Board Meeting Actions. The quarterly CAPS Board of Directors’ Meeting was held last Saturday, February 5, 2022. Actions by the Board of Directors included:
- Approving the minutes of the November 6, 2021 Board of Directors’ Meeting.
- Approving Carolyn Buesch (CDFW-Redding) as a CAPS Local Representative.
- Authorizing an additional contribution of $1,000 from its operating account to the Sacramento Regional Science & Engineering Fair Foundation in support of the Foundation and its programs.
- Approving CAPS’ endorsement of incumbent constitutional officers seeking reelection as outlined in the February 4 memo from CAPS PAC Chair Kris Wiese.
- Approving CAPS’ endorsement of legislative incumbents seeking reelection as outlined in the February 4 memo from CAPS PAC Chair Kris Wiese, as amended.
- Approving CAPS’ endorsement of Mike Fong for Assembly District 49 in the February 15, 2022 special primary election.
- Approving CAPS’ endorsement of CAPS Local Representative Rae Vander Werf for American River Flood Control District Trustee.
The next meeting is scheduled for Saturday, May 21, 2022 (venue TBA).
Staff Quarterly Report Posted. The Quarter 4 Report detailing representation items of interest is now posted on the Members-Only Section of the CAPS Website here: https://capsscientists.org/members/. The password is ChooseCAPS! – it IS case-sensitive.
Telework Stipend Bill Soon To Be Approved. The long-awaited bill that provides funding for CAPS’ Side Letter Agreement that secured stipends for teleworking employees should soon be approved by the State Legislature and Governor Newsom. The bill provides funding for the stipend for both rank-and-file and so-called “excluded” State Scientists. It remains to be seen how long it will take departments to begin processing payments once the stipend is approved. The stipend is retroactive to October 1, 2021, but CAPS will keep members apprised as more information is available.
2022 Sacramento Regional STEM Fair Calls for Judges. CAPS is proud to count ourselves among several longtime sponsors of the 2022 Virtual Sacramento Regional STEM Fair (Sac STEM Fair). CAPS members volunteer to judge projects at this annual Fair while earning Mentoring Leave, pursuant to CalHR Manual, Section 2119. This year, the Fair will be held digitally (via Zoom) from March 19-27 with expected judging hours to take up to 4 hours per volunteer judging assignment for volunteer credit. Up to 40 hours of Mentoring Leave can be earned per calendar year. Members use their own leave credits, and then are provided an equal number of hours as Mentoring Leave. Judges will receive a commemorative Judges’ T-shirt. If you can help, please complete the online judging registration here. You can also email sacSTEMfair@sacSTEMfair.org with any questions. If you encounter an issue or need help determining how to obtain your Mentoring Leave after you’ve participated as a judge in a Science or STEM Fair, as always, contact CAPS!
In addition to sponsoring the Sacramento Regional STEM Fair, CAPS offers our own Science Fair Award which gives CAPS members the opportunity to earn Mentoring Leave for judging science fairs throughout the State by judging which student will win the CAPS Science Achievement Award at 15 regional fairs. If you’re interested in volunteering as a judge at one of the virtual science fairs for 2022, click here to learn more and sign up.