Certification

["George F. Hayhoe III" <george -dot- hayhoe -at- SRS -dot- GOV>]

To many longtime STC members, especially those who were active at the
international level 10 years ago or more, "certification" is a dirty word
because the Society engaged in several rounds of study of this topic in the
70s and early 80s, only to conclude that while there was interest in the
topic as an abstraction, not enough members were willing to pay the cost of
certification.

Times have changed; the profession has changed; the Society and its members
have changed. STC is once again studying the subject (the Professionalism
Committee was given this action item by the board of directors at its
spring meeting).

It's good for us to be talking about the issues related to certification.
It's also important for us to consider not only the points Anne Halsey and
several earlier respondents raised, but the following as well:

1.      We need to seek certification for the right reasons.

Frustration over lack of respect in the workplace and over unqualified
colleagues who have little or no training or aptitude for technical
communication is not enough reason to set up a certification program. Those
who lack respect for us and what we do, and who hire unqualified people
won't be convinced by a program that WE establish.

2.      We need to acknowledge that certification will be expensive.

Professional certification programs cost significant money--preparation
courses, examinations, professional society dues, recertification training,
etc. STC can't underwrite the cost of certification for its members; that
will involve an additional cost. (By the way, I disagree vigorously with
Michael Uhl's suggestion that the Society doesn't do enough for its
members. Well, perhaps no organization can EVER do enough, but have you
seriously considered everything that STC does with our dues and the revenue
generated by conferences and other sources, Michael? More 25% of dues is
rebated to chapters to support their programs; most of the remaining
revenues fund extensive research, publication, recognition, and
professional development programs.)

3.      We need to educate ourselves and evangelize our colleagues.

If we're convinced that certification is the direction we should move in,
we need to read everything we can get our hands on about this subject, and
then we need to get the word out to others in our field. This thread is a
very good way to begin. Within STC, the Carolina chapter's meeting on the
subject sounds like an excellent idea. The Rochester chapter has also done
extensive work to explore the subject and educate its members during the
past year. But STC has 141 other chapters which need to do the same kinds
of things if a move toward certification is to be successful.

--George Hayhoe
  Senior Member
  South Carolina Chapter, STC