Building excellence: EFMA By Jill Schettler
Irene Young, secretary-treasurer of North Vancouver School District No. 44, attended the SPOA/EFMA Conference in June 2011 for the first time and represented BCASBO (B.C. Association of School Business Officers) at the conference.
An essential ingredient in the recipe for success is communication. And for many organizations, an annual conference proves invaluable in this department. This past June, the newly branded Educational Facility Managers Association (EFMA) hosted their annual conference in Penticton, B.C. It was a gathering of around 300 attendees, all with a common goal – a commitment to the future. Facility professionals, building maintenance personnel, custodial service and grounds personnel, and energy managers, as well as suppliers, organizers and guests attended the summer conference at the Penticton Trade and Convention Centre. Attendees were privy to professional development,
David Day ...........604-690-7016 Dave Torrance.....604-690-6511 Verne Dion ..........604-690-7015 Jeff Dean ............604-690-4911 Kinson Chan .......604-690-7063 Jay Blaak............604-690-7024 Laurie Fehlauer ...604-690-2315 Philip Maxwell ....604-868-0560 Eugene Kim ........604-309-4109 Bob Potts ............604-290-2355
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Ops Talk • Fall 2011
roundtables, presentations and a mix of social events like “disco nights,” a fan favourite. For first-time attendee Irene Young, secretary-treasurer of North Vancouver School District No. 44, the conference proved to be of real value. “An invitation was extended to our ASBO executive and I put my hand up first. ‘Pick me, pick me,’” says Young. “I knew it would be a good professional development experience for me, personally, in addition to being a great opportunity for strengthening the connections between our two associations. We have 60 school districts; if we don’t have opportunities to talk to each other, then we are reinventing the wheel. We all grow from learning from each other. It’s for the betterment of the school district, of all school districts.” Young’s experience at the SPOA/ EFMA conference, as a representative of BCASBO (B.C. Association of School Business Officers) restored her sense of community, a concept that can sometimes take backseat in a busy schedule. “My favourite part of conferences is the networking,” says Young. “I really enjoyed that because it gave me an opportunity to not only talk to others, but also talk to my own staff – it’s a real bonus because sometimes you get so busy. Maintenance is not a direct report to me, so in this case we actually had an opportunity to talk about work. It was interesting to know their perspectives on issues; I appreciated that.” Over 120 exhibitors were there at the conference to address questions and concerns of each attendee, which delighted the secretary-treasurer, who was somewhat surprised by how encompassing the conference was. Specifically, Young and her team were provided an opportunity to talk about
