LASN is a photographically oriented, professional journal featuring topics of concern and state-of-the-art projects designed or influenced by registered Landscape Architects.
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letters professional initials and landscape architects In the Landscape Architecture Magazine article ���Your New Initials��� (January 2012), the article begins by asking ���RLA, CLA, LLA���what does it all mean?��� I would suggest the more important question is What should it mean, and to whom? What we call ourselves, whether by name or abbreviation, should mean a great deal to us all. It should also mean something to our clients and the public at large. For most of the public a bunch of letters following someone���s name probably means very little. The PLA designation is very different from pretty much anything in common use by landscape architects and adds to the confusion, which might explain why so few landscape architects are using PLA. The article states many ���make up their own abbreviation,��� implying this lack of cooperation and consensus in what we call ourselves is a bad thing. If that is true, then the PLA designation is also a bad thing for the simple reason that it was established not by broad consensus of membership, but by the top down approval of the ASLA Board of Trustees. This is especially ironic since landscape architects commonly work in a realm where consensus building is often a part of the scope of our work. We make [consensus] part of our project work because it makes better projects that are more connected to the community. This step was missed in making PLA the ASLA recommended professional designation. I do recognize the good intentions and hard work of our trustees, but believe that only our membership at large can answer a question this important. By abandoning the legal title designations provided for by state statute, it may be used as another justification for deregulating the profession, since licensed and registered individuals aren���t exercising their legal professional title. I understand that statute may not specifically prohibit the use of an acronym like PLA, but I do believe that it adds no clarity to our efforts toward recognition as design professionals. The article goes on to say: ���There is no consistent way for landscape architects to indicate they are licensed.��� That is simply not true. In the January 2013 issue of Landscape Architect and Specifier News, publisher George Schmok touched on the subject of professional credentials. The editorial states: ���It is counterproductive to not have a standard.��� While I agree, I would suggest the more important statement should be there is an opportunity to take a bold and clear step forward for the benefit of the landscape architecture profession. There is a clear and simple solution. Abandon all the initials and use Landscape Architect instead. Landscape architect is the common legal thread and earned title for licensed and registered individuals throughout the country. Without being licensed or registered you cannot legally use the term landscape architect. Isn���t the use of the title the most desirable professional recognition, the clearest statement, the most understandable to clients, family, friends and the public? Why would landscape architects want to be similar to professional engineers (PE) or professional land surveyors (PLS)? Landscape architects by nature ���march to the beat of their own drum.��� We have struggled and continue to struggle with defining our identity and commanding a societal understanding of what role we play in our diverse realm of professional expertise. I sat for my national exam as soon as I was eligible. When I became registered (now licensed) it was a tremendous sense of accomplishment for me, and an even larger personal and professional achievement; not because I could place the initials RLA or LLA after my name, but because I could legally and proudly call myself a Landscape Architect! Keith Cheli, landSCape arChiteCt northern Michigan Bill SanderS, landSCape arChiteCt sanders & czapski associates To view full letter, go to LandscapeOnline.com Article #17472 and read the comments. Re ��Sully��Stamped Into Our History�� (article # 17471 on LandscapeOnline.com): Finally picked up the latest issue of LASN. I always flip right to what you have to say in the publisher���s corner...then check the ad count...then see if there is anything in there I want to read. One word stopped me. Sully. I knew what your statement was going to say. Francis Sullivan. A man I admire. There are a few people, from those very impressionable days of our youth when we were first trying to get this Francis W. ���sully��� thing off the ground, that left a lasting impact sullivan (april 2, 1920 ��� Jan. 1, on my life. Sully was one of them. You nailed his 2013) character pretty well. He was a gentleman. He was all for us. He never hesitated when asked for help. He also never hesitated when he thought we were screwing up, to have a gentle word with us. But his message was always clear, and we listened. He always impressed me with that because you never listened to anybody, except the few that you mentioned in your statement. I was not in the business all that long. Long enough to know that you were going to get this thing magazine rolling and keep it rolling. But, I venture to say, without the support of these key folks our job might have been daunting, to say the least. It was difficult enough as it was. I occasionally think of these folks as I go through my business day. Don Roberts...just shaking his head at our ignorance to the 16 Landscape Architect and Specifier News profession and then ���coaching us up.��� Kay Tiller...ripping into me about something I had put into the magazine that was flat out wrong or that she did not agree with...and then giving me a hug. But Sully, he has stuck in my mind as the best leader to me, in those early days. He believed. He believed that a couple of young punks could take an idea that challenged the status quo and make a go of it...as he had challenged the status quo himself in his business life. I very distinctly remember the conversation, to this day, when I asked him for money so we could pay the printer. He told me of a time when he had turned to a mentor for money, and it was granted, and he never looked back. He was returning the favor. LASN and George Schmok have never looked back...except to thank those that made it happen. Thank you, Sully. Your legacy lives on. Marty SMith VanWell Masonry, snohoMish, Wash. submit You can submit letters to the editor via three avenues: Mail: LASN - 14771 Plaza Dr. Suite M Tustin, CA 92780 Website: www.landscapeonline.com (Click on the ���Submit Letters to Editor��� box) e-Mail: skelly@landscapeonline.com