| President's Letter-2001-
Mark Ford
Let me begin by saying that it has been an honor to work as
an officer of the South Central Chapter. As the Society of
Wetland Scientists continues to grow, so does our Chapter.
We have many active people participating and it has been a
pleasure working with Chapter members and the Executive Board
who dedicate much time and energy from their busy schedule
to make sure that our Chapter continues to be active and successful.
However, as we grow, we must also adapt. As president of the
Chapter and as a member of the planning committee for the
2003 SWS Annual International Meeting, I have learned many
things. It is evident that we, as a chapter, can no longer
conduct business as we have in the past. In Chicago, the Executive
Board will meet to discuss new directions in handling chapter
finances and chapter business. As our membership increases,
we move more towards being self sufficient financially. Within
the context of the parent international Society, more of the
financial responsibility will be shifted from the Society
level to the chapters in the near future. We must plan accordingly
and manage our resources to ensure continued operation of
our Chapter. There are also tax issues, liability issues and
contract issues that are constantly changing and as a result,
putting more responsibility on us, as a Chapter, when we conduct
business. In general, we are becoming more self sufficient
and are in great shape and should easily make the transaction
into this new century and new ways of doing business. I want
to thank everyone for their hard work in making the chapter
the success it is today! Let's make sure that we all continue
to work together to continuously improve and enhance our Chapter's
presence within the society and elsewhere.
It is that time of year when we all should participate in
one of our major duties to our Chapter, which is to elect
our officers. This issue of newsletter includes a list of
candidates, with their biographies, for the various offices.
I would like to thank Reza Pezeshki for his efforts on this
matter and all of nominees offering their services to the
Chapter. This year, we are going to try elections on line.
On the address label is your SWS membership number. You will
need this to vote. We hope this method will increase participation
in voting.
Future Meetings
Our Chapter's annual Fall 2001 meeting will be held at Delta
State University in Cleveland, MS. Sam Faulkner and President-Elect
Ron Boustany have been working hard to put on another great
meeting which will be held October 3-6, 2001. (please see
comments by Ron in this issue of the newsletter). Please plan
to attend.
We recently signed a contract with the Hyatt Regency at the
Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans for the SWS Annual International
Meeting in June 2003. Lisa Gandy has been working hard as
the chair of the host committee, negotiating the contract,
assembling the committees and performing many of the behind-the-scenes
duties of meeting planning. She has assembled a formidable
group to help plan and put on this meeting, but there is plenty
of room for more volunteers. Please contact her (gandylisa@cs.com)
if you would like to be involved. The chapter thanks her for
all of the hard work already put into this project!
We also want to extent thanks to Jeff Raasch and Elizabeth
Murray for hosting the Fall 2000 Chapter meeting in Little
Rock, AR. The meeting was a great success! The theme of the
meeting was HGM of the Lower Mississippi Valley. Several invited
speakers presented talks related to this topic. In addition,
seven student speakers presented their research and competed
for a travel award to the 2001 SWS meeting in Chicago. Denae
Athay, of the University of Oklahoma took first place honors.
Karen Wiens, of Tennessee Tech University, came in second
place and Erin Breetzke and Jessica Brumley, both from the
University of Oklahoma tied for third place. Congratulations
to all of you and the very fine papers you presented!
We also want to thank Elizabeth Murray and Shannon Holbrook
for their efforts in preparing the memorial to Roger Saucier,
which is in the current issue of the SWS Bulletin. In addition
to the memorial, which is also posted on our Chapter’s
webpage, the Saucier family will be presented with a plaque
acknowledging Roger’s contributions to wetland science,
particularly his 1994 treatise Geomorphology and Quaternary
Geologic History of the Lower Mississippi Valley which synthesizes
a broad spectrum of geologic and geomorphic information and
reveals the complex story of the development of the Mississippi
Alluvial Valley. This important information has already profoundly
influenced our perspectives on wetland ecosystems and improved
our effectiveness in their management and restoration.
In closing I would like to encourage all of you to continue
your support of your Chapter by actively participating in
various activities, annual meeting, recruiting new members
and those of us in academia to actively recruit students.
They will be the future leaders of our Chapter and our Society.
It has been an honor to serve as President for the Chapter.
I am looking forward to working with you all during the remainder
of my term.
Mark A. Ford
President
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