Happy 2015! It’s the beginning of another new year and we at APRA-IL are energized to elevate our organization and your career! With the New Year comes new opportunities and our President-Elect has landed a big one! I’m happy to say Leigh Petersen Visaya has accepted a position as Director of Prospect Development at Harvard Business School. With this new position she will be unable to continue on in her role at APRA-IL as President. In matters of vacancy, the APRA-IL Executive Board held a vote for a replacement to finish out Leigh’s 2 year term. In a unanimous vote, I was selected to take on the office and I am truly honored to be serving my chapter in this capacity. I have spent three years working with the programming committee with the last year as Co-Director.
My involvement through APRA-IL has done so much for me as a development professional. Beyond the educational resources, APRA-IL has allowed me to meet so many outstanding colleagues across our diverse membership. These connections have been a wonderful resource for me as a young professional and have been the best aspect of my engagement with APRA-IL.
As your new chapter President, I would like to encourage you all to take the next step in your involvement with APRA-IL and consider volunteering with one of our four committees. To continue to provide our membership with quality programming and opportunities for enrichment we need members to be involved. If you are interested in volunteering and would like more information about the work of the programming committee, social media & marketing, membership committee, or the new finance and governance committee please email apraillinois@gmail.com for more information.
Our calendar for 2015 is quickly filling up and I hope to meet you all at one of our events. Your first opportunity is February 12th for the Meet Your APRA-IL Board Happy Hour following the online Education Week webinar presented by Amelia Aldred on researching prospects in Latin America. Come and enjoy beer, brats, and ice curling in the beer garden at Kaiser Tiger (1415 W Randolph St, Chicago, IL) at 5:30 pm. Your board members will be in attendance and I hope you all come and meet your fellow APRA-IL members. APRA-IL is also taking a “Field” trip to The Field Museum to take advantage of Free Days for Illinois residents on February 28th. This is a great opportunity to explore a local institution and network with your fellow members. RSVP for all upcoming events on our website and keep in touch with us on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
