Active Members to Earn Special Recognition Again
The Active Member program is in full swing. Those who attended the September, October and November meetings have already started to accumulate points. Calculation will stop at the end of April, when points will be tallied and prizes will be ordered.
Active members of the Southwest Ohio (SWO) chapter of the Society for Technical Communication (STC) will get a token of appreciation for the third year in a row.
To earn the Active Member distinction, SWO-STC members attend meetings, write for the newsletter, or otherwise participate in chapter activities. Members who accumulate eight points earn a prize.
Previously, the prize was a polo shirt or a long-sleeved T-shirt with special embroidery denoting active membership in SWO-STC. This year, the prize will be “something completely different,” according to Jean Fudge, coordinator of the program.
Another change this year is that members will be recognized for depth of participation, not just breadth. “Limits were placed on how many meetings a member could claim for points,” Fudge said, “because through the program we were trying to encourage broad participation. However, this resulted in extremely active members being shut out because they only participated in a few categories.” Limits have been removed in the hope that all active members will earn recognition.
The most important qualification is SWO membership, Fudge stressed. Simply because a person is a member of STC, he/she will not earn any points in the SWO program unless he/she is officially registered as an SWO member. Only points earned while an SWO member will count toward the Active Member Program, Fudge said.
Sarah Wigser, former SWO president, started the Active Member Program in 2004. She got the idea from the Orlando chapter, where the program had been up and running successfully for three years. The program is designed to recognize the bedrock importance of member participation.
Eight types of activities will qualify for points:
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Each activity will earn one point, with the exception of “Bringing a guest” and “Serving a committee Membership,” which will each earn two points. See the table below for examples of the activities and possible points.
The program is already underway. Those who attended the September, October, and November meetings have already started to accumulate points. Calculation will stop at the end of April, when points will be tallied and prizes will be ordered.
| Activity | Points/ Activity |
Comments |
| Attending a SWO-STC meeting | 1 | Regular monthly meetings (through April) |
| Bringing a guest to a meeting | 2 | Non member, or member attending for the first time |
| Joining or renewing Membership in STC and the SWO Chapter | 1 | |
| Presenting a program at a chapter meeting | 1 | At an STC-SWO meeting or workshop |
| Publishing an article in Between The Lines, the SWO-STC Newsletter | 1 | |
| Refering a new member of STC and the SWO chapter | 1 | |
| Serving a committee membership (SWO-STC) | 2 | SWO Committees include programs, employment, membership, historian, newsletter, Web, and public relations |
| Serving as an elected officer (SWO-STC) (SWO STC) | 1 |