Annual Report 2012: FY July 1, 2011-June 30, 2012
Eastern Section
One of the advantages of providing for a succession of officers, such as the Eastern Section is set up to do, is the continuation of prior significant projects. Previous administration placed an emphasis on seeking the input of new young members both through hosting assemblies at local and national meetings, providing speakers at college and universities, establishing new potential student chapters, and extending the IBA program to more venues.
It is this attempt to offset the graying of the organization, a situation that is not only confined to AAPG but to other organizations as well, that these efforts affect. This project continued in 2012 with several approaches.
The gathering of young people at the Eastern Section annual meeting in Washington, DC, along with a job quest program was received by a record number of participants. Additional gatherings at such venues as the University of North Carolina carried this approach further afield with great success.
The speaking at new gatherings, such as at Marshall University, resulted in a potential new student chapter. The great number of colleges and universities that have geology programs in the Eastern Section provides the opportunity to expand this approach even further.
The IBA program expanded this year to include three teams that competed for the first time. In fact, one of the first-time teams, Penn State University, achieved first place and went on to exhibit a dominate show at the annual convention in Long Beach. A total of eight teams participated this year and we are looking for the program to expand even further next year. One interesting facet of the Penn State team was it was advised by a faculty member who had been a participant in the program while she was a student at the University of Wyoming—an indication that the program had come “full circle.”
As a submission for the best efforts program, the section used the North Carolina gathering as an approach that can be used by other sections.
The section finds itself in an enviable position of financial security and has plans to utilize excess funds to continue the above-mentioned programs.
The Teacher of the Year competition expanded this year with a record number of participants that will provide the potential of some carry-over for next year’s awards. Although we lost out at the national level, we were satisfied with the quality of those from which we had to choose.
We are presently looking forward to the section annual meeting to be held in Cleveland, Ohio in the near future. It is being held at an optional time when this portion of the section is seeing an extensive exploration into the potential of the Utica Shale formation and should provide the emphasis for a record gathering.
The greatest challenge, however, for the section will be the successful hosting of the AAPG annual meeting in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in May 2013. Extensive planning has been going on and it is our intention to show that this geographic area can also be an attractive draw for the international community. Current oil and gas activity, particularly in the unconventional venue, in the mature Appalachian Basin should provide for an exciting gathering.
The Eastern Section looks forward to the continuation of programs that are necessary for the health of our organization and invite all to join us at both the section annual meeting and the national annual meeting.