CSBA Agenda Online : Meeting & Agenda Browser

March 31, 2009 06:00 PM

CSBA's Agenda Online Service
On the web at csbaagendaonline.net

Preliminary Information

This agenda has been created to provide information about the features of the CSBA Agenda Online service. For further information or questions contact Dianna Parker at dparker@csba.org or Kim Ludwig at kludwig@csba.org or call (800) 266-3382.

*(D)*	Discussion Item
*(V)*	Can Vote
*(C)*	Consent Item

I. Public View

a. Accessing Meeting Agendas

Clicking "MEETINGS" will display the next scheduled meeting for which an agenda has been posted.

Clicking "CALENDAR" will bring up the current month's calendar on the left of the screen. Meetings with posted agendas for the current month, previous eight months, and coming eight months will be shown. A meeting may be selected by clicking on it from the calendar or from the list. The user can scroll back or forward to look at previous or future months of the calendar.

b. Printing the Agenda

From the public view the user has the ability to print the agenda or to print the agenda with abstracts if they are available.

c. Supporting Documents

Users may view supporting documents. A supporting document may be a file that is uploaded to the Agenda Online server, a link to a web page, or a link to an email contact. Uploaded files work best as pdf files.

II. Board Member View

a. Accessing Meeting Agendas

Clicking "MEETINGS" will display the next scheduled meeting for which an agenda has been posted.

b. Sticky Notes

The sticky note feature allows the Board member to annotate the agenda much in the same way notes are written on the paper copy.

A sticky note can be created for the meeting, for a section of the meeting or for a specific agenda item.

Only the user that creates the sticky note has access to it.

c. Printing Agendas

From the Board Member view the agenda may be printed with abstracts and with sticky notes.

Details of individual agenda items may also be printed. Details include the information in all the fields. This information may be printed from the item detail screen.

d. Supporting Documents

Board members may download any supporting document. Items marked as confidential for closed sessions are available from this view.

e. Confidential Documents

The attached document will be seen in the Board Member view and by any other user that is given access to confidential documents. General users will see the title and the quick summary/abstract fields only when an agenda item is appropriately marked for closed session.

f. Downloading for Offline Review (Static Version)

The meeting administrator may create a offline version or static version of the entire agenda and supporting documents. The Board member may then download the meeting to their computer for viewing off line. Sticky notes are not available in the offline version.

III. Meeting Administrator-Pre Meeting

a. User Account Administrator

The user account administrator is responsible for setting up user accounts and assigning user access privileges. Users and privileges may be grouped. For example Board members, submitters, or reviewers could be a group. Everyone in the group has the same privileges.

The user account administrator assigns user names and passwords. Users may change their passwords. If a user forgets a password the user account administrator may set a new password for the user, but does not have the ability to look up any users passwords.

b. Step 1 - Creating Item Templates

The first thing the meeting administrator will need to do is create an item template. An item template contains the fields that will hold the needed information for items. A single item template may be used if desired or templates can be created for different types of items. For example, closed session, discussion, and consent items could all vary in the fields contained in their template. A consent item template might have the "recommended action" field, but the discussion item would not.

c. Step 2 - Creating Meeting Templates

After creating the item templates, meeting templates can be created. Meeting templates include the name of the meeting, meeting location, time, header, footer, and sections. Sections are the categories of items for the agenda or events that will take place at the meeting. Examples are Call to Order, Pledge of Allegiance, Closed Session, Consent Agenda, Staff Reports and Adjournment. For each Section an item template is specified.

d. Step 3 - Creating a Meeting

After meeting templates have been created the meeting administrator can then create a meeting. The template is the shell of the meeting. Once a meeting has been created items may be added or submitted for the meeting. As the meeting is being created items may be edited and their section and order changed if needed.

e. Step 4 - Submitting/Adding Items to the Meeting

The meeting administrator may add items directly to the meeting agenda. Items may also be submitted by others who have been given the access level to do so. See IV. Other Users, a. Item submitters for more information.

Items submitted by others have a review and approval process before they are added to the meeting. This review and approval may be performed by the meeting administrator or another user who has been given the access to do so. See IV. Other Users, b. Item Reviewer for more details.

f. Step 5 - Attaching Documents

Supporting documents may be attached to a meeting or a meeting item. It is recommended that all attachments be "pdf" documents. This ensures that documents can be viewed by any user.

Attaching a document is similar to creating an attachment to an email.

Hyperlinks to items already posted on the web may be included.

There is also the ability to type a document online.

g. Step 6 - Publishing the Meeting

In order for all users to view the meeting it needs to be "published." Prior to publishing the meeting all items should be marked "ready for meeting." Any item that is not marked "ready for meeting" will show as a pending item only for users that have access privileges to view non-ready items.

A published meeting may be unpublished or hidden if needed.

h. Altering the agenda

Once ameeting has been created, move items up and down within a section by clicking the up and down arrows to the left of the item title or by clicking on the hyperlinked number to the far left of the item title.

IV. Meeting Administrator-Post Meeting

a. Official Attendees

The meeting administrator may record meeting attendees. Meeting attendees have to have a user account for Agenda Online to show up on the check list for those attending the meeting. Attendees marked as attending the meeting will show on the agenda section labled Official Attendees, after the minutes have been published.

b. Meeting Minutes

The meeting administrator may use the Agenda Online system to record minutes of the meeting. Each item on the agenda will have an area for minutes. Minutes do not appear for printing unitl they have been published by the meeting administrator.

c. Votes

Each item on the agenda that has been designated as an item that Board Members can vote on will have a ballot displayed in the minutes recording area. The ballot will display only those Board Members that were recorded as present at the meeting under official attendees.

V. Other Users

a. Item Submitters

Item submitters have access to submit items to any future meeting that has been established in the system. The item submitter selects a meeting and the section of the meeting the item will be submitted to. Then fields for the item title and other details are displayed for the submitter to fill in. Item submitters may be given access to attach supporting documents.

Items from submitters do not automatically appear as part of the selected meeting. The items need to be reviewed and approved before they will appear as part of the meeting.

The item submitter may edit a submitted item until the item is approved for the meeting. Once the item is approved it is removed from the submission list and becomes part of the meeting. From this point on it can only be edited by the meeting administrator.

b. Item Reviewer

Item reviewers can review and approve items that have been submitted by other users. As part of the review process the reviewer may edit a submitted item, move the item to another section of the meeting or to another meeting.

Once the reviewer has approved an item it is removed from the item submission list and becomes part of the selected meeting. The reviewer will no longer have access to edit the item. The meeting administrator may edit the item if needed.

c. User Account Administrator

Other Info

Official Attendees

Indicates item has been updated within 0 days of the meeting date.