Category: Club Officer Training

Summer 2023 Club Officer Training Announced!

Posted on | by Andrew Watt, DTM

Program Quality Director Patti Walter and incoming Program Quality Director Bettyann Peck invite you to Summer Club Officer Training (COT)!

This training will be Online – register below!

We have adjusted the training to be more flexible.  There will be 3 classes that each officer must take.  The first is on your specific club officer role, the second is on Club Success planning and the third is an elective of your choice that you can choose from available options on the day you attend.
You will notice that we will offer all classes during some sessions and others will be only for one specific session. Some training dates only offer one class, while other dates offer multiple classes to provide you with as much scheduling flexibility as possible.

Multi-Part Lunchtime Sessions

  • June 12, June 20, June 29
    Online Officer Training (Lunchtime Series)
    attend all three 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm sessions for credit
    More information here
  • July 13, July 19, July 24
    Online Officer Training (Lunchtime Series
    attend all three 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm sessions for credit
    More information here

Online Club Officer Training

In Person Training

We have also scheduled two to have in-person sessions this time for those who prefer an in-person training experience.

Please see more information here.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/D53COT-Registration

Remember that one of the Distinguished Club Program goals is to get 4 or more officers trained each 6 months. But we are asking that your club goal is each club set a goal to get all officers trained. Research has shown the more clubs that are successful have that clubs with all officers trained are much more successful. 

Train the Trainers Events

Posted on | by Andrew Watt, DTM

District Program Quality Director Patti Walter, DTM, is pleased to announce trainings for interested persons who would like to help facilitate the Club Officer Training sessions during the June to August 2023 training season — Train the Trainers!

The Train the Trainers sessions, for people willing to be facilitators for the Club Officer Trainings in June, July and August 2023, will take place on:

  • May 25, 2023 at 6:30 pm (Zoom link below)
  • May 30, 2023 at 6:30 pm (Zoom link below)

Facilitators…

  • give keynote addressess
  • lead conversations on officer roles in the club
  • facilitate sharing between people new to roles and old hands
  • guide and direct new club officers in their duties
  • help draw wisdom and experience from those who’ve done this role before

The skills you learn as a facilitator include…

  • Giving a presentation from an outline and script you did not create;
  • learning to make a canned presentation your own
  • managing time in an hour-long presentation
  • managing an audience which isn’t just your club’s members

As a facilitator, or a facilitator-in-training, you also…

  • make contacts beyond your own club
  • learn to hear from a diversity of voices
  • learn to summarize and synthesize a range of opinions quickly
  • learn your own role in the club from other Toastmasters in different situations

Join an upcoming Train the Trainer session, and contribute to your club, Area, Division and District’s success!

Topic: Train the Trainer
Time: This is a recurring meeting Meet anytime

Join Zoom Meeting

Officer Roles: Help Your Club Grow & Succeed!

Posted on | by Stephanie Roy

You signed up for Toastmasters to work on your leadership skills. Now, it’s time to lead.

Your club needs YOU to succeed.

And it doesn’t take more than an hour or two a month.

The first week of May is officer election time. We are all contributing members to our clubs. It is ALL our responsibilities to help the club succeed.

If it’s your turn to step up for your club, here are some things to think about:

Which Officer Role should you volunteer for?

If you’re at almost every meeting. If you enjoy encouraging others and leading a team to success. If you DON’T like a lot of admin type work, you will enjoy the President role.

If you have attention to detail and like numbers and data, you will enjoy the Treasurer role.

If you like taking notes and tracking action steps to keep your team on track to success, you will enjoy the Secretary role.

If you like guiding people towards growth and encouraging them to challenge themselves. If you like ensuring that those acts are rewarded and recognized, you will enjoy the Vice President of Education role.

If you like sharing socially and spreading the word about Toastmasters and your club, you will enjoy the Vice President of Public Relations role.

If you like nurturing relationships and welcoming new members, you will enjoy the Vice President of Membership role.

If you like creating a positive, focused, welcoming environment, you will enjoy the Sergeant-At-Arms role.

Time Commitments for each Officer Roles

President: commit to showing up to as many meetings as possible to lead

VP of Education: connect briefly with members at meetings or outside of the meetings about their Pathways progress. Update Basecamp and TI as needed.

VP of Membership: Check-in with members when their attendance is lagging and communicate with inquiries and guests

VP of Public Relations: find opportunities to promote the club in your area and online

Treasurer: main duties happen twice a year in renewal periods

Secretary: attend as many meetings as possible to take appropriate notes. Update TI as needed.

Sergeant-At-Arms:  commit to showing up to as many meetings as possible to ensure the room (virtual or in-person) is set up

Key tasks for success:

President (Role Overview):

  • Provide positive leadership to all officers and members
  • Build a cohesive team and ensure all tasks are completed
  • Oversee and facilitate club meetings
  • Lead by example and treat all members fairly and equally

VP of Education (Role Overview):

  • Set club agenda and assign meeting roles
  • Manage member progress in Pathways and act as the primary Base Camp Manager
  • Encourage member engagement in the Pathways learning experience
  • Plan speech contests (with help from your officer team)

VP of Membership (Role Overview):

  • Initiate contact with guests and help them feel welcome
  • Provide hospitality and membership information for guests
  • Reply to all communications from prospective members in a timely manner
  • Manage the process of converting guests to members

VP of Public Relations (Role Overview):

  • Promote the club to eligible guests and notify the media regarding the club’s existence and benefits
  • Develop and maintain club social media pages and website
  • Create club publicity campaigns
  • Ensure the Club Contact and Meeting Information is up to date in Club Central

Treasurer (Role Overview):

  • Record and maintain accurate and up-to-date financial club records
  • Manage club bank account, make deposits, and write checks as approved
  • Collect and submit membership and renewal dues
  • Create a budget and lead an annual audit

Secretary (Role Overview):

  • Take minutes at club and executive committee meetings
  • Organize and maintain club records and files
  • Update and distribute membership rosters
  • Update the club and officer list at Toastmasters International

Sergeant-At-Arms (Role Overview):

  • Store club equipment and materials
  • Manage meeting facilities (virtual and/or in-person)
  • Provide hospitality and membership information for guests
  • Distribute club materials

Important final note: YOU ARE NOT ALONE! There is a team of District Leaders that have your back. Find out who your Area and Division Directors are. Attend Officer Training in the spring and fall and ASK QUESTIONS! We are here to help you and your club succeed AND have fun doing it 🙂

Essential Resources from Toastmasters International:

Need Club Officer Training? Check These Out

Posted on | by Andrew Watt, DTM

You can attend a Club Officer Training in another Toastmasters District.  If you do, be sure to post your training date and the District attended at https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/AlternateCOT.  We will reach out to the other district to validate your training attendance.  We can’t guarantee your club will get training credit unless you post your attendance in this AlternateCOT log.

Listed below are several opportunities that we selected because they are all online and have a format similar to what we use in District 53.  All times listed have been adjusted to EST.

DateTimeHost DistrictRegistration Link
Mon, 01-30-239:30-11:00pmDistrict 1 (CA)Register
Sat, 02-04-2310:00am-2:00pmDistrict 27 (VA, DC, MD)Register
Mon, 02-06-239:30-11:00pmDistrict 1 (CA)Register
Sat, 02-11-2310:00am-NoonDistrict 46 (NY)Register
Sat, 02-11-2312:30pm-2:30pmDistrict 46 (NY)Register
Sun, 02-12-232:00pm-4:00pmDistrict 36 (DC, MD)Register
Wed 02-15-236:00pm-9:00pmDistrict 10 (OH)Register
Wed, 02-15-239:00pm-12:00amDistrict 57 (CA)Register
Wed, 02-16-236:00pm-8:30 pmDistrict 10 (OH)Register
Sat, 02-18-2310:00am-1:00pmDistrict 14 (GA)Register
Sat, 02-18-2311:45am-3:00pmDistrict 39 (CA)Register
Tue, 02-21-239:00-11:00pmDistrict 101 (CA)Register
Wed, 02-23-236:00-9:00pmDistrict 10 (OH)Register
Thu, 02-23-239:00pm-12:00amDistrict 57 (CA)Register
Sat, 02-25-2311:00am-1:00pmDistrict 36 (DC, MD)Register
Sat, 02-25-2312:00noon-2:00pmDistrict 101 (CA)Register
Tue, 02-28-237:00-9:30pmDistrict 83 (NY, NJ)Register

From the PQD – 12 February 2023

Posted on | by Andrew Watt, DTM

We are 2 months into 2023 and there is so much that has happened — and so much to come.

Here is what is going on with Program Quality, which deals with our education, training, and contest programs.

Patti Walter, Program Quality Director

Officer Training: Officer training is completed. My thanks for the help of Chad Babcock. Stephanie Roy and Mohan Padamati, who put the program together. Also, thanks to the number of facilitators that stepped up to present at one of our sessions. Missed training? Don’t worry! If you missed training you can find other Districts’ trainings on our website.

Conference: COME ONE COME ALL!!!! TICKETS ARE ON SALE!!! Come join us at our 2023 spring conference. “SPRINGboard to Success.” The committee has planned a jammed pack day. Make a weekend of it and spend Sunday at the Basketball of Fame or MGM studios. Accredited Speaker Joe Grondin DTM will be doing our keynote along with other sessions. Come see old friends and make new ones. Looking forward to seeing you all.

Contests: The contest season is upon us. Area contests are under way and Division Contest will follow shortly afterwards. Consider volunteering for a functionary position or a judge if you are qualified. Send me an email at pqd@d53tm.org and I will get your name to our Chief Judge Andrew B. Watt DTM. A list of the scheduled contests is on our d53tm website. Come enjoy some great speakers.

Also remember we have other monthly events going on such as MMEP and Officer Forums. MMEP is open to all members and is held the first Wednesday of the month. This is a great place for members to get their questions answered and learn more about Toastmasters. It is held the first Wed of the month. The Officer Forum was created to give officers a chance to network. With elections coming up soon this is a great place to introduce potential officers to the role. So bring a guest or two…Dates and details can be found in our monthly newsletter and on this District calendar. (Note: if you are not receiving our monthly newsletter, please let me know so we can add you to the list at pqd@d53tm.org.

Remember, we are a village. I am asking you to step up to the plate and help us. The District has many volunteer positions open. Many will fit nicely into your Level 4 and Level 5 projects. Even if you only have 1 or 2 hours a week or 2 hours total, we can find something for you to do to build your confidence as a public speaker, and develop your leadership skills!

Patti Walter
District 53 Program Quality Director

Club Officer Training Elsewhere

Posted on | by Andrew Watt, DTM

What if you can’t attend any of District 53’s training dates this summer? You can look into attending in one of the other Districts in Region 9, thanks to the marvels of videoconferencing. Check out training dates in some of our partner districts in Region 9, covering the northeast US and maritime Canada!

District 31:

District 31 Officer Training

District 45:

District 45 Toastmasters Leadership Institutes

District 46:

DIstrict 46 Officer Training

District 61:

https://www.tmd61.com/events/tli/

As well as these additional trainings…

District 65:

https://tmdistrict65.org/category/training/

District 83:

District 83 Register for Training

District 119:

Event Calendar
Register for specific events under individual calendar items.

Club Officer Forums

Posted on | by Andrew Watt, DTM

Each year the District holds officer training sessions in summer and winter to better equip our club officers with the information they need to perform their positions to the best of their ability.

Wouldn’t it be nice to:

  • Build a network of others that are doing the same tasks as you?
  • Discuss what’s working and what’s not?
  • Let the district know how they can assist.

We are doing just that.

These forums are scheduled by officer position to be held quarterly from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm.  Their goals are to allow you to build connections within the organization to help you and your clubs grow.  You set the agenda.  Want to learn more about Pathways? We will get someone in there to do a training.  Having trouble with the Moments of Truth?  Don’t worry we got you covered.  You decide what to talk about.  

See the dates below for your scheduled sessions.  

These forums are open to all members. This is a great way to introduce others to leadership positions and build strength within our clubs.

PresidentVPEVPMVPPRSecTreasSAA
7/27/20227/26/2022*8/23/20228/24/20229/13/20229/14/20229/15/2022
10/20/202210/19/202211/16/202211/17/202212/13/202212/14/202212/15/2022
1/20/20231/19/20232/16/20232/17/20233/13/20233/14/20233/15/2023
4/20/20234/19/20235/16/20235/17/20236/13/20236/14/20236/15/2023

N.B., the VPE forum on 7/26 will have a guest speaker to assist first time VPE with navigation Base Camp and approving levels and paths.