A Message from the President

Hello TAPPA,

I hope this letter finds all of you well, even with the time change. It’s “Fall Back” Time for some of your technicians to change the batteries and reset the clocks. If you’re like me, it’ll take at least six months to get used to it.

The TAPPA Board had a great retreat at the site of our next conference in Denton and if you haven’t already “saved the date,” don’t forget: April 23-25, 2023. Follow the link: https://tappa.net/event/2023savethedate

The 2023 TAPPA Annual Conference “Call for Presentations” is out! Our theme is “Pathways to Success.” Submit your abstract here: 2023 TAPPA Annual Conference: Call for Presentations

We’d love to hear from our colleagues about what is (and isn’t) working in your facility. Just a few topics that have worked in the past are organizational safety programs, preventive maintenance programs, residence hall and dining partnerships with facilities, grounds maintenance innovations and planning, procurement initiatives and best practices, hvac trends, costs of ownership, deferred maintenance, and labor shortfalls. This is a great opportunity to tell your story and to collaborate with your peers. Submission deadline is Dec. 16, so get yours in now to be considered.

Of other noted importance, the Board discussed how TAPPA could reach out to institutions across the state and one idea we came up with was to have informal, smaller groups gather based on their region. We are currently arranging such a meeting in the Waco area. We are working through the details, so keep an eye out for that announcement.

Again, I want to remind everyone of our awards program. We have three different areas where you can recognize someone within your organization or maybe that special business partner. The three categories are:

• Facility Management Distinguished Service Award
• Business Partner Distinguished Service Award
• Stars Across Texas Award

You can reach out to myself, wls1@txstate.edu or David Reynolds at dreynolds@f-w.com with any awards questions.

Sincerely,

Wm. “Shorty” Schwartz, President, TAPPA