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REGIONAL VOICES
Craig R. Kohring,
Great Lakes RVP
AS YOU READ THIS ARTICLE,
you are probably juggling several different
balls in the air, hoping that you
do not drop any of them. You are
probably dealing with project deadlines
at work,holiday planning,a myriad
of office and family functions that
take place at this time of year, and so
forth and so on. This time of year
always seems to have the same
theme for everyone. It is a hectic
time,as well as a time for sharing and
giving. The question I pose to you
today is,“How is this really different
from any other time of the year”
I ask this question for selfish reasons.
In the not so distant past, at a
Great Lakes Regional Executive
Committee (REC) meeting, I was
asked about improving attendance
at our meetings.Those of you in the
Great Lakes region know that our
meetings are held at a central point
in our region (Cleveland, OH). The
longest drive for any section meeting
is about four hours, and our
actual business meeting lasts about
four hours. It is a long day for most,
but usually an enlightening experience.
On the drive home, I began to
ponder the reasons for poor attendance
at regional events. There are
always project deadlines, family and
social commitments, etc. Sounds
similar to the holidays, doesn’t it
What is missing is the sharing and
giving.
Giving and Sharing
For those of you who have not
attended a regional event, I hope to
offer some insight. For those who
attend on a regular basis, feel free to
take this time to catch up on those
project deadlines.
The IESNA Section Guide states
(and I paraphrase) that the section
president, vice president and secretary
are members of the REC, and
shall attend REC meetings. If one of
these officers is not available, a
There is a wealth of knowledge in
our Society, and most of it resides at
our section level
member of the Board of Managers
should attend in his or her place.
Using that standard, my region
should have an attendance of 36 at
our REC. Instead, we average a little
less than half of that number.
The purpose of an REC meeting
is to share information and
exchange ideas to make our sections
stronger. At our REC meeting,
we try to devote about an hour for
sections to discuss topics such as
initiatives, goals, good and bad meetings,
and membership. This portion
of the meeting is usually the most
interesting, and can really generate
excitement and enthusiasm in our
section officers.There is a wealth of
knowledge in our Society, and most
of it resides at the section level.
Greater attendance encourages
added participation, more ideas, and
shared knowledge and expertise.
The REC meeting provides other
valuable information, as well. Our
REC meeting typically includes time
dedicated to section level reporting
requirements, and contact information,
as well as Society level news
and events. In fact, at our last REC,
one of our new participants said
that she had learned more in the
first 40 minutes of the meeting, than
she had in her years of service on
her section’s Board of Managers.
So, I hope that I have provoked
some thought about attending your
REC meeting. We, as regional vice
presidents, know that your time is
valuable, and family is more important
than IESNA (did I say that).All
we ask is that you try to include
time in your hectic schedule for
sharing and giving to your region. It
is only with your help and participation
that we can make our sections
and regions as strong as possible.
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