Three Join MIA Accreditation Commission

OBERLIN, Ohio — The Marble Institute of America (MIAappoints three new members to its Accreditation Commission, along with three new names on the appeals committee.

Rob Barnes of Dee Brown Inc., Travis Collins of B.C. Stone Inc. and Gregory Lepore of Dan Lepore & Sons Co. will serve for three years on the Accreditation Committee.

“I believe accreditation will bring up the overall competency of our industry members,” Barnes said. “I am excited to be involved with the continual evolution of the program, and I hope to see us create a continuing-education platform that I believe will be necessary for connecting with the architectural community.”

The Accreditation Commission is a governing body responsible for setting guidelines for MIA’s accreditation program and establishing rules and regulations for companies seeking accreditation.

Responsibilities of commission members include:

• Monitoring and revising accreditation program standards, policies and procedures;

• Actively promoting the accreditation program throughout the natural-stone community;

• Responding to inquiries regarding qualifications for accreditation and maintaining accreditation status; and

• Using established policies and practices to determine accreditation eligibility for companies in the natural-stone industry

 “I’m pleased that the focus for the next few months is to build more awareness for the accreditation program in the design community and with consumers,” Lepore said. “We have an aggressive agenda, and we want to build the program on all fronts.”

Travis Collins looks forward to this challenge: “We want to raise awareness of the accreditation program outside of the MIA circle. Accredited companies are committed to a higher standard, and consumers who understand what the MIA accreditation means can make a more-educated decision when selecting a company.”

Continuing on the commission are chair Rodney Harvey of Curtain Wall Design & Consulting Inc., Monica Gawet of Tennessee Marble Co., Guido Gliori of Grazzini Brothers & Co., GK Naquin of Stone Interiors, Bernie van Etten of Murphy Marble Co. and Robert Zavagno of Cleveland Marble Mosaic Co.

Appointed to the Accreditation Appeals Committee are Kevin Camarata of Camarata Masonry Systems, Inc., Scott Lardner of Rocky Mountain Stone and Brad Pearce of Front Range Stone. Appeals Committee members serve one-year terms and are responsible for receiving and considering appeals for accreditation.

For more on the accreditation program, check the MIA website here.