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July 16 ePub Formatting Tips and Tricks

May 21 Social Media Expert Sean Cranbury

June 8 Professional Development Seminar: Fundamentally Flare



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PLAIN Conference October 2013 in Vancouver!

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Welcome to STC Canada West Coast

We are a geographic community of the Society for Technical Communication, a worldwide association dedicated to the advancement of the theory and practice of technical communication in all its facets.

Our community is known as STC Canada West Coast and represents technical communicators throughout British Columbia.

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Welcome to the new chapter members! Thank you for joining our community. Please take the time to register on our website to get the most out of your membership dollars.

STC Canada West Coast Chapter News

May 21 Social Media Expert Sean Cranbury

Just came across an article on Sean Cranbury, our presenter for next Tuesday’s chapter meeting. Check it out: http://thetyee.ca/News/2013/05/06/Sean-Cranbury-Master-Class/

This looks like it’s going to be an interesting evening.  Remember, too, that you can sign up to attend this session via the webinar. That way, even if you can’t attend the session “live”, you will be able to access the recording afterwards.

A final reminder, that the Julia Broderick Scholarship winner will be announced on Tuesday night as well and you can have one hint: it’s one of the 5 grads from the Douglas College Print Futures program who will bring their portfolios to show off that night. These are awesome examples of the students, samples of how the program and our profession is growing, and a chance to meet some of the young bloods of our profession. Join us!

April 2013 President’s Message

Hello - this is the second last President’s Message I will have the privilege of writing - it’s been a whirlwind of a year!
Congratulations are in order to the people elected to the executive at the Annual General Meeting held on April 16.  Autumn Jonssen ran unopposed for the position of VP and won by a landslide. Mark Matsuno is our new Treasurer and Mary Metzger has already begun his training (hmm… MM is replacing MM!). And Jacob DeCamillis is our new Secretary.  Many thanks to all who let their name stand for election - it’s the first time in many years we have had more than one candidate for most positions and we’re starting off our new year with a seated VP.  Aaron Fultz succeeds me (and he will be a success, believe me!) as president at the June Volunteer Appreciation Lunch.

This means, of course, that we are saying goodbye to Mary Metzger as Treasurer (she’s staying on as Job Bank Team lead),  Rob Hughes as Secretary (he’s staying on as Scholarships Team lead) and Pam Drucker retires as past president when I move into that role.  Our chapter is lucky to have so many committed volunteers (but there is always room for more!) and I am grateful for their support and participation during my year as president. Thank you!

Whenever possible, for the foreseeable future, we will be offering all Program events as webinars. That means all chapter members, no matter where they are located, can attend and participate. Additionally, more non-members may attend as well. Check the bottom of the event page for registration links to both the in-person event and the virtual event.

The program year is not over, by any means!  We have three months of activities lined up and we are calling for your participation.  While the term of president is up in May, we still have an interesting session lined up for that month in the form of Sean Cranbury presenting on how to keep up with social media without becoming technically overwhelmed.  Also at that event will be 5 graduates from the Douglas College Print Futures program to show off their portfolios and start networking their career of choice. Please come out and welcome them into the fold!

June will see our Volunteer potluck morph into a proper luncheon. If you have participated in volunteer activities with the chapter this year, watch for your invitation.

In July, past CWC leader Robert Desprez will present an interesting topic: how to make ePub output behave without tearing out your hair or chucking your computer out the window.  Check out our events pages for registration links to all of these events and SPREAD THE WORD!  The more attendees, the smaller the deficit!

Speaking of money - does your employer know that they can sponsor the chapter?  From as little as a $20 one-time donation (sponsoring food and drink at the Program night) to an ongoing financial commitment, new funding sources must be developed so the chapter will survive! Make a point of discussing this opportunity with your HR or Finance manager. It doesn’t hurt to ask, and it’s pretty much for sure that they won’t offer us any money if they don’t know we need it.  You will see this topic again as Aaron Fultz moves into his presidency. Your ideas and assistance to help the chapter’s financial health are welcomed.

I would be remiss if I didn’t take this opportunity also to say thanks to Heather Sommerville who will be stepping down as Director-at-Large. Heather continues as Volunteer Coordinator but provided invaluable advice throughout my presidency, always with the Chapter’s well-being as her priority.

Watch this space for another announcement of an upcoming event planned for August this year - a professional development opportunity for people who are interested in the topics of Instructional Design and Localization. And plans are afoot for a Jack Molisani kickoff to the program year (tentative) with a noted speaker from the PLAIN Conference being held in Vancouver in October 2013.  Another busy, educational, action-packed and FUN chapter year lies ahead.

Enjoy an awesome Spring!

Past News Items

News archive

From the Latest Issue of Coast Lines

President's Message: President’s Message December 2012

 

Feature: May program report: Storytelling Techniques for Any Writer

The final program meeting of the 2011/2012 season was presented by Hazel MacClement.
While not everyone has a knack for telling a good story, Hazel shares her 12-storytelling tips that any writer can use.

Article by Josh Stubbs, Photos by Marika Piehler

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You must register to see job postings on this site

Job bank postings are limited to members of the STC Canada West Coast chapter. (Employers can still post their jobs without registering.) To register, go to the Registration page. You will need your STC member number to register. We do our best to process your registration within 48 hours.

Note that the user name and password that you use to access the stc.org site will not work on this site.

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About STC Canada West Coast

STC Canada West Coast is a geographic chapter of the Society for Technical Communication, an international organization of professionals who work in the field of technical communication.

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