4 The Oregon Surveyor | Vol. 45, No. 6 From the PLSO Office Aimee McAuliffe, PLSO Exec. Secretary Education and Experience There has been a lot of discussion about education and experience of late. At the PLSO State Board and Committee level, we have a pretty even mix of surveyors who earned their licensure by degree versus experience only. Further dissected, among those who earned their license through field experience only, there is a mix between those who had to complete 8 or 12 years in the field to qualify. No matter what pathway to licensure any of them took, all of them have worked hard to earn the designation and are successful and respected amongst their peers. They are all involved in their professional community at various time commitment and experience levels. They legitimately care about the future of Oregon’s professional surveying workforce and want to protect the rights of the public. As a director of a professional member-driven organization, there isn’t much more you could ask for (other than just plain more of it all—people, time, motivation). If you have been paying attention to chapter discussions and general community chatter, OSBEELS has asked for input over the past fewmonths from various stakeholders’ groups on proposed changes to licensure requirements. PLSO is one stakeholder group. Others include college educators, OACES, and Oregon’s land surveying exam development team. For PLSO’s purposes, we have taken part in conversations at the board level with and without OSBEELS, and each chapter representative has taken it to their chapters for their input. All feedback was provided in written form and culminated in a lengthy discussion at the State Board Meeting in Bend on September 24. Whether one thought that experience requirements should be at 9 or 12 years, I think that there is one thing that we all can agree on: PLSO can either represent our highly respected successful professionals through active partnership and communication with OSBEELS, or we can foster a poor working relationship, which would ultimately lead to being circumvented on other important decisions regarding licensure in the future. I am happy to say that your Board has served you well in their ability to discuss, compromise, prioritize, and communicate. While PLSO’s role was merely to provide feedback and guidance, in speaking with OSBEELS Administrator Jason Barbee, I know that it was all taken into account. We all look forward to the ultimate decision, which is made by OSBEELS. Jason has let me know that they will provide plenty of communication about any changes that get made, and as per usual, PLSO has invited OSBEELS to present at the conference this coming January. Speaking of the conference, our 2023 event is set for January 18–20 at the Salem Convention Center. It will most likely have a virtual aspect to it again, but it will not be every session. If you would like to give feedback on what types of sessions should be made available online, please contact our Conference Committee (contact info is on page 23 of this magazine). Nearly all programs of PLSO are member driven. This means that your voice is as valuable as anybody else’s—you just need to lend it. Obviously, it’s going to go further if you’ve timed the lending of your voice during the planning portion of things, which is right now. Once decisions have been made, it gets a little harder to react to your concerns. Feedback includes topics you want to learn more about and speakers you’d like to see. I know you all have opinions, so the time is now to share what will make you want to attend. I am happy to say that your Board has served you well in their ability to discuss, compromise, prioritize, and communicate. We all look forward to the ultimate decision, which is made by the OSBEELS State Board.
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