[Fornlist] Notice to FORNL Members Regarding the Annual Meeting and Election of New Board Members on Feb. 17

[Warren Webb]

To:  Friends of ORNL


We will hold the official election of board members at a short annual meeting to be held on Feb. 17, 2010, prior to the monthly luncheon lecture meeting.  The meeting location in Oak Ridge is the UT Resource Center, the white-colored building at 1201 Oak Ridge Turnpike (State Highway 95) between Taco Bell and Applebee's at the intersection of the Turnpike and Rutgers Ave (at Traffic Light #7).  The agenda for this meeting will be:



11:00 a.m. Socializing and Coffee

11:30 a.m. Lunch (provided by the Soup Kitchen)

11:50 a.m. Annual Meeting and Election of Board Members

12:00 noon Lecture begins 

12:45 p.m. Q&A 

1:00 p.m. Adjourn



The election process will consist of asking for nominations from the floor, and voting by voice vote. 



The term of office for board members is (normally) two years and a board member is eligible to succeed to office twice for a total of three consecutive terms.  After three consecutive terms a board member must drop off the board for at least a year.  The by-laws require that 5 board members be elected (or re-elected) each year, and to that end 5 are elected (or re-elected) on even years and 5 on odd years.  Our board makeup has gotten out of balance between even- and odd-year members, and this year we are electing two new board members with even-year renewals and three with odd-year renewals.  This means that three of the incoming new board members will need to be re-elected next year.



The candidates selected by the nominating committee are listed below along with a short biographical sketch:



Charles C. (Chuck) Coutant



Chuck Coutant is seeking his first term on the FORNL board.  His will be a one-year first term with eligibility for two re-elections (2011 and 2013).  Chuck was employed by ORNL from March 1970 until retirement in October 2005. He was a 1965 PhD graduate of Lehigh University, Bethlehem, PA. He came to ORNL from Battelle-Northwest, Richland, WA, where he conducted laboratory and field studies on salmon and other aquatic life of the Columbia River, particularly in relation to the thermal discharges from the Hanford plutonium-production reactors. He was invited to what is now ORNL's Environmental Sciences Division to establish an aquatic power plant effects program in anticipation of a surge in nuclear power. He oversaw construction of the Aquatic Ecology Laboratory (Bldg 1504) and a team of 15 research staff. In addition to laboratory and field research on power plant effects, he participated in environmental assessments of thermal and hydroelectric power stations.  In 1989-1991 he led ORNL's LDRD Program. From 1989-2005, he served on boards overseeing Columbia River basin salmon restoration. He currently consults part-time, primarily on aquatic impacts for the electric power industry. He and his wife, Nancy, live in Oak Ridge and have two grown children.   



Vic Tennery



Vic Tennery is seeking his first term on the FORNL board.  His will be a one-year first term with eligibility for two re-elections (2011 and 2013).  Vic worked at Oak Ridge National Laboratory from 1974-1994 and from 1968 -1971. Prior to this, he was a Professor of Ceramic Engineering at the University of Illinois in Urbana, IL. During his years at ORNL, he held various positions including Research Ceramist, Group Leader and Section Head in the Metals and Ceramics Division. He retired in 1994 after serving for 10 years as the Director of the High Temperature Materials Laboratory.

He received his B.S., M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Ceramic Engineering from the University of Illinois in 1954, 1955, and 1959, respectively and worked for Motorola Semiconductor in Scottsdale, AZ.  He served in the U.S. Army from 1955-1957. Vic has remained active in Engineering Education as a visitor for the Accreditation Board for Engineering Education (ABET)  from 1985 until 2006. He was a member of  the Technology Accreditation Commission of ABET during the 2007-2008 accreditation year.   He is currently living in oak Ridge.



Elizabeth Peelle



Elizabeth Peelle is seeking her first term on the FORNL board after an absence of several years.  Hers will be a one-year first term with eligibility for two re-elections (2011 and 2013).  In her 38-year Career at ORNL, Elizabeth helped establish the new field of social impact assessment for federal government projects (1974) and extend application of NEPA impact criteria to people and human communities.  She also helped shape and define the emerging field of environmental sociology.  With degrees in both chemistry and sociology, she has worked to bridge the chasm between the technical and sociopolitical worlds.  



For the past 10 years she has worked on stakeholder interactions with biomass and bioenergy development.  With the National Farmers Union she helped shape the arrangements enabling farmers to contract with the Chicago Climate Exchange for carbon credits (payments for specified agricultural practices) that sequester carbon in the soil and thus reduce greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.   Peelle is a fellow of the AAAS and holds an honorary JD from Miami University of Ohio.  She lives with her husband Robert in Oak Ridge.



Willis Baker



Willis Baker is seeking his first term on the FORNL board.  His will be a two-year first term with eligibility for two re-elections (2012 and 2014).  Willis is a retired Benefits Manager, Oak Ridge National Laboratory; and currently is serving as a tour guide for ORNL and the American Museum of Science and Energy.  He holds a BS and Mph in Public Health Administration from the University of Tennessee; and MS and ThD in New Testament Theology from Trinity Seminary.



Willis is a published author of essays, short stories, and poetry.  He has been a guest columnist, and is a music composer.



He lives with his wife Joyce Ann in Farragut and have two children and three grandchildren.



Connor Matthews



Connor Matthews is returning to the board after an absence of one year.  He will be eligible for re-election twice (2012 and 2014).  He currently is serving as an adjunct board member in charge of Community Lectures.  Connor has a degree in Metallurgical Engineering from UT; served as a co-op student at DuPont Savannah River; and is an ORSORT Graduate.  He worked for AEC-ERDA-DOE as a Site-Rep at ORNL during late 60's and early 90's. At ORNL he worked on Reactor Development programs, Solvent Refined Coal, Waste Management, HFIR Restart, Technology Transfer, and DOE Quality Management Initiative.  He retired in 1997 after 35 years and lives in Oak Ridge.



Pat Parr



Pat Parr will be starting her second term on the FORNL board with eligibility for re-election in 2012.  Pat is an Oak Ridge native and graduate of Oak Ridge High School.  She is Natural Resources Manager for Oak Ridge National Laboratory and coordinates management of natural resources for the 34,000 acre Oak Ridge Reservation.  



Pat has served as President of the Tennessee Exotic Pest Plant Council and the Association of Southeastern Biologists.  She is the new chair of Discover Life in America, the nonprofit organization that manages the All Taxa Biodiversity Inventory project in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  



She lives in Oak Ridge.



Larry Shappert



Larry Shappert will be starting his second term on the FORNL board with eligibility for re-election in 2012.  Larry is a consultant, and is retired from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) where he worked for 46 years, primarily in the fields of packaging design and testing for the shipment of radioactive materials.   He holds a BS in Chemical Engineering and an MS in Nuclear Engineering.  Larry was General Chairman of PATRAMs 2 and 4 and is author of numerous papers on package testing.  Larry lives in Oak Ridge.



Bob Hightower



Bob Hightower will be starting his third term on the FORNL board.  Bob retired from Oak Ridge National Laboratory in January 2005 after 40 years employment in the Chemical Technology Division and the Nuclear Science and Technology Division.  He holds a BSChE from Ole Miss, and MS, and PhD degrees in Chemical Engineering from Tulane University.  He lives with his wife, Dot, in Oak Ridge.