From Your Association Communications Team!

Please note the upcoming events and take advantage of these opportunities to “Stay Connected” with your AITP network of associates and friends. If you would like us to broadcast an upcoming event that is of regional or national interest, please contact us. We want to spread your news too!

~Events and Meetings~

~President's Message~

Thank you for this opportunity to serve AITP as your 2011 Association President. It is both an honor and a challenge to be entrusted with this role. Your continued support and communication will make this term in office a success. So what's going to make 2011 different for the Association? People! The team that is in place, both elected, and staff, is poised to make a huge difference for 2011. AITP has appointed a new Executive Director in Ted Pfeifer. He and I have been working closely for a couple of months as we transition into 2011 and have established a great level of open communication. Eric Hawkinson, who has served as our Executive Director for many years will be greatly missed, but the Executive team agreed making a move to Ted was in the best interest of the Association.

Some of the initiatives we have underway already for 2011 will be quite visible and will help leaders from all levels of the Association manage their units more effectively. On the forefront of these initiatives is the migration from our www.aitp.org site to a more modern Software as a Service format. We will be receiving regular updates from our online services group, headed up by Bill Fly and Keven Webb.

Other highly visible items include our Member Summit scheduled for the end of March, co-located with the National Collegiate Conference in Orlando, FL. The program is shaping up quite nicely thanks to the Events Team of Mary Reager, Kristine Collins and Deborah Lovell. Rumor has it that the weather in Orlando in March is far nicer than January in Chicago, but we'll have to wait and see on that!

So, we're off and running for 2011! I truly believe that this will be the year of ACTION!

Jim R. Henry
Association President 2011

~Association Events and Meetings~

Chapter Leaders Virtual Water Cooler Teleconference/Live Meeting
2010 AITP Strategy Plan Achievements. Join the January 25th Virtual Water Cooler (2:00 PM CST).  Make sure you register to receive the teleconference information prior to the call!  “Hear” you there!

Association Board of Directors Meeting (Teleconference)
Wednesday, January 26, 2011, from 2 PM to 3:30 PM CST: Monthly Board of Directors Meeting open to all members. Please join by registering prior to the call - RSVP.

Member Summit
Save the date for the Annual Member Summit in Orlando, March 25-26, 2011 co-located with NCC. For exhibitor participation and sponsor opportunities, download this brochure.

National Collegiate Conference
Save the date for NCC in Orlando, March 24-27, 2011 co-located with the 2011 Member Summit.

~Association Programs and Services~

Attention Region and Chapter Leaders: Things You Need To Do Every Year
All Region and Chapter (Professional and Student) Leaders MUST complete the following to ensure the correct leaders in your chapter receive important information from the Association, your Region and your Parent Chapter, earn cash rebates on professional memberships, and stay in compliance with the AITP conflict of interest policy.

To update your Region/Chapter Leaders:

• Go to your chapter page at www.aitp.org/mychapter and scroll down to the Chapter Leaders Area.
• Click on the link for “Add/Edit Chapter Leaders”.  For your current officers and directors, fill in their name, position, and member number.  Student chapters should also include their faculty advisor (substitute email address for member number if the advisor is not an AITP member) and their professional chapter liaison.
• Region Leaders should contact AITP Headquarters to update their Region leaders list.

To complete the Conflict of Interest form:

• Each January, members of the Association Board of Directors and any Officer or Director of any AITP sub-unit must agree to the Association's Conflict of Interest policy. 
• Click on the “AITP Leaders Conflict of Interest Form” link on your “MyChapter” page
• Region Leaders will find this link at your “MyRegion” page.

To re-enroll in the Professional Chapter Rebate Program:

• To receive a $5 rebate on every new and renewing member in your chapter, you must re-enroll each year in January. Click on the “AITP Chapter Incentive Affirmation” at your “MyChapter” page.

Help your members review and update their Contact Information:

• Each time your chapter, the region, or the association sends emails to members, we get a large number of non-delivery messages.  The email addresses of many members are out of date and we can no longer communicate with them.  Please review your chapter roster.  Note any email addresses you know are wrong.  At chapter meetings, remind your members to update their contact information. And remember that you, as the officers/leaders of your chapter, can update the contact information of your members through your “MyChapter” page.
• Please help your Student Chapter leaders understand that contact information for many of their student members is also out of date.  Help them learn how they too can update the contact information of their student members through their “MyChapter” page.

~Especially for Students~

2011 Spring Membership Promotion for Students – January 1 through March 31
In leading up to the AITP 16th Annual National Collegiate Conference, we are proud to announce the Spring Student Membership Promotion. Any student may join AITP, or an existing student member may renew, at the reduced rate of $25 from January 1 through March 31, 2011. We hope this promotion will help your student chapter in its recruitment efforts to grow membership. We highly encourage you and your chapter to take advantage of this nearly 30% savings on the regular dues rate. Promotional materials are available on the AITP Promotion page. Start building your chapter membership, and remember to encourage those new members as well as your current members to attend the 2011 AITP 16th Annual National Collegiate Conference in Orlando!

Last Call for Imagine Cup Participants!  
Hi Imagine Cup Candidate -What's fun, rewarding, and challenging (in a good way)…and can increase your employability?  Microsoft's Imagine Cup Competition!  Click here for details.

Do you want to:

• beef up your resume?
• improve your chances of landing an internship or a job?
• impress a prospective employer?

Taking the Imagine Cup IT Challenge is the first step.
Plus, it doesn't hurt that you are eligible to win $25,000 and a slew of other prizes. We've made it easy. You just need to pass 1 quiz to advance to the second round (and passing is just getting half of the 30 multiple choice questions correct!).  But hurry, there are only two quizzes left! Here is the schedule. (You have 24 hours, from the start time of the quiz, to complete it.) Good luck!  Register.

IT Challenge Round 1 Quiz Dates (EST)
Note: quizzes are open for 24 hours from the start time
Quiz 7: January 13, 2011, 8pm
Quiz 8: January 30, 2011, 8pm

Registration Open for the March 2011 NCC (National Collegiate Conference) in Orlando
Since Orlando (all of Florida for that matter) is a major Spring destination for families and groups, it is strongly recommended you research those transportation options ASAP. A review of airfares is showing that they are slowly increasing and showing decreased levels of availability but still plenty of flights to/from Orlando on a variety of airlines too. More information here. Registration forms here.

Extra Mile Award Nominations due March 1
The "Going the Extra Mile" Faculty Award is recognition for faculty members that truly go "the extra mile" for their AITP Student Chapter. Candidates do not have to be the official faculty advisor for the AITP Student Chapter. Click here to learn more about the award and to submit a nomination by March 1 to studentawards@aitp.org.  

Faculty Advisor of the Year Award Nominations due March 1
AITP is fortunate to have talented educators serve as advisors to AITP's student chapters all over the country. They willingly donate many hours to assure that their students receive a broader education than they receive in the classroom alone. AITP annually recognizes an advisor who has exemplified the highest ideals of his/her profession. Nominations are due to Sponsoring Professional Chapters or Region Presidents by March 1. Sponsoring Professional Chapters/Region Presidents must submit approved nominations to studentawards@aitp.org by March 10. For more information, click here.

2011 RHT/AITP $2,500 Scholarship Applications are NOW being accepted!
The deadline for receipt of all application forms is February 25, 2011. The deadline for all official transcripts is March 1, 2011. Robert Half Technology/AITP cannot be responsible for materials that are lost or delayed in the mail. AITP cannot process and must destroy any incomplete or incorrectly submitted applications. All materials sent in for this scholarship will become property of the AITP and will not be returned. Complete details and testimonials from past winners can all be found at 2011 RHT/AITP Scholarship site.

~Membership Promotions~

AITP's New Unemployed Membership Program
AITP's new Unemployed Membership Program has been extended until May 31, 2011. Please spread the word about this AITP limited time membership initiative. Click here for additional information about the Unemployed Member Program, including how to apply.  Or you can email memberservices@aitp.org.

Multi-year Renewals
Professional members can take advantage of discounts when they renew their membership for multiple years. See IE article for details.

Enterprise Membership Update
New Enterprise membership instructions, dues guide, and application forms have been added to the AITP Join page. The Enterprise Membership program provides discounts on AITP Association dues for companies where multiple employees are AITP members.

~Governance News~

Keep Your Contact Information Up To Date  
Otherwise you will miss out on important information from AITP about benefits and opportunities.  Graduating students should update their contact information to point to a non-school address.  To update contact information, go to www.aitp.org, select the Members tab, and click on MyAccount.  Or see your chapter leaders who can assist you.  Or contact headquarters.

~Awards~

Chapter Outstanding Performance Award (COPA) forms are due January 31, 2011
Remember to download your COPA spreadsheet application form and return to awards@aitp.org by the January deadline. The COPA spreadsheets are used to evaluate chapters for the Region Outstanding Performance Awards(ROCA) and for the Association Outstanding Performance Award(AOCA). Forms are found here. Page down and select from the Awards Sections.

Region Outstanding Chapter Awards Announced
The 2009 Award Year Region Outstanding chapters are:
Region 1: San Diego Chapter
Region 2: Puget Sound Chapter
Region 3: Dallas Chapter
Region 4: Southwest Missouri Chapter
Region 5: Twin City Chapter
Region 7: Atlanta Chapter
Region 13: Long Island Chapter
Region 18: Pittsburgh Chapter
These chapters are now eligible to be considered for the 2009 Association Outstanding Chapter Award (AOCA), which will be awarded at the 2011 Member Summit in Orlando, Florida.

Reminder regarding Individual Performance Award (IPA) Requests
IPA Awards may be ordered at any time. However, Chapters that wish to present IPA Awards to their members are reminded that it takes the Awards Committee 60 days to review the award applications and to order the appropriate pins and/or plaques. Be sure to include your order form with the IPA Spreadsheet forms with the date needed. Forms are found on the web portal, click here.

~Communications~

Did You Know that AITP offers a social online forum ….www.aitpNetwork.org
for general discussion and virtual networking! If you're not already a member of the aitpNetwork, please take a few minutes to signup and enjoy collaborating with your fellow members. The aitpNetwork offers a great avenue for open discussion and postings from “Blogs to Jobs”. If you have any questions or need assistance in signing up, please contact webmaster@aitp.org.

Get Published in the official AITP eMagazine, Information Executive (IE)!
Share region, chapter, and other AITP news! Go to www.aitp.org/input, follow the guidelines, and create your article(s). When articles are submitted, they are reviewed by the IE editor, published to the home page, and sent to the members in the next issue of Information Executive (IE) eMagazine.

Communications Broadcasts on File on AITP Web Portal
All Communications Broadcasts are posted on aitp.org – in PDF format with working links (URLs).To find all the Communication Broadcasts, http://www.aitp.org/publications/annualReport/annualReport.jsp. From the drop down menu, select Membership – YYYY – Communications Broadcast – MONTH for the issue you wish to view.

Service Email Addresses – Providing Better Connections! Better Member Service!
The following are email addresses specific to our Service Areas so our members can communicate their requests or needs directly to the appropriate leaders for timely resolution:

Note: “*” next to service email address below indicates that it is a new service email address.

Information Technology Fact – Did You Know…
160 billion emails are sent daily, 97% of which are spam. (from Technology Fast Facts)

As a member of AITP you are receiving this communication. If you would like to change your e-mail delivery options, click here.

Enjoy AITP and Stay Connected…
Your Association Communications Committee
communications@aitp.org