2008 NSGIC Awards Presented

The National States Geographic Information Council (NSGIC) presented five Outstanding Service Awards and one Lifetime Service Award for 2008 at its Annual Conference in Colorado. These are two of four possible service awards that can be granted by the organization. The others are the Distinguished Service Award and the Dedicated Service Award.

The awards were presented by 2007-2008 NSGIC President Cy Smith, of Oregon. The Lifetime Service Award was presented to Ted Koch, of Wisconsin. Outstanding Service Awards were presented to:

• Ivan Weichert, of Kansas
  
• Vicki Lucas, of the USGS
  
• Shirley Hall, of the USDA
  
• Craig Molander, of Surdex Corporation
  
• Mike Mahaffie, of Delaware

The NSGIC Outstanding Service Award (PDF) is presented to individuals (or organizations) in leadership positions who have advanced the National Spatial Data Infrastructure and promoted NSGIC’s goal of efficient and effective government through the prudent implementation of geospatial technologies.

As this is one of NSGIC’s highest service award recognition, a recipient's service must exceed the normal expectation of duty.

Ivan Weichert, of Kansas, serves as the Treasurer for NSGIC Board and was honored for his work in the role:

Ivan pays close attention to the financial health of our organization and carefully plans with our Financial Officer to ensure that we are implementing the best practices that are expected. Ivan can always be counted on for candid communications and he is able to make his point heard when needed. Our future financial success as an organization is in good hands with him.

Mr. Weichert was unable to attend the conference. His award was accepted on his behalf by fellow Kansan Rick Miller.

Vicki Lucas, of the USGS, has been a long-time partner with the states and a leader in national initiatives:

Vicki possesses the characteristics that every NSGIC state member wants to see in a federal agency employee. She doggedly pursues a vision of the NSDI that is a shared function of Federal, state, local and other governments. She has been instrumental in advancing the credibility and commitment of the NSDI liaisons and worked to pursue partnership opportunities through them. Most recently, she has been appointed to oversee and merge the activities of seven Executive Committees that will advance the Imagery for the Nation (IFTN) initiative which is NSGIC’s number one advocacy issue. In addition to being a long-time NSGIC resource and member, she has done an excellent job of pulling these diverse groups together to work as one.

Shirley Hall, of the USDA, helps manage the National Agriculture Imagery Program (NAIP) , a valuable resource for the states:

She has also gone to extraordinary lengths to ensure implementation of Imagery for the Nation (IFTN) and been an ardent supporter of this initiative including her tireless work on several of the FGDC Executive Committees. Shirley has listened to state government coordinators and incorporated design changes into the NAIP program that are consistent with the principles of IFTN. These changes will make NAIP an even more valuable resource for state and local governments.

Ms. Hall was unable to attend the conference. Her award was accepted on her behalf by NSGIC Washington Liaison Bill Burgess.

Craig Molander, of Surdex Corporation, is a leader among NSGIC's private sector partners:

Craig is a Senior Vice President of Surdex which is a busy corporation that is also a NSGIC sponsor. He has been an active leader on NSGIC’s Corporate Leadership Council (CLC) and helped to shape that group as a trusted adviser for NSGIC leadership. In spite of his corporate responsibilities, Craig has participated in most of the NSGIC Conference Committee activities to help ensure the success of the organization. He has also provided leadership for the CLC presentations which have been well received by the members.

Mike Mahaffie, of Delaware, is a Board Member and chair of the NSGIC Communications Committee:

Under his guidance, communications have greatly improved and the organization is better connected with its members. He is constantly searching for ways to use today’s technology to better advantage and will undoubtedly continue to improve communications within the organization.

All five join a distinguished list of NSGIC awardees (PDF) dating back to the 1995 Annual Conference in Vermont. Nominations for the NSGIC awards are solicited by the NSGIC Awards Working Group twice each year. awards can be given at either the Annual or the Midyear NSGIC conferences.

We have create a whole blog post devoted to the Lifetime Achievement Award to Ted Koch. It deserves one.