What Is the ‘DCP’ and What’s in it for Me?

Sometimes it seems that Toastmasters is all about acronyms, particularly when you are a new member. When we first join Toastmasters, we hear people talking about CCs and CLs, and it takes a little while to realize they’re talking about your first two educational award levels, the Competent Communication Award, and the Competent Leadership Award.

About this time of year, you are probably starting to hear your club officers using another acronym: DCP. ‘DCP’ stands for Distinguished Club Program, which is an award program for clubs based on reaching certain goals established by Toastmasters International (TI) from July 1 of one year through July 30th of the next year. (TI operates on a fiscal, rather than calendar, year. For example, this year in TI runs from July 1, 2011 through June 30, 2012.)

TI’s goal is to serve its members, as set out in our club mission statement:

The mission of a Toastmasters club is to provide a mutually supportive and positive learning environment in which every individual member has the opportunity to develop oral communication and leadership skills, which in turn foster self-confidence and personal growth.

The DCP is one of the ways TI ensures that our clubs are member-focused. What’s in the DCP for you? Let’s break each goal down, and see…

There are 10 DCP goals in all:

1. Achieve 2 CCs
The member focus here is on education. Most people join Toastmasters because they are interested in becoming better communicators. What is the best way to become a better communicator? By speaking! Having two club members achieve their CC award, the club is ensuring that its members are achieving the goals they joined Toastmasters for.

2. Achieve 2 more CCs
Again, there is continued focus on education. Most of those who earn CCs will be newer members, but there will also be some advanced Toastmasters who chose to go back through the CC manual. Encouraging members to complete their CCs moves them toward meeting their communication goals.

3. Achieve 1 AC (Advanced Communicator Bronze(ACB), Advanced Communicator Silver(ACS), or Advanced Communicator Gold(ACG))
Once a member earns his or her CC, there are multiple advanced communication award levels which may be attained. By having an AC as a goal, TI encourages clubs to support and nurture its more advanced members, ensuring their continuing educational goals are fulfilled.

4. Achieve 1 more AC (ACB, ACS, or ACG)
Everyone in the club benefits from having more experienced Toastmasters remain in the club. By continuing to support their educational goals, both the advanced Toastmasters and the club as a whole grow as communicators.

5. Achieve 1 Leadership Award (Competent Leader (CL), Advanced Leader Bronze
(ALB), Advanced Leader Silver (ALS), or Distinguished Toastmaster (DTM)
The other side to our Toastmasters educational track is leadership. To ensure that clubs emphasize the Leadership Track as well as the Communication Track, TI has established achievement of a Leadership Award as a goal in the quest to become a Distinguished Club. By working through the Leadership Track, we grow as leaders in our club, our work, and our community.

6. Achieve 1 more Leadership Award (CL, ALB, ALS, or DTM)
This is the final educational goal in the DCP. Clearly, TI has placed a huge emphasis on ensuring that club members are receiving the education they joined Toastmasters to obtain. When our members are reaching their goals, the clubs are providing an environment that encouraged growth and development. That is the mark of a Distinguished Club.

7. 4 New Members

8. At least 4 More New Members
Why does TI want each club to add a total of at least 8 new members each year? Here’s the math: If we take a club with 20 member charter strength, and consider the average attrition rate is 40% (according to studies), that means a club is likely to lose 8 members in any given year. The 8 new members would simply keep the club at charter strength.

Why care about membership numbers? If you’ve attended a club with twenty or more members, the odds are that all the roles are filled, and the speaking slate is full. There is a level of energy and excitement when there is a full house at a meeting. Members don’t get burned out from having to do too much every week.

These DCP goals are set with the hope that clubs will be encouraged to promote membership, keeping clubs at healthy, productive membership levels.

9. Minimum of 4 Officers Trained in each of Two Training Periods
When our officers understand what their roles and responsibilities are, and have the opportunity to learn from their peers, the club and all its members benefit. Training teaches what is involved in carrying out each office, and provides information and connections that facilitate the day-to-day operations of the club. By making training one of the DCP goals, TI encourages club officers to be prepared to lead their clubs, and teaches proven ways to serve club members.

10. One Membership Dues Renewal Report and One Club Officer List Submitted on
Time
The final DCP goal is administrative, but vital to Toastmasters International. Without information regarding officers, TI will have no way to communicate with the club, and as a non-profit organization, TI depends on member dues for its existence.

In order to receive credit for attaining any of these goals, a Toastmasters club has to meet certain membership criteria.

On June 30th, the club has to have at least 20 members, or have a net gain of at least 5 members over the club’s membership base at July 1 of that fiscal year. If the membership criteria is met, the club will get one point for each of the 10 DCP Goals set out above. [Clearly, even those clubs that do not qualify for DCP credit because of membership should still be working toward the DCP goals, since they, too, seek to serve their members.]

A qualifying club will earn DCP recognition as follows:

5-6 Points: Distinguished Club

7-8 Points: Select Distinguished Club

9-10 Points: President’s Distinguished Club

What’s in the DCP for you? A Toastmasters club that is truly serving you!