The Florida Government Communicators Association (FGCA) grew out of an organizational meeting of city and county public information officers in Tampa in 1987. FGCA became an official organization in 1989. The first official board meeting was held on September 22, 1989, in Miami. Attendees included Sonny Allen, Dave Byron, Jack Espinosa, Herb Luntz, Michael Moore, Jennifer Parramore, Carlton Proctor, Frank Rinella, Ed Smith, Nina Baranski, Sally Devaney, Ronnie Goodstein, Mary Matalobos, William Murphy, Karen Peterson, Joan Riedmiller, Steve Russell and Timothy Wiley.

• FGCA brings together professionals who face the same challenges;
• FGCA offers great networking;
• A strong bond between members; and,
• Size -- It is large enough to attract good speakers but small enough to know everyone.

Recognition. The popular FGCA Awards were initiated in Daytona in 1993. The following year the organization began a more active role in Florida's League of Cities and Association of Counties as well as at the annual Florida Governor's Hurricane Conference.

Long-Range Planning. A six-year discussion on FGCA memberships -- to extend to state organizations or not -- lead to the Board's decision to open membership to city, county and state employees in the year 2000.

The Strategic Plan. The 1999 Strategic Plan was developed as a class project by Bill Marcous, Kerry Lyons and Jay Marder, a.k.a., the Sanford Consulting Group, in Fall 1997. The class, Strategic Planning and Management was instructed by Mary Ann Feldheim, A.B.D., as a required course at the University of Central Florida's Master of Public Administration program. FGCA and the Sanford Consulting Group agreed to accomplish the Strategic Plan by written agreement. Early in the project, the Group met with FGCA's Board of Directors plus several past presidents to conduct a brainstorming session. This session allowed for a broad idea exchange that proved invaluable in the Strategic Plan's development. Subsequently, Bill Marcous presented a preliminary draft of the Plan to the Association at its annual meeting in November 1997. Based on positive feedback from members and further class instruction, the project was completed as presented herein.

The reader should recognize that a Strategic Plan represents an evolving project that is subject to change and modification over time. This Plan is intended to provide a basis for strategic actions by FGCA. The Association must continually reassess itself, consider and reconsider major issues and evaluate its actions with appropriate performance indicators.