Media advisory issued August 28, 2002, effective immediately.
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IAAP Selects Officers, Programs for 2002-03

Members of the Ardmore Chapter of the International Association of Administrative Professionals have installed new officers who say they are excited about upcoming events while continuing traditional programs of the organization during its Diamond Anniversary year.

New officers installed in June are Sandi Blehm, president; Allyson Wilkins, vice president, both with the Noble Foundation; Shirley Buckley, treasurer, Charlotte Henderson, corresponding secretary, both with Samedan Oil Corp.; and Carol Resz, secretary, also of the Noble Foundation. Several other area businesses are also represented in the chapter.

President Blehm said increasing local membership from a cross section of the community's administrative professionals is one of the chapter's priorities for the coming year.

"We're concentrating on letting people who might be interested in joining us know who we are and what we are about," said Blehm. "We will be highlighting the things we can offer to professionals as an organization."

She stressed membership is open to both men and women — anyone who works as an administrative professional. Another focus of the chapter will be increasing certification opportunities for members, including Certified Professional Secretary and Certified Administrative Professional.

Programs presenting information on enhancing and improving work-related skills, along with educational opportunities, are presented at monthly meetings. During the Sept. 12 meeting, Carol Resz will provide tips for improving negotiating skills, using material from a seminar presented at the international IAAP meeting in July. Other 2002 programs include an educational workshop by Avery-Denison Label Corporation and the annual Executive Appreciation Luncheon featuring speaker Russ Youngs, recently retired executive with General Motors in Oklahoma City.

Blehm said the local IAAP chapter also awards scholarships to outstanding area students who meet specific application criteria. Scholarship funds are primarily raised through donations accepted by members for gift baskets filled with seasonal and holiday-related items, a fund-raiser that Blehm said has been working well for the group and will continue through the coming year. This year, the group increased the number of $600 higher education scholarships to four.

The organization began in 1942 as the National Secretaries Association in Topeka, Kan. The first Certified Professional Secretaries exams were administered in 1951. The group changed its name to the International Association of Administrative Professionals in 1998, and administered its first Certified Administrative Professional exams in 2001. IAAP has about 27,000 members in the U.S. in 600 chapters. The Ardmore chapter was chartered in 1979.

Membership classifications for IAAP are professional, professional-merited, student and associate. An administrative professional is anyone "who possesses a mastery of office skills, demonstrates the ability to assume responsibility without direct supervision, exercises initiatives and judgment, and makes decisions within the scope of assigned authority."

"We are an open, friendly group," Blehm said. "Anyone who is an administrative professional is invited to attend a meeting, to see who we are and what we have to offer."

The group meets on the second Thursday of the month at noon at the YWCA. Lunch is $7 for the meetings. Please contact Allyson Wilkins, Ardmore Chapter officer, for additional meeting information or to make lunch reservations by calling (580) 224-6206.

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Photos:
Sandi Blehm	Allyson Wilkins	Charlotte Henderson	Shirley Buckley	Carol Resz

The Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, headquartered in Ardmore, Okla., is a non-profit organization conducting agricultural, forage biotechnological, and plant biology research; providing grants to numerous non-profit charitable, educational and health organizations; and assisting farmers and ranchers through educational and consultative agricultural programs.

To learn more, visit the Noble Foundation Web site at http://www.noble.org.

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