PPAI’s Regional Association Council (RAC) Board met February 20–22 at PPAI Headquarters in Irving, Texas, for a strategic planning and training meeting with the Association’s Regional Relations group.

“The Regional Association Council is now 10 years old,” says Michele Packard-Milam, CAE, Director of Member and Regional Relations at PPAI. “The first five years was about regionals uniting together. The next five years, through the Affiliate Program, was about regionals uniting with PPAI. We are now entering the next phase where regionals can succeed through synergy by sharing their best practices and essential skills.”

The meeting included a strategic planning session, along with RAC Guru Camp, where 11 Board members learned how to become “local gurus” to the [regional] associations in their districts.

RAC President Kendra Kirks McDougal, MAS, says her personal motto for the council this year is “One vision.” “All the RAC Board is truly becoming more grassroots,” she says. “That means more communication, more hands-on. We’ll have templates and toolkits and other efforts to support the regionals.”

In addition, some of the RAC Board stayed on to participate in a Train the Trainer seminar hosted by Professional Development at PPAI February 22–24. Jeffrey Cufaude of Ideas Architect, a recognized leader in the design and facilitation of provocative learning and strategy development experiences, led the instructor training offered to those who presented at The Expo and the RAC Leadership Development Workshop.