Annual Report 2007: FY July 1, 2006-June 30, 2007
Southwest Section
The governing year 7/1/06 thru 6/30/07 for the Southwest Section (SWS) of the AAPG has been another exceptional one. Generally it has benefited from the continuation of two things: high demand for oil and gas and the enthusiastic and dynamic leadership at both the sectional and Tulsa levels. This sense of enthusiasm translates directly to members in the form of heightened connectivity and a stronger sense of their membership’s value. From my perspective the catalyst for this has been the Leadership Conferences sponsored by the AAPG and the AAPG presidents and administration willing to engage tough issues.
More specifically: the SWS current treasury account stands at a healthy $103,000, which is $25,000 above the past three-year average. This includes a $23,348.05 distribution (SWS 50% cut of net proceeds) from the highly successful North Texas Geological Society, 2007 SWS Convention held in Wichita Falls, Texas in April 2007.
The convention attracted and rewarded 489 attendees with: field trips, poster sessions, free (to members) short course, technical presentations, “Rocks In Your Head” (School Teacher) program, ice breaker and an evening social program. Each worked to support the purpose of meeting “Unconventional Challenges with Innovative Solutions.”
This year’s balance is also net of distributions, which included: scholarships totaling over $6,000, a $1,500 grant to Texas Tech University to purchase a GIS unit and money to help students traveling to the SWS meeting in Wichita Falls totaling $8,178.06.
In addition to the free short course held at the annual meeting, SWS members also benefited from another free short course. This was held at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas and led by Janok Bhattacharya. He taught last year’s free short course held at the same location. This year’s subject was Part II from his area of expertise: Fluvial/Deltaic sedimentary systems. To get the full menu he has been engaged again to present Part III in December 2007. Additionally, the decision was made at the last Board of Directors meeting to hold this year’s and future free short course meetings at two locations: Abilene and Ft. Worth, Texas as long as finances permit. The details for the time and place for this meeting are still being worked out by the Education Committee.
One consequence of income averaging over $25,000 for the past three years is a potential tax liability owed by the SWS, which is a 501(c)(6) organization. The ad hoc committee formed to determine alternative organizational status to avoid future tax liabilities went as far as to investigate if we may be better served by being classified as a 501(c)(3). An expert on this subject will render his opinion to us by the next BOD Meeting to be held October 25. AAPG headquarters is also using their resources to clarify this issue as several other sections have the same question. These discussions and other matters were facilitated by us participating in the AAPG lead bi-monthly teleconferences.
Other noteworthy events include the SWS becoming the fourth largest section, down from third largest. Membership roles have been decreasing in the SWS for a number of years. Taking its place is the Eastern Section, which is reaping the benefits of their proactive leadership and industry resurgence. The annual meeting rotation also has been changed to: Abilene 2008, Midland 2009, Dallas 2010, Roswell 2011, and Ft. Worth 2012.
New Proposal and Items Under Consideration
Ongoing ideas and issues comprise the agendas defined and incorporated by prior presidents. Fortunately for the SWS, the past two and now three presidents (Stephens, Pharis, Reynolds) have and will continue to serve in various leadership capacities within the SWS. Each consistently supported programs sponsored by AAPG, such as the bi-monthly teleconferences, Leadership Conferences and worked proactively to keep the SWS effective for the members. Emphasis has and will continue to focus on regaining the membership of currently active (professional) geologists who are not currently members, encourage and hold delegates accountable to informing local societies on sectional and national issues, engaging more young members to become involved serving within the AAPG, help expand the “Imperial Barrel” competition and student expo at future conventions, be more aggressive with scholarships via better rapport with college/university department chairs and staying open to hosting another SWS convention in the future at a “neutral” site.
Ideas being introduced include doing our part to meet the future demand for G&G personnel by each member preparing to serve in the work force for a longer than “average” career span. This will involve taking stock and taking an active role in nurturing one’s individual health. Another initiative will be to “host” data for future and past meetings on a Web medium. This would seek to facilitate collection and archival of data and participation when members are physically unable to attend.