IFDA elects officers; Jeross is 2006 president
By Furniture Today Staff -- Furniture Today, March 13, 2006
Princeton Junction, N.J. — Mark H. Jeross has been elected 2006 president of the International Furnishings and Design Assn.
He is the national sales manager of Royal Crest, a manufacturer of custom window coverings in Oak Park, Mich. He has been an active IFDA member since 1995, and is a former president of the Michigan chapter.
"Our thrust this year will be to increase our membership and infuse new excitement into the organization," said Jeross. "I am particularly pleased to announce the formation of the new Richmond, Va., chapter, which I see as a springboard to the creation of other new chapters — not only in the United States, but also in other parts of the globe."
With 15 chapters plus a recently formed unit in China, IFDA draws professionals from design, manufacturing, retailing, marketing, advertising, education and public relations.
Other new officers include Judith Clark-Janofsky, president-elect, who is an interior designer and owner of Danville, Calif.-based Design Elements; and Sheila Cole, treasurer, whose interior design firm, Shecole, is in Minneapolis.
New directors at large are Rose Gilbert of New York, Ann Unal of Washington, D.C., and Karen Wirrig of Arizona.
Returning to the board are Carolyn Meek of New England, secretary and chapter liaison; Joan Summers Croft of northern California, assigned to membership; and Mervyn Kaufman of New York, who will oversee public relations/marketing. Lana Seagren, an Arizona-based interior designer, is treasurer-elect. Past President Lee Coggin of Georgia is advisor to the board.
Presiding over the Educational Foundation, IFDA's nonprofit grant- and scholarship-awarding wing, is Wilma Hammett of the Carolinas chapter.
IFDA's first International Board and Council of Presidents meetings took place earlier this month in Atlanta. The opening day kickoff speaker was James Hawreluk of the consulting firm Predictive Index, who discussed developing and refining people skills, and how to have a sharp approach to doing projects.
