PDCA is pleased to announce the recent hiring of Kathy Harper as its manager of education and events. Harper brings with her years of experience working with non-profit associations, including a 10-year tenure with the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE).
"In my position at AACE, I worked extensively with doctors, which meant a lot of education programs and credits," she said. "I often worked with the chapters of AACE, planning their education, coordinating with exhibitors, hotels, program management and those types of responsibilities. I'm excited to apply my knowledge in these areas to working with PDCA."
Primarily, Harper will be responsible for planning and organizing PDCA's educational programming and events.
"I'm really excited to learn in a new field, coming from the medical industry," she said. "It will be a bit of an adjustment in terms of professional development and how the educational opportunities are presented. I think the environment will be a little more relaxed, and so I'll be learning how everything gets done and figuring out the best way to help PDCA's programming grow."
Her first project will be to dive into the planning and organizing for PDCA's 22nd Annual International Conference and Expo, taking place July 9 to 12 in Orlando, Fla.
"I might as well dive into the deep end of the ocean!" she said.
In addition to working on conference logistics and programming, she's looking forward to expanding her skillset.
"I'm eager to take on more responsibility," she said. "In terms of marketing and sponsorships, I'll be growing my own education in those areas. And of course, I'm hoping to provide the best possible education and programming to PDCA's members. The association already provides valuable technical knowledge to its members and it's exciting to now be a part of that process and to see where there are areas for improvement."
Outside of the office, Harper enjoys reading and watching movies, and runs around after her two sons, aged 4 and 7.
Harper joins the other PDCA staff members Frank Peters (executive director), Matt Bisbee (director of member services) and Marian McMillin (office manager and executive assistant) in the PDCA office, located at 33 Knight Boxx Road, Suite 1 in Orange Park, Fla.
PDCA members can be in touch with Harper if they have questions or need assistance regarding any of PDCA's meetings, such as event programming or registration. Harper can also be contacted with feedback about PDCA's website, www.piledrivers.org.
Harper can be contacted via her email address, kathy@piledrivers.org, or by phone at 904-215-4771. Please feel free to reach out to Harper to welcome her to the association.