Final Business Meeting, Indianapolis, Indiana
December 13, 2006
Call to Order
The final business meeting was called to order by Chair Jeff Hahn at 3:30 pm. Approximately 24 members were in attendance.
Jeff announced the need for 50 volunteers to help with next year’s annual conference. A signup sheet was passed around , or members were asked to contact Mark Boetel (2007 Section Chair) if willing to help.
Committee Reports
Minutes from Subsection Fa were not presented at the meeting. John Reese (KSU) reported that they were not immediately ready; but they were submitted later. Incoming Chair of Subsection Fa is Clinton D. Pilcher, Vice-chair is Timothy Nowatzki and the sub-section’s choice for secretary was Gene Reagan.
Minutes from Subsection Fb were read by Jeff Hahn. Incoming Chair of Subsection Fb is Gregg Henderson, Vice chair is John Klotz. Mark Sheperdigian was the sub-section’s choice for Fb Secretary.
Old Business
J. Medical Entomology – Larry D. Godfrey (2007) was not able to attend the preliminary business meeting, but gave his editorial board report at the final business meeting. He reported that the new Editor-in-Chief of JME, Walter Tabachnick, has just completed his first year, and he and the journal are doing very well. Four new subject editors (Tom Burkot, Richard Russell, Dan Strickman and Guiyun Yan) have been added and three have retired (Ron Rosenberg, Hans Klompen and Walter Tabachnick ). The goal is to have one manuscript per month, on average, per editor.
Numbers of pages (1320), articles (183), and submissions (243 to date) in 2006 are about normal for recent years. The JME impact factor (1.5), time to notification (8.6 weeks) and time to publication (41 weeks) are at the top for ESA journals. Rejection rate is currently 47% and should be about 40% for the year.
The idea of an open access journal, proposed to be called "Public Entomology," was discussed at length, since it would likely include a preponderance of medical, veterinary and urban topics. Such a journal, most actively being promoted by USDA-ARS, would be designed to reach out to non-researchers, but be peer-reviewed. The JME Board acknowledged that there are possibly significant public outreach advantages to the proposal. Some concerns were raised about possible competition with existing venues. For example, the J. Med. Entomology (probably minor) or especially with the Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association (probably major). There was also some concern about such a journal formally linking ESA with any other entity such as ARS. Different individuals on the JME Board appeared to differ quite significantly on the issue.
There is a growing tendency in recent years, perhaps seen most dramatically in medical research circles, for numerous authors to be included on a paper (sometimes over 20). Some journals include a statement (e.g., in the form of a footnote) that very briefly explains the contributions of each author to the work. Our JME board was generally in favor of this, and the proposer will draft a statement for consideration by the Publications Council (to be given to Alan Kahan).
The proposal to list in the journal which subject editor was responsible for editing each published paper was discussed at the Board meeting. Different JME Board members and subject editors differed significantly on this issue. Walter Tabachnick will poll the subject editors again on this idea, which was rejected when it was raised several years ago.
The Governing Board Final Report was then presented by Shripat Kamble (2006). Shripat requested that all Section F members consider and vote on the re-organization plan when it comes up for a vote this spring. Mike Culy noted that we have yet to have an open discussion of the reorganization plan in our section. He wondered if anyone had any concerns or opinions about the plan? A general discussion then followed where it was noted that there are questions about:
· Discomfort among some members about the names of the new sections. Shripat noted concerns and mentioned that the current proposed names were not finalized.
· How the new networking system will work, on a practical basis. Shripat commented that membership will have to work hard to make the networking system work and details are still being worked out. Constitutional by-laws are being drafted now, and we will soon have the exact wording.
· It was suggested that the new Plant-Insect Interactions section will probably comprise half of the membership.
Shripat noted that the branch meetings will be our last chance to discuss concerns, changes. Branches should be encouraged to provide a forum for these discussions. Subsections will become the new networks, he said.
In other Board business, Shripat reported that Marlin Rice had resigned as Secretary-Treasurer. There was also discussion on digitizing old ESA journal back issues at the Board meeting. There will be a student symposium on writing styles at next year’s meeting.
Shripat then introduced Mike Culy as the incoming Governing Board representative for Section F. Mike responded that he was looking forward to his new responsibilities. He then thanked Shripat for his two terms of service on the Board.
Chairman Hahn then asked if there were any new nominations for Section F Secretary. Paul Borth was still the only nominee and his name will be forwarded to the Governing Board.
Concerning the two editorial board vacancies discussed during the preliminary business meeting, Mike Merchant nominated Greg Nuessley (University of Florida) for the vacancy on the AMT Editorial Board. Gene Reagan (LSU) was still the only nominee for the Environmental Entomology vacancies. The two nominations were seconded and passed by voice vote.
Chairman Hahn then called for any other old business. There being none, he then turned responsibility for the meeting over to Mark Boetel, the new Section F chair. Mark thanked Jeff for his service this year. He noted that “Giving Something Back,” the theme for this year’s annual conference, is a theme that doesn’t die in ESA. He then encouraged all Section F members to make the effort to volunteer in some capacity this year. Our volunteer efforts are what will make Section F a strong section.
Chair Boetel then asked for new business. There being none, Shripat Kamble moved that the meeting be adjourned. Steve Clement then seconded and the motion to adjourn passed at 4:02 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Michael E. Merchant
2006 Section F. Secretary