Required reading

Module I — A Brief History of the Discipline

The candidate will demonstrate familiarity with the foundational instruments of the discipline: the Declaration, the Bylaws, the Covenants, and the Architectural Guidelines, each of which is to be cited by section number in formal correspondence. The advanced practitioner is reminded that the discipline is not, contrary to popular sentiment, adversarial. It is structural. The community has agreed to be governed; the candidate is merely the instrument of its agreement.

Module II — The Bylaws: Their Custody and Their Use

The candidate will demonstrate proficiency in the strategic interpretation of bylaws, with particular emphasis on the provisions concerning fencing height, lawn length, the visibility of trash receptacles between collection days, and the placement of seasonal decorations beyond the period customarily associated with their season. The candidate will further demonstrate fluency in the appendix of approved exterior paint colors, of which there are, in total, eleven.

Module III — The Architectural Review Committee

The Committee meets monthly, or as needed. The candidate will be examined on the canonical responses to common applications: the request for a small backyard shed (denied, on grounds of visibility from the street), the request for a basketball hoop (denied, on grounds of neighborhood character), and the request for a flagpole (deferred, pending review of submitted specifications, which are themselves subject to a separate review).

Module IV — The Annual Inspection

The advanced practitioner conducts the annual inspection on foot, clipboard in hand, with photographs taken at a consistent height and from a consistent angle, suitable for inclusion as exhibits. The candidate will demonstrate fluency in the canonical observations: the trash receptacle visible from the street the morning after collection day, the holiday wreath remaining on the front door beyond the fifteenth of January, and the fence stain that has, in the candidate’s professional judgment, drifted measurably from the approved specification.

Module V — The Letter

The formal letter is the principal instrument of the discipline. The candidate will demonstrate proficiency in the canonical openings: “It has come to our attention,” “During the course of routine community inspection,” and the most advanced of the canonical openings, “In the spirit of community,” which signals to the recipient that what follows will not be in the spirit of community. The letter must (i) cite the relevant bylaw by section number; (ii) include a photograph; (iii) specify a remedy deadline; and (iv) close with the phrase “Thank you for your continued cooperation.”

Module VI — The Annual Meeting

The candidate will be evaluated on the disciplined operation of the annual meeting, which is to begin on time, conclude no fewer than three hours later, and include, by long custom, a forty-minute open-grievance period during which the candidate is to listen attentively, take careful notes, and, in nearly every case, refer the matter to a subsequently formed committee.

The graduate is expected to maintain a working photographic archive of the community, to know, by name, the make and model of every vehicle parked on the street overnight, and, under no circumstances, to be liked.