The Programs Committee presented the anonymous expert responses and distributed the following: Portfolio Guidelines
In addition, an informal poll was conducted at the program: Poll Results
Suzanna is a senior STC member currently serving on STC's international Board of Directors as the Director-Sponsor for Region 5 and as the Bylaws Committee Manager. She has presented keynotes, numerous chapter programs, and sessions at more than 26 conferences across the country. The American Business Women's Association?America's fourth largest women's organization selected Suzanna for her outstanding career achievements as one of their 1997 Top Ten Business Women in the nation. She has also served on the national Board of Directors for ABWA. This fall, Suzanna presented sessions at STC conferences for Regions 1, 4, 5, 6, and 7.
November Program: Guerilla Usability for Under-Funded Starters
Pierre Jorgensen used slides and props to discuss what usability problems are and how to spot them. He revealed the secrets of how to convince your boss and your boss's boss why usability is important and why you should spend time working on it. He also showed how to get maximum results on a minimum budget, using requirements specifications, simple user tests, and HTML prototype design to your advantage. Check out Pierre's recommended readings list, which includes several free, online articles. Please send an e-mail to
pjorgensen@hotmail.com if you have any questions.
Pierre Jorgensen is Product Engineer for California-based ProBusiness Services, Inc., where he works on user requirements and usability for processes and software. He has previously developed multimedia learning tools for Sprint PCS, worked as a technical writer and Web designer for Black & Veatch, and run a Web site for a weekly newspaper.
October Program: From Proposal to Print: How to Write and Publish a Computer Book
The October program offered tips on writing a computer book from published author Matthew
Danda. Both of Matt's books, Protect Yourself Online and Home Networking With Microsoft Windows Xp Step by Step, can be found on Amazon.com.
October Special Event: 11th Annual STC Region 6 Conference
The 11th Annual STC Region 6 Conference was held September 30-October
2, 2001 at the Hilton Minneapolis North. The theme for the conference was "Channels of Communication:
Sharing the Knowledge." Sessions included current usability and readability research, Web development, ethics, editing, the use of color with
international audiences, effective scientific and technical presentations, knowledge management, and help system development.
September Program: Building Your Portfolio
The Programs Committee presented the anonymous expert responses and distributed the following: Portfolio Guidelines
In addition, an informal poll was conducted at the program:
Poll Results
August Program: Experts in Our Area
Members from several area organizations participated in a panel, explaining what their organizations offer.
Panelists included:
July Program: Networking Party
The July chapter program was a Networking Party to celebrate the
chapter's recent accomplishments, including the Merit Award, the new Web site,
a new council, and new ideas for the upcoming year. Laura Filla, the new chapter President, encouraged members to get involved at whatever level they can. She gave several suggestions on ways to get involved. For instance, tell your employers that they can post job openings on the Employment page; think of an idea for a program you would like to see in the future; join a committee; or invite your co-workers to a program.
June Program: Usability
The topic for June was Usability. See Todd Johns' Powerpoint presentation for more information.
May Program: Post-Conference Luncheon at First Watch
Laura Filla, the new incoming chapter President, announced that the Kansas City chapter received the Merit Award at the
48th Annual Conference in Chicago on May 13. As she put it, "The chapter achievement award program recognizes chapters for exceptional accomplishments in meeting STC goals. The awards not only acknowledge that the
obligations of a properly functioning chapter have been met, but that the
winning chapters have performed well beyond expectations."
May Special Event: 48th Annual Conference
STC's 48th Annual Conference was held in Chicago, Illinois. For more information,
see the Conferences section.
April Program: Keeping Ourselves Educated
A panel discussed ideas for keeping
ourselves educated in our ever-changing world of technical communication. Among
the panelists were Catherine Janzen, Dr. Cynthia Jeney, Audrey Choden, Susan
Jensen, and Rich Gardner. Catherine Janzen works as a Technical Communication
Specialist at Data Systems International, where she develops online and CE help.
Dr. Cynthia Jeney is involved in online learning programs as an Assistant
Professor at Missouri Western State College. Audrey Choden, since founding
Training by Design in 1988, has worked with clients to identify their employees'
training needs. Susan Jensen, Director-Sponsor for our STC region, currently
works at ProMedicus Systems, where she directs content acquisition and interface
design for medical diagnostic software. Rich Gardner, founder of CAI Consulting,
is an independent consultant specializing in technical communication.
Resources provided during the meeting included the following links:
In addition to the panel discussion, Susan Jensen presented Jan Farr with the
Distinguished Chapter Service Award for all her hard work with the Regional
Conference last year. Congratulations, Jan!
April STC Region 6 Student Conference: Maximize Your Window of Opportunity
Alan Wilds, Laura Filla, and Catherine Janzen attended the Region 6 Student Conference in Southwest Missouri State University, Springfield, Missouri, to represent the Kansas City chapter. They participated in a panel presentation called, "Reach for the Sky: Know How to Diversify."
Resources provided during the meeting included the Reach for the Sky: Know How to Diversify
handout.
March Program: Opportunities in the Web World: How to Get There from Here
A panel discussion presented by Dana Stark and Genevieve Burt on ways for technical communicators
to get involved in Web development.
For more information, see the document Genevieve distributed at the meeting, Technical Writing Opportunities in the Web
.
February Program: Indexing
Mary Mortensen, a freelance indexer since 1995, discussed how to
index documents. Mary has indexed technical, trade, and scholarly books on various subjects
including economics, software, history, and art. As a member of the American
Society of Indexers, she is active in its Kansas-Missouri regional group and is
currently chair of the ASI Publicity Committee.
January Program: Information Mapping
Jerry Paradis, a senior trainer/consultant with Information Mapping,
flew in from Boston to give a demonstration on how to quickly analyze, organize, and
present information effectively. For more information, see the
Information Mapping Web site.
Note: Many of the documents from the programs are in PDF format. Visit the Adobe Web site to download the free Adobe Acrobat Reader.