March 2005 Newsletter

Bob Grenier, PhD, CCP, CDP
2005 Region 5 President

Greetings!

Lots of items to discuss.

We have a new professional chapter in Region 5! The Chippewa Valley chapter is in Northwestern Wisconsin. Many of the members are from Eau Claire or Chippewa Falls. Larry Schmitz and I participated in an organizational meeting in January. The turnout was very encouraging and it was obvious that a new chapter was viable. The first chapter meeting had 40 in attendance and over 20 joined AITP.

Are you interested in a Region 5 Student Conference next fall? Many of us think this is a good idea and would benefit our student chapters tremendously. However, getting it organized is proceeding very slowly. We need more people to get involved. Send me an email volunteering your services and/or your suggestions and opinions.

All professional chapter officers and directors should be mindful of the deadline for their Conflict of Interest agreement. It is super easy to do. Just a couple of clicks will take care of it. Visit http://www.aitp.org/organization/chapters/conflict.jsp.

Mark Gilfand was the featured speaker at the March meeting of the Illowa chapter. He did a tremendous job! I strongly recommend your chapter consider Mark as speaker for one of your future meetings. He is more than willing to visit your chapter. All you have to do is ask.

Remember the National Collegiate Conference in Atlanta, April 7-9, 2005. Encourage participation by your student chapters and remember that it professional chapter members are more than welcome to attend. I attended the 2003 NCC at Purdue and the 2004 NCC in Omaha. Both were very rewarding experiences. I plan to attend the 2005 NCC. Atlanta is a wonderful place to visit.

The Spring Region 5 meeting will be hosted by the Capitol Chapter. I urge you to mark your calendars for a wonderful time in the Land of Lincoln (Springfield) June 9-10. More information will be provided in future messages.

Region 5 will thrive in 2005.