Southwest Region Strategic Planning Workshop

Hello Southwest Regional Members! The six goals and their accompanying objectives are the results of the second and very successful strategic planning meeting the international board hosted at the beginning of June. As a region with growing and active chapters, we discussed organizing our first Southwest Regional Strategic Planning meeting in July. This meeting was intended for all regional members to participate and freely share their ideas and concerns for our region to go beyond the status quo. In light of the international strategic planning meeting and the outcomes that were accomplished we feel even more strongly that we conduct this meeting. The reality of it is only a handful of people would be able to attend which dramatically affects the purpose and intent of the meeting. As a result of the major reality check, the regional executive committee discussed other options and ways to encourage each chapter (and for those of us who have no chapter) to plan and begin to implement a regional strategic plan that aligned to International’s. A suggestion we all concurred seemed to be the most logical and cost effective was to have our regional members review the goals and objectives determined by the international strategic planning committee and present your solutions and working plans to our regional members at the international conference in October at our planned regional meeting.

Phew! I know, mucho words for a short thought, but the impact is significant. In essence, everyone regional member is encourage to look at these goals and their objectives and put together a working plan that will allow our region to have cohesiveness and unity as well as viable and meaningful growth. We want our members to feel connected and that they are receiving something for their membership.

Action Step: Chapters, please meet prior to the international conference in October. Look at each of the six goals and their objectives. Please script a plan to accomplish at least two. If you feel very excited about this project, go ahead a plan for all six. At the regional business meeting, we will decide as a group what goals we can and will accomplish, assign volunteers and write an action plan to accomplish them. We will revisit this plan again in Salt Lake City at our spring meeting.

Chapterless Members, please send me your ideas and outlined plan. You can focus in on one goal. All ideas are beneficial and will allow our members to gain valuable input form everyone.

I would like each of the chapters to send me their plans prior to the meeting so I have a chance to assemble them and put them together in a nice package for all of our members to review. I will also have them posted on our regional webpage for our member’s comments.

I am very optimistic about this plan and would genuinely like to have all of our members participate. We have the most talented and dedicated educational facility planners in the Southwest Region. Please take the time to participate and help make a positive difference! CEFPI Strategic Planning Workshop International Planning Meeting Results June 7-8, 2002

Goal 1: Be a growing, diverse, participative organization. 1.3 Implement a dynamic communication and governance model that consistently connects and supports CEFPI at all chapter, regional, and international levels.

Goal 2: Be a resource communicating knowledge through effective mediums and technologies. 2.1 Develop and implement an interactive website that is a highly responsive resource. (develop site map; add e-commerce store; virtual tours of school facilities; article/speaker resource; question/answer slot; summation of resource guide sections)

Goal 3: Be the leading provider of education and training for educational facility planning. 3.1 Develop a two-day symposium on sustainable/green schools (to replace the existing tech conference) 3.3 To increase the credibility of the REFP designation, create a certification program by developing a “Guide”-based curriculum for facility planners.

Goal 4: Be the leader in promoting, partnering, collecting, and disseminating research. 4.2 Create a body of unbiased information that represents the relationship between the quality of facilities and its impact on learning.

Goal 5: Be recognized as the advocate for and authority on educational facility planning. 5.1 Be more aggressive with strategic partnerships beyond the international level with focus on state/provincial levels of affiliate organizations.

Goal 6: Be a financially viable organization that is governed and managed in support of the strategic plan. 6.9 Evaluate the merits of fee-based versus free distribution of CEFPI materials.