Last week I had surgery on my ankle and was sent home wearing an air cast.  I was told I should walk on that foot but be very careful.  Because the surgery was in Roseburg, but we live in Salem, we needed that inevitable rest stop.  As I hovered next to the car, afraid to take a single step, several people stopped and asked if I needed assistance.  A young man came running up and offered me the crutches that happened to be in his car.  He only asked that, when I no longer needed them, I pass them on to someone else.  It really lifted my spirits.

At our fall convention in October, I asked our attendees to think back to how they got started in the profession.  It was fun to hear (or read in the chat box) their stories.  I learned about court reporting in a high school career class in northern California.  There was a shortage at that time because the previous generation was retiring.  It was a great alternative to a four-year degree.  You could get through in two years if you worked hard.  Artificial intelligence was just enough of a threat for us to learn to write verbatim because some day they were going to compare our transcripts to recordings.  Sound familiar?

I chose "Back to the Future" as our fall convention theme because I believe that we have come full circle.  There is a shortage of reporters as our generation retires.  It is still a great alternative to a four-year degree.  You can get through school in two years if you work hard.  There will always be the threat of new and evolving technology, but we have something that computers don't have and never will have, and that's human discernment.

This year I will be working closely with the Prospective Student Outreach committee to launch a student recruitment effort.  SHELLENE IVERSON, JAN SCHMITT, and VANESSA STANTON are our committee members.  Please contact them if you would like to get involved.  KELLY ANTRIM has created a Google doc for us listing every high school in Oregon.  Once we compile that information, we can provide material on stenography as a profession and watch our numbers grow.

Going forward, please don't criticize or tear down other professionals or firms despite their business practices.  If you feel threatened by digital or artificial intelligence, keep improving your skills and gaining those credentials so that your work speaks for itself.  Support and care for each other and your community.  Extend a kindness.  Smile at someone. Share this great profession with the next generation.  In other words, "pass it on."

Kelly Polvi, CSR, RDR, FCRR, President