Chapter Committees

Committees are imperative to achieving the goals and carrying out the mission set forth by the Chapter leadership. Several committee were formed as described below. If you wish to volunteer your time on any of these committees please email Chapter President Jeff Ray at jray@jeo.com. 

• Mentorship and Student Outreach – This committee encourages student participation in APA Nebraska Chapter activities, including attending the State and National Planning Conferences, in addition to operating the APA NE Mentor Match Program which matches students and emerging professionals with experienced planners. This Committee works closely with UNL Faculty and the Student Planning Association of Nebraska to match mentors and mentees and to provide opportunities for networking and professional development. If you are interested in participating as a mentor or mentee, please contact Cale at cbrodersen@cityoflavista.org.
• Emerging Planners Group – this committee was developed a few years ago to provide networking opportunities for students and new professionals in the planning field. Kurt Elder, City of Lincoln, and Cale Brodersen have taken over this year as co-chairs and are currently planning a reception for all APA-NE members at the spring Nebraska Planning Conference in Kearney.
• Conference Committee – this important group puts countless hours into planning and organizing our annual conference in Kearney as well as the fall workshop. 
• Legislative Committee – this committee is currently monitoring planning, real estate and land use related legislation being considered by the Nebraska Legislature as well as the U.S. Congress. Committee Co-Chair David Levy has been providing his law firm’s legislative newsletter, the Baird Holm Dirt Alert, for distribution to our Chapter membership. As legislation important to our profession is introduced, the committee will keep the Board and membership updated, and possibly ask the organization to take positions or volunteer to testify before the legislature. In the future, we hope to organize an APA-NE Legislative Day at the capitol to help build relationships with our state senators.
• Awards/Nominations Committee – this committee is responsible for getting nominations for the various awards presented by the Chapter each year at the annual conference. They also coordinate the awards jury, which is comprised of professional planners from neighboring state chapters. In addition, they assure that the awards are ordered and ready for presentation at the conference. They will also help to coordinate nominations for Executive Board elections in the coming months. 
• Communications & Public Relations Committee – this group is responsible for the writing and editing of our new Chapter newsletter, managing the chapter website, and coordinating social media activities. They will also continue coordinating National Community Planning Month efforts for the Chapter. We are always in need of more volunteers to develop newsletter content or manage social media accounts.
• Allied Professional Collaborations – while not a committee, APA Nebraska is working to find ways to partner with allied professional groups to provide additional training and networking opportunities through events, workshops, etc. They are also looking at ways to offer planners opportunities to present sessions at other conferences as well as having other related professions present at our conferences and workshops. We invite a representative from each allied profession, including AIA, ASLA, and others to serve as a liasion to our board, keeping each other informed about upcoming opportunities to partner and share knowledge across professions.