By Greg Hyland, CPM
Greg.Hyland@YumaAZ.gov

Greetings fellow Academy members. As I write this, it’s a beautiful spring day in Yuma with the temperature in the mid 80s without a cloud in the sky.

Who would be thinking that in just a few short weeks we’ll be coming together to celebrate our 20th Annual Professional Development Conference in beautiful Columbus, Ohio? With our busy summer schedules, September 7th will be here before we know it, and we’ll be converging on the Hyatt Regency Columbus either by car, bus, motorcycle or airplane for the premier CPM event of the year. Those of you that have never been to Columbus are in for a treat. I had the pleasure of spending a couple of days there in 2006 and thoroughly enjoyed myself. There were so many things to do that I didn’t know which to do first.

With many agencies cutting back on travel and education, my concern is that there may not be as many of us in Columbus as we’d all like. The last time we faced this type of situation was in 2001 when the Academy met in Scottsdale, Arizona, and our members from the Southeast were facing an economic slowdown. Compared to the previous conference in Florida, attendance was down; but, those of us who were there had a great time. And, I have it on good authority (from the Ohio Society) that those of us who head to the Buckeye State will have a great time again.

On-line hotel reservations are already available at http://columbusregency.hyatt.com, or by calling (614) 463-1234 and reserving your room under the event code “AACPM.” Room rates are $130 per night for single or double, $140 for triple occupancy, and $150 for quad occupancy. By the time this article is published and distributed, on-line conference registration should be available. Watch your mail and email for more information. We’ve reduced our room block slightly, so make your reservations as soon as possible to ensure you’re able to stay at the conference hotel. I look forward to seeing all of you throughout your stay in Columbus…More >