STC Rochester Chapter

Feeling the February chill? We have a reprieve! Come hang out with some warm-hearted people, enjoy some hearty  food, and get some mental and emotional fuel to combat the winter blahs. We will also be “sharing the love” by giving you the opportunity to win some great items such as a free program registration for this year, in addition to some sweet prizes! Any paid registrant is eligible (members and non-members)! Only those present can win! You can bring your Valentine, too. After all, we want you to be happy, even if our event comes after Valentine’s Day!

Our speaker will rekindle your interest in learning!

Education in the Age of Technology

Technology has had a significant impact on many aspects of our personal and professional lives, and not surprisingly, on our views about how we educate people. How can we as professionals address technology “distractions” like social media and mobile devices, how do we find opportunities for “student” engagement in the midst of those distractions, and how do we find the resources required to educate instructors? Will instructional paradigms need to change? How do we address information immediacy needs and wants? Answers to these questions are currently being sought at many higher education institutions. During this presentation we will discuss options for new education paradigms, review technology-use case scenarios, and examine associated challenges and strategies as they relate to integrating new forms of instructional delivery (both technical and non-technical) into the learner’s classroom. Whether you are a technology enthusiast, a skeptic, or an observer who is unsure what to think, you will have an opportunity to engage in the conversation and explore the issues.

Agenda:
5:30 Networking
6:00 – 7:00 Dinner
7:00 - 8:00 Jessica Hooper Presents

Menu Choices:

• Grilled Chicken topped with Spinach, Artichokes, and Feta Cheese with a side of Saffron Risotto and Vegetable of the Day
• Stuffed Pork Loin with Apple Walnut Dressing, and and a Apple Riesling Reduction with a side of Mashed Potatoes and Vegetable of the Day
• NY Strip Steak seasoned with Sweet Smokehouse Rub served with a side of Mashed Potatoes or Saffron Risotto and Vegetable of the Day
• Artichokes, Roasted Red Peppers, Black Olives, and Button Mushrooms in a Lemon, Garlic Butter Sauce over a bed of Linguine

Meal includes Coffee or Hot Tea, and Chocolate Cake

Cash Bar available

When:
Wednesday February 15, 2012
5:30 – 8:00 pm

Where:
Towpath Cafe in Fairport, NY
http://towpathcafe.com/

RSVP: Reservations are appreciated by noon February13th (Monday). Register on Eventbrite. After that, please contact marilyn.woelk@gmail.com  or programs@stc-rochester.org.

To renew your membership or to join Rochester STC, go to http://www.stc.org/membership/join-or-renew-now.

Meet our Speaker:

This is an open invitation for any technical communicator looking to succeed and grow in their profession. The STC Toronto community would like to invite you to Management Day, on Wednesday, February 29 inside the Gold Room A at The North York Memorial Hall (5100 Yonge Street) taking place from 9am – 5pm. The event features presentations by Janet Swisher on collaborating with others on documentation and Gil Broza covering The Human Side of Agile.

The event includes a panel discussion and hands-on session work for the local branch of charity organization, Ushahidi (http://ushahidi.com), and possibly more to be confirmed. So bring your laptops and be prepared to leave with a sense of accomplishment and good cheer. Don’t have a laptop? No problem, as we have other Agile roles for you to fill.

Special discount rates apply to all STC members and Students (lunch included). For full pricing details and to pre-register for this event, visit: http://bit.ly/mgmtday12.

2012 Candidates

The following Society-level offices will be filled in STC’s next election. Click the links in the following to see detailed descriptions of the offices and the slate of candidates for each position.

• Vice President
• Secretary
• Director (two positions to be filled)
• Nominating committee (two positions to be filled)

You may also view the full 2012 Slate of Candidates.

 2012 STC Candidate Q&A

We extend the opportunity for our members to pose questions to our 2012 Election Candidates. All questions will be answered on the Q&A section of the STC election site.

Candidate Resources

STC has compiled a list of guidelines, documents, and other resources for STC candidates. Please visit the STC Candidate Resources page for more information (login required).

2012 STC Ballot

The 2012 STC Election will take place Friday, 2 March, through Friday, 23 March. The 2012 STC Ballot is not yet available. When the election opens, a link to the online Ballot will be posted here.

If you have questions about the 2012 STC Election, please contact us for more information.

STC Rochester is proud to partner with Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) this year to bring you Spectrum 2012.

Spectrum 2012, STC Rochester’s 53rd annual conference, is scheduled to kick-off on Sunday, April 22, 2012 with keynote speaker Pam Sherman and a cocktail reception open to all conference attendees. Monday, April 23 begins a day of unique presentations, demonstrations of exciting new technologies and services in the Tech Comm industry, progression sessions, and lightning talks.

This year’s theme is Knowledge, Expertise, Leadership: Influence Change in Your Organization. Our diverse format will provide state-of-the-art information, technology, and inspiration to empower technical communication professionals to be able to build a business case for new ideas and technology, share their knowledge, and lead change in their organization. Attendees will leave Spectrum 2012 with the technical and soft skills their employers need for success and immediately add value to their roles as technical communicators.

Presenters from across the country and Canada will be in Rochester, NY to discuss communication models, innovative tools and technologies, business challenges, content reuse, translation, and other topics dedicated to helping technical communicators grow. The topics and exhibitors will provide an exciting range of forward-thinking ideas with an emphasis on influencing one’s company and learning to speak the language of company decision makers.

Spectrum is a regional conference that attracts attendees from New York, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Ohio, California, and Canada. It is the only educational conference for the technical communications industry in the area. Over the past few years the Rochester chapter has become geographically diverse as we welcome members from other areas of New York and as far away as California. Our annual Technical Publications competition also attracts entrants from many areas in the Northeast. Last year we were recognized by the Society as a Community of Excellence and received a Pacesetter Award.

Becoming a supporter of Spectrum 2012 as a sponsor, exhibitor, or advertiser offers you a chance to showcase your products and services to a wide variety of technical communicators and managers from companies such as Johnson & Johnson, Bausch + Lomb, Xerox, and many other top, multi-national organizations.

For more information on becoming a sponsor,  download the Opportunities for Support brochure or contact adv@stc-rochester.org.

The STC Rochester Chapter invites you to join us at Barnes & Noble RIT at 6:00 pm Tuesday January 17th for light refreshments and networking. Afterwards, Tina Smagala will share some tips about:

STR8-TALK for Difficult Conversations
In any field, successful outcomes require successful relationships. And, successful relationships require successful conversations. We call these conversations, STR8-TALK Conversations, where the real issues are addressed in an environment of respectful candor. Whether it’s coaching direct reports or communicating with peers, the boss or even at home, STR8-TALK will help you lead difficult conversations with confidence, candor, and care while building the relationships necessary to achieve results. You’ll take-away practical tools and insights including a step-by-step process to guide your conversations from beginning to end. The STR8-TALK Toolkit will give you everything you need to transform potential confrontations into productive conversations at work and at home so you can worry less and accomplish more!  During this interactive presentation, you’ll experience live vignettes of STR8-TALK conversations that will entertain, educate, and engage you!

For those not attending in-person, log into Tina’s presentation at 7:00 pm.

Agenda:
6:00 – 7:00 Networking
7:00 – 8:00 Webinar

Snacks:
Coffee, tea, and light refreshments provided for in-person attendees

When:
Tuesday January 17, 2012
6:00 – 8:00 pm

Where:
Barnes & Noble RIT or Online

RSVP: Reservations are appreciated by noon January 16th (Monday). After that, please contact marilyn.woelk@gmail.com  or programs@stc-rochester.org. Order tickets via Eventbrite:
http://stcrochesterjanuaryprogram2012-efbevent.eventbrite.com

To renew your membership or to join Rochester STC, go to http://www.stc.org/membership/join-or-renew-now.

Meet the Presenter

Tina Smagala is Regional Director (Rochester) at RV Rhodes LLC.

http://www.linkedin.com/pub/tina-smagala/17/3b1/a6b

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Contact Lori Meyer at membership@stc-rochester.org to get on the STC Rochester e-mail list. Members and non-members welcome!