President’s Message

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

As our year speeds toward its end, I’m finding it difficult to put into words the events of this past year.
Human nature has us dwell on the negative, we never remember the positive, so I’d like to take this time to share with you the things you and your fellow dedicated Academy members have done.

• The majority of us got our annual assessments, dues payments, and membership rosters in on time – we didn’t quite make 100%, but we’re getting better.

• We had an overwhelming response to my call for volunteers to work on our multitudinous committees – those of you who responded, thank you again for volunteering.

• We expanded the membership on some key committees, including adding semi-permanent positions to the Leadership Institute for the Society Conference Chairs for all upcoming Annual Conferences.

• I had multiple volunteers to chair those same committees and I’d like to take a moment and recognize each committee chair and give them my personal thanks
  
  
  • Debbie Smith, CPM from Oklahoma
    • Archivist Committee
    • Membership Benefits
      
      
  • Ron Buchholz, CPM from Wisconsin
    • Bylaws and Ethics Committee
    • Election Committee
    • Mentoring Committee
      
      
  • Becky Bryant, CPM from Arkansas
    • Communications
    • Integrated Marketing & Resource Catalog
      
      
  • Stephen Mastro, CPM from North Carolina
    • Conference
    • Finance Committee
    • Leadership Institute – Co-Chair
      
      
  • Shirley Hollis, CPM from Kansas
    • Leadership Institute – Co-Chair
      
      
  • Kay Nidiffer Rogers from South Carolina (our 2007 Henning Award Winner)
    • Henning Committee
      
      
  • Charlene Cutting, CPM from New Hampshire
    • Management Practices
      
      
  • Hazel Best-Shaw, CPM from my home city of Yuma, Arizona
    • Orientation Committee
      
      
  • Larry Gordon, CPM from Arizona & Tony Smith, CPM from Kentucky – Co-Chairs
    • Ways and Means
      
      
  • Barbara Taft, CPM, CPO, MSM from Oklahoma
    • Wilkinson Scholarship Committee
      
      
• For the first time in recent Academy history, we have multiple candidates for each and every office up for election – for this I thank you! Good luck to all of our candidates!
  
  
• Even in a down economy, we’re anticipating approximately 150 CPMs will be gathering together in beautiful Columbus, Ohio for our 20th Annual Professional Development Conference. The Ohio Conference Committee has done a fantastic job putting this conference together, and each and every one of them needs to be congratulated!
  
  
• Two of the three Societies that were in arrears and in danger of losing their Charter have brought their Societies current and will be represented at the Ohio conference – for that I am eternally grateful!
  
  
• The Academy Board has been meeting monthly, either in person, electronically or by phone to work through changes to the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), recommending By-laws changes, realigning duties of the board members, or performing the day-to-day governance of the Academy. Your Academy Board has met every month since taking office in January, with several more teleconferences to come. When you see your Board members, please take a moment and show your appreciation to them for a thankless job well done. Each and every one of them deeply cares about the future of our Academy.

Your Ohio Conference Team has put together a great conference for us. It’s hard to believe that in just a few short weeks, we’ll be making our way across the country to get together once again for too few hours to reconnect with friends, both old and new. I’ve heard rumors that for the first time in many years we’ll have the presence of many Past Academy Presidents and Henning Award winners with whom to reminisce. Actually, I haven’t seen some of them since the Arizona Conference in 2001. It will be great to see them once again and raise a glass to old times!

2009 is shaping up to be an exciting year! Our Florida conference team is preparing the way for us to gather in Orlando. It will have been nearly 10 years since we ventured into St. Pete’s Beach and invaded the Tradewinds Resort. The Florida team has a great conference planned for us, so save September 20th through 23rd in 2009 for the 21st Annual Professional Development Conference. Your 2009 President, Steve Mastro, is ready, willing, and able to lead this prestigious organization into the next year. So, in looking back on 2008, although I may not have been able to do everything I strived to do and wasn’t able to speak directly with each and every one of you, I have thoroughly enjoyed representing you, the members of our illustrious Academy, across the country. If you can make it to the Conference, please stop me and say hi, or better yet, come up to our Hospitality Suite, enjoy a cold beverage, and let me know your view of the world.

I’ll see you in Columbus!!!

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