Thanks to the Nominating Committee for submitting these names to the UCGIS delegates for consideration in the 2019 elections. The election will be held on Wednesday June 12, 2019, during the Symposium. Online voting will be available in the days prior to the election day for those delegates who will not be present at the Symposium itself. Selected individuals will begin their positions on July 1. 


 President-Elect

Jeremy MennisJeremy Mennis, Temple University

Bio: Dr. Jeremy Mennis is Professor and Undergraduate Chair in the Department of Geography and Urban Studies at Temple University. Jeremy received a Ph.D. in Geography from Pennsylvania State University in 2001 and is a certified GIS Professional (GISP). He has served UCGIS in various capacities, including as Delegate (2001-2019), Board Director (2008-2012), and Research Chair (2014-2017), among other UCGIS roles. Other notable leadership activities include serving on the GIS Certification Institute (GISCI) Board of Directors (representing UCGIS, 2010-2014), as Chair of the American Association of Geographers (AAG) GIS Specialty Group (2009-10), and on the 2010 U.S. Department of Labor panel that designed the Geospatial Technology Competency Model (GTCM). Jeremy is currently Associate Editor of Preventing Chronic Disease, a journal of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). His teaching and research focus on Geographic Information Systems and Science and their application to health and environment.

Statement: Thank you for this opportunity to be nominated for UCGIS Vice-President. I have been involved with UCGIS for nearly twenty years, a journey that has been incredibly rewarding both intellectually and professionally, and I look forward to contributing to the leadership of UCGIS so that others may likewise benefit. Some of UCGIS’s most impactful activities have been in developing interdisciplinary forums and collaborations that explore the role of GIS in other substantive domains, as with this year’s symposium focusing on GIScience and the humanities. As Vice-President I hope to build on this trajectory in new directions. I believe UCGIS is at its best when looking outward, engaging with scholars and educators outside of UCGIS to bring a GIScience perspective to other academic and industry communities. UCGIS has also had a number of successful initiatives in engaging students and junior faculty, such as the recent Summer School and TRELIS projects, addressing emerging educational challenges, such as data science, and developing critical educational resources, such as the GIS&T BoK. I believe that it is vitally important for UCGIS to expand on efforts such as these, in order to prepare the next generation of the GIS workforce and GIS researchers and educators.

 

As per our By Laws, if anyone else would like to run for the position of President-Elect, additional nominations may be made by petition signed by five delegates and received by the Executive Committee no later than May 22, 2019.


Members, Board of Directors (2 to be elected):

Kevin CurtinKevin Curtin, University of Alabama

Bio: Kevin M. Curtin is a Professor in the Department of Geography and the Director of the Laboratory for Location Science, both at the University of Alabama. He received his PhD in Geography from the University of California – Santa Barbara, with a dual focus on GIS and optimal facilities location. He performs primary research in the field of Geographic Information Science with specializations in location science, transportation and logistics, spatial movement behavior, spatial statistics, and network GIS. Application areas for his research include autonomous vehicle logistics, transportation geography, crime studies, health and nutrition, and geospatial intelligence. He teaches extensively at both the undergraduate and graduate university levels, and has served on over 130 thesis and dissertation committees. Funding from the Office of Naval Research, the National Science Foundation, and the Army Research Institute is supporting students and faculty associated with his research group, the Laboratory for Location Science.

Statement: Since my first interaction with UCGIS as a newly minted academic, I have been struck by the similarity between my own interests and the mission of UCGIS. I am equally interested in both the research of GIScience and the education of the next generation of GIScientists. I am convinced that GIScience holds a unique place among disciplines, and that a strong advocate to champion those who practice it is a critical need. UCGIS fills that need, and goes above and beyond to organize members of the community of interest and articulate the desires of that community for the growth and progress of the discipline. I believe that my administrative experience in particular – as chair and associate dean – will be of particular advantage to the Board. That experience demanded a breadth of interaction with other disciplines, and therefore allowed me to become familiar with a wider range of methods for promoting and supporting an organization in furtherance of their common goals. I hope to use that experience to the benefit of UCGIS. It would be an honor to serve UCGIS and the wider academic and professional GIS community as a member of the Board of Directors.

 

Paddington HodzaPaddington Hodza, University of Wyoming

Bio: Paddington Hodza is Associate Director at Wyoming Geographic Information Science Center (WyGISC), a research institute at the University of Wyoming. He was born and raised in Zimbabwe where he completed his BSc Surveying and MSc Land and Geographic Information Systems at the University of Zimbabwe. Paddington worked for the World Wide Fund for Nature and Environment and Remote Sensing Institute before moving to the U.S. in 2002 to pursue a PhD in Geography at West Virginia University. His PhD research linked GIS, immersive VR and geovisualization technologies. After receiving his PhD, Paddington joined the University of Colorado in Colorado Springs where he directed the Certificate in GIScience program for which he led the development. Paddington’s roots and experiences in Africa motivated him to conceive the concept of Appreciative GIS which aims to inspire, bring hope and instill confidence in disadvantaged communities through greater emphasis on strengths rather than perceived problems.

Statement: My interest in serving on the UCGIS Board of Directors is driven by organizational, professional and personal reasons. I admire and care deeply about what UCGIS stands for including the consortium’s work and influential role in the GIS&T field. I believe that my knowledge and experience while serving in a leadership capacity at WyGISC over the past few years have placed me in a position where I can now work collaboratively with others at the forefront of UCGIS to influence the broader trajectory of the consortium. I see this as an opportunity for me to get immersed in UCGIS work, and better appreciate and respond to the diverse needs of academic institutions served by the consortium. Like many folks, I am grateful to everyone who has provided and continue to offer their service to UCGIS. I believe that working with and learning from members of the UCGIS Board of Directors has great potential to help me grow professionally and personally including expanding my professional network and improving my ability to make group decisions that shape the directions of organizations. If elected, I intend to invest every resource at my disposal to ensure that UCGIS continues to be a success story.


Alan MurrayAlan Murray, University of California at Santa Barbara

Bio: Alan Murray is a Professor in the Department of Geography at University of California at Santa Barbara. His previous academic appointments include Drexel University, Arizona State University and Ohio State University. He obtained a BS in Mathematics, an MA in Statistics and Applied Probability, and a PhD in Geography, all from the University of California at Santa Barbara. He has over 25 years of experience using, teaching and applying GISicence addressing issues of public health, urban growth and development, and infrastructure and transportation. He has been involved with UCGIS for many years, serving as a delegate at both Arizona State University and now at UCSB. He is on the editorial board of many GIScience journals, including International Journal of Geographical Information Science, Transactions in GIS, Geographical Analysis, and Computers, Environment and Urban Systems. He is the author of three books and more than 240 research articles, book chapters and proceedings papers.

Statement: I am honored to be considered for the UCGIS Board of Directors. If elected, I would work with the Officers, Board of Directors, and Committee Chairs to further strengthen the prominence and significance of UCGIS. I am committed to the UCGIS mission of advancing research in GIScience, expanding and strengthening GIScience education, the ethical use geographic information and technologies, and building scholarly GIScience communities. I believe there are opportunities to enhance public and private sector connections to UCGIS around its core mission. In addition, I see the need for continued efforts to broaden participation of students in all UCGIS activities.


Suzanne WechslerSuzanne Wechsler, Cal State University at Long Beach

Bio: As a Professor of Geography California State University Long Beach, my expertise falls in the areas of geospatial science with academic training in both geographic information science and the environmental sciences. My research interests focus on issues associated with sources of error in spatial data, specifically terrain data. Current research involves the application of data collected from the emerging area of remotely piloted aircraft to address a variety of spatial questions. I continue to explore topics in the area of spatial data uncertainty and how uncertainty resulting from errors in spatial data can be quantified and responsibly communicated. As Director of our Master of Science in Geographic Information Science degree, my goal is to deliver curriculum informed by the needs of industry to graduate prepared and effective geospatial practitioners. 

Statement: I am honored to have been recommended for consideration as a nominee for election to the UCGIS Board of Directors. The California State University (CSU) system is represented as one entity within the UCGIS. We are a public university comprised of twenty-three campuses each with vibrant geospatial programs organized through our CSU GIS Specialty Center. I have served as the CSU-Long Beach Board member to the Specialty Center for over a decade and would bring to UCGIS the perspective of our teaching-focused campuses. I would value the opportunity to contribute to and further the development of UCGIS’s programs. As a GIS academic for over two decades, I am aware of challenges faced by geospatial faculty to deliver innovative training and would support and promote TeachGIS, an invaluable resource for academics at all stages. The GIS&T Projects is a brilliant mechanism for facilitating practical training and I would work to further its development and reach. I am a founding member of the Women in GIS mentorship committee and would support the goals of the Trellis program.  As the “professional hub” for geospatial academics, serving on the UCGIS Board would provide an invaluable opportunity to collaborate with a cross section of dedicated and learned academics. Thank you for your consideration.