It is truly an honor to serve the AIA Virginia membership as president for 2018. Working for the past few years with the generous volunteer members and the dedicated professional staff, I’ve witnessed a complete transformation of the organization. This transformative process was put in place by a member-centric strategic plan that is still guiding us today. The planning process was led by then president-elect Bill Brown in early 2016, under the leadership of president Nick Vlattas and EVP Helene Combs Dreiling, and the resulting document has been at the forefront of all that we do, from committee meetings to board meetings to member correspondence and program planning. Check it out on our website here.
Most significantly, AIA Virginia welcomed Corey Clayborne, AIA as our new leader in 2017. Corey comes on board as Executive Vice President after a thorough vetting of dozens of applicants. Corey hit the ground running and has continued to move forward on the progress made in previous years. Of note, Corey has made it a priority to reach out to each component across the commonwealth as well as many of the member firms within the various regions, gathering critical insight and information about the goals and desires of the membership. With Corey at the helm, AIA Virginia is poised to reach new levels of excellence in service to the architectural community throughout Virginia.
Our advocacy efforts at the State and National levels continue to be a focus of effort for AIA Virginia. A dedicated group of knowledgeable constituents, comprised of volunteers, staff, and lobbyists, monitor pending legislation year-round and identify issues both beneficial and detrimental to our professional practice. 2017 was a banner year for PAC contributions and I would encourage each of you to consider a donation, visit www.aiavapac.org for more information and to donate.
Outreach is a core value to our organization and our profession, and I’d like to see continued and renewed focus on a variety of outreach efforts in 2018. A more visible presence for AIA Virginia across all our component regions helps build relationships that will strengthen our organization, and in this regard, AIA Virginia is planning to bring two board meetings annually to our Virginia universities with schools of architecture. The board looks forward to visiting these universities and welcomes the opportunity provided to interact with the membership across our geographical footprint. Outreach is critical across professional boundaries as well, and I believe that architects are uniquely qualified to bring together multiple professions for meaningful discourse. I also firmly believe that synergies and opportunities develop when disparate groups collaborate instead of competing and can provide benefits that far exceed the sum of the parts. Many of the professional organizations within the design and construction industry present similar programming and events, and I look forward to exploring opportunities for collaboration.
Again, thank you sincerely for your trust and I look forward to building upon recent successes. This organization belongs to the membership, advocates and works on behalf of the membership, and is dependent on vital contributions of time and energy from the membership. I encourage each of you to get involved at the local level and help to lead our organization forward in 2018 and the years to come.
Eric Keplinger, AIA
2018 AIA Virginia President