ASID - CHAPTER LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

June 9 - June 10, 2012

I had the privilege, along with our President-Elect Sara Hopkins, of attending the yearly ASID Chapter Leadership Training conference in Chicago, held on Saturday June 9 and Sunday June 10at the Allegro Hotel.  It was an information packed weekend.

The conference opened on Saturday morning, at which all of the incoming Presidents and President-Elects of 48 ASID chapters gathered to hear an overview of many of the fiduciary responsibilities to the National leadership in Washington DC, as well as our separate state boards and membership.  

In the next session, we met with our Chapter Support Team leader, Mary Katherine Crouch, ASID.  Mary Katherine is also the incoming President of the Virginia Chapter.  The other members of this group were the Presidents and President Elects of the NY Metro Chapter, the NY upstate/Canada chapter, the New England Chapter and the New Jersey Chapters.  

After lunch, the incoming Chapter Presidents met to discuss "The ASID Membership Experience" - a session in which the incoming Presidents were reminded that we are membership influencers to existing and prospective members. 

The final General Session was to hear "Being a Leader:  Using Social Intelligence in Your Role as a Leader."  This session was lead by Sherry Jennings, Founder and Principal of Sound Governance.  

Saturday evening was a special night.  The National Board arranged for all of the attendees to sign up and attend a dinner meeting at three local restaurants.  The goal was to continue to get to know one another better, share ideas and establish support for one another in our efforts at our separate chapters.  

Sunday morning's session opened with a review of the ASID Foundation.   The ASID Foundation is the educational and philanthropic arm of ASID.  It sponsors programs that support the value of professional interior designers, as well as providing scholarships for interior design students.  Each chapter is asked to support the Foundation with donations from their members and/or treasuries. 

The President Elects next attended a session "PR at a Glance:  Reaching Out to Increase Awareness and Build Buzz" - a session that focused on the importance of building relationships in our communities and spreading the word about the power of interior design to positively change people's lives.  This program was lead by Jeff Lashay, President of Leshay Communications LLC.   

In the afternoon, we listened to the final sessions.   The first session "Looking Toward the Future"  covered the following categories:  The new ASID Website (to be launched in the fall), Utilizing Social Media (National now has a Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn sites), Update on Interior Design Continuing Education (IDCEC) - as of July 2012, there will be a new structure in place (all ASID members will get an email on this new structure), and finally Engaging Emerging Professionals.

In the final program, "State of the Society" we met the new CEO of ASID, Mr. Randy Fizer.  He is a dynamic guy!  He was formerly employed by the Brad Pitt Charitable Foundation. 

The closing speaker was the newly installed National President of ASID, Ms. Barbara Marini.  She reported on the development of the new strategic plan, spread out over three years, 2012 to 2015. 

Your incoming CT Chapter Board has been working with this new strategic plan the past few months; we have mapped out a program for our coming year that reflects the goals of the New Strategic Plan developed by National for the next three years.   You'll hear all about our plans at our Annual meeting in September.  I am looking forward to meeting all of you soon! 

Full Text

A national ASID program designed by emerging professionals, for emerging professionals, the second annual GO PRO: NYC delivers high-quality learning and networking opportunities for new designers. Experience the pulse of Manhattan with industry peers and attend inspiring events that will remind you why interior design is the field for passionate professionals.

To support the ASID platform issue of sustainability, ASID will no longer print and mail membership cards for allied or professional members. Members can log in to ASID.org and print a membership card 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, at their convenience. This process has been successful with our student and Industry Partner members, for which it has been in effect for more than three years.

To print a card, members must log in to ASID.org and select "Go to My ASID." Once in the My ASID section, they should then select "Print Your ASID Membership card."

On Thursday, May 17th ASID Connecticut sponsored the official launch of a new area  non profit, Her Haven, at Fairfield University. At this event Fairfield University's Student Chapter of ASID with their student leaders, Jenine Beck and Bethany Armstrong unveiled their design concepts, including floor plans and elevations, for the living rooms of 2 inspiring

women, Elizabeth Bosques and Nordia Black and their families.

Her Haven was founded by Carey Dougherty, an interior designer in Monroe. Its mission is to honor deserving women by redesigning a room in their home, and thereby inspiring them to live fuller, richer, more productive lives.

Her Haven also aims to build a sense of community and provide interactions where donors and volunteers can learn about some of the challenges faced by our neighbors, and see the direct and positive impact having a well-designed space can have on women and their families. Her Haven also provides design students with a valuable, hands-on experience. The relationship between the students involved and the families they worked with was close and meaningful.

For more information on Her Haven go to www.herhaven.org.

On June 20th Roz Cama FASID and Ed Bottomley ASID EDAC of CAMA Inc. kindly hosted a tour of the Smilow Cancer Center and Robert Golde of Towers-Golde spoke about the healing Garden.  It was a fascinating tour of a superbly designed center.

Healing Arts Program: CAMA, Inc,New Haven

Architecture, Interior Design:Shepley-Bulfinch Architects, Boston

Landscape Architect, Healing Garden:Towers-Golde, New Haven

When Fenella Pearson was asked how she is dealing with the economic downturn she said that she is the busiest she's been in a long time. In March 2012 she joined a networking group and that has resulted in a large number of referrals. The key, says Pearson, is to join a group that limits membership to just one professional in any area so she is the sole interior designer.  

Every week each member gives a 30 second "commercial" about his/her business and asks for referrals in a specific area. This week she spoke on the psychology of color. She explained that red is a stimulates adrenaline production which leads to increased appetite, and suggested that people with a weight problem might try eliminating reds and oranges from their kitchen or family room. Those who have trouble sleeping might want to redecorate with calming colors such as blue or green. "Educating the other members of my group helps them think of ways to refer clients to me," she says. 

An article in this morning's New York Times HOME section, Defending the Decorator, is pushing me to mount a soap box. Go to the link attached here and read it because it is one of the best articles I've ever read on my industry, and it covers too many topics dear to me to discuss here. But let me just share a few of my thoughts after reading it. There is no other industry I know of other than Interior Design that has to defend or justify its purpose. I dare say if polled, many people would say having an interior designer is frivolous. While I love the internet (I have a blog for goodness sake), that and the proliferation of DIY cable programs and home goods catalogs have led the homeowner to believe that creating beautiful and functional spaces is easy and cheap.

Let's discuss cheap. On the occasions I take a busman's holiday and watch a makeover TV show I am incredulous at the quoted costs. I know their job is to wow you with designing on little or less money. It's a lot harder in the real world. Quoting the designer Darren Henault, "...I'm not here so you can get the cheapest price, I'm here to spend your money well." Oftentimes choosing the cheapest price is not being a good steward of my client's investment. I had to laugh at the truth of interior designer Scott Salvator's take on designer fees.  "....it's spread out over time, over years, and the lion's share goes to the vendors. What decorator lives like Givenchy or Valentino? If you look at the hours put into a lampshade, you could be working at Burger King."

But more important than what we are paid, because if Designers told the truth we are like actors... we must get the part, it is what we do that deserves respect and merit. Look at the picture below of this room designed by Brian McCarthy. Look at the spare use of color that still makes the space vibrant. Notice the symmetry that brings order to our hectic world. Feel all the textures that open up your senses. And yet it all looks so easy. I call it my magic wand, but Stephen Drucker, past editor in chief of House Beautiful and Martha Stewart Living says it best. "The ability to walk into an empty room and see it finished in their heads - that is a gift that most people do not have.....It's a crazy, God-given special gift." Thank you, God.