Fellow Planners
Your planning association needs YOU.
Pursuant to its By-Laws, the New Mexico Chapter of the American Planning Association is holding elections . The Executive Board is hereby calling for nominations for the following Officers:
- President
- Vice-President
- Secretary
- Treasurer
- Professional Development Officer
Under By-Laws amended in 2011, all Officers may serve two consecutive terms. This means that the sitting President, Vice-President, and Secretary are all ineligible to run for the offices they currently occupy.
The formal description of the roles and responsibilities for each office are provided below. As a practical matter, the time commitment is approximately one morning meeting per month. Attendance can be over the telephone via conference call or in-person. Locations and specific times are flexible, as the Board can determine for itself the location, duration, and frequency of meetings.
The major program areas of the New Mexico Chapter are:
- Grants Administration: The New Mexico Chapter has been very successful in applying for grants from the APA Chapter Presidents’ Council and from the national organization.
- Legislative Consultation: Through the Legislative Policy Action Committee (or LPAC), the New Mexico Chapter consults with and provides testimony to the State of New Mexico.
- Annual New Mexico Planning Conference: Planning and administration of the New Mexico Planning Conference, including coordination with national office for registration and CM credit approval, and with local organizing committee in the host community.
- Professional Development: If you are AICP, then you know that the New Mexico Chapter provides many opportunities to obtain CM credits, online, in person at brown-bag lunches, and at the NM Planning Conference.
- Correspondence and Coordination with APA national office: The New Mexico Chapter is but one Chapter of a much larger organization, with a policy direction occasionally at odds with our membership. At the same time, the national office provides a great deal of support to the Chapter, through Chapter dues distributions and support for grant applications.
- Student Chapter Coordination and Support: The Student Chapter at UNM is very active, and provides much-needed inspiration and assistance at the Annual New Mexico Planning Conference and throughout the year. The New Mexico Chapter provides financial support to the Student Chapter and participates in “Meet the Planners” events held at UNM; offers complimentary registration to volunteers and discounted registration to all Student Members at the NM Planning Conference; provides scholarships for travel for planning projects and attendance at the National Planning Conference.
- Member Services and Networking: From time to time, the New Mexico Chapter provides logistical and financial support to planners wishing to meet socially. These events include receptions at the National Planning Conference and mixers held whenever there appears to be inclination for such an event to occur.
If you have an interest in any of these programs, or new program areas not listed above, please feel free to nominate yourself for the Officer post to which you feel best suited. And if you know of someone else who might provide the kind of leadership you feel this Chapter needs, then please nominate them. Serving the New Mexico Chapter is a privilege, and the reward for your service is the maintenance and improvement of a lively, engaged, financially-stable, and ultimately useful organization.
Nominations should be made to the Nominating Committee, in care of Eric Webster, John Valdez, AICP, or Steve Burstein, AICP.by the close of business Monday September 30th.
Thank you for considering the opportunity to serve your organization.
Steve Burstein, AICP
John Valdez, AICP
Eric Webster
2013 APA-NM Nominating Committee