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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01-10-2014 Regular MeetingAGENDA FOR PERSONNEL BOARD MEETING CITY OF FAIRHOPE January 10 , 2014 I. Review and approval of minutes of November 22 , 2013 II. Old business 1. Status of hiring of assistant in the HR department. III. New Business 1. Review of the draft Personnel Rules, Policies, and Procedures Handbook IV. Review of resume of Scherry Douglas as potential Board Member V. Update from HR Director, Pandora Heathcoe VI. Closing comments from Board Members, HR Director, and Council Liaison STATE OF ALABAMA COUNTY OF BALDWIN Personnel Board met at 7 :00 AM City Hall, Conference Room, 161 North Section Street, Fairhope, Alabama 36532, on Friday, 10 January , 2014. Present were: Members: Diane Thomas , Chairman; Wayne Griffin; Judy Hale ; Clark Stankoski ; Pandora Heathcoe, City Human Resources Director. Also attending, Jack Burrell, City Council President and Paul Myrick, City Attorney for Personnel Matters. Absent: Kevin Boone, City Council Liaison. The meeting was called to order at 7:00 A. M. Before the minutes from the November meeting were reviewed, Chairman Thomas introduced Mr. Paul Myrick, City attorney for personnel matters and invited Board members to ask Mr. Myrick any questions they had about the Draft Personnel Handbook. Members were interested in the requirements of the State's Open Meeting Act. Specifically they wanted to know if the Hearing Board as constituted in Section 9.03 of the Draft Handbook would require that appeals be conducted in an open meeting. Mr. Myrick was of the opinion that the hearings would need to be open, but he will research the Act and send a written memo to the City Clerk and the Board. His memo will be forwarded to Board members when it is received. Nex t order of business was consideration of the minutes of the November 22 , 2013 meeting. The minutes were reviewed and amended to show that Wayne Griffin was absent and then approved as corrected. Pandora Heathcoe, HR Director, gave an update on the progress of hiring an assistant in the HR department. She is reviewing the applications and hopes to schedule interviews with 4 or 5 qualified candidates in the next two to three weeks. Chairman Thomas then opened the discussion of the Draft Personnel Handbook. Comments of the Board members are summarized in the two attachments accompanying these minutes. Mr. Jack Burrell , Council President, sent an application for a potential new member of the Personnel Board to Ms. Thomas. The application and resume were forwarded to all Board members for review prior to the meeting, and the members were in favor of the Chairman contacting the applicant to see if she has an interest in serving on the Personnel Board. Ms Thomas will report back at the next meeting. Final new business was an update from Ms. Heathcoe on matters in the HR Department. She is scheduled to appear at the Council work session on January 13 to introduce a firm which specializes in safety training. Ms. Heathcoe is seeking alternatives to help in reducing the City 's accident rate and rising Workman's Comp claims. The January 1 7 meeting is cancelled, and members should check their email for notification of the next Board meeting to be held in February. There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 8:30 AM . Typos and Grammar corrections on Draft Personnel Handbook All section numbers and pages are taken from the Draft Revised December 2 , 2013 copy 2 .01 Page 5. Last sentence of paragraph 2 reads "the employee should schedule a meeting with supervision in advance." We think that should be supervisors. Page 11. First sentence "is not a condition employment" should be "is not a condition of employment." 2 .08 Page 13. Last sentence of first paragraph reads "The City will generally not rehire employees who were dismissed for misconduct or unsatisfactory job performance , or who is classified as a .... " Should read "who were dismissed for misconduct or unsatisfactory job performance or who are classified as a ... "No comma and change of verb tense . 4 .05 Page 19 . Third paragraph, last sentence. Essential policy operations should read essential police operations . 5 .01 Page 23. Second paragraph reads during the month of June during each calendar year thereafter. Could just say "during the month of June of each calendar year thereafter." Lisa, at this point you may give up on me for being the pickiest person you ever worked with but I just thought we did not need two during right after each other. 7 .03 Page 29. Third line of paragraph 1 should read "employees are eligible". Are is missing . 7 .05 Page 33 under Serious Health Condition. On line 13 it reads "at its ex pense". Would be more clear if it said "at the City 's expense". 7 .10 Page 3 3. Look at line 7. This is a very long sentence but I think the if part should be joined to this sentence . The idea is that an employee may be granted a si x months unpaid leave if the leave would enable him to return to his job. As it stands, the sentence beginning with If is a fragment. 8.16 Page 48 . 4th paragraph, 1st line reads "employees may not distribute literature or an y kind ". Should read "literature of any kind ". Appendix A2 Page 74 The list of safety sensitive positions uses the old job titles , not the ones from the new Classification Study. Pandora can update and change this list using approved job titles. When final copy is formatted , all section headings need to be on same page with info that follows. I know this cannot be done until all corrections are made . Notes from Personnel Board Meeting 1-10-14 regarding Draft Personnel Handbook All section numbers and pages are taken from the Draft Revised December 2, 2013 copy Section 1.03 Page 2. The 2005 Handbook stated that the Personnel Rules could be supplemented by departmental rules specific to a department and that the Mayor must approve any supplemental department rules. The new section 1.03 says that the Mayor may supplement these rules as long as they do not conflict with the Handbook and must do so in writing. Since this Revised Handbook will become an ordinance when adopted by the Council, the Personnel Board believes the Council must approve any supplemental rules that apply to all employees proposed by the Mayor in writing. Complaint Procedure Page 8 In the first paragraph it states that the EEO Officer is the Human Resources Director. Then it goes on to say that if the Human Resource Director is the offending party , the employee should complain directly to the Mayor. However, wording in the third paragraph (EEO Officer or person designated by the Mayor) gives the impression that the choice for EEO officer is to be determined by the Mayor for any given complaint rather than the default choice being the HR Director unless he/she is the subject of the complaint. In that case, the Mayor would choose another EEO Officer. Just want to be sure that the understanding is the HR Director will be the person investigating and handling most complaints unless there are unusual circumstances involving the HR Director. Section 2.10 Page 15. First sentence reads that "the HR Department will develop and implement a job classification system." Personnel Board recommends adding maintain to this sentence so it would read " ... HR Department will develop, implement, and maintain a job classification system ... " and then Section 2.10 Page 15. Classifications and Reclassifications . The second sentence is misleading and based on a misunderstanding of the classification process. Employees, not jobs, are promoted, demoted, or laterally transferred. The Mayor and Council may abolish a job, create a new job, or change the job description along with the grade and pay range (which is really creating a new position) but they don 't reclassify jobs. When you reclassify based on a promotion, demotion, or lateral transfer, you are changing the job based on the person, not the requirements of the position. The Board recommends that this paragraph read: Subject to approval by the Mayor and City Council, the Human Resources Department will develop, implement, and maintain a job classification system for all positions in the City based on the job duties and responsibilities of each job and will develop and establish a pay grade and pay range for each job. Employees may be reclassified from one job to another for promotions, transfers, or demotions." Email to Pandora: Attached is a memorandum discussing the application of Alabama's open meetings law to the pre-disciplinary hearings conducted by the Hearing Review Board under the City ofFairhope's proposed Personnel Rules. The overview is straight forward. The Hearing Review Board is a "governmental body" subject to the Alabama Open Meetings Act. However, pre- disciplinary hearings may be held in executive session ( closed to the public) if the disciplinary action involves job performance and/or the general reputation and character, physical condition, professional competence or mental health of the individual being reviewed. However, an exception applies to employees with a base pay of $75,000 a year or more if the disciplinary hearing involves job performance. Any portion of a disciplinary hearing that discusses job performance for these employees must be open to the public. City Clerk Lisa Hanlcs has the established procedures for convening a meeting under the Alabama Open Meetings Act and then adjourning to executive session to conduct the hearing. Following the pre-disciplinary hearing in executive session, the Hearing Review Board may reconvene in executive session "to deliberate and discuss evidence or testimony presented . . . and vote upon the outcome of' the pre- disciplinary hearing. This second "deliberative" executive session to discuss and determine the outcome does not require public notice. However, following the second "deliberative" executive session, the Hearing Review Board must either vote in public (in an open meeting with proper notice) or issue a written decision that "may be appealed to a hearing officer, an administrative board, court, or other body which has the authority to conduct a hearing or appeal of the matter which is open to the public." The latter option does not seem to be possible here because of the lack of an appeal route for a written decision. Accordingly, whatever the Hearing Review Board decides in closed executive session, the Hearing Review Board must vote on the disciplinary action to be taken during a properly noticed public meeting. In this regard, a simple "yeay" or "nay" vote would be required with no attendant discussion. Please provide the members of the Personnel Board with a copy of this summary and the attached memorandum. If you have any questions, please let me know. Very truly yours, Paul cc: Lisa Hanks (Lisa.Hanks@cofairhope.com) Diane Thomas (montrose36559@grnail.com) PERSONNEL BOARD PRE-DISCIPLINARY HEARINGS ALABAMA OPEN MEETINGS ACT SUMMARY 1. For employees who ARE NOT an elected or appointed public official, an appointed member of a state or local board or commission, or a public employee who is one of the classification of public employees required to file a statement of economic interests with the Alabama Ethics Commission pursuant to Section 36-25-14. an executive session may be called to discuss the "general reputation and character. physical condition, professional competence, or mental health of individuals," or, subject to the limitations discussed below, to discuss the "lob performance" of such Individuals. 2. For employees who ARE an elected or appointed public official, an appointed member of a state or local board or commission, or a public employee who is one of the classification of public employees required to file a statement of economic interests with the Alabama Ethics Commission pursuant to Section 36-25-14, an executive session may be called to discuss the "general reputation and character, physical condition, professional competence, or mental health" of such Individuals. An executive session MAY NOT be called to discuss the job performance of such persons. See the definitions of "general reputation and character" and "job performance" below. If at any time during a discussion of "general reputation and character'' the focus of the discussion turns to job performance, the executive session must end and an open meeting conducted . 3. An executive session also may be utilized to deliberate upon or discuss evidence presented during a pre-disciplinary hearing and to vote upon the outcome of the pre- disciplinary hearing. This executive session, however, must either (i) be followed by an open meeting to vote upon its decision in an open meeting QC (2) issue "a written decision which may be appealed to a hearing officer, an administrative board, court, or other body, which has the authority to conduct a hearing or appeal of the matter which Is open to the public ." There are no cases or agency regulations that explain exactly what a "quasi-judicial or contested case hearing" is, nor are there any that explain the "appealability" requirement. Two interpretations of the law by the Alabama Attorney General and the Association of County Commissions of Alabama largely restate the statutory provisions. 4. Executive sessions other than quasi-judicial ar contested case hearings must be properly convened in an open meeting pursuant to the procedure provided in § 36-25A -7. 5. Public notice of quasi-judicial or contested case hearings in executive session is not required. Public notice of other executive sessions is required. 6. According to the definition of a "governmental body" as provided in the Alabama Open Meetings Act, the personnel board of the City of Fairhope would be subject to the law as well as any other board appointed by the City. STATUTORY PROVISIONS Alabama Open Meetings Act: Ala. Code § 36-25A-2 (Definitions). As used in and for determining the applicability of this chapter, the following words shall have the following meanings solely for the purposes of this chapter : (1) Deliberation. An exchange of information or ideas among a quorum of members of a governmental body intended to arrive at or influence a decision as to how the members of the governmental body should vote on a specific matter that, at the time of the exchange, the participating members expect to come before the body immediately following the discussion or at a later time. (2) Executive session. That portion of a meeting of a governmental body from which the public is excluded for one or more of the reasons prescribed in Section 36-25A-7(a ). (3) General reputation and character. Characteristics or actions of a person directly Involving good or bad ethical conduct, moral turpitude, or suspected criminal activity, not Including job performance. (4) Governmental body. All boards, bodies, and commissions of the executive and legislative departments of the state or its political subdivisions or municipalities which expend or appropriate public funds; all multlmember governing bodies of departments, agencies, institutions, and Instrumentalities of the executive and legislative departments of the state or its political subdivisions or municipalities, including, without limitation, all corporations and other instrumentalities whose governing boards are comprised of a majority of members who are appointed or elected by the state or its political subdivisions, counties, or municipalities; and all quasi-judicial bodies of the executive and legislative departments of the state and all standing, special, or advisory committees or subcommittees of, or appointed by, the body. (5) Job performance. The observed conduct or actions of a public employee or public official while on the job in furtherance of his or her assigned duties. Job performance lndudes whether a person is meeting, exceeding, or falling to meet job requirements or whether formal employment actions should be taken by the governmental body. Job performance does not include the general reputation and character of the person being discussed. *** (7) Open or public portion of a meeting. The open or public portion of a meeting is that portion which has not been closed for executive session In accordance with this chapter, for which prior notice was given in compliance with this chapter, and which Is conducted so that constituents of the governmental body, members of the media, persons interested in the activities of the governmental body, and citizens of this state could, if they desired, attend and observe. Ala. Code § 36-25A-3 (Notice requirements). (a) Unless otherwise specified by law and as provided herein, any governmental body subject to this chapter, except for an advisory board, advisory commission, advisory committee, task force, or other advisory body created solely to make recommendations on public policy issues and composed of persons who do not receive compensation for their service from public funds, shall post notice of all meetings, as defined in Section 36-25A-2(6)a.1., at least seven calendar days prior to the meeting as follows: ••• {3} A municipal governmental body shall post notice of each meeting on a bulletin board at a place convenient to the public in the city hall, provided, however, that a corporation a majority of whose governing board Is appointed or elected by a municipality and that has a principal office separate from the city hall may, in lieu of posting notice in the city hall, post notice of each meeting on a bulletin board at a place convenient to the public in the principal office of the corporation or other instrumentality. • •• (e) Governmental bodies may give, but shall not be required to give, notice of quasi-judicial or contested case hearings which could properly be conducted as an executive session under this chapter or existing state law. Ala. Code § 36-25A-4 (Maintenance of records). A governmental body shall maintain accurate records of its meetings, excluding executive sessions, setting forth the date, time, place, members present or absent, and action taken at each meeting. Except as otherwise provided by law, the records of each meeting shall become a publ ic record and be made available to the public as soon as practicable after approval. Ala. Code§ 36-2SA-7 (Executive sessions). (a) Executive sessions are not required by this chapter, but may be held by a governmental body only for the following purposes : (1) To discuss the general reputation and character, physical condition, professional competence, or mental health of individuals, or, subject to the limitations set out herein, to discuss the job performance of certain public employees. However, except as provided elsewhere in this section, discussions of the job performance of specific public officials or specific public employees may not be discussed in executive session if the person is an elected or appointed public official, an appointed member of a state or local board or commission, or a public employee who is one of the classification of public employees required to file a statement of economic interests with the Alabama Ethics Commission pursuant to Section 36-25-14. Except as provided elsewhere in this section, the salary, compensation, and job benefits of specific public officials or specific public employees may not be discussed in executive session. (2) When expressly allowed by federal law or state law, to consider the discipline or dismissal of, or to hear formal written complaints or charges brought against a public employee, a student at a public school or college, or an individual, corporation, partnership, or other legal entity subject to the regulation of the governmental body. (9) To deliberate and discuss evidence or testimony presented during a public or contested case hearing and vote upon the outcome of the proceeding or hearing if the governmental body is acting in the capacity of a quasi-judicial body, and either votes upon its decision in an open meeting or issues a written decision which may be appealed to a hearing officer, an administrative board, court, or other body which has the authority to conduct a hearing or appeal of the matter which is open to the public. (b) A governmental body desiring to convene an executive session, other than to conduct a quasi-judicial or contested case hearing, shall utilize the following procedure: (1) A quorum of the governmental body must first convene a meeting as defined in Section 36-2SA-2(6)a.1. and 2. (2) A majority of the members of the governmental body present must adopt, by recorded vote, a motion calling for the executive session and setting out the purpose of the executive session , as provided in subsection (a). If subsection (a) requires an oral or written declaration before the executive session can begin, such oral or written declaration shall be made, prior to the vote. (3) The vote of each member shall be recorded in the minutes. (4) Prior to calling the executive session to order, the presiding officer shall state whether the governmental body will reconvene after the executive session and, if so, the approximate time the body expects to reconvene. Alabama Ethics Law: Ala.Code 1975 § 36-25-14 (Filing of statement of economic interests). (a) A statement of economic interests shall be completed and filed in accordance with this chapter with the commission no later than April 30 of each year covering the period of the preceding calendar year by each of the following: (1) All elected public officials at the state, county, or municipal level of government or their instrumentalities. (2) Any person appointed as a public official and any person employed as a public employee at the state, county, or municipal level of government or their Instrumentalities who occupies a position whose base pay is seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000) or more annually, as adjusted by the commission by January 31 of each year to reflect changes in the U.S. Department of Labor's Consumer Price Index, or a successor Index. (3) All candidates, simultaneously with the date he or she becomes a candidate as defined in Section 17-22A-2, or the date the candidate files his or her qualifying papers, whichever comes first. (4) Members of the Alabama Ethics Commission; appointed members of boards and commissions having statewide jurisdiction (but excluding members of solely advisory boards). (5) All full-time nonmerit employees, other than those employed in maintenance, clerical, secretarial, or other similar positions. {6) Chief clerks and chief managers. (7) Chief county clerks and chief county managers. (8) Chief administrators. (9) Chief county administrators. {10) Any public official or public employee whose primary duty is to invest public funds. (11) Chief administrative officers of any political subdivision. (12) Chief and assistant county building inspectors. (13) Any county or municipal administrator with power to grant or deny land development permits. (14) Chief municipal clerks . (15) Chiefs of police. (16) Fire chiefs. (17) City and county school superintendents and school board members. (18) City and county school principals or administrators. (19) Purchasing or procurement agents having the authority to make any purchase. {20} Directors and assistant directors of state agencies . (21) Chief financial and accounting directors. (22) Chief grant coordinators. (23) Each employee of the legislature or of agencies, Including temporary committees and commissions established by the Legislature, other than those employed in maintenance, clerical, secretarial, or similar positions. (24) Each employee of the Judicial Branch of government, including active supernumerary district attorneys and judges, other than those employed in maintenance, clerical, secretarial, or other similar positions. (25) Every full-time public employee serving as a supervisor. (b) Unless otherwise required by law, no public employee occupying a position earning less than seventy-five thousand dollars ($75,000} per year shall be required to file a statement of economic interests, as adjusted by the commission by January 31 of each year to reflect changes in the U.S. Department of Labor's Consumer Price Index, or a successor index. ATTORNEY GENERAL AND ADMINISTRATIVE INTERPRETATIONS As interpreted by the Alabama Attorney General (Troy King), A government body may go into executive session to i. Discuss and deliberate the evidence/testimony presented during a public or contested case hearing; and ii. Vote upon the outcome of the proceeding or hearing if the body is acting In its "quasi-judicial" role. Requirements of the Outcome: To be able to go into executive session under this subsection, the body must either i. Vote upon the decision in an open meeting; or ii. Issue a written decision which can be reviewed by a hearing officer, an administrative board, court, or any other body that is able to conduct a hearing or an appeal of the matter. See THE ALABAMA PRESS ASSOCIATION AND TROY KING, ALABAMA ATTORNEY GENERAL: The Alabama Open Meetings Act, Act No. 2005-40: A Manual Far Alabama Public Officials (2005). As interpreted by the Association of County Commissions of Alabama, If the governmental body is acting as a "quasj.judicial body", the body may convene an executive session to deliberate and discuss evidence or testimony presented during a public or contested case hearing, provided that the body either: • Votes upon its decision in an open meeting, or • Issues a written decision which may be appealed to a body which has the authority to conduct a hearing or appeal which Is open to the public. There Is no clear definition of what a "quasi-judicial body" is, but in essence, it means that the governmental body is making judicial decisions, such as in the case of a personnel hearing conducted by or before the governmental body or a committee created by the body. This provision would apply to any state agency conducting administrative hearings on matters governed by the agency, and will likely have limited applicability for county governments. However, this provision would apply in any instance where the county commission conducts an administrative hearing regarding disciplinary or other personnel issues. It would also apply to any personnel board created by the county commission or pursuant to local law. This provision differs from the other eight grounds for executive session in that it does allow the body to deliberate in the closed session provided that the body will vote in open session or issue a written decision which could be appealed to a body which would conduct an open hearing. In fact, the governmental body acting as a quasi-judicial body can actually vote in the executive session if there will be a written appealable decision. See ASSOCIATION OF COUNTY COMMISSIONS OF ALABAMA, Open Meetings Manual for Alabama Counties, Section 3. January 22 , 2014 Mayor Timothy M. Kant Fairhope City Hall 161 North Section Street Fairhope, AL 36532 Dear Mayor Kant, A s you know, the Personnel Board has had a vacancy since the retirement of Mr. Beeman Bond. We have recently learned that Colonel Scherry Douglas, a resident of Fairhope , has expressed interest in serving on the Board, and we respectfully request that you consider her appointment to serve. We believe her education and experience in the field of human relations and her extensive military and law enforcement background would be an asset to the Board. We unanimously feel that she would be an excellent addition. Colonel Douglas submitted an application for the Fairhope Economic and Industrial Dev elopment Board in May of last year. If you need her to submit another application for appointment to the Personnel Board, please let me know. I am enclosing a copy of her May, 2013 application and her resume. Sincerely yours , Diane Thomas Chairman, Personnel Board cc: Clark Stankoski , Wayne Griffin, Judy Hale, Pandora Heathcoe, Kevin Boone January 22 , 2014 Jack Burrell , President Fairhope City Council Fairhope City Hall 161 North Section Street Fairhope, AL 36532 Dear Mr. Burrell , A s y ou know, the Personnel Board has had a vacancy since the retirement of Mr. Beeman Bond. We have recently learned that Colonel Scherry Douglas , a resident of Fairhope, has expressed interest in serving on the Board, and we respectfully request that you confirm her appointment to serve. We believe her education and experience in the field of human relations and her extensive military and law enforcement background would be an asset to the Board. We unanimously feel that she would be an excellent addition. Sincerely yours , Diane Thomas Chairman, Personnel Board cc: Clark Stankoski, Wayne Griffin, Judy Hale, Pandora Heathcoe, Kevin Boone CITY OF FAIRHOPE APPLICATION FOR APPOINTMENT TO A CITY BOARD OR COMMITTEE City Council seeks to have diversity in making appointment to boards and committees . It is th e policy of the City Council to make appointments based on the needs of the City as well as the interests and qualifications of each applicant, In accordance with the Code of Alabama, all applicants must be qualified electors and taxpayers in the City , excluding the Planning Commission . All applications filed with the City Clerk will be public record. Please return this application to the Fairhope City Clerk at Cit y Hal l. 161 No rth Section Street , Fairhope, Alabama 3 6532 or mail lo City of Fairhope , Allention Fair ho pe Ci ty Clerk. P. 0 . Drawer 429, Fair hope , Alabama 36533. PLEASE PRINT CLEARLY Last Name: Douglas First Namt:: Scherry ------------ Phone Number: 251-210-4619 Cell : 1251-583-0321 I Email: Sdoug16872@aol.com Home Address : 134 Old Mill Road city : Fairhope State: _A_L __ Zip : 36532 Business Address : ______________________ _ Ci ty: ________ _ State : __ _ Zip: ____ _ Fairhope Economic and Industrial Development Board Name of Board or Committee : ___________________ _ EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND: BS-English/BA-Journalism from ASU, Montg., AL-MA-Human Relations-U/OK PROFESSIONAL LICENSES A DI OR ASSOCIATIONS: Baldwin Cty Chiefs Assoc, Mobile Cty Chiefs Assoc, AL Assoc Chiefs of Police C PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE: 20 years federal law enforcement experience; 30 years USAF officer CIVIC INTERESTS ANO/OR SERVICE MEMBERSHIPS : Member Summerdale church of Christ, Motivational speaker, Tutor, Mentor HOW WILL YOUR QUALIFICATIO S BEST SERVE THE NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY? Will use 30 ears f leadership and management experience to serve community Signature :~~~O::::...'.+,,U.~"+--======------Date: / Z't'atl :;'('/ 3 J BIOGRAPHY UNITED STATES AIR FORCE RETIRED COLONELSCHERRYE.DOUGLAS Colonel Scherry E. Douglas retired from the United States Air Force Reserves, effective 1 April 2013 after 30 years of service . While active, she was the Individual Mobilization Advisor to the Director, National Security Emergency Preparedness (NSEP), a Directorate of 1AF/AFNORTH , Tyndall Air Force Base , Florida . She served as principal advisor on reserve affairs coordinating with senior leaders to provide organizational vision and mission goals . She initiated programs and initiatives , in coordination with the AFNORTH Mobilization Assistant, to develop assigned Emergency Preparedness Liaison Officers through monitoring , counseling , challenging training , work assignments , timely performance feedback and evaluation inputs . Colonel Douglas facilitated AF support primarily through on-scene augmentation for the appointed Defense Coordinating Officer/ Element (DCO/DCE), within 10 FEMA regions , during disasters or emergencies declared by the President of the United States . Colonel Douglas is a 1983 distinguished graduate of the Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) from Alabama State University where she earned a bachelor of science in English and a bachelor of arts in journalism . Before assuming, IMA Director duties , she served as the first commander of the 4th Combat Camera Squadron , March A ir Reserve Base , California . She is currently assigned as the Assistant Special Agent in Charge , Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in Mobile , Alabama . The HSI mission is to prevent terrorist and criminal acts by targeting people , money, and materials that support terrorist and criminal networks. As ASAC, the twenty-year law enforcement veteran is directly responsible for developing and providing administrative and operational oversight of criminal and civil investigations relating to counter-terrorism , trade fraud , money laundering violations , maritime port security , i llegal exportation , counter proliferation of military items , human trafficking , marriage fraud , document fraud and narcotics smuggling , in the state of Alabama . EDUCATION 1983 Bachelor of Science/Arts degrees in English and journalism, ASU , Montgomery, AL 1988 Squadron Officer School , Maxwell AFB , AL 1990 Master of Human Relations, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 2000 Fixed Deployed Communications, Keesler AFB, MS 2001 Air Command and Staff College, non-residence course 2006 Air War College, non-residence course ASSIGNMENTS 1. May 1983 -August 1984, ATOC Duty Officer, 60th APS, Travis AFB, CA 2. August 1984-October 1986, Vehicle Management Officer, 325th Trans Sq, Tyndall AFB, FL 3. October 1986 -October 1987, Vehicle Operations Officer, 51st Trans Sq, Osan AB, Korea 4. October 1987 -April 1991, Traffic Management Officer, 436th APS, Dover AFB, DE 5. Apr 1991 -October 1992, Group Quality Officer, 625th MASG, Torrejon AB, Spain 6. October 1993-October 1994, Quality Officer, 445th AMW, March AFB, CA 7. October 1994-October 1997, Group Executive Officer, 452nd SPTG, March ARB, CA 8. October 1997 -April 2004,Commander, 4th Combat Camera Squadron, March ARB, CA 9. April 2004 -October 2006, Emergency Preparedness Liaison Officer/AFNSEP, Ft McPherson, GA 10. October 2006-January 2010, Regional Reserve Director NSEP, Tyndall Air Force Base, FL 11 . January 2010-March 2013, Individual Mobilization Advisor, NSEP Director, Tyndall Air Force Base, FL MAJOR AWARDS AND DECORATIONS Legion of Merit Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters Air Force Commendation Medal with three oak leaf clusters Army Commendation Medal Air Force Outstanding Unit Award with one device National Defense Service Medal Global War on Terrorism Service Medal Humanitarian Service Medal Air Force Overseas Short Air Force Overseas Long Air Force Longevity Service with three devices Armed Forces Reserve Medal with two devices Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon Air Force Training Ribbon EFFECTIVE DATES OF PROMOTION Second Lieutenant April 24, 1983 First Lieutenant April 24, 1985 Captain April 24, 1987 Major March 28, 1997 Lieutenant Colonel September 13, 2001 Colonel February 16, 2006 (Current as of April 2013)