Cooperative Directors To Meet At Penn State UNIVERSITY PARK (Gentle Co.) New and returning direc tors of cooperatives can improve their business and organizational skills by attending tbe 16th Annual Pennsylvania Cooperative Direc tor Institute, Jan. 26-28 at The Penn Stater Conference Center Hotel at Penn State’s University Park campus. The director’s role in creating, maintaining, and communicating the value of cooperatives will be the focus of the Institute, which features mote than IS sessions and informal discussions on topics such as cooperative finance, legal issues for cooperative directors, developing internal controls, and environmental concerns. Speakers will include Pennsylvania Secret ary of Agriculture Samuel Hayes; Glenn Webb, chairman of the board for GROWMARK Coopera tive; and John Coffey, cooperative consultant and former head of Southern States Cooperative. Changes in markets and the legislative envi ronment make this insti tute increasingly impor tant, said Richard Poor baugh, director of Penn State’s Cooperative Business Education and Research Program. "The directors’ insti tute helps close the knowledge and skills gaps between members, their boards and investor-oriented agri businesses,’’ Poorbaugh said. “One of the high lights of the institute is die opportunity to share ideas and issues with directors of other cooperatives.” The institute opens with lunch and welcom ing comments at noon on Wednesday, Jan. 26. followed by Coffey’s keynote address on “Co op Boards for die Next Century: What Will It Take?” Jerry Ely, cooperative develop ment specialist for the USDA Cooperative Business Service, will discuss “Cooperative Governance Roles and Responsibilities of Directors and the Board” at 2:30 p.m. That will be followed by “Legal Implications of Directorship,” by Chris Fox, general legal counsel of Agway Inc., an 80,000-member farm supply cooperative. Russ Rose, head coach of the national champion Penn State Lady Lions volleyball team, will be the speak er at dinner at 6p.m. The day’s activities will end with a workshop on cooperative board decision-making procedures. On Thursday, Jan. 27, Porter Little of Co- Bank, a major lending institution for coopera tives, will present a workshop on coopera tive finances at 8:30 a.m. At 1:30 p.m., Glenn Webb of Grow mark cooperative will discuss “Selling Your Cooperative: the Value Nelson of Cenex-harvest States cooperatives supply firm; Irene Sorenson, manager of grow er communications for Ocean Spray; and Robert Naerebout of Dairy Farmers of America, in a panel discussion of “Measuring Membership Value” at 3 p.m. Din ner will follow at 6:30 pm., when Nelson will present “With Cooperatives, the Three Most Important Things Are: Education, Education, Education!” Friday, Jan. 28 sessions open at 8 a.m. with James Dunn, Penn State professor of agricultural eco nomics, discussing “Trends and Current Business Environment” for cooperatives. At 8:45 am., the institute will offer concurrent ses sions for smaller-scale coopera tives (“Is There a Future for Local Co-Ops?”) and large operations (“Challenges and Requisites of Serving and Communicating Built to fit new or used harvesters, the kit is designed for simplicity and many years of use with minimum maintenance. A positive drive nonslip belt powers the processing unit. By adjusting the harvester to make a coarser cut along with the shearing action of the processor rolls turning at different speeds, overall output from the harvester is increased with no additional horsepower required. Georgetown Manufacturing, LLC 343 Christiana Pike, Christiana PA • 610/593-2753 Membership Value to a Diverse Membership”). At 10:45 am., William Nelson will present “Ten Steps to Excellence in Leadership and Governance.” At noon, tbe institute’s gradua tion luncheon will feature remarks by Secretary Hayes. That will be followed at 1 p.m. by Samuel Minor, director of Agway Inc., who will talk about “Managing the Not only do the rolls constantly "self-clean”, but the minimal space between the pans and the rolls creates a vacuum action that draws the processed silage into the spinner chamber. The haylage diverter is bolted to the processor rear door. Made of heavy-duty stainless steel, it keeps haylage away from the processor rolls and in the spinner chamber. Contents of the conversion kit are warranted for one year against failures in material or workmanship. A typical conversion requires approximately one day. Madness: Capitalizing on the Opportunity.” The institute will close at 2 pm. with tbe presenta tion of certificates by Secretary Hayes and David Blandford, head of Penn State’s department of agri cultural economics and rural sociology. Registration, lodging, meals and materials for the three-day institute are $625. For more infer- SILAGE MILL Conversion Kit for Gehl Harvesters also available for New Holland, New Holland Self-Propelled, and some other brands. Most unique in the design of the Georgetown Crop Processor is the way that the transition is made from processing silage to making haylage. A pin, two bolts, the diverter pan assembly, and the main belt drive are removed and material from the cutter head moves directly into the spinner bypassing the rolls. The whole process takes less than a half hour. Lancaster Farming, Saturday, January 1, 2000-A2l mation, contact Penn State’s Cooperative Business Education and Research Program at (814) 863-0644. The institute is offered in cooperation with Pennsylvania Council of Cooperatives and the Cornell Cooperative Enterprise Program with support from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture. / \M^. paS a
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