Dear GCATD colleagues, I hope you are all well as we go through the dog days of summer!

Even though the summer heat has arrived, our chapter activities roll on. We’ve had an interesting collection of learning events from our GIG/SIGs. The Dayton GIG put on an in-person workshop (hoorah for in-person events!) about creating e-learning in 3 days instead of three months. We also had a webinar on leading up, effectively communicating with leaders to achieve access, and two separate webinars on AI hosted by the Learning Technology (rescheduled for November 1st) and Coaching SIGs. The OD SIG tackled succession planning and the Learning Leaders SIG had their annual potluck of learning before breaking for the summer.

Thank you to the SIG conveners, the Director of SIGs/GIG, and the VP of Professional Development for providing this consistent, relevant, high-quality programming. I have been able to attend some of these events and am always struck by how powerful it is when we gather as TD professionals: the insights and experiences that you have to offer, in my view, is the single most valuable aspect of GCATD membership.

Our capstone opportunity for professional engagement is quickly approaching. The annual GCATD Conference is at the Savannah Center on October 4. Don’t wait to register! Take advantage of the early bird pricing.

Another jewel in the GCATD crown is the chapter podcast, Elevate L&D, led by Katie Schwieter. She has assembled quite a remarkable team. The production quality is excellent and the topics are most definitely relevant. Give it a listen.

We’re also planning another in-person networking event for the first week of September. Stay tuned for details.

We have a lot of interest coming in to volunteer with the chapter. Thank you! We have a new Director of Engagement, Jill Matson, who will shepherd the process of volunteer onboarding. Thanks Jill for volunteering!

Thanks to all the Board members who work behind the scenes to provide value to our members.

Some of the things our Board is working on:

• Connecting with lapsed members and inviting them back
• Evaluating our expenses to be good steward of our resources
• Coordinating our programming to provide the greatest value to you, our members
• Planning more in-person networking and learning events
• Smoothing out the volunteer intake process
• Conducting our annual Risk Assessment

We have reviewed and revised our Chapter Bylaws, which we’ll present to you for approval in August.

Longer term plans include a major overhaul of the Chapter website and consideration of a more affordable and effective contact/event management application.

I encourage you to take advantage of our chapter discussion board and Linkedin group as easy means of staying connected with our local TD community. We are also found on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter. The Dayton GIG has its own Linkedin group page.

Whenever I talk to chapter members, I’m always enriched by your talents, experience, and insight. Take advantage of that!

I hope to see you at one of our upcoming events. The website is chock full of them!

John Carter
President, GCATD
president@gcatd.org