Presidents MessageDavid L Stipe, ASLA, LLA
Are you ready to serve the profession of landscape architecture in the State of Washington? I hope the answer is yes. Many of you may not realize how important being an advocate for our profession is. WASLA and ASLA are focused on providing elected officials and the general public with information about our profession, the benefits of engaging LA practitioners in conversations about the environment, community and site design, along with so much more. Our members and volunteers also advocate for programs and initiatives that affect our profession, funding for projects and those that have a direct impact on quality of life at the local level. Involvement in your membership organization can and perhaps should extend past simply writing your membership dues check every year. Are you interested in strengthening the stature of your profession? At the beginning of July, the WASLA office sent out a call for nominations to serve on the executive committee. We have four open positions on the executive committee for the 2015-2016 term. We have three at-large seats to fill and generally like to have a west, east and southwest representative. The at-large seats are a one-year term. The president elect position is also open. While it is a one-year term, the commitment to the profession is a total of four years. Following the first year served as president elect, the excom member begins a two-year term as president, followed by a one-year term as past president. President elects generally serve in support of the current president, spending the year learning the ropes. During the next two years as president the excom member will chair the excom meetings, make committee appointments, guide and direct volunteer activities at the direction of the excom and work closely with the executive director and management staff at SBI, our executive services provider. The president and president elect also attend two ASLA Chapter President Council meetings, one in spring in Washington DC, the other a few days before the national conference at the conference location. The past president supports the current president by providing input, advice and support. If any of these positions and roles interest you or you feel someone you know would serve the profession in Washington with sound guidance, please contact Courtney Landoll, at [email protected], our current past president and the 2015 nominating chair. Our excom also coordinates with a number of other subcommittees on which an interested member might choose to serve, if a chapter leadership role seems too daunting. Our subcommittees include: Public Relations and Communications, Membership and Social Events, Advocacy, Student and Emerging Professionals, Professional Development along with Scholarship and Fellowship. For more information on the committee responsibilities and those individuals already serving the chapter visit wasla.org and click on the committees pull down menu. Service to our profession on the part of members is critical to the health of the landscape architecture. Join our dedicated cadre of volunteers, won’t you? Yours truly, David L Stipe, ASLA, LLA |
