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1 The Informer Issue Two

January 2015

Learning to Live in a Technical World

A Letter from Your President By Sofia Atzrodt

Florida TSA,

The Leadership Conference ended just a month ago and I can’t express how proud I am of all that you’ve accomplished! This year’s theme was Get a Clue and TSA members were challenged to find Alligon, who had been kidnapped. By using their leadership skills and investigating the pictures he posted on Instagram, they were able to rescue him from the kidnapper.

The American Cancer Society fundraiser was the Criminal Carnival, which featured a variety of new attractions, including karaoke, Just Dance, and a photo booth. We raised a total of $585, more than we’ve raised at a Leadership Conference ever before!

To wrap up the conference, we participated in the Alligon Bowl and laughed, screamed, and worked as families (and lost our voices)! The winning team was the Dubstep Detectives.

Flip through this edition of the Informer to see some of our favorite conference pictures and tweets.

I’m looking forward to seeing you at states!

Sofia Atzrodt,

State President

In This Issue:

Regional Ambassador Program P.2

Preparing for State Conference P.2

Writing Minutes P.3

Running for State Office P.4

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February 25-28, 2015 Florida State Conference & Competitions. Doubletree at Universal Entrance

A QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE TECHNOLOGY STUDENT ASSOCIATIONA QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE TECHNOLOGY STUDENT ASSOCIATION

Florida TSA State Conference & Competitions

Doubletree at Universal Entrance @fltsa

Florida TSA Regional Ambassador Program Committee By Chase Walker Hello Florida TSA! Some of you may already be aware of the committee that was introduced at the 2014 Leadership Conference, however due to various reasons we understand not everyone could make it to the meeting on time or to the conference. I would like to begin by explaining what the committee is. The “Regional Ambassador Program” is Florida TSA’s spin on the Pennsylvania TSA Membership Initiative. It is a program to assist in the development and growth of the state delegation. In Florida TSA we have set the committee up in this hierarchy to assist in the organization of the work. All members will be sorted into five different regions of the state. Each region will have a “region head” that will be in charge of communicating information from the members of the committee to the chair of the committee, which will be the Florida TSA Vice President at the time. As a member you would be responsible for searching for schools in your region that do not have TSA and then report the name of that school to your region head. The region head will send all of the recommendations to the FLTSA Vice President and then he/she from that point will relay these recommendations to the FLTSA Board of Directors, so that they can easily assist these schools in the development of their new TSA chapter. Currently the committee, as it is still beginning, is rather small and we are looking to add members. If anyone chapter would like to have a representative on this committee, please contact me at chase.tsa@gmail.com so that I can give you more in-depth information on getting started.

Preparing for State Conference By Lindsay Beckett The annual state conference is coming up on February 25th where all the schools can get together and see how much their hard work done on projects has paid off. I'm sure you have already begun planning for the conference, and here are just a few extra tips to get you ready to attend.

If you have yet to start your projects, which I am certain is not the case, I would begin now. Make sure you begin working on the events that interests you. After completing it, look through it and fix any mistakes you find and then make sure your advisor and anyone else who knows about the topic, like a teacher, looks over it. Consider any advice they may give you about it, and correct it. This will ensure that your project is error-free and ready for competition.

If interviews or presentations are needed for the competitions you are competing in, make sure you are preparing for it. If you have to give a presentation, create a plan and practice a lot. If you have to do an interview, make sure you know every little detail about your project and brainstorm questions that could be asked, making sure you can answer all of them. If you can't, research it. In addition, it may be helpful if you have someone give you a mock interview or if you practice your presentation in front of people and have them give you feedback. This will help make sure that not only your project is spotless, but also your presentation.

It is important to motivate your chapter before competition. Have a party or a team-building meeting, as it will make sure that your chapter goes in as a team and everyone is not only competing for themselves, but also supporting every person in their chapter. It will also help make sure that the conference is built around your team, not only winning competition.

You should create a plan before the conference. You should create time for your chapter, like making sure you eat meals together or have team meetings, so that you can create a bond between your chapter. You should also look at the sched-ule and see what time is open for each person and reserve that time period for going out and meeting other students from TSA, for instance, making sure there is time to go to the mixer and meet new people and nothing conflicts with that time. You can also plan for people to go to spirit events throughout the conference, to support your team and also help it gain spirit points.

These tips should help the state conference go smoothly for the both the students and the advisor. Make sure you partici-pate in competitions, complete your projects before you get to the hotel, and bond with your team and everyone else in TSA. I urge you to plan and make the most of this conference and I wish you the best of luck in your competitions!

Writing Minutes By Molly Sun

Hello Florida TSA, I hope your year is going well so far! For many chapters, keeping organized is one of their

biggest challenges, and organization is key to developing a strong chapter and an excellent year in TSA. The

secretary, of course, is one of the most important figures in keeping your chapter coordinated: after all, the

duty of the secretary is to “keep accurate and proper records of all business and correspondence” of their

chapter or organization. Therefore, this article is dedicated to the proper writing of minutes for secretaries

new, old, or prospective. So, please enjoy this crash course on the wonderful world of minutes: secretaries

of Florida TSA, this one is for you!

The opening paragraph should include the type of meeting, the name of the chapter or organization, that

the meeting came to order, the date and time of the meeting, where the meeting took place, that a chair

and a secretary were present, that a quorum was established, attendance (EX: 23 members were present),

and guests (the last two items usually pertain more to chapter minutes and are not necessarily needed for

the Chapter Team competition).

Individual reports and motions should always start a new paragraph. If original main motions produce addi-

tional motions that pertain to it, these secondary motions should be in the same paragraph with the original

motion.

Main motions and most subsidiary motions must be written word for word: use quotation marks! Use them

where exact wording is crucial to prevent misinterpretation and confusion over motions. Other things -

reports, announcements, etc. - may be paraphrased.

The last paragraph must always include the time of adjournment.

Unfortunately, only so much information can be placed in the

Informer - these are only the basics, - but there are other

resources you can access for more details on minutes:

Join the “Florida TSA Secretaries” page on Facebook: it has

PowerPoints and sample minutes from the most recent

Leadership Conferences posted on it.

Email florida.tsa.officers@gmail.com if you have any questions.

No matter who says what about writing minutes, there will only

be one ultimate authority on minute writing: the most recent

edition of Robert’s Rules.

I hope you learned more about minutes, and good luck with all your endeavors!

Molly Sun

@fltsa

Ma

Running for State Office By Valentina Fernandez

Running for state office may seem intimidating at first, but it is an eye opening experience that will give you a refreshing perspective of Florida TSA. Being a State Officer will teach you a lot about cooperation, respon-sibility, creativity, and fun! Before you make your final decision about running, you should ask yourself a few questions: will you have enough time to make this commitment? Are you able to sacrifice a few week-ends to plan the best leadership conference yet? Are you ready to begin working with five other leaders that you will end up creating unforgettable bonds with?

If you answered yes to all three of those questions, there is no excuse holding you back. It is time to start prepping for one of the most exciting experiences a TSA leader can have!

First, you want to make sure that you are aware of all application deadlines. Check the Florida TSA website for any updates and track dates. The application consists of signing a contract indicating that you under-stand all of the responsibilities and rules that come with being a state officer, receiving many signatures from school administrators, submitting a resume, headshot, and your official transcripts. You will also be asked to send in one letter of recommendation. This should be written by a person who can highlight your worth ethic and best attributes as a leader. Give yourself enough time to gather everything before the deadline so that you have time to be flexible if any errors occur in the process.

After your application has been approved, you are ready to begin the fun part! Start making final decisions for your campaign. Make sure that you choose an appropriate and creative approach that represents you and gives TSA members insight on your goals within the short period of time that you have to campaign. If you're purchasing wristbands, pins, or any campaign material, plan them out early. Make sure to pre-pare for your speech by writing several drafts and delivering it to your friends and family. Remember that you want to emphasize your best characteristics and skills.

Once the state conference arrives, the best advice I could offer is to be yourself. Always remember to carry yourself professionally, and make memories. You have worked hard for many months and now you have to showcase yourself to a delegation in just three days. Don’t pretend to be someone that you are not. Show your enthusiasm, make new friends, and meet your fellow candidates. Make the best out of your time running for office!

Best of luck,

Valentina Fernandez, State Reporter

@fltsa