Slides from the Virtual Town Hall in pdf format

Among the highlights of the presentation were

• the map of our chapter members’ geographic distribution,
  
• a summary of the events we attended in 2011,
  
• a preview of some of the events we are planning in 2012,
  
• and an open and honest view of our finances.
  

The group had a few lively discussions about what STC offers to our members, especially the grant from IBM, potential locations for future meetings (come to the wineries in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley), and the STC job bank.

The group expressed a desire to give support to our local student affiliates. Tiffany Newland will be attending the JMU Student Chapter Meeting in February and suggested that we send her ideas and information about events that would appeal to students at the undergrad or graduate level. Email Tiffany at tnewland at woodmark.com.

Many thanks to some of the STC leadership who attended online
Nick Bleiel
Alan Houser
Judy Glick-Smith
and to all our chapter members and volunteers for a terrific 2011.

Here’s looking forward to communicating with you in 2012.

Photo Credit:
NASA/USGS/Landsat 5

Entry deadline: 7 p.m. Eastern Time,
Friday, 18 November 2011

Competition information for entrants and judges is available at http://www.stcwdc.org/compete.shtml

Download the Entry Forms: http://www.stcwdc.org/competition_about.shtml#FORMS

Judge Applications are now being accepted.

Download the Summit Competition Announcement flyer (.pdf)

Photo Credit:
NASA/USGS/Landsat 5

Judge Applications are now being accepted.

Competition information for entrants and judges is available at http://www.stcwdc.org/compete.shtml

Entries are arriving for the Washington, DC – Metro Baltimore (WDC-MB) chapter’s 2011-2012 Summit Competition for Technical Communication. Would you like to see them? Are you ready to help evaluate them? If you think you may be, here’s a brief summary of what’s in store.

The Call for Entries in our technical communication competition was announced on 1 October. More announcements will appear in websites, blogs, tweets, and lists. This year, the deadline for submission of entries is 18 November. The competition is coming together but it can not be held successfully without the commitment of a group of qualified and enthusiastic judges. The judges are recruited from among professional communicators in the Washington, DC and Baltimore metropolitan areas, and beyond. For both entrants and judges, membership in STC is not required.

During 18-29 November, team judging assignments are made for each category to be judged and the entries are logged and sorted into packages for each team.

On Saturday, 3 December, the judges assemble to receive their judging materials, entries, and instructions. They meet the other members of their judging team, get training from experienced judges on how to evaluate an entry, and have their questions answered.

Over the next six weeks, judges read and examine their assigned entries. They discover—or rediscover—the joy of encountering excellence in published manuals, reports, training materials, journals, brochures, marketing and PR materials, magazines, help systems, websites, user support materials, and more. As they begin to form opinions and record their evaluations in the judging forms, the judges apply all the knowledge and experience at their disposal. They prepare their comments for the entrants and a defense of their decisions for the consensus meeting.

On Saturday, 14 January, the judges meet again to discuss the entries and decide which ones deserve an award. Some entries stand out as award winners; others elicit debate. The judges relish the opportunity to compare notes on design, presentation of information, layout, and overall quality of an entry. By the end of the Consensus Meeting, a consensus is reached on award levels for each entry based on specified criteria, not against each other. The competition committee begins the process of choosing the Best of Show, choosing the Best Student Entry, notifying the winners and non-winners, and sending the very best to the STC International Summit Awards Competition. Veteran and new judges leave the Consensus Meeting with a sense of a job well done. They have judged the work of their peers and shared their passion for excellence in communication. Many will be eager to do it all over again in future years.

If you are ready to experience the joy of judging, we need your help. For more information about judging entries and the types of judges needed, see the Call for Judges at http://www.stcwdc.org/competition_judgecall.shtml. Please apply to judge at http://www.stcwdc.org/php/judge_comp_application_form.php.

Thank you!

Photo Credit:
NASA/USGS/Landsat 5

Entry deadline: 7 p.m. Eastern Time,
Friday, 18 November 2011

Rules and information: http://www.stcwdc.org/compete.shtml

Entry Forms: http://www.stcwdc.org/competition_about.shtml#FORMS

In the fall, many STC chapters hold local technical communication competitions. All Distinguished Technical Communication (DCT) and Excellence award winners in the local competitions are elegible to enter the STC international-level competition, named the “STC International Summit Awards”. This post continues our tradition of presenting some reasons that you might enjoy entering the STC WDC-MB Summit Competition for Technical Communication.

Would you like to be an award-winning technical communicator?

For those of you who haven’t entered before, let me explain the basics. STC competitions recognize and encourage excellence in online communication and technical publications. Our competition receives entries from DC, Maryland, and Virginia, as well as from other states and from other countries. Washington, DC metropolitan area experts gather to evaluate the entries in the competition. The judges provide written feedback on the strengths or weaknesses of each entry with reference to a standard in each category. The judges make recommendations that you may apply to future endeavors.

Some of the joys of entering are the pride you have in putting forth your best work, the validation you feel by being measured against the highest standards in our profession, and the opportunity to receive a knowledgeable and thoughtful critique of your entry. As an entrant, you are proud of your accomplishments. You and the judges realize that the final entry represents months of planning, writing, editing, and publishing. Submitting a publication or online entry is a great way to keep growing in a fast-paced industry. Having your decisions and standards recognized by industry experts is real insider validation!

As an entrant, you’ll be invited to the Awards Celebration, where all winning entries will be displayed. You will be able to see what others in our field are producing. The Awards Celebration is also a place to network with the technical communication community.

What can be entered?

Technical, scientific, medical, or similar content for external or internal audiences produced or revised within 24 months preceding 1 September 2011. These include websites, blogs, journals, teaching material, computer software and hardware manuals, error messages, books, magazines, periodicals, research papers, posters, scholarly or trade news articles, online help for software applications, and user support materials. Entries may also include marketing and PR material from a technical organization such as brochures, catalogs, flyers, technical advertisements, promotional websites, corporate identity, newsletters, annual reports, policies and procedures, and employee guides.

Entries by full-time students that have been prepared for and accepted for publication can go on to the international-level competition. (Student entries that have not been prepared for and accepted for publication will be accepted in the chapter’s competition only.)

Now is the time to submit your best work to the scrutiny of your fellow professionals. Consider what you want to enter and get it prepared. Competition rules and entry forms are at http://www.stcwdc.org/compete.shtml

Good luck!

Best of Show and Distinguished Winners

Pictures of the Future
Submitter: Arthur Pease
Entrant: Arthur Pease
Company: Siemens A.G.
—–
SAMHSA Permanent Supportive Housing Toolkit
Submitter: Chandria Jones
Entrants: Chandria Jones, Pamela Fisher, Carol Bianco
Additional Contributors: Westat Graphics and Printing, Advocates for Human Potential, Inc.
Company: Westat

Distinguished

Propane Technology Review
Submitter: Julie Chappell
Entrants: Julie Chappell, Propane Education & Research Council, Energetics, Inc.
Additional Contributors: Roy Willis, PERC; Brian Feehan, PERC; Mark Leitman, PERC
Brandon Robinson, PERC; Greg Kerr, PERC; Ross Brindle, Energetics; Sarah Lichtner, Energetics; Lindsay Pack, Energetics; Emily Maffett, Energetics; Valerie Riedel, Energetics
Company: Energetics Incorporated
—–
Reducing Global Threats through Innovative Science and Technology
Submitter: Octavio Ramos, Jr.
Entrants: Nancy Ambrosiano, Octavio Ramos, Jr., James M. Cruz
Company: Los Alamos National Laboratory

Excellence

2010 Science Highlights TSC Directorate: Theory, Simulation, and Computation
Submitter: Kathy Pallis
Entrants: Sharon Mikkelson, Susanne King, Kathy Pallis
Company: Los Alamos National Laboratory
—–

Altarum Institute Annual Report
Submitter: Liz Ritter
Entrants: Liz Ritter, Marijka Lischak, Janice Lynch Schuster
Company: Altarum Institute
—–

Building on Our Strengths–The 2009 Missile Defense Agency Technology Applications Report
Submitter: Lisa Hylton
Entrants: Scott Tillett, Lisa Hylton, NTTC Washington Operations Outreach and Engineering Teams
Company: National Technology Transfer Center, Washington Operations
—–

New Frontiers in Characterizing Biological Systems; Report from the May 2009 Workshop
Submitter: Judy M. Wyrick
Entrants: Holly Haun, Judy Wyrick, Biological and Environmental Research Information System
Additional Contributors: Shirley Andrews, Betty Mansfield, Jennifer Bownas, Marissa Mills, Kris Christen, Sheryl Martin, Christopher Caldwell, Anita Alton, Arthur Katz (U.S. Department of Energy), Mitchel Doktycz (Oak Ridge National Laboratory), H. Steven Wiley (Pacific Northwest National Laboratory)
Company: Oak Ridge National Laboratory
—–

Plutonium Science and Research Strategy
Submitter: Kelly Parker
Entrants: Suki Coonley, Kelly Parker, Ed Lorusso
Company: Los Alamos National Laboratory
—–

Tactical Air Control Party-Modernization, Vehicular Communications System, Train the Trainer Course Materials
Submitter: Diane Swift
Entrants: Diane Swift, Heather Brown, Paul Costen
Additional Contributors: Michael Anderson
Company: Antech Systems Inc.

Merit

Getting Started: Doing Business with Fannie Mae
Submitter: Mary Wise
Entrants: Jacqueline Austin, William Cragg
Company: Fannie Mae
—–

NIH and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) Website
Submitter: Rob Wald
Entrants: Donna Messersmith, Bethany Hoffman, Beth Maloney
Additional Contributors: Yvonne Bersofsky, Samantha Fox
Company: Palladian Partners
—–

Payoff Calendar
Submitter: Mary Wise
Entrants: Michele McNamara, Phil Corriveau, Kathleen Colliton
Company: Fannie Mae
—–

U.S. Department of Energy’s Bioenergy Research Centers: An Overview of the Science
Submitter: Judy M. Wyrick
Entrants: Jennifer Bownas, Judy Wyrick, Biological and Environmental Research Information System
Additional Contributors: Shirley Andrews, Betty Mansfield, Holly Haun, Marissa Mills, Kris Christen, Sheryl Martin, Christopher Caldwell, Anita Alton
Company: Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Photo Credit: Kristen Sweet

Entries are due by 7 p.m., 19 November. Competition rules and entry forms are available at http://www.stcwdc.org/compte.shtml You do not need to be a member of STC to enter or judge in the competition.

What can be entered?

Technical, scientific, medical, or similar content for external or internal audiences produced or revised within 24 months preceding 1 September 2010. These include Web sites, blogs, journals, teaching material, computer software and hardware manuals, illustrations of equipment, and online help for software applications. Entries may also include marketing and PR material from a technical organization such as brochures, corporate identity, newsletters, annual reports, policies and procedures, and employee guides.

Judges

Applications for judges are still being accepted. For information about judging entries and the types of judges needed, see the Call for Judges at http://www.stcwdc.org/judcall.shtml. Please apply to judge at http://www.stcwdc.org/php/judge_comp_application_form.php

For more information, contact the competition managers at gro.cdwctsnull@snoititepmoc