Incoming President's Message

Greetings!

Attending the 51st STC Conference in Baltimore, Maryland was amazing! The weather was bright, beautiful, and stifling, the crab cakes were delicious, and the learning opportunities were phenomenal. I can honestly say that my experience at the Conference energized me for my upcoming year as president of Willamette Valley Chapter.

Rubbing shoulders at the Conference with Board members and chapter leaders inspired me to focus on the possibilities for our future in the technical communication field, and it raised my awareness of upcoming trends. As a bonus, I made new friends and can now place faces with leaders and members in the Society. If you have been unable to attend an International STC Conference, or even if you have, I suggest (maybe implore) that you plan to go to Seattle, Washington in 2005 for the 52nd Conference. You will not regret it. And it's just up the street!

What are we planning for 2004–2005?

In an effort to understand the general membership, a survey will be sent out at the end of June asking for your feedback. The objective is to find ways to encourage more participation in Chapter events and to understand membership needs. While many of you have filled out program meeting surveys — many thanks to those who participated — the year-end survey will touch on other areas missed in those previous surveys.

Right now we are working on a broad range of program meetings for next year. For the sake of suspense, I will only divulge that we are looking at some high-powered speakers, hot topics, and great learning experiences for you, our members. Remember, your survey answers will provide information that will help finalize our decisions.

As your leader for this coming year, I would like you to get to know you better. Therefore, some time in fall after our opening program meeting, I hope to host a “town hall” style meeting with the purpose of providing you with Chapter and Society news. While I can keep you informed through e-mail and the newsletter, my ulterior motive is simple: to reach out and meet as many members as possible in a relaxed setting with an informative and short agenda.

There are other plans in the making for the upcoming year and you will be informed as they progress. In the meantime, the administrative council will be working behind the scenes to make those plans concrete. Thank you for the opportunity to serve you. Willamette Valley is an incredible organization, and I am honored to be your incoming president for the next year.

Respectfully yours,

Maralee Sautter
2004–2005 President, Willamette Valley Chapter

Maralee Sautter has been a member of the Society for Technical Communication since 1999, and has worked as a technical writer for GenRad, ADC, and Pixelworks. While attending Portland State University for a Master's degree in Technical Writing, she established the Rose City Student Chapter (RCSC). She is the incoming president of Willamette Valley Chapter, and teaches at Portland State University. To reach Maralee, send e-mail to lady_azimuth@hotmail.com.