In last year’s candidate speech I made a couple of promises to you for my time as first vice president. Notably, I promised that I would do everything I could to help the Council continue our incredible momentum and build upon our accomplishments of the previous year.

By this point in the meeting, you have heard from several others about the many great accomplishments of this past year, as well as our upcoming initiatives. I especially want to congratulate Ron for his energetic leadership as president; for his dedication and sacrifice in serving as our president and for guiding the Board through a very exciting year for the Council. I have always admired his ability to quickly and clearly see the best solutions—a gift that will benefit the Council for years to come.

Most of all, I want to thank you for the confidence you have shown by allowing me to serve as president this coming year. I am both honored and humbled.

We are all here this week because we believe that the protection of the health, safety, and welfare of the public is an important responsibility we share as regulators. We are taking time away from our jobs, our firms, and our loved ones because we believe that licensure matters. I want you to know that the Council and the Board of Directors very much appreciates the dedication and the sacrifice of those who serve on Member Boards, volunteer on committees, serve in leadership roles, or simply attend our meetings.

With this in mind, we have expended considerable effort over the past few months to ensure we maximize the talents and time of our volunteers by developing committee charges that are meaningful and truly relevant to the Council’s core mission. Similarly, we have revised our calendar to combine the two separate Regional Meetings into a single meeting. Doing so preserves the time needed for regions to meet individually and conduct regional business, while recognizing that the Council as a whole benefits when we can all come together to engage in meaningful dialog.

Over the course of the year I have been asked many times what I would like to see accomplished this coming year. What is my vision for the future? Each time my answer has been the same: I want to see the “status quo.” While to some this may not sound like the best strategy, the “status quo” of our organization is that we are an NCARB of innovation; of experimentation; and of evolution. An NCARB that is actually eager to re-examine itself to ensure continued effectiveness and relevancy. We are an NCARB of looking into the future and positioning ourselves to be where we need to be.

I take seriously the need to maintain our forward momentum, making sure that the incredible progress of the past few years are not celebrated and then forgotten. We simply cannot afford to do that. The profession is changing, and so we must maintain our forward momentum to preserve our leadership in those areas. Toward that end, much work remains to be done in finalizing the exciting new direction for the Architect Registration Examination^® (ARE^®), mining the Practice Analysis results for information relevant to the future of our programs and services, acting on “Blue-Sky” ideas currently being discussed with our collateral organizations, and adding value to both the NCARB Certificate and our programs.

Recognizing that these things are changing, there will be a number of special initiatives that you will be hearing about as the year progresses. We are launching a new multi-year Licensure Task Force to explore alternative paths to licensure, and our outgoing President Ron Blitch has agreed to lead this effort. This task force will have some of the best and brightest thinkers from within and outside the Council, with experts on the three components of licensure: education, experience, and examination.

Also, we have established a special project team to examine both the Broadly Experienced Architect (BEA) and the Broadly Experienced Foreign Architect (BEFA) programs for efficiencies and enhancement.

Finally, and something very near and dear to me, is the Intern Development Program (IDP). Mike Armstrong likes to tell people that I will be the first NCARB President to have completed the IDP, and I’m privileged to say that’s true. Though the current IDP has been significantly enhanced in recent years and has been extraordinarily effective in helping ensure future architects possess the skills needed to practice independently, we must look beyond its current form. I have asked Mike to establish a special project team to investigate streamlined paths within the current IDP 2.0 structure, as well as looking at what the IDP of the future may need to be. This team is already well underway with their work, so stay tuned for updates!

I promise that this will be yet another wonderful and rewarding year to be a member of the Council, and that next year at this time we will be celebrating even more accomplishments!

One of the great things about moving up in leadership at both the regional and national levels is that you have the benefit of those that preceded you as mentors. Leading up to this meeting, and all week long, I have had many past presidents come up to me with encouraging words for next year, which means a lot.

So, thank you again for being here, and for all that you do in support of the Council! Thank you!