Andrea Aims to Please

October's meeting was held on a Wednesday to accommodate the many Lone Star members on their way to the Tech Comm Stampede in Austin the following day. Even so, the event was well-attended, with some 60-70 people present.

President Debbie Wiles opened the floor to announcements.

• Mark Hawkins announced the formation of the Instructional Design SIG, with its first meeting to be held on October 27^th at the La Madeline in Addison.
• Paul Sherman, president of the Dallas chapter of the Usability Professionals Association (UPA), described the state of the organization. A number of UPA members were present for this joint meeting.

Debbie then probed the audience for questions, a new tradition under her leadership. There were two questions, both answered by the guest speaker, STC 1^st VP Andrea Ames.

• Heather White asked about STC efforts toward professional certification, a perennial issue. Andrea's lengthy answer assured us that much study has been done by the Society over the years to research this issue. While writers may find value in a certificate, employers and managers do not. As to core competencies, the field is far too diverse to make a single exam that would fit most positions.
• Chris LaPorte inquired about the "rumor" that membership fees were going up. In another detailed explanation, Andrea reported that, regrettably, this is true. The Society has been running with a deficit for a couple of years, and cannot afford to do so much longer. STC is seeking ways to evolve in a meaningful way. Part of that effort is the new blog the Society has established in order to seek member input.

For the details of Andrea's presentation, see the article by Angie Gardi that follows. Here are the winners of the STC Scholarship door prizes: