Fellows In Our Midst

by Ted Edwins, Past-President

Each spring the Society announces awards and honours that it bestows on deserving members. This year our chapter received the good news that two former members of the chapter are to be honoured for their contributions to the Society in particular and to technical communication in general.

Deb Maskens, a former chapter president and now a member of the London Student Chapter, has been honoured as an Associate Fellow.

The rank of associate fellow is conferred only upon a senior member who has attained distinction in the field of technical communication. Senior members may not apply for the rank of associate fellow; a committee composed of fellows and associate fellows must nominate them.

Deb Maskens

Deb was a member of our chapter for 13 years. During that time she was Program Manager twice, Nominating Committee member, President, and Past President. Along with Greg Cento, Deb helped develop the Technical Writing Program at Fanshawe College in London where she also taught classes and helped to kick-start the London Student Chapter. Deb was also instrumental in fundraising for the Digital Arts Communication program at the University of Waterloo. Our chapter was an enthusiastic supporter of the campaign.

Leanne Logan

Leanne Logan, also a former chapter president and now Program Manager with the Mid-South Chapter in Memphis, Tennessee, has been elevated to Fellow.

The rank of fellow is conferred only upon associate fellows who have attained such eminence in the field of technical communication that the board, by a two-thirds vote of all members, deems them worthy of being singled out as one of the select few who have distinguished the Society and the profession. Associate fellows may not apply for the rank of fellow; a committee of fellows must nominate them.

Leanne was a member of our chapter for 11 years. She was honoured as an Associate Fellow in 2003 for years of service to our chapter as Competition Judge, High School Competition Committee member, Nominations Committee member, Nominations Committee Manager, Newsletter Editor, and two terms as chapter President. An extremely short list of chapter accomplishments under her leadership includes gains in membership and recognition by the Society with a Chapter Pacesetter Award.

The Presentations

In May, Deb and Leanne will receive their honours at the STC International Conference in Baltimore. Chapter members going to the conference are encouraged to attend the Honours Reception and Banquet where Deb and Leanne will be given their awards. The banquet will be held on Tuesday, May 11^th from 6:00-9:00 pm. There is an additional $40 USD charge for this event. Please consult the conference Web site at http://www.stc.org/51stConf/ for full details. Let's get a rooting section together for Deb and Leanne!

Watch The Quill and the chapter website for an announcement of when we will honour Deb and Leanne at one of our local general meetings.