by Arroxane Eber, LSC President
If you looked around any room at the STC Technical Summit, you would probably see members of the Usability Professionals Association (UPA), Interaction Design Association (IXDA), American Society of Training & Development (ASTD), and several other professional groups. No rule has prevented a professional from participating in numerous organizations. Perhaps you, yourself, have attended a conference or presentation by an organization other than STC.
In the last few years, cross-pollination of professional groups has become more common as the economy has slimmed down both membership and budgets. Besides sharing speakers, workshops, and members, similar organizations often share discounts and benefits within a geographical area.
Although STC does not endorse this philosophy at the international level, within Dallas/Fort Worth it is the key to survival for all these groups. When each group has only a handful of active volunteers that have finite skills, it is in the interest of these groups to reach out to one another.
Think of it as the Stone Soup of professional development: alone we all have just a few scraps, but if everyone contributes a little something, the entire community feasts—in this case, on knowledge.
So as President of the Lone Star Community, I'm adding our resources to those of other similar groups in this area. We're cooking up something good for December. If you'd like a taste, you're welcome to join in. Just bring whatever you've got to contribute.
