NSGIC Members Honored

Two long-time NSGIC members were honored with Lifetime Achievement Awards (PDF) and five others received Outstanding Service Awards (PDF) at the 2009 NSGIC Annual Conference in Cleveland, Ohio.

Zsolt Nagy (left) and Dennis Goreham (right) were given Lifetime Achievement Awards by NSGIC President Learon Dalby (Arkansas). Mr. Nagy and Mr. Goreham have both recently retired from state service -- Mr. Nagy from North Carolina and Mr. Goreham from Utah.

Both have long been leaders among the state GIS coordinators and have given years of service and knowledge to NSGIC. Zsolt Nagy has moved on to join AECOM and remains a part of NSGIC as a corporate partner. Dennis Goreham will continue to repesent the states on the National Geospatial Advisory Committee (NGAC).

Diane Schafer, who serves as Director of Meetings and Member Services for NSGIC as a part of the management company KSG, was given an Outstanding Service Award as "the glue that holds this organization together." Her friendly, smiling face (or voice on the phone) is what defines "NSGIC" for many of us. She is supremely helpful and simply as nice as can be.

A group of three were given Outstanding Service Awards for their work to help all of the states respond to the broadband service mapping grant opportunity that arose this year. Jon Gottsegen, of Colorado (left), Michael Byrne, of California (right), and Christian Jacz, of Massachusetts (not pictured), joined former Outstanding Service Award winners (one only gets the one) Bill Johnson (NY) and Dave Brotzman (VT) to "determine the issues, find answers, and share information with the remaining states."

And Learon Dalby was given an Outstanding Service Award for his tireless and inspiring advancement of the NSGIC agenda. In his year as NSGIC President, Mr. Dalby, of Arkansas, has provided a clear and challenging vision for NSGIC, communicated that vision within the organization and to the rest of the GIS Community, and turned us loose to achieve that vision.

Frankly, we were surprised that he had not been honored already.

2009 NSGIC Annual Conference Program!

The official, final program for the 2009 NSGIC Annual Conference (#NSGIC2009) is now available on-line. You can read it here or download the PDF itself.

Potential highlights include (in no particular order) presentations on:

• The fusion of Fusion Centers with GIS staff in the states
• The Geospatial Revolution Project, a public media and outreach initiative from Penn State Public Broadcasting
• Broadband mapping initiates
• Government transparency and Government two-point-O
  
• The 2010 Census (fill it out, please. It is easy and it is safe!)
• Imagery and Transportation for the Nation

Of course there will be the usual business meeting and caucus meetings, open-mic sessions, and more intense networking and knowledge exchange than should be legal in polite society.

Learon Dalby Looks Back on a Year in NSGIC

The following is the tenth in a series of monthly guest-posts from 2008-2009 NSGIC President Learon Dalby, of Arkansas.

NSGIC is a great organization because of its people. NSGIC has been busy this year and you might be surprised to hear I had very little to do with it. I believe good people do good things -- as long as you get out of the way. A lot of good folks have done some extraordinary things for this organization this year.

Stu Davis institutionalized the use of a committee/workgroup structure during his presidency. Each committee has a chair and a charter which is revised each year. The committee chairs report to the Board each month. The Board, in turn, sets direction as needed. This process ensures the workload of the volunteer organization is spread across a number of participants.

The great thing about this structure is it encourages people to engage in specific areas that match their interests. I encourage you to get involved; there is plenty of opportunity.

A group of NSGIC Leaders participate in a "president's call" on Fridays. This call is an informal telephone gathering of past-presidents, committee chairs, and board members, schedules permitting. The purpose of the call is to provide advice to the president on a variety of hot topics. This call also serves as a mechanism to ensure the leadership is fully engaged and aware of critical activities.

This year has provided a number of opportunities for NSGIC to provide input into national efforts. The use of social media tools (ie this blog, the NSGIC twitter account, etc.) has allowed us to expand our reach and, just as importantly, receive input from the GIS community. I am convinced now more than ever we, as a community, must come together with a common goal.

I hope you are making plans to attend the 2009 NSGIC Conference in Cleveland, Ohio, in October (if you are tweeting, that's #nsgic2009). This will give us a chance to fill you in on all of the activities NSGIC has been involved in and a chance to get you involved in a committee.

Because NSGIC is a great organization because of its people. And you are, or can be, one of those NSGIC people.

Second Call for Content for the 2009 NSGIC Annual Conference

The NSGIC Conference Planning Committee has released its second and final call for content for the 2009 Annual NSGIC Conference. The Conference is scheduled for October 4 through 8, at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel in Cleveland, Ohio. This follows a first call, in April.

The NSGIC Annual Conference is an opportunity to explore state-level GIS coordination activities without losing focus on the NSGIC Advocacy Agenda (PDF).

Ideas for conference content should be e-mailed to Tony Spicci. While all suggestions are welcome, it is really very helpful to include names of individuals or groups that can present on the topic suggested.

The conference committee will review all suggestions and try to accommodate as many as time permits. A separate call for topics for the state caucus meetings will be released prior to the conference.

Call for Content for 2009 NSGIC Annual Conference

The Conference Planning Committee has released a first call for content for the 2009 Annual NSGIC Conference. The Conference is scheduled for October 4 through 8, at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel in Cleveland, Ohio.

What do you want this conference to cover? All suggestions for content are welcome. However, it is really very helpful if you include the names of individuals or groups that can present on the topic you suggest. So, to be fair, we should say that content suggestions with more content are more welcome.

Please submit your ideas/suggestions to Tony Spicci via e-mail. The conference committee will review all suggestions and attempt to accommodate as many as time permits. A separate call for state caucus topics will be made prior to the conference.

Candidates Wanted: NSGIC Board of Directors

A call has been put out to the NSGIC membership looking for nominations of candidates for the NSGIC Board of Directors.

Three seats on the six-member Board are up for election at the 2007 NSGIC Annual Conference, September 23 - 27 in Madison, Wisconsin. Board members serve two-year terms. The current Board members whose seats come open this year are Jill Saligoe-Simmel (IN), Will Craig (MN), and Mike Mahaffie (DE).

According to the NSGIC By-Laws (PDF), there are two requirements for board candidates:

To be considered eligible for election, a candidate must be a Member in good standing and agree to serve if elected.

Nominations are also sought for candidates for the post of President-Elect. Current President-Elect Cy Smith (OR) will become president at the end of the Annual Conference when NSGIC President Stu Davis (OH) finishes his term in office.

Nominations must be forwarded to Election Committee Chair Joe Holmes (LA) by Friday, July 27, at 5:00 pm, CDT. The ballot box at the NSGIC Annual Conference will be open through the afternoon break on Tuesday, September 25.