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Happy Summer, docents! I am sure that by now you read Ellen Shubart’s excellent summation on the State of the Move, and that you have signed up for the new tours that will leave the Center starting in August. Exciting times, indeed.

This month, I wanted to bring everyone into the loop about a major meeting Docent Council held earlier this month. CAF’s evolution into the Chicago Architecture Center has also encouraged the docents to make some adjustments of our own. Docent Council will continue in its role as advocate for docent interests and custodians of self-government, but we have carved out an ambitious program of goals for the next eighteen months.

Check out the table that summarizes these initiatives HERE. You will see that our ideas are very far-ranging, from the philosophical to the pragmatic, from immediate concerns to long-range plans. We hope to address all aspects of docent life – issues like sign-up procedures, requirements to maintain active status, recognition for outstanding contributions – and bring the role of docent council into sharper relief.

We welcome you feedback on this agenda. Committees and task forces will need members and your participation is encouraged. Feel free to ask me any questions you may have. I say this with an eye towards the fall, when election season will be upon us. Six seats on Docent Council will be available, as well as one slot for the Docent-at-Large. I hope that many of you, now that the big training/recertification issue is complete, will consider running for a seat.

There are a little over 70 days to go until the new Center opens, and fewer than that until we move tour operations to 111 E Wacker. I reiterate what Ellen said last week: there will be many opportunities for orientation to our new space before we set out on tours and there will be lots of your colleagues around to help ease the transition and troubleshoot any glitches. A small committee is in place to oversee orientation and they will meet before the end of the month, with a schedule of planned activities one of their first goals.

As I have said many times Watch the Bridge. Events will be moving swiftly over the next two months and it is important for us all to be as informed as possible about developments. There will be major media and advertising campaigns. Pay attention to bus tails and bus shelters. We’ll be in social media and traditional media. Expect a refinement on our red bull’s eye logo, new name badges and new apparel.

During the month of August, as the organization transitions from CAF to CAC and moves its operations in phased steps until “The Big Reveal” on August 31st, there is more at stake for us than simply guaranteeing the revenue stream. (Though that is not to be underestimated!). We will be the continuity, the normality, the business-as-usual at CAC that the public will encounter. Please contribute your enthusiasm, your engaging demeanor and, in this month of Gay Pride, your Docent Pride – in the name of this great new venture, the Chicago Architecture Center.

Your colleague in red shirt-ness, Constance