to review regional goals, national initiatives along with success stories and challenges at the state and local components. His commitment to better communication between the components at meetings of the WMR included Leadership Discussions where local Chapter leaders shared their victories and challenges and state Component leaders shared their victories and challenges allowing for best practices to be openly shared. John served as a WMR Regional Director on the AIA National Board from 2007-2009. He was appointed as AIA’s representative to the American Architectural Foundation serving as a Board of Regent where he was AIA’s voice for design, architectural education and the minority and disadvantaged scholarships for freshmen in college funded for five years by the AAF. John served on the Board Diversity Committee whose goals were to identify the obstacles to underrepresented groups in architectural education programs, licensure and membership in the AIA. As part of the Diversity & Inclusion efforts John worked to develop the multiFORMity 2008 Diversity Plenary that focused on improving representation and diversity in architecture education and practice. Out of this plenary came the GATEWAY COMMITMENT that was endorsed 100% by the AIA Board of Directors committing to develop a profession that reflects the diversity of the communities, users and the clients we serve. In 2007, he established the SHADOW AN ARCHITECT program at the AIA National Convention in San Antonio. This program paired National Board members and volunteers with K-8, High School and Junior College students to experience convention with an architect as their mentor for a day. This program continues at Convention and Grassroots introducing underrepresented students to Architects that look like them. Elected Vice President to the National Board, serving from 2011-2012 he served as Chairman of the Board Community Committee where he coordinated Member Resources and Component Services. Leading the efforts of the AIA Membership Committee his work played a key role with Institute’s initial repositioning efforts. The committee’s work included emeritus membership to emerging professionals with a focus on member benefits and value. The adopted positions helped broaden the AIA’s membership base of emerging professionals with local components embracing
emerging professionals in leadership roles on their boards. As AIA’s representative to NCARB’s IDP Committee in 2011 he worked to improve the IDP experience requirements to reflect how practice is today. Changes developed under his leadership included credits for Construction Site experience, and revisions to allow summer and seasonal experience hours count towards IDP credit. In 2013 John Co-chaired the NCARB Internship Advisory Committee where he led the discussion establishing improvements of the Emerging Professionals Companion, reinvention of the IDP Firm Award, and changes to the IDP reporting requirements (six month rule) for interns. John served as Secretary on the AIA National Board of Directors and served as a member of the Strategic Council (2015-2016). The office of Secretary connected John directly to the Members and their Components addressing member’s requests for Dues Waivers, CEU Waivers, Emeritus requests, Chapter assignments, Chapter reorganization, and International Chapter development. The AIA’s repositioning efforts relied on the Secretary to guide the Institute through unfamiliar territory as our Components were required to meet Core Member Services in 2016 and provide minimum services to their members. John is responsible for insuring the Institute can further its role in service to our members while maintaining a strong and relevant AIA. John currently serves as AIA’s representative to the Pan American Federation of Associations of Architects (FPAA) and will serve as Vice-President of the North Region (Canada, USA and Mexico) in 2018 and 2020. As the Institute’s representative to FPAA John is a part of regionalized body of Pan American Architects with a representation of regions that currently comprises 32 National Sections that are grouped in five geographical regions: Northern Region, Central America Region, Caribbean Region, Andean Region and Southern Cone Region. FPAA is an institution with a mission of connecting the America’s through sharing knowledge and support, representing the aspirations of the National Sections that compose it. John works as AIA’s liaison with Architects of the Americas sharing business best practices, cultural and artistic efforts, sustainability and urban design concepts and strategies. Working with FPAA we share experiences and collaborate with educational authorities for the teaching of Architecture, in order to contribute to the broader training of their graduates and the agencies teachers.
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