September 2007
September 2007 President’s Message by 2006/2007 ASID WI President Jessica Mahne, ASID
Jessica Mahne, ASID
Dear Fellow Members,
As your president, I feel very lucky to be surrounded with such enthusiastic and dedicated volunteers who make our chapter a model for other ASID chapters around the country.
Our chapter successes this past year are many:
We are continuously growing the chapter’s membership. To that end, this year, the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design, Milwaukee Area Technical College, and my biased favorite, Madison Area Technical College all founded ASID Student Chapters at their schools. This is in no small part due to the efforts of the Student Affairs Committee to reach out to all of the interior design students in Wisconsin.
Once we have new ASID members, it is very important to make them feel welcome and a part of the chapter. This year, a new committee was formed, the New Member Orientation Committee. This committee has been personally contacting members as they join and publishing member biographies in the blast emails. They have done a fantastic job getting this committee started. In addition, the chapter implemented a member-networking concept, the ASID Design Cafes, to better serve our members in their local communities.
Our programs committee has continued to provide our members with high-quality continuing education, and this year addressed both ASID Platform issues of Sustainable Design and Aging-in-Place. Because continuing education is an important part of ASID membership, in April, a new membership bylaw was enacted by the National ASID Board of Directors which requires practitioner members of ASID to complete 6 hours of continuing education coursework every two years. This new member requirement strengthens the interior design profession and maintains ASID’s reputation as the premier interior design professional association.
Because ASID is the most recognized professional interior design organization, the National ASID Board of Directors recently approved the use of a new Professional Member mark. Use of the mark will help you stand out in the marketplace by allowing consumers and clients to quickly identify you as a highly qualified and experienced ASID Professional interior designer. If you are an ASID Professional member, I encourage you to go to the ASID national website and download this ASID Professional Member logo for use in your business.
Another change this year that you may have noticed, was the mandatory legislative assessment in addition to your annual membership dues. The National ASID Board of Directors voted to assess practitioner members in order to finance legislative goals at the levels required to be successful. Those of you who have been involved in the legislative efforts in Wisconsin certainly know that it is a challenge to find money to support legislative initiatives. The monies collected through this assessment will be directly channeled into legislative initiatives making us a stronger voice for the interior design profession.
The movement toward legal recognition of the interior design profession across the country directly impacts your professional future by defining our qualifications and the value of the services we provide. I encourage you to educate yourself about the significance of interior design legislation and to get involved in the Interior Design Coalition of Wisconsin – our advocate and representative for legislative concerns and actions in Wisconsin. The coalition is currently looking for additional volunteers to serve on the board. Please consider volunteering your time to the coalition. ASID and the coalition will continue to work together to ensure to the future of our right to practice.
One of the many great benefits of ASID membership is being associated with a professional organization that is well respected and recognized throughout the design community. Nationally, ASID is launching a progressive, three-year marketing initiative to further develop this recognition. This will involve advertising and targeted public relations efforts in major interior design industry and consumer publications.
As part of the new initiative, ASID has begun an ongoing photography campaign, meant to capture members’ design projects, both residential and commercial. Our chapter was chosen to be a part of the pilot of this project, and the National ASID Director of Marketing selected three ASID Wisconsin 2006 Gold Design Award winning projects to be photographed. Look for the work of our ASID members, Bill Beaudreau, ASID, Debra Alton, ASID, Stacy Wieme, Allied Member ASID and Karen Claffey Koller, Allied Member ASID in upcoming ASID advertising! These are exciting developments that will increase the awareness of both ASID and of the professionalism of our members.
None of these great achievements would be accomplished without our dedicated group of volunteers. Thank you to the current board members for implementing the chapter’s strategic plan initiatives in partnership with their committee members. This board was a tremendous help to me, they were always on top of things and willing to pitch in wherever and whenever needed. I am so appreciative of everyone’s contributions to our chapter’s success.
It has been my honor to serve you as ASID Wisconsin Chapter President. I know that the incoming Board of Directors, led by incoming president, Jodie Thill, ASID will continue to keep building on the successes of the past year.
In the words of the great Vince Lombardi, “The achievements of an organization are the results of the combined effort of each individual.” I look forward to seeing more great achievements by the Wisconsin Chapter of ASID in the months and years to come.
Sincerely,
Jessica Mahne, ASID
Wisconsin Chapter ASID President 2006-2007
