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LEGISLATIVE UPDATE: GOOD NEWS!!! On Thursday, May 29, California SB-1312, a practice act, was removed from consideration by the bill's sponsor, Senator Leland Yee, because of overwhelming opposition. This is another major victory for opponents of design legislation, and further proof that legislation to regulate the interior design profession is NOT NEEDED or WANTED. Legislation tries to fix a problem that does not exist. In the past six months, we have had two major victories on the West Coast – first, in Washington State, when their bill died in committee, and now in California. There have been similar results in 10 states where bills were introduced this year alone, as well as 24 pieces of legislation that failed in 2007. Oklahoma passed a title act in 2006, and Iowa passed a title act in 2005. That's a very poor success ratio for proponents of legislation (ASID, IIDA, and NCIDQ). CLICK HERE FOR REST OF ARTICLE
by Diane Plesset, CMKBD, CCIDC, NCIDQ Paths aren't always straight, and more often than we'd like, the paths are filled with potholes and obstacles, creating challenges for our journey. We often come to a "Y" in the road, and have to choose which direction to follow. Six months ago, the intersection I saw was not a "Y." It was a "T." I could continue, or change directions completely. I thought it was going to be a difficult choice, but there were signs and maps to help make an informed decision. My journey began 27 years ago. Professors (mostly members of ASID) stressed the importance of passing the NCIDQ, because they believed that legislation for the design profession was inevitable. After I passed the CBD, CKD, and NCIDQ examinations, California did pass legislation. Unlike other states with laws governing interior designers, California's certification is voluntary, and receives no state funding. Certification is based on a designer's combined education, experience and passing examinations (CBD, CKD, CQRID, or NCIDQ plus the CCRE). Before moving back to Oregon, I took a seminar and the CCRE to maintain my certification. The California Council for Interior Design Certification (CCIDC) is an independent governing body. It has directors representing every design organization (ASID, IDEC, IFDA, IIDA, NKBA), plus one independent designer and four directors from the general public. CLICK HERE FOR REST OF ARTICLE Click here to visit our new legislative blog site http://legislative-update.blogspot.com.  On April 22, 2007, our elected chapter board members met in Spokane, Washington for the Region 5 Chapter Officers' Development Workshop. It was a weekend that occurs every other year for chapter officers, and during that time we were asked to develop our chapter strategic plan. Every year we turn this in to National and we build our plan upon National's 6 goals. Here are some ideas of what we created then, and how we are building upon what we said was important for our chapter.
Our goals are to help you reap personal and business benefits from being part of this Columbia River Chapter no matter what your segment. We welcome your suggestions as well. READ MORE 
Earn CEUs on the Internet The NKBA is pleased to announce that we are inaugurating web-based seminars, or webinars, this October. These one hour sessions, led by experienced NKBA instructors and other industry leaders, will cover a wide array of materials. Subjects include Professional Resource Library materials, such as "Venting Kitchens and Baths," to business topics like "To Fee or Not to Fee," as well as sales skills topics like "Selling the Upgrade." Not only will these webinars provide our members with an excellent and convenient opportunity to hear and discuss an assortment of topics, but they are also a great way to earn NKBA CEUs. Each webinar will be worth .1 CEU. To participate, you will need high speed Internet access and a telephone. Both Mac and Windows formats are supported. Please refer to our web site at www.nkba.org for additional information, including seminar topics, dates and times. These offerings will be updated on a continual basis. You can enroll in these webinars via our web site or by calling NKBA Customer Service at (800) THE-NKBA.
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| Local News Mel Archer, of Pacific Design, is First Place winner of the 2007 Doug Mockett Co. Design Contest! His slim-line counter support in stainless steel will become one of the many innovative and functional products made and sold at the Doug Mockett Co. For more info e-mail Colleen Archer at colleen@pacific-design.net Congratulations to the following Columbia River Chapter members who have recently passed the AKBD and CKD examinations! Hannah Price, AKBD The NKBA is offering a great list of courses in our area in 2008. Click here for more information. Here's to a wonderful start for 2008... The following is a list of courses in your area for the upcoming year. This list is current as of today only. Please communicate to your members to visit www.nkba.org frequently for updates and course additions, as the Web site will be the most dynamic and ever changing vehicle for professional development educational opportunities. Also, the following only represents face-to-face courses, and does not include our many webinar sessions or on-line learning education opportunities. All courses from the NKBA professional development department offer NKBA hours AND CEU credits. Should your Chapter need a specific course at a specific time we also offer Chapter Sponsored Programs that meet those needs. Study Groups can also call for a "targeted" session-Webinar (new for 2008.....) Please communicate with me, Patty Swayne or Pat Tobaygo with any of your educational needs, concerns or questions. Education is one of the best ways to stay competitive. Let's work together to ensure this happens.
LEGISLATIVE UPDATE Diane Plesset, VP of Government Relations, has added an important update on Legislation including recent developments in Washington State. To read the entire article CLICK HERE. |
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National News Lawful Enterprise The NKBA speaks out against interior design legislation By Edward S. Nagorsky June 01, 2008 - Over the last few years, the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) has been at the forefront of protecting the rights of its members and the public against a small segment of the interior design industry. This segment seeks to limit the practice of design to only those it deems worthy and competent through a combination of education (at its selected programs and schools) and qualification (via an exam that it has developed and marketed). The largest professional association for interior designers, the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) has made it very clear that it intends to be the sole gateway to the entire design profession and that without passing its supported exam, the National Council for Interior Design Qualification (NCIDQ), one is not able to safely and effectively furnish design services. Over the past 30 years, ASID has undertaken a campaign to convince its members of a desperate need for interior design licensing to "protect the public" from those designers who are deemed unqualified because they have not met standards arbitrarily set by the organization. ASlD has spent, by some estimates, more than $5 million in trying to push through legislation that would prohibit or severely limit the ability of non-members to continue practicing interior design. Read the full article... AKBD Exam to be Offered Via Computer in March 2008 In response to concerns of our members over the difficulties of having the AKBD exam given in only 15 cities, the NKBA is pleased to announce that the AKBD exam will be offered via computer-based testing (CBT) in over 150 sites around the United States and Canada beginning in March 2008. The advantages for our members to take the certification exam via CBT are multiple. The CBT exam will be offered over a series of days, allowing candidates to choose the date and time that is most convenient for them. The results for those taking the CBT exam will be available in approximately one week initially, where as results from the paper exam aren't available for up to 12 weeks. Eventually, the CBT candidate will know the results before leaving the test site. A candidate that fails the exam will still have to wait six months before retaking the exam. The paper and pencil version will be available for the last time on March 15, 2008 in the advertised 15 cities. After March, all AKBD exams will be via CBT only. Requirements, fees and registration procedures will remain unchanged. Please refer to the NKBA web site for additional information. |
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EDUCATION + EXPERIENCE = EVOLUTION
