Candidate Guidance Committee
The purpose of the Candidate Guidance Committee is to discuss issues impacting Candidates for Designation, to enhance communications among Candidates of the Chapter and between Candidates and the Regional and national organizations, to encourage Candidates to complete the designation process and to develop future leaders for the Chapter and the organization as a whole.
There is an annual Rio Grande Chapter Scholarship available to chapter Candidates working toward either the SRA or MAI designation. A full description of the scholarship application criteria is available on the Chapter website (http://ai-riogrande.org).
We encourage all Candidates for Designation to attend chapter meetings, but acknowledge that meeting in Albuquerque is not possible for many of you. For more information regarding this committee, or if you have questions or suggestions for how we might make the Rio Grande Chapter Candidate Guidance committee more effective in serving you, contact Michael Dry, at (505) 988-8059,
The Capstone program, a recently developed option for completing the demo, was recently offered in Albuquerque. Four candidates from the Rio Grande Chapter attended the program. The facilitators for the program were Jim Amorin, MAI, SRA, AI-GRS (past president of the AI and primary developer of the Capstone program) and J. Scott Robinson, MAI, SRA, AI-GRS (current VP of the AI and 2016 president).
When asked about their experience, the feedback from the candidates was overwhelmingly positive.
Steve Brooks, Las Cruces: “Our instructors included both a past and future President of the Appraisal Institute, so the wealth of knowledge available when answering questions was fantastic.”
Tim Connelly, Santa Fe: “It was difficult, but it’s our best learning tool.”
Kathleen McLeroy, Albuquerque: “I really do recommend Capstone to someone looking to get their MAI but they have to know and understand that it is not easy…”
Ian Valenzuela, Albuquerque: “Overall, the Capstone experience was overwhelmingly positive for me.”
Jim Amorin, MAI, SRA, AI-GRS: “The process is not easy; I think anyone who goes through it will tell you it is challenging. We made the process rigorous, but fair. I think just about everyone who has commented to me about it has said they learned something and that was a bit of surprise for them.”
The candidates from the Rio Grande Chapter enjoyed a 100% success rate. Congratulations to each and every one of you.
Since completing the Capstone Program, Steve Brooks, Kathleen McLeroy, Tim Connelly, and Ian Valenzuela have been awarded the MAI designation. Congratulations!
