Wisconsin Professional Police Association

Convention 2005 Speaker Profiles

Opening Session/Lunch – “Building Your Support Network”
Saturday, May 14 • 11:30 a.m. – 12:45 p.m.
Robert West

The strength of any organization is its members and the collective power they generate. Strong locals with active members supported by a comprehensive, vital state organization deliver the strength needed to achieve our goals. In this new age we must activate, legislate, motivate, and participate at all levels to be effective. Mr. West will discuss techniques for building strong locals with active members.

Robert West was an organizer from the minute he set foot in his first classroom as a teacher in the middle ’60s. He organized his colleagues and bargained a contract when it was the exception, not the rule. In 1971, he left the classroom to work full time for the Wisconsin Education Association Council. He served as an organizer, negotiator, political activist, and, for the final 15 years prior to his retirement, as the statewide Director of Bargaining and Research. In 2001, he was retained as a consultant to the WPPA. He has worked on interest and grievance arbitrations and consulted on organizational matters. Mr. West brings knowledge and enthusiasm to the table and is well known for his dynamic motivational speaking.

President’s Breakfast
Sunday, May 15 • 8:00 – 9:00 a.m.
John Matthews

Mr. Matthews will discuss why, in his opinion, WPPA and its local affiliates can develop into one of the strongest political machines in the state; how working with other public employee unions WPPA can advance its agenda to the benefit of its members; and how WPPA can take advantage of the credibility which its members have earned and the work they do at the local level, i.e. that sweat is more valuable than money in politics.

Mr. Matthews has served as Executive Director of Madison Teachers Inc. for 37 years, building MTI union membership from 900 to 5500 and from one bargaining unit to five. He has built MTI into a respected political powerhouse and is among the founders of the Dane County Labor Political Coalition. Mr. Matthews has served as a consultant to teacher unions nationwide, conducted organizing workshops, political action workshops, and bargaining workshops for teachers and other public employees. He has represented other unions such as teachers, firefighters, nurses, police officers, police supervisors, and sheriff supervisors.

Financial Planning
Saturday, May 14 • 1:00 – 1:50 p.m. and 2:00 - 2:50 p.m.
George Croal

Mr. Croal will cover the steps necessary to insure retirement assets, integrating investments and taxes, using free estate planning methods to protect assets, and assessing insurance needs.

Mr. Croal received his undergraduate degree from Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa, and did graduate work in history and law at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Mr. Croal retired as a detective from the Madison Police Department after a 26-year career and is now a financial consultant with Morgan Stanley.

Association Responsibilities in Post Critical Incidents
Saturday, May 14 • 1:00 – 1:50 p.m. and Sunday, May 15 • 11:10 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Gordon McQuillen & Scott Favour

Every law enforcement officer is trained to respond professionally to critical incidents, frequently involving the use of force. However, few agencies prepare their officers for what happens next. This workshop will address the role of local associations and leaders in helping their members cope with the aftermath of critical incidents. We will talk about employees’ rights and responsibilities to the public, their colleagues, and themselves.

Gordon McQuillen is a native of South Dakota who moved to Wisconsin in 1969 to teach in the Manitowoc public schools after receiving his B. S. in English from Northern State College in Aberdeen, South Dakota. He earned an M. S. in English from NSC in 1972. As a member of his local teachers’ union, he became active in negotiations and grievance processing. He served as an elected member of the WEAC Teacher Rights Commission and conducted at least ten arbitration cases for his local association.

In 1978, he left teaching to attend the University of Wisconsin Law School, from which he graduated in 1980. After working as an attorney for WEAC, he entered private practice with Cullen Weston Pines & Bach. In 2002, he left the firm, where he had been the managing partner, and joined the staff of the WPPA as its Director of Legal Services.

While with the WPPA, he has worked for its members in all aspects of labor law, including bargaining, grievance processing, discipline cases, and general advice to members and staff of the WPPA. Since April of 2004, he has also been the Executive Assistant for the WPPA.

Gordon has litigated a number of cases in the Wisconsin courts, including the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court. His Supreme Court cases have established the right of deputy sheriffs to retain their positions as deputies, even where sheriffs have refused to swear them as deputies and have helped to establish the right of deputies to arbitrate discipline rather than be required to appeal solely through the courts.

He also has been instrumental in drafting legislation on the state and national level. Some of the bills that he has helped to draft have actually passed. Gordon is a frequent presenter in workshops in Wisconsin and for NAPO, as well as a frequent guest speaker in labor classes at the U. W. Law School.

Scott Favour is a native of Beloit, Wisconsin. He graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1988 with a B.S. in Secondary Education, and taught high school in Lancaster, Wisconsin. In 1992, Officer Favour became a police officer for the City of Madera, California, and was elected union president there after two years. He moved to Madison, Wisconsin, and the Madison Police Department in 1995. He became a member of the Madison Professional Police Officers Association Board in 1999 and was elected president of MPPOA in 2003. He is currently assigned as a neighborhood officer on Madison’s west side.

Stress and Perception: What Creates Stress and How Can You Eliminate or Control It?
Saturday, May 14 • 1:00 – 1:50 p.m. and Sunday, May 15 • 1:30 – 2:20 p.m.
Joanne Negast

Ms. Negast will assist you in getting a handle on stress by helping you to rethink the way you think and put your life into perspective. Most importantly, she will teach proven techniques for dealing with life's stressors and changing the unproductive behavior with which we often sabotage our own happiness and success. Ms. Negast will cover the following topics: defining stress; assessing your needs; and making change happen.

Ms. Negast is a Certified Master Trainer having received her diploma from Langevin Learning Services, Inc. She is also a certified Performance Consultant, Instructional Designer/Developer, and Instructor/Facilitator. Ms. Negast holds certifications/licenses to teach two Franklin Covey programs: a time management program called “Focus: Achieving Your Highest Priorities” and “Rethinking Stress – Discovering Positive Alternatives.” Other programs that she facilitates are in the fields of communication, guest services, sexual harassment, and team building.

Creating and Administering Your Own Local
Saturday, May 14 • 1:00 - 1:50 p.m. and 2:00 – 2:50 p.m.
Sue Armagost

You’ve done all the hard work of bringing people together to form a union to promote and protect your common interests. What’s next? Now it’s time to put together and strengthen the five major building blocks of your power base. Meet with other union leaders to review steps to creating and training your board of directors, recruit more help from within, keep your entire membership interested and informed, tap your “extended family” of spouses and friends, and cultivate influence with the media, politicians, and the community at large. In this workshop, you will be offered samples of bylaws for a local, training packets for new board members, newsletters, and examples of editorials designed to grab the attention and support of the public. Here’s your chance to discuss ideas and issues for your local with other union leaders.

Ms. Armagost has been with the City of Madison Police Department since 1983 and is currently a sergeant in patrol. She served on the Board of Directors of the Madison Professional Police Officers Association for nine years, five years as president. She currently serves on the Board of Directors of WPPA and was recently appointed to the Wisconsin Law Enforcement Standards Board.

Funding Post-Employment Health Care
Saturday, May 14 • 2:00 – 2:50 p.m. and Sunday, May 15 • 11:10 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Richard Wells

Mr. Wells will focus on alternatives to providing post-employment health care, and will present the benefits that a VEBA can provide. The workshop will address current trends in employer-provided post employment health care; the impact on public sector employers and employees; new legislation and guidelines; and alternatives to fund health care, such as VEBA, HSA, etc.

Richard Wells is responsible for marketing, relationship management, product design, and program support for the governmental market for The Security Benefit Group of Companies. Specifically, he focuses on 457 Deferred Compensation, 401(a) Defined Contribution, VEBA Trust, and 125 Flexible Spending Plans. Mr. Wells joined Security Benefit in 1995. Prior to his role as Director, he served as an Institutional Client Services Coordinator, Financial Analyst, and Accounting Specialist with Security Benefit. Mr. Wells received his Bachelor of Business Administration from Washburn University in Topeka with a double major in Finance and Accounting. Prior to joining Security Benefit, he was employed by Capitol Federal Savings and Loan as a Mortgage Loan Accounting Specialist. He holds Series 3, 6, 7, and 24 licenses.

Worker’s Compensation and Duty Disability – Strategies to Maximize Benefits Available to Disabled Law Enforcement Officers
Saturday, May 14 • 2:00 – 2:50 p.m. and Sunday, May 15 • 1:30 – 2:20 p.m.
Lester Pines and Genny Gibbs-Benesh

Ending a career in law enforcement because of a disabling work injury is a very difficult life experience. At a time when an officer is faced with leaving a rewarding career and making important decisions affecting future livelihood, the officer is also bombarded with a myriad of decisions to make about statutory benefits available under Chapters 40 and 102 of the Wisconsin Statutes. Because of the unique relationship that exists between worker’s compensation, duty disability, and WRS benefits for law enforcement officers, navigating through the benefit options available can be daunting. Attorney Pines and Ms. Gibbs-Benesh will provide valuable information and strategies for officers to use to maximize the benefits available to them if they ever find themselves in this situation.

A Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, Attorney Pines is a senior partner with Cullen Weston Pines & Bach LLP. He is a highly respected civil and criminal litigator who has appeared in courts throughout Wisconsin and litigated federal matters in Wisconsin, Iowa, Ohio and New York. His criminal defense work has involved many high profile cases, especially involving teachers, police officers and other public employees. His civil trial practice encompasses constitutional and civil rights claims, employment, personal injury and commercial disputes.

Mr. Pines received his B.A., with distinction, in history from the University of Wisconsin – Madison in 1972, and graduated from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1974. He has been appellate counsel before the Wisconsin Court of Appeals and Supreme Court and the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals. Among the cases he successfully argued in the Wisconsin Supreme Court is Thompson v. Craney, 199 Wis. 2d 674 (1996), an original action in that court, which has been described as one of the Court's most significant interpretations of the Wisconsin Constitution. Mr. Pines argued another original action in the Wisconsin Supreme Court, Wisconsin Professional Police Association v. Lightbourn, 243 Wis. 2d 512, 627 N.W. 2d 807, 2001 WI 59 (2001), which challenged the constitutionality of legislation requiring certain distributions from the trust funds of the Wisconsin Retirement System.

Genny Gibbs-Benesh is a certified paralegal with the law firm Cullen Weston Pines & Bach LLP. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Humboldt State University in California in 1985 and a Certified Legal Assistant certificate from the National Association of Legal Assistants in 1996. She is a member of the Madison Area Paralegal Association. She works primarily in the areas of personal injury and worker’s compensation, including assessment and preparation of duty disability cases. In her 15 years as a paralegal, she has also provided litigation support in many other areas including employment and labor law, probate, collections and estate planning. Genny performs worker’s compensation and duty disability intakes and is the paralegal primarily responsible for locating, obtaining and organizing medical, vocational and other factual documentation in preparation for hearings, which she attends as paralegal support. She has developed substantial expertise in Wisconsin Worker’s Compensation through training and participation at hearings.

Working with Professional Fund-Raisers for Locals
Sunday, May 15 • 11:10 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.

Is your local considering working with a professional fund-raiser? If the answer is “yes,” attend this workshop and bring your questions to our panel of experts.

FACILITATOR

David Mahoney – WPPA President/Detective David Mahoney has served with the Dane County Sheriff’s Office for 25 years. He was president of the Dane County Deputy Sheriffs’ Association from 1996 to 2004 and has served as chairman of the DCDSA “Cops for Kids” charitable program since 1999. President Mahoney has served on the WPPA Board of Directors since 1999. He was the WPPA vice-president from 2001 to 2004 and was elected president of the Association at the May 2004 Annual Convention. Also, in his capacity as WPPA president, he is a regional vice-president of the National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO).

PANEL

Susan Krause – Madison Police Officer Sue Krause, a native of Janesville, Wisconsin, is currently the Neighborhood Officer for the Cypress/Magnolia south side neighborhood of Madison. She is an SFST (Standardized Field Sobriety Test) instructor. Ms. Krause has been a member of the Madison Professional Police Officers Association for ten years, on the MPPOA Board of Directors for the past five years, and is a member of the MPPOA Bargaining Committee. She has been the coordinator of merchandise sales for MPPOA for approximately seven years. Also, she has coordinated the union picnic for the past three years and served as the coordinator of the Department-wide Copper Ball for the last two years. Ms. Krause recently was appointed to the WPPA Board of Directors to fill a vacancy caused by the retirement of MPPOA member Joe Durkin.

Georgene Revels – Georgene Revels has been the general manager for WPPA Forward Bag since July 2001. Prior to that time, she worked for the Ho-Chunk Nation in their marketing, training, and hotel/convention sales department. Her career has always been customer oriented, whether in the food and beverage business, tourism, or fund-raising. “It is a privilege to have been asked to sit on this panel, and I hope that I am up to the task of answering any questions you may have regarding the trash bag fund-raiser that Forward Bag provides,” said Ms. Revels.

Paul Marinelli – Mr. Marinelli has 26 years experience in the field of telemarketing, specifically in the area of charitable and non-profit organizational fund-raising. Prior to starting his own company, Insight Teleservices, Inc., six years ago, he served as the vice-president for Midwest Publishing Inc. for 20 years and was responsible for state and federal compliance, new contract acquisitions, and all client liaison duties. Currently, Mr. Marinelli and his partners are engaged in active fund-raising campaigns throughout Wisconsin and Minnesota. Mr. Marinelli believes that strict adherence to the rules and regulations of the host state, combined with custom-trained, highly professional employees creates a recipe for successful and profitable fund-raising campaigns.

John Tobin – Mr. Tobin is the president of Encore Concert Promotions and has been in the professional fund-raising field for over 13 years. He currently represents 15 police and sheriff organizations in the state of Wisconsin. Encore Concert Promotions is located in Manitowoc, Wisconsin and employs approximately 24 people.

Political Action
Sunday, May 15 • 11:10 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. and 1:30 – 2:20 p.m.
John Matthews and Jim Palmer

Presenting with John Matthews [see “President’s Breakfast,” above] is WPPA lobbyist Jim Palmer. In their joint presentation, Mr. Matthews and Mr. Palmer will discuss the beneficial role that political action can play in advancing legislation at the State Capitol in Madison. They will also discuss how to form and maintain a local political action committee, including the do's and don'ts of campaign finance law using hypothetical fact situations.

Jim Palmer conducts public affairs activity for the WPPA. In addition to developing well-researched political strategies and legislative proposals, frequently meeting with elected officials, and testifying before legislative committees, Mr. Palmer’s responsibilities include advising state and affiliated local political action committees and using a variety of media outlets to communicate positions on matters of public policy. Mr. Palmer also engages individuals and organizations for the purpose of forming coalitions in furtherance of the WPPA’s legislative agenda.

Since joining the WPPA in March of 2003, Mr. Palmer has worked with the WPPA Board of Directors to establish a legislative platform, a legislative scoring methodology, and other internal policies and procedures concerning the operation of the organization’s public affairs program.

Mr. Palmer received a B.A. in political science from the University of Wisconsin in Madison and a law degree from the Valparaiso University School of Law. In addition to being a licensed Wisconsin lobbyist, Mr. Palmer is admitted to practice law before all state and federal courts in Wisconsin and Indiana. Mr. Palmer is an active member of the American Bar Association, the State Bar of Wisconsin, and the Association of Wisconsin Lobbyists.