SECRETARY'S NOTES

Abstract

By the time you receive this issue of the Journal, the 2008 elections for the ASNE National Council will be underway. All members who were eligible to vote on the day that the polls opened should have received notification regarding the availability of the online ballot and instructions on how to vote online. Those eligible to vote include all regular Members (both over 30 and under 30), Life Members and Members Emeritus. Note that in accordance with the Bylaws, Associate Members, Student Members and Honorary Members are not eligible to vote and therefore will not receive notice about the election. Initial notification is sent by e-mail to all eligible members for whom we have a valid e-mail address with a link to the online ballot location. Notification is then sent by mail to all eligible members for whom we do not have a valid e-mail address and to those with an e-mail address who did not vote within the first five days. The notice also includes instructions on how to obtain a paper ballot for those who prefer to submit their ballot by mail rather than voting online. This is the third year that we are using online voting. Members who have used the online voting system have been nearly unanimous in their praise for the process, and each year has set a new record for percentage of participation. I hope that this year an even greater percentage of you will take the time to consider the candidates and submit your vote for those you believe should help to lead the Society into the future. Also please take the time to complete the optional survey that accompanies the online ballot. Survey response in previous years has helped us to improve the election process, and this year the survey includes questions from the Membership Committee intended to help them better understand the composition of our membership and to gather ideas they can use in developing plans for how to improve member service, increase retention and enhance our recruiting efforts. Your participation in both the election and the survey are important. Please help the ASNE leadership to make your Society better for you. The question of how to grow the future leadership for our nation's naval engineering community is one of the primary concerns of the ASNE leadership, and indeed a great concern of many of our members. Therefore, I'm particularly pleased to announce an exciting venture with the ASNE Monterey Peninsula Section—the establishment of the Naval Engineering Collaboration Center (NECC) at the Naval Postgraduate School. This new multifunction space is available for use as a conference room, member lounge, study area and general gathering spot to discuss topics of interest to naval engineers. Located on the first floor of Watkins Hall on the Naval Postgraduate School campus, the NECC is ready to welcome new members, colleagues and friends alike. This project would not have been possible without the hard work and dedication of the 2007–2008 Monterey Section Council and its members. ASNE Monterey Peninsula Section Council members conceived the plan for the NECC, designed the layout and purchased the necessary accoutrements with the assistance of ASNE National Headquarters. Section members who helped in the renovation of the space include Clint Hoskins, Gus Vergara, Jon Letourneau and Will Koszarek. The Naval Postgraduate School is a principal source of graduate technical education for many Navy officers and for some members of the Navy's civilian workforce. The Monterey Peninsula Section provides an ASNE presence on the campus in order to familiarize the students with the benefits of professional society membership and help them to prepare for a leadership role in the Navy technical community. The membership of the Monterey Peninsula Section is primarily made up of students and faculty of the Naval Postgraduate School, though membership is open to anyone working within the naval engineering profession. Many members pass through on short tours of duty. That allows for a continual influx of new ideas and talents but has made continuity of membership a challenge in the past. The Monterey Peninsula Section looks forward to sponsoring a number of activities in the near future that will allow for greater exposure outside the Naval Postgraduate School campus. Commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of the Great White Fleet's visit to Monterey Bay at the Maritime Museum of Monterey, exclusive tours of the Monterey Bay Aquarium from an engineering perspective, a series of guest lectures and the occasional social event at the NPS Trident Room are just a few such events.