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It's time to register for the ITEC Fall Conference and Submit Award Nominations
Hello Illinois CAD and Design Educators and Welcome back to a new school year! I hope you had a chance to relax, recharge, and spend quality time with family and friends over the summer. As we begin this year, I’m excited for all CTE educators and your students to have a successful and rewarding year! The Illinois Drafting Educators Association (IDEA) has several exciting opportunities and updates coming soon. Please be sure to share this message with fellow design educators and introduce it to any new colleagues joining your program. Wishing you all the best as we kick off another great year!
Fall Semester
We’re excited to continue growing our community through both membership renewals and new members. Educator dues are $20 if paid by December 31 and $40 if paid on or after January 1. You can easily complete the Membership Google Form and submit dues online by going to Join IDEA.
Fall Conference
Our annual fall conference will be held on October 24th and 25th at ISU and at The Uptown Marriott Normal Hotel. IDEA is once again working with TEAI to host and plan the conference. The latest information with links to registration can be found on the ITEC Home Page.
Call For Presenters - Share Your Expertise!
We’re hard at work planning a valuable and relevant conference designed to provide meaningful professional development for educators. As experts in teaching CAD, Drafting, and Design, your experience and ideas are what make this event impactful.
We’re always seeking fresh approaches and innovative strategies to keep students engaged in our courses. If you’re interested in presenting a session and showcasing the exciting activities happening in your classroom, please complete the Presenter Form to submit your session proposal.
As a thank you, presenters will receive free ITEC registration!
During the opening General Session, we will recognize excellence by presenting our annual awards. Nominations are now open—if you know someone deserving, we encourage you to submit their name!
Nomination forms are available for both the IDEA Educator of the Year and Friend of IDEA awards.
In addition, we are proud to offer the Dr. Ryan Brown Scholarship, awarded to a student attending Illinois State University who has participated in the IDEA State Competition (as a competitor, proctor, judge, or through other involvement).
Annual Membership Meeting
Our annual membership meeting is for all IDEA members and will be held in person at the fall conference on Friday, October 24th at 6:30 pm. The meeting will take place at Turner Hall. Food will be provided!
At the meeting we will hold our annual election of executive board officers and approval of appointed positions. This is a great opportunity for educators to get more involved with IDEA in positions of leadership, communication, financials, conference, and competition planning. We need your help!
Also at the meeting we will be looking at some proposed organizational changes and we are seeking your input and voice! We are always looking to do what is best for our students and teachers and the more involvement and ideas the better our organization will be.
IDEA State Competition
Our annual State CAD, Drafting, and Design Student Competition will be held at Illinois State University on Saturday, April 11, 2026.
Regional competitions will take place across the state between February 13 and March 20.
Stay tuned for additional details and registration information coming soon!
Thank You
Thank you for the dedication and hard work you put in every day to educate your students. You are making a real difference in the lives of countless young people by equipping them with the skills and confidence they need to succeed in college, the workforce, and as contributing members of society. Please let us know if there is any way we can better support you in your teaching and your students’ learning in Drafting and Design.
We also extend our heartfelt thanks to the IDEA Board of Officers for your passion, time, and effort in making our organization, conference, and competitions as impactful and successful as possible!
Sincerely,
Chris Komer – IDEA President
I.D.E.A. Important Dates
October 24th & 25th 2025: ITEC / IDEA Fall Conference
October 24th 2025: IDEA Annual Membership meeting @ Turner Hall after Tour bus returns
Yearly, December 1st: Architectural Design and Engineering Design Briefs will be posted to the competition page.
Yearly, February 1st: IDEA Regional Competition Registration Due
February 13th - March 20th 2026: IDEA Regional Competition Window
April 11th 2026: IDEA State Competition @ Illinois State University
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