the FCS Update Planning Committee.
  8. Other:  Justify the profession development opportunity the applicant is considering.

SELECTION CRITERIA & PROCEDURE from the Endowment Account:

  1. Recipient must be a member of MEAFCS in the year the award is made.
  2. Recipient must submit the application to the Committee Chair, who will forward to the Professional Development Award Committee Members.
  3. Selection will be made by the Professional Development Committee of MEAFCS.
  4. Monies will be awarded upon decision of the Committee to be used within one year of receipt of the award. 
  5. Proof of the completion of the professional development activity shall be submitted to the MEAFCS treasurer before the award is made.

REVISION OF SELECTION CRITERIA from the Endowment Account:

  1. Because Association members recognize that changes may occur requiring adjustments in the mechanics of the professional development award, the President shall request the Professional Development Award committee to change those portions that become outdated or outmoded.
  2. The recommended changes shall be voted on by the member during a meeting such as Annual Conference, FCS Update or electronically.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE for the Spendable Funds:

Applications for the Professional Development Award from the Endowment Account are due January 31 and June 30, electronically to Jackie Rumph at [email protected].  To apply for the MEAFCS Professional Development Award from the Endowment Account applicants must submit the following electronically:

  1. Name, position (with a brief description of responsibilities) and years of service with MSU Extension.
  2. Years of membership in MEAFCS, offices held or committee membership, and awards received from MEAFCS, NEAFCS, or from other organizations.
  3. Statement of how the award will be utilized.
  4. Description of how the proposed professional development activity will benefit MSU Extension and MEAFCS.
  5. A list of the total costs that will be incurred with the professional development activity that is proposed (mileage, motel, meals, registration fee, etc).
  6. Indicate how you will share the education gained from your professional development activity with members of MEAFCS.