Editor's note: Candidates for AAPG office have been given the opportunity to respond briefly to the subject: "Why I Accepted the Invitation to be a Candidate for AAPG Office." Their responses -- and biographical information provided by each candidate and edited only for grammar and spelling, including the biography -- will be published in the EXPLORER beginning here and continuing through the next two issues. Responses will be available throughout the election on the AAPG Web site. Ballots will be mailed in the spring.
Here are the responses from treasurer candidates Kay L. Pitts, F. Pierce Pratt and Dwight M. "Clint" Moore. Candidates were asked to limit their responses to 500 words.
By Kay L. Pitts
I
am proud and honored to have been nominated by AAPG
to stand for the office of treasurer. During my years
with the AAPG I have had the privilege of associating
with members and working with officers in a variety
of capacities. I enjoy working with members on committees,
Section meetings, Association symposia and just talking
with people at meetings and conventions.
AAPG is the professional representative of a business
that combines technical challenges with unique opportunities.
Our members are people that, by their very nature,
rise to challenges. In my 24 years as a member of
the AAPG I have always respected and admired the leadership
roles AAPG members have taken both in our communities
and our industry. Officers and staff of the AAPG have
shown not only leadership for the industry but also
stewardship of the organization.
I accepted the invitation because I have the experience,
communication skills, background and knowledge required
to be an effective officer for AAPG. I have actively
served on the AAPG Budget Review and Finance Committee
and the Group Insurance (GeoCare) Committee. I was
also the finance chair for four Pacific Section meetings
— including the first joint meeting with SPE and
the first joint meeting with GSA. Additionally, I
have also served as treasurer for several other professional
and service organizations.
My vision for AAPG is that we are and should continue
to be an organization of choice for all members throughout
their lifetime. We are able to provide value-added
programs and services to all members — from students,
consultants, those who own or work for small and large
independents to multi-national companies. We must
continue expanding opportunities for lifetime learning
as well as professional and personal support services.
To that end we must have a vision toward the future
while staying rooted by the economic and accounting
lessons of the past. We cannot be complacent and must
evolve with sound business principles to retain our
economic base and significant competitive advantage
for securing services for members.
My goals for my term in office are:
- Ensure
that the AAPG continues to be prudent and fiscally
conservative, so that we can maintain the current
sound fiscal health. This will enable AAPG to continue
providing value-added programs, services and training
at a low cost to members.
-
Ensure programs and services are member-centered.
-
Help members understand and take advantage of the
membership values we currently have available.
-
Expand services to international members .
I look forward to meeting you at the Section and national
conventions and listening to your ideas and concerns.
By F. Pierce Pratt
I
consider it a distinguished honor to have been selected
as a candidate for treasurer of the AAPG. Membership
in the AAPG has helped me grow professionally and given
me the opportunity to form many friendships. I chose
early in my career to be active in the AAPG, have served
on numerous committees and in the House of Delegates.
Although I am retired, I remain active physically and
socially, and hope to continue my professional development
by serving as treasurer of the AAPG.
The Constitution and Bylaws of the AAPG states that
"The treasurer shall supervise the receipt of all funds
and under the direction of the Executive Committee,
be responsible for all disbursements of funds of the
Association." This involves significant duties, and
the responsibility is such that bond is required of
the officer.
In the 12 years that I have served on the Committee
on Investments, I have gotten to know past treasurers,
become familiar with their responsibilities and with
the finances of the AAPG. The treasurer is an ex officio
member of the Committee on Investments. I am capable
of carrying out these duties and responsibilities and
would do so with the integrity and professionalism that
have characterized my career.
The office of the treasurer is not one of strategy but
of execution and performance. As treasurer, I would
follow existing requirements for the position and other
duties assigned by the Executive Committee. In addition,
I would like to develop a policy statement, defining
boundaries and explaining relationships for the office
similar to the policy statement recently developed for
the Investment Committee. This policy statement would
be available over the AAPG's Web site.
I would also like to write a brief or "white paper,"
— explaining in plain language the many checks and
balances that are in place to ensure that the Association's
finances are being conducted reliability. I believe
that my technical background should also be beneficial
in addressing changes that are necessary with the association's
financial system and software.
I accepted the invitation to become a candidate because
I have found that investment of time to the AAPG has
been immensely rewarding to my professional development
and given me the opportunity to form many lasting friendships.
By Dwight M. "Clint" Moore
AAPG
is at a crossroads. Times are urgent in the lives of
our members. Almost 2,000 members are dropping their
AAPG membership every year, and the largest number of
these are in the young "under-50" age group, who are
our future.
I agreed to become a petition candidate for this important
AAPG office of treasurer because many members and I
believe that AAPG leadership should embrace as its highest
mission doing more for the membership than just our
traditional services.
We believe that we must lead our Association toward
becoming our "Career Partner for Life"!
Our Constitution affirms this highest of missions, when
it clearly states our great purpose to "advance(s) the
professional well being of its members."
Simply put, AAPG needs to offer its members: a skills
registry, Web site resumé posting, a job clearinghouse
and even career counseling and employment assistance.
If you ever lose your job, AAPG should "be there for
you" with programs and services that can make a meaningful
difference in finding that next career opportunity.
Clearly, if successfully implemented, most geoscientists
would want to be an AAPG member, just for these programs
and services alone.
On any given day, there are now thousands of members
that have experienced a recent loss of their job and
could benefit from these services. I know, I've lived
through that experience, too, but who can they turn
to?
Yes, active participation as an AAPG member brings you
a network of wonderful friends and contacts, but that
benefit alone has often proven to not be enough to retain
the thousands of members we lose every year, many of
whom give up out of frustration and leave our profession
for good.
We must never forget that we are not just a scientific
society focusing on great science, we are also a professional
service organization with a membership of real people.
We are members that need and deserve career services
for life from AAPG, our professional service organization.
After many years in a wide range of key leadership roles
within AAPG, from serving on the Advisory Council, the
House of Delegates, the GCAGS Board, the HGS presidency
and many key AAPG and Division committees and their
chairmanships, I well understand the critical importance
of the AAPG treasurer position and its important role
on the AAPG Executive Committee.
The treasurer has the Association's primary financial
responsibility, and thus has a key role in the budgetary
direction of the Association. My extensive experience
in AAPG, in E&P and corporate management, as an
independent and son of a wildcatter, and second degree
in business, best qualify me to serve as AAPG's treasurer.
In everything I've attempted in AAPG, I have tried to
help AAPG realize its highest potential in service to
the membership. My commitment is solely to build a more
member service-oriented AAPG. It is with my passion,
energy and dedication to improve your career through
your "partnership" with AAPG, that I seek the position
of treasurer of this great Association.
Read Treasurer-Elect Candidate Biographies