These are interesting times to be a CFP® professional. With the uncertainty in the markets and economy, we’re working to address questions from our clients at the same time we’re dealing with questions of our own. But it’s also a time when it’s easy to recognize the value of our work for the American public. We see that value every day in the work we do to improve the lives of our clients and their families. And we’ve seen that value recognized more broadly as the media across the country has turned to CFP® certificants for insights on the current economic situation and guidance for helping Americans weather the changes.

Earlier this month, I had the honor of addressing a group of CFP® certificants who participated in an event designed to demonstrate the value of financial planning. More than 100 CFP® certificants gathered in Washington, DC to share their time and expertise by providing one-on-one consultations with the public. CFP Board’s Financial Planning Clinic drew hundreds of consumers with questions about their personal finances. For many, the event was their first contact with professionals who hold CFP® certification, and judging from the gratitude expressed by many attendees, the CFP® certificants at the Clinic represented our profession well. I am thankful for the contributions of each person who contributed to the success of the Financial Planning Clinic.

Many of us from the Board of Directors will be heading to Boston later this week for the Financial Planning Association’s annual conference. We look forward to seeing old friends and meeting new colleagues from the CFP® certificant community. If you see us, I encourage you to say hello and share your thoughts about how CFP Board can best further its mission to benefit the public by granting the CFP® certification and upholding it as the recognized standard of excellence for personal financial planning.

All of us on the Board of Directors value the input of our colleagues in the CFP® certificant community, and we continue our work toward establishing meaningful avenues of communication with you. We’ve recently released additional materials to help you see the work of the Board of Directors, including summaries of our recent meetings and CFP Board’s 2007 Annual Report. You can expect to receive invitations during the next few weeks to our second Business Update Webinar and another Webinar forum focused on implementation of CFP Board’s updated ethical standards. Planning is underway for a series of town hall meetings with certificants in 2009. And we welcome questions and comments to the Board of Directors’ dedicated e-mail address, BOD@CFPBoard.org.

I’m pleased to share that Bob Glovsky, CFP® has been elected 2009 Chair-Elect of the Board of Directors. Bob has been an active member of our community since CFP Board’s early years, and his experience with both the practice of financial planning and the administration of financial planning education programs gives him a broad perspective of our profession that has made him a valued contributor to the work of the Board of Directors. I am confident that CFP Board’s Board of Directors will continue to enjoy strong leadership in 2009 under the guidance of Bob and Marilyn Capelli Dimitroff, CFP®, 2009 Chair.

In closing, I’d like to thank Virginia Stanley, CFP® for her service on CFP Board’s Board of Directors. Ginny served as Chair of our Audit and Finance Committee over the past two years, and she was an active contributor to the Board’s work to keep the standards for CFP® certification rigorous and to increase public awareness of the value of financial planning. At the Board’s September meeting, we learned of her decision to resign from the Board for personal reasons. We will miss her insights and contributions to the Board’s work.

David G. Strege, CFP®
2008 Chair, Board of Directors
CFP Board

Contact CFP Board’s Board of Directors at BOD@CFPBoard.org.

The recent turmoil in the financial markets has focused the world’s attention on the regulation of the financial services industry. Even with the recent government bailouts of failing institutions and the proposals for additional actions, it’s now clear to everyone that there are limits to the government’s control and more evident than ever that improvements need to be made to protect the financial security of the American public. We haven’t lacked proposals for reforming aspects of the financial industry, but until now, they’ve been discussed primarily by insiders. We’re seeing that discussion broaden, and with it, we’re seeing a heightened sense of urgency for changes in regulation and oversight.

One of CFP Board’s purposes for moving to Washington, DC was to ensure that policy makers understand the benefits of financial planning and the important benefits that CFP® certification provides to the American public. Given the recent events, the timing of our move couldn’t be better. As we’ve established our presence here in the nation’s capital and reached out to the media and policy makers, we’ve found that those engaged in policy debates have been receptive to our message. They are impressed by the strength of the CFP® certification requirements. They understand that the public is served by standards that involve much more than completion of an educational program. They recognize the importance of high ethical standards that require financial services professionals to put the interests of their clients ahead of their own. They recognize that it is essential that ethical standards be accompanied with a rigorous enforcement process. They recognize the benefits the CFP® certification provides to the public that seeks financial planning services. And they appreciate that a private organization like CFP Board has taken up responsibility for setting and enforcing standards that might otherwise fall to the government.

CFP Board is not a lobbying organization, but as an organization that works in the public interest, we are well-positioned to educate policy makers on the benefits of financial planning and the important benefits that CFP® certification provides to the American public. Our work to date has set a strong foundation for those efforts, and we’ve recently taken meaningful steps toward implementing an ongoing strategy for CFP Board’s work in public policy. In addition to the recent hiring of Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis as CFP Board’s Managing Director of Public Policy, we have established a Public Policy Council to assist CFP Board in identifying significant public policy issues that affect CFP® certificants and the American public and developing policy positions for consideration and adoption by the Board of Directors. The individuals who have agreed to serve on our inaugural Council are an impressive group of CFP® certificants and others with experience in legislative, regulatory and policy matters relevant to the CFP® certification.

Public policy discussions are wide-ranging, and we intend to cast a similarly wide net for input and dialogue as CFP Board takes its place in these debates. The opinions and insights of the CFP® certificant community and others working in the public interest will be a vital factor in developing our policy positions and priorities. We will be updating CFP® certificants on policy development and we will be actively seeking your input through follow-up communications. We welcome your thoughts on the future of regulation in the financial services industry and CFP Board’s potential roles in any new regulatory environment as it seeks to increase access for the greater American public to professional, competent and ethical financial planning.

We know the financial services industry will soon undergo changes in structure and regulation, and it is important that those changes include strong ethical footings that benefit the public. We all benefit from high standards that allow consumers to trust the financial services professionals they work with and the services they receive. The rigorous standards of CFP® certification were designed to do that, and those involved in making reforms to the financial services industry will benefit from hearing more about the standards that have been embraced by the financial planning community. The work of CFP Board’s new Public Policy Council will play an important role in furthering the efforts of certificants and CFP Board to ensure that CFP® certification is recognized as the standard of excellence for personal financial planning.

Kevin R. Keller, CAE
CEO, CFP Board
CFP Board

Warren Buffett’s estate plan has to be one of the most fascinating financial documents in history. Describing how he intended to pass on his enormous wealth to his children, he is quoted as saying he would give them “enough so they could do anything, but not enough so they could do nothing.” In fact, managing the transfer of wealth between generations is a complex and often fraught process. A financial planning niche has sprung up to serve wealthy families looking to create a transition plan for their children and grandchildren: multi-family offices.

According to GenSpring Family Offices, headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, FL, wealthy families typically prefer to pass on nearly two-thirds of their wealth to their children, grandchildren and other heirs. Yet research suggests that only 30% of families are able to successfully do this. Infighting and lawsuits among family members and business partners can create enormous animosities, and poor financial management can quickly dissipate inherited funds. Multi-family offices are there to provide the financial guidance needed to make a successful transition and, if necessary, to offer mediation and support to help family members work through the emotional and psychological impact of that transition.

Chris Trokey, GenSpring vice-president and family investment officer, says the greatest compliment he ever had was when a client thanked him for “becoming an expert in our family.” According to Trokey, families are looking for advisors who listen, who are able to integrate the specific needs and wishes of an individual family into an overall management plan. “Before you can even think about investments, you have to be smart and listen to the family’s needs,” he says. “If done properly, this opens up lines of communication, increases trust, and makes the tactical decisions that come later easier.”

Founded in 1989, GenSpring currently works with some 600 families that have nearly $15 billion in assets under advisement. GenSpring operates on a fee-only basis, and does not sell or distribute any financial products. The firm has devised what it calls a “sustainability roadmap” to help clients nurture their wealth across generations.

For the family investment officer, the starting point on the road to sustainability is remaining unbiased. Parents may be feeling some angst because they are giving up control of their wealth. There may be rules and conditions that come with the inheritance. Children may be feeling unfairly treated, neglected, jealous, or even guilty about inheriting money they did nothing to earn. “The largest added value we can bring lies in being unbiased,” says Trokey. “Unbiased among siblings and between parents and children. We are not part of the family, so we don’t have the emotional history or baggage. It is crucial to stay non-emotional, to always bring the conversation back to the facts, the situation, the goal.”

When emotions do burst to the surface, Trokey thinks that can be a good thing: The advisor “must be a beacon for the family. Allow them to share their frustrations and emotions, and then get back to the issue at hand. It’s good for the emotions to get out on the table because they usually tend to work themselves out.”

Once the ground rules are laid down, the details of the financial plan can be worked out. This process involves everything from tax and estate-planning strategies to creating investment portfolios that ensure steady growth net of inflation, taxes, and spending. Successful families, GenSpring notes, “focus on investing for the next generation, not the next quarter.”

One of Genspring’s guiding principles is trading liquidity for return. “Some families have ten- to 50-year time horizons,” Trokey says. “They are looking to manage their wealth as far as two generations down the line. The challenge is to manage those assets to generate returns that will cover spending, taxes, and fees and still grow purchasing power.”

Because many families have the luxury of time with at least a portion of their assets, one opportunity GenSpring sees is direct lending to businesses. As the credit crunch constricts loans and banks continue to try to shore up their balance sheets, very sound businesses can often find it difficult to raise the capital they need to expand. “Families can provide liquidity to this starved environment and earn low double-digit returns,” says Trokey. “But you have to be patient and be willing to lock up your money for three to four years to get a good return.”

The common theme for all families, according to Trokey, is protection of capital. “They would rather compound in single digits year in and year out than have losses one year and then be up 20% the next year,” he says. “They are looking for consistent, modest growth.” The task of the family office is to find the right outside talent and then integrate the advice of those specialists to create a portfolio that matches the goals of the family.

With the financial capital taken care of, successful families take care of their human capital, too, by equipping family members with the personal and financial skills they will need to manage their wealth. GenSpring and other multi-family offices support this process by organizing retreats and family symposiums where advisors and family members can share experiences and best practices. Individual mentoring and one-on-one financial education can also be provided. For Trokey, it all serves the same goal: To successfully manage multi-generational wealth, “you’ve got to become an expert in the family.”

Online Resources

Family Firm Institute
The Family Firm Institute (FFI) is “an international professional membership organization providing interdisciplinary education and networking opportunities for family business advisors, consultants, educators and researchers.” The FFI holds an annual conference as well as regional seminars, and set up the Family Business Review, a scholarly journal about trends in the family business field, and the online publication FFI Practitioner, which focuses on the advising and consulting communities.

Family Office Exchange
The Family Office Exchange (FOX) serves as “an independent advisor to families of exceptional wealth, offering an education on complex financial issues and guidance on the selection of appropriate advisors.” The firm consults on best practices in wealth management, offers a database of leading advisors and resources, and advises on the design and implementation of family office services.

Family Wealth Alliance
The Family Wealth Alliance is “an independent advocate and objective resource for private families and the firms that serve them.” The firm helps private families find wealth managers and multi-family offices, provides consulting services to family offices, and conducts research, hosts workshops, and organizes educational seminars to increase understanding of the field.

- James Geary

Download the FAQ on CFP Board's Revised Standards (PDF format)

CFP® certificants will soon receive registration information for an upcoming Webinar on CFP Board’s revised Standards of Professional Conduct, which has an effective date of July 1, 2008 and an enforcement date of January 1, 2009. The Webinar will be held November 5, 2008 from 1:00 - 3:00 p.m. (Eastern time) for CFP® certificants and the compliance professionals at firms that support CFP® certificants. The Webinar will discuss strategies that certificants and firm compliance officers have used to comply with the revised Standards and will feature Marilyn Capelli Dimitroff, CFP®, 2008 Chair-Elect of CFP Board’s Board of Directors, who served as Chair of the Ethics Task Force that developed the final revisions to the Standards, and Alan Goldfarb, CFP®, member of CFP Board’s Board of Directors, who also served on the Ethics Task Force. The Webinar is available at no cost and will include time for the panelists to address audience questions.

The upcoming Webinar is the latest in a series of events and resources CFP Board has provided to assist CFP® certificants and firms that support CFP® certificants with implementing the revised Standards in advance of the January 1, 2009 effective date.

After a presentation on the revised Standards designed to address the specific needs of compliance officers and other employer representatives of firms that have CFP® certificants as employees or associates, the Webinar included time for participants to ask questions to the panel. Questions ranged from practical considerations related to the strengthened disclosure requirements of the revised Standards to clarification of the distinctions between the new baseline duty of care standard – “A certificant shall at all times place the interest of the client ahead of his or her own” – and the new fiduciary duty of care standard for financial planning services outlined in Rule 1.4 of the Rules of Conduct.

Recent events include a July 1, 2008 Webinar for compliance professionals on implementing the revised Standards in a firm environment. A recording of the Webinar is available at https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/856799410, and a copy of the presentation materials and a transcript of the question and answer session are available on CFP Board’s Web site.

CFP Board’s Business Update Webinar on July 9, 2008 also featured a presentation from Marilyn Capelli Dimitroff, CFP® on the revised Standards, as well as responses to audience questions about the revised Standards. A recording of the Webinar is available at https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/452048418, and CFP Board’s Web site holds documents with the results of two polling questions related to CFP Board's revised Standards and answers to questions asked by Webinar participants.

In addition to a downloadable version of the revised Standards, CFP Board’s Web site also includes side-by-side comparisons of the revised Standards and the most recent Standards, sample disclosure documents, and a set of frequently asked questions. These and other materials are available at www.CFP.net/aboutus/Standards.asp.

If you have questions about the revised Standards not addressed in these resources, or if you have suggestions for additional documentation that would be helpful to your implementation efforts, please contact CFP Board at standards@CFPBoard.org.

About the Revised Standards of Professional Conduct:
On May 31, 2007, CFP Board’s Board of Directors announced the adoption of a revised version of CFP Board’s Standards of Professional Conduct, which sets forth the ethical standards for CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals. The revised Standards become effective July 1, 2008 and apply to the more than 58,000 financial planners in the U.S. who are authorized by CFP Board to use the CFP® certification marks.

Robert Glovsky, CFP® Elected as 2009 Chair-Elect of CFP Board’s Board of Directors

At its September 15 meeting, CFP Board’s Board of Directors elected Robert Glovsky, CFP® as 2009 Chair-Elect. Glovsky will begin his duties as 2009 chair-elect on January 1, when Marilyn Capelli Dimitroff, CFP® begins her term as 2009 chair. He will then serve as the Board of Directors’ 2010 chair beginning in January 2010.

Glovsky, president of Mintz Levin Financial Advisors in Boston, Mass., has more than 25 years experience as a practicing financial planner and has held the CFP® certification since 1992. He is the Director of Boston University's Program for Financial Planners, the largest CFP Board-Registered Program in New England and one of the largest in the country. He also served as Chair of CFP Board’s Board of Examiners (predecessor to the Council on Examinations), which plays a central role in the development of the rigorous and comprehensive CFP® Certification Examination.

Glovsky has been recognized as one of the nation’s leading financial advisors by Barron’s, Worth magazine, and J.K. Lasser's "New Rules for Estate and Tax Planning" book. His expertise is widely recognized in the media. In February 2006, Consumer Reports called on Glovsky to provide expert evaluation of eleven different retirement planning options. He also has been quoted in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Barron's, Business Week, the Washington Post, Financial Planning magazine, The Boston Globe and the Boston Herald.

“I look forward to working with Bob and the 2009 Board of Directors,” said Dimitroff. “In the current economic environment, it’s more important than ever for the Board of Directors to establish policies and direction to CFP Board to sustain its mission of benefitting the public by upholding the CFP® certification as the recognized standard of excellence in personal financial planning.”

The Board of Directors is comprised of volunteers with various experiences and backgrounds that represent different groups of CFP Board’s stakeholders, as well as the public interest. A majority of Board members must be CFP® certificants and, aside from CFP Board’s CEO, who serves in an ex officio position, each serves a four-year term. The Board of Directors welcomes comments at BOD@CFPBoard.org.

July 2008 Exam Results Released

Score results for the July 2008 CFP® Certification Examination were recently released to exam takers. The 10-hour, two-day exam was conducted at 50 sites nationwide. Of the 2,249 individuals who sat for the July 2008 exam, 1,222 passed, representing a pass rate of 54.3%. CFP Board's CFP® Certification Examination requires full integration of knowledge covered in CFP Board's financial planning topic list and is designed to assess a person's ability to apply financial planning knowledge to real-life financial planning situations.

Individuals who sat for the July exam were sent a hard copy of their score results by mail on September 16, 2008, and exam results were made available online on Monday, September 22, 2008. Cumulative results of the comprehensive CFP® Certification Examination from November 1991 to the present are available on CFP Board’s Web site at www.CFP.net/media/survey.asp?id=9.

The next exam will be held November 21-22, 2008. The application deadline for the November 2008 exam is October 8, 2008. Read more about the CFP® Certification Examination.

Financial Planning Clinic in Washington, DC Connects Hundreds of Consumers with CFP® Professionals

On September 13, hundreds of Washington-area consumers connected with CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professionals who provided guidance to a host of financial planning issues such as retirement and investment planning, debt management, tax planning, college funding, insurance and employee benefits, among other topics, at CFP Board’s Financial Planning Clinic. More than 100 CFP® professionals volunteered their time and expertise to educate consumers on the benefits of financial planning and the value of CFP® certification.

CFP Board CEO Kevin Keller kicked off the event, which was held at the Grand Hyatt Washington Hotel with a welcome address to the volunteer CFP® certificants. Keller was joined by David Strege, CFP®, chair of the Board of Directors and Marilyn Capelli Dimitroff, CFP® chair elect of the Board of Directors, who discussed the objectives of the Financial Planning Clinic program and laid out the day’s events. The Clinic also featured CFP® professionals presenting a dozen, 50-minute educational workshops on topics such as Planning for Your Financial Goals, What to Know When Choosing a Financial Planner and Managing Debt: From Credit Cards to Foreclosures.

One of key factors that distinguishes CFP Board’s Financial Planning Clinic from other financial seminars is that no products or services were sold at the event and volunteers were not permitted to hand out business cards or marketing materials. Each attendee received a brief orientation session that included information about the value of CFP® certification, and attendees were given a program book that included the volunteers’ names and contact information, as well as other helpful financial planning information.

For many Washingtonians who attended the Clinic, the event was their first chance to learn about to the benefits of financial planning and to experience firsthand the expertise of CFP® professionals. The attendees’ response to the Clinic was overwhelmingly positive and echoed the feedback CFP Board received for past Clinics in Los Angeles and Boston. As CFP Board plans to extend the reach of the Financial Planning Clinic program to other parts of the country in 2009, the success of the Washington Clinic is indicative that the need for competent and ethical financial planning in today’s volatile economy has never been greater.

CFP Board Forms Public Policy Council

CFP Board has established a Public Policy Council charged with the task of identifying significant public policy issues, prioritizing them and developing policy positions for consideration and adoption by the Board of Directors. The inaugural members of the Council include CFP® certificants and public members with expertise in public affairs, legislation, regulation, taxation/ERISA and consumer advocacy:

Brian T. Borders, Founder & Principal, Borders Law Group
Mercer E. Bullard, University of Mississippi Law School, Founder & CEO, Fund Democracy
James K. Conzelman, Senior Vice President, Stanford Financial Group
Nancy Johnson Jones, CFP®, HighTower Advisors
Ron Klink, Ron Klink & Associates (Member of Congress 1993-2001)
Terry L. Lister, Senior Vice President & Chief Regulator Officer, Waddell & Reed
Karen Schaeffer, CFP®, Schaeffer Financial
Mark J. Ugoretz, ERISA Industry Committee

“CFP Board is pleased with the broad range of experience and expertise of the individuals who have agreed to serve on our first Public Policy Council,” said David G. Strege, CFP®, Chair of CFP Board’s Board of Directors. “Given the unprecedented upheaval in financial institutions and the renewed calls for more oversight, regulation and protection of the public in the delivery of financial services, this is an important time for CFP Board to have expert counsel on policy issues.”

The Council will hold its first meeting in December 2008 and will work closely with CFP Board’s Managing Director of Public Policy, Marilyn Mohrman-Gillis.

CFP Board Hires Director of Examinations and Director of Professional Alliances

Earlier this month, Steven E. Barkley joined CFP Board as Director of Examinations and Patrick B. Cuddy joined CFP Board as Director of Professional Alliances.

In his role as Director of Examinations, Mr. Barkley will have oversight for the development of the CFP® Certification Examination, a rigorous comprehensive exam that tests the ability to apply financial planning knowledge to real-life situations. Mr. Barkley will report to Carol Lee Roberts, CFP®, Managing Director of Examination and Education.

Mr. Cuddy will be responsible for enhancing the recognition and acceptance of the CFP® certification as the essential standard for financial planning by strengthening relationships with firms that employ CFP® professionals, promoting the benefits of the certification to professionals with related designations and users of financial planning services. Mr. Cuddy will report to Asha P. Williams, Managing Director of Communications and Marketing.

Most recently, Mr. Barkley was Director of Medical College Admission Test Technology & Program Development at the Association of American Medical Colleges. Prior to that he was as the Director of Academic Information Systems and Director of Evaluation at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, Office of Medical Education.

Mr. Cuddy was a partner at Applied Communications Group, an organization that developed interactive case study programs serving the financial services industry. Prior to that, he worked for The American College as Senior Director of Marketing & Sales, responsible for leading the sales efforts for multi-media education for prospective CFP® certificants.

CFP Board Grant Recipient Update: ColoradoSaves

The “Saver’s Pledge” of ColoradoSaves, part of the nationwide AmericaSaves campaign to help individuals and families build wealth, includes four pledges: 1) To spend less than I earn; 2) To avoid long-term, high-interest debt; 3) To invest in a home, college education, small business or another appreciating asset; and 4) To prepare for retirement. To help Colorado residents meet those commitments, ColoradoSaves has developed a program with grant funding from CFP Board that includes access to local CFP® professionals, furthering CFP Board’s objective of increasing access for all to competent and ethical financial planning and helping promote CFP Board’s mission to uphold the CFP® certification as the recognized standard of excellence for personal financial planning.

With funds from a CFP Board grant awarded in 2006, ColoradoSaves has developed an educational video that highlights different situations in which saving and smart financial planning are crucial. The video features engaging real life stories that demonstrate the importance of saving money, establishing wealth and planning one’s finances to reach life goals. Since June, ColoradoSaves has shown the video to hundreds of employees at workplaces in the Denver area. At the presentations, CFP® professionals have been available to share about the importance of financial planning and to speak to attendees individually after the session.

ColoradoSaves has worked closely with the Financial Planning Association of Colorado to establish a network of CFP® professionals to assist with the effort. In addition to making themselves available at ColoradoSaves events, the CFP® certificants have provided ongoing financial planning assistance to ColoradoSaves members who have won financial planning “gift certificates.” The inclusion of CFP® certificants in this educational program provides those just starting to save with inspiration to reach longer-term financial planning goals, and those who have already begun accumulating assets or who receive the “gift certificates” are introduced to the value of working with professionals who hold the CFP® certification.

While ColoradoSaves’ workplace outreach program is has been underway only a few months, the success stories of people the program has touched are already motivating others. At an educational forum held in August during the Democratic National Convention in Denver, an event that also marked the official recognition of the establishment of Black America Saves, a national coalition within America Saves, ColoradoSaves member Mable Banks shared about her experiences: “It has always been a dream for me to be financially free. When ColoradoSaves gave me the opportunity to work with a financial planner, it was a dream come true. I want to thank Susan O’Grady, [CFP®,] my financial planner, for helping me get my financial affairs in order.”

Read the original profile of ColoradoSaves from the August 2007 issue of CFP Board Report.

CFP® Marks in the News

Last month, Chris Farrell of National Public Radio’s Marketplace programs told his audience, “I'm a fan of the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ designation.” CFP® certification was also featured in articles in the New York Times, Washington Post, Newsday and Reuters News Service. Read these and more notable media references to the CFP® marks at www.CFP.net/certificants/marksinthenews.asp.

CFP Board continues its efforts to promote awareness of CFP® certification among media outlets and the audiences they serve. Those efforts are greatly enhanced by the many CFP® professionals who are engaged in their own efforts to reach national and local media with the message of the benefits of financial planning and working with a CFP® professional. We appreciate all of you who help further awareness of CFP® certification across the country through your media contacts and your involvement in your communities.

Accomplishments of CFP® Certificants

CFP Board congratulates the following CFP® professionals on their professional activities and accomplishments:

Janet Anna, CFP® for her recognition in Bank Investment Consultant magazine’s inaugural ranking of the Top 20 Investment Program Managers, which included recognition of the work she and her colleague Tommy Williams have accomplished at Woodforest National Bank in The Woodlands, Texas.

Richard England, Jr., CFP® of Madison Wealth Management in Bethesda, Md for being honored with the 2008 Volunteer of the Year Award bestowed by the Invest in Others Charitable Foundation and Investment News. He has served as a mentor to homeless youths through the Latin American Youth Center in Washington for 15 years and has been treasurer of the center’s board for the last 10.

Dr. Geoffrey VanderPal, CFP®, President of Elite Financial Planning Group of America, Inc., for his appointment to the diplomatic post of Honorary Consul for the Slovak Republic with a consular jurisdiction of Nevada and Arizona. His duties include promoting economic development, arts & culture, education, political and consular activities. Dr. VanderPal serves a 5 year term as the Honorary Consul and head of the Las Vegas consular post.

Elizabeth Verterano, CFP® of Ameriprise Financial Services in New Wilmington, PA, for being honored with the 2008 Community Leadership Award bestowed by the Invest in Others Charitable Foundation and Investment News. As founder of the Crisis Shelter of Lawrence County in New Castle, Pa., she has been working to combat domestic violence against women since 1979.

CFP Board welcomes information about the activities and accomplishments of CFP® professionals. If you have information you would like to share with CFP Board, please contact us at mail@CFPBoard.org.

• 2007 Annual Report
• Summary of September 15, 2008 Board of Directors Meeting
• Public Policy Council
• Advertisement images for November 15, 2008 Financial Planning Clinic in Miami
• Recent media references to CFP® certification from the New York Times, the Washington Post, Newsday and Reuters News Service
• Job Posting: Senior Public Policy Analyst

CFP Board Prepares for Financial Planning Clinic in Miami, November 15, 2008

Following the success of its third Financial Planning Clinic (held in Washington, DC on September 13), CFP Board is now focusing on preparations for the November 15 Clinic in Miami, where more than 70 CFP® professionals have already volunteered to provide one-on-one consultations on financial matters to Miami-area residents.

The Miami Clinic will also offer consumers an opportunity to select from over a dozen educational workshops on timely financial topics presented by CFP® professionals. Among the workshop topics will be Financial Planning for Special Needs, Estate Planning and Launching a Financial Plan for Young Professionals. Select presentations will also be offered in Spanish.

With the event less than two months away, CFP Board has rolled out a promotional plan to inform local consumers of this great opportunity. Advertisements have gone up this week in Miami’s metro system and local media outlets are already showing interest in promoting the Clinic to their audiences. Among the participating media channels are The Miami Herald, CBS Channel 4 and Univision Channel 23, which also offered a partnership to promote the Clinic to Spanish-speaking residents through Public Service Announcements and an interview with a local CFP® professional.

A number of community-based organizations in the Miami area have also agreed to alert their constituents to the benefits of the Miami Clinic. The organizations include AARP of Florida, Cuban American National Council and Miami Saves, Human Services Coalition, Miami Beach Community Development Corporation, Prosperity Life Planning, South Florida Urban Ministries, United Way of Miami-Dade, University of Miami and World Relief of Miami.

If you have contacts with any Miami-area media groups or community organizations that might be interested in promoting the Financial Planning Clinic, please contact CFP Board at clinic@CFPBoard.org or 800-487-1497.

We expect a large consumer turnout at the event and still have room for more volunteers. CFP® certificants participating as one-on-one volunteers at the Clinic will receive CE credits for the time they spend meeting with consumers. The CE credits will be allocated to the financial planning topic that volunteers address at the Clinic.

If you are interested in participating at the Financial Planning Clinic in Miami, please fill out an application form or contact CFP Board by e-mail at clinic@CFPBoard.org or by phone at 800-487-1497 with the following information:

• Name
• Phone Number
• E-mail Address
• Mailing Address
• If you are multilingual, the languages you would like to use at the Financial Planning Clinic
• The general financial planning topics you are most interested in discussing with attendees

For more information on CFP Board’s Financial Planning Clinics, visit www.CFP.net/clinic.

Financial Planning Week: October 6-12, 2008

The seventh annual Financial Planning Week, organized by the Financial Planning Association® (FPA®), will take place October 6-12, 2008. During the week, FPA strives to create and build the public's awareness of the financial planning process to enable individuals to make prudent financial decisions to achieve their life goals and dreams.

Events scheduled for the 2008 Financial Planning Week include audiocast and Virtual Learning Center sessions featuring CFP® professionals and a number of educational seminars, hotlines and other events organized in cities across the country by FPA's network of close to 100 chapters.

To learn about Financial Planning Week activities in your area, and to obtain contact information for the FPA chapters organizing those activities, visit www.FinancialPlanningWeek.org/financialplanningweekactivities/

FDIC Chairman's Award for Innovation in Financial Education

In commemoration of the FDIC's 75th anniversary, Chairman Sheila C. Bair has announced an education campaign to help raise consumer awareness of deposit insurance limits and emphasize the importance of asset building and financial education. The campaign includes an award program for outstanding work in financial education. The awards will recognize six people or organizations (one from each FDIC region) for innovation in financial education. The awards program will also highlight best practices that others can model to increase financial literacy in their own communities. The FDIC will accept nominations through October 31, 2008. For more information about the new award for educators, visit www.fdic.gov/anniversary/awards.html.