In This Issue

• President's Message
• WMCA Annual Conference
• New Board of Directors
• Annual Business Meeting
• Last Chance for Associates to have a Booth at the Conference
• National Election Worker Competition

Check Out These Links   

• New Job Postings - New Clerk and Deputy listings have been coming in every day!
• WMCA Membership Directory 
• Finding Your Credits 

The main topic for the business meeting is a vote on a resolution to make a few changes and clean up some language in the WMCA Constitution.  A full explanation of the changes will be reported by the Manuals Committee during the meeting.

Click here to open and read Resolution #2016-01

Click here to read a Draft of the Revised 2016 WMCA Constitution.

Click here to read the codified 2015 WMCA Constitution

About Us

THE WMCA MISSION:
To be the premier source for the personal empowerment of municipal clerks in Wisconsin through education, professional development, and the promotion of excellence.

Wisconsin Municipal Clerks Assoc.

Website:  wisclerks.org

Dear WMCA Members:

It was my honor this past week to attend the opening banquet for first year clerks and treasurers, and then the Thursday Night Graduation ceremony at the UW-Green Bay Clerk and Treasurers Institute.  What a pleasure to speak with so many clerks and hear the enthusiasm in their voices and the pride that they take in their jobs.   I saw a lot of new faces and many others from my travels throughout the state this past year.    Julie Kessler, who works for the City of Cumberland but lives near the City of Spooner, knew that she was going to be at the Institute so she brought me the best itch and bite lotion ever made at the Spooner Pharmacy, which I had requested the last time I saw her.   We talked about networking at the Institute and this is just one of the many examples that I can think of.  Remember it’s not always work related!  

Kassie Van Remortel and her staff did a marvelous job again this year organizing the Institute and making everyone’s stay memorable, and needs to be congratulated on all the hard work that goes into this type of training and learning experience.  I would also like to mention that I saw many individuals at the Institute who would make a great candidate for the Board of Directors for WMCA and I would encourage them to run for office next year.   We have so many talented individuals in our association that can utilize their talents to better our organization. 

Final plans have been completed for the Clerks Conference being held on August 17^th -19^th in Appleton, so if you have not yet registered, get it done!  Jump on that education bus and get signed up for the best learning opportunity.     I look forward to seeing as many of you as possible at the Presidents Reception Wednesday evening, August 17^th for great entertainment, food and door prizes.    Don’t forget to bring along extra cash or your credit card for the Silent Auction.

Safe Travels to Appleton in August!!!

The Early Bird deadline is coming up fast.  You need to be registered by August 1st to avoid a late fee of $20.  That means your registration needs to be in the WMCA Office by August 1st.  Classes are filling up and a few could reach their limit soon.  You can click here to go to the 2016 WMCA Registration website and check out the great agenda for our 36th Annual Conference and sign up today.  (Remember:  you do not have to pay by credit card.  You can register on-line and still send a check later.)   You could also download the 2016 Conference Brochure to read more details of the special events happening at the conference this year.

My name is Kelly Michaels and I have been a member of the WMCA since 1997 and a member of IIMC since 2001. I have been serving in the position of Director-at-Large since the 2014-2015 term. I have served on the Promotions Committee, Legislative Committee and the Ad Hoc Committees for the Clerk’s Manual and Vision Statement. It has been my great fortune and pleasure to have worked in three different municipalities across the state including Wausau, Stoughton and currently Brookfield. One of the greatest gifts received in transitioning from the North to Central and then Southeast parts of the state is getting to know my fellow Clerks across those regional area lines. I am truly blessed for the friendships I have made during that journey.

My passion for the Clerk’s profession is what drove me to seek the 2nd Vice President position! I am extremely proud of the members of our organization for putting in the hard work and long hours it takes to be successful in the Clerk or Clerk/Treasurer role. Too often I hear my fellow Clerks are not being given the accolades they deserve. I know for a fact Clerks are out there in their municipalities, tirelessly giving of themselves to their elected bodies, co-workers; residents, voters and to the overall betterment of their communities! I am so proud of the professionalism and “can do” attitude of municipal Clerks across this state dealing with the ever increasing paper work, more legislation, the glare of public and media scrutiny and sometimes a really scary political agenda or two. We are far stronger together than we are individually! I appreciate and respect diversity of thought and the shared experiences that come with belonging to the Wisconsin Municipal Clerk’s Association. That is why I am interested in doing everything I can to support you, the membership of this great organization. Thank you kindly for your support!

In addition to my experience with the WMCA, I have served on the Board of Directors of the DeForest-Windsor Area Chamber since 2008 and am currently on its Finance Committee. I have been a municipal Clerk/Treasurer for fifteen years. The last eight years in my current position at the Town of Burke and in the Village of Dane and Town of Lodi in previous years. I really enjoy the accounting duties of the Clerk/Treasurer position and feel that I will be an asset (pun intended) to the WMCA as your Treasurer.

My name is Wendy Helgeson and I am Town Clerk for the Town of Greenville, one of the fastest growing communities in the State.  In this role, I lead a team of two performing statutory duties and providing customer service to the residents of Greenville.

I am no stranger to the duties required of the position, having served eight years as a Clerk’s office employee.  I started as a Clerk’s office employee at the City of Appleton as an Administrative Assistant for five years primarily processing licenses, entering voter registrations, absentee ballot requests and providing customer service.  I was promoted to Deputy City Clerk for two years before accepting the role of Town Clerk for the Town of Greenville. 

Since I am a big believer in education and the power of networking, I support WMCA and the Clerks and Treasurers Institute.  I also currently serve on the Advisory Board for the UWGB Clerks and Treasurers Institute and on the WMCA 2016 Conference Committee (both will commence this fall).  Most recently I was honored to be elected to serve as the Secretary for WMCA District 7.  I am also near completion of obtaining my Wisconsin Municipal Clerk’s Certification.

In my free time, I enjoy being outside any chance I get, crafting, painting, and spending time with my family.  I am a proud mother to a daughter, (Madison - 17), a son (Hunter - 14) and a yellow lab (Maggie).  My children’s involvement in rugby, football and basketball keep me busy after work hours and on the weekends.   I love to travel and am always up for an adventure!

US EAC has provided us with a great opportunity to compete for the National Competition for Best Practices for Recruiting,Training and Retaining Election Workers. 

As your State of Wisconsin Local Representative to the US EAC Standards Board, I want to encourage all of you to compete!  There are many incredible Clerks in our great state, who have come up with terrific ideas and plans on how to recruit, train and retain election workers.  Sharing is what we do best and it would be so beneficial to so many if you share these ideas and plans not only with your fellow Wisconsin Clerks, but nationally as well.  The submission deadline for the competition is September 1, 2016.  Give the other Clerk competition a run for their money!  Promote yourself and all you do, by taking the time and opportunity to show the entire nation how you succeed at conducting some of the very best elections, in Wisconsin and the United States!!   

(Please see the article below for additional information and links to assist you)

For those of us in the elections community the upcoming summer and early fall will be a whirlwind of activity.

Election office staff will be working countless hours ensuring that voter registration lists are in order, ballots are ready to be printed, voting machines are in working order and legions of election workers are being recruited and trained in time for the November election.

It’s against this backdrop that the U.S. Election Assistance Commission (EAC) is working to widely promote and nationally recognize the innovative and effective techniques election offices are using to recruit and train good election workers.

In order to do this EAC has recently released a suite of election worker educational materials and announced a national competition to identify best practices for recruiting, training and retaining election workers. All of these new materials can be found on EAC’s website at BeReady16

EAC has selected a national panel of judges who will review the entries and select winners based on criteria such as innovation, sustainability and scalability.

The winners will be announced on September 8, 2016 during EAC’s Public Meeting.

We’re seeking your help to broadly promote the competition and ask that you encourage election staff and others to submit their materials for the competition to clearinghouse@eac.gov by September 1.

Please feel free to widely distribute the flyer that’s included with this email and thank you for your support and interest in promoting good ideas!

 Best Practices Competition Flyer

2016 Election Worker Webisode

Election Worker Successful Practices Manual

State Compendium of Election Worker Laws and Statutes

With best regards-

Thomas Hicks
Chairman

If you have any questions regarding this competition, please contact Barb Goeckner at bgoeckner@village.germantown.wi.us