Personal and Professional Growth Opportunities The IWEA offers many opportunities for those who desire to develop broader skills and foster personal and professional growth. We have Committee openings for those who are in need of serious stimulation or just plain humor and fun. Time commitments can be as little as one hour or as long as eight hours per month. You can work alone or be part of a team. Not sure about what may interest you? Below is a partial listing of how you can get more involved in the IWEA: Write an article for the newsletter Greet new members. Sign up to be a mentor Help with registration at our conferences and seminars Aid us in identifying those new to the profession Get involved by joining a committee. The following Committee opportunities are currently available:   Awards Committee Solicits, evaluates and recommends nominations for various Water Environment Federation (WEF) and IWEA awards for Executive Board approval. Prepares necessary documents for submittal of national awards. Contact Pat Schatz: e-mail: peschatz@citykankakee-il.gov. Phone 815/933-0487 or fax 815/933-8762. Biosolids Committee Reviews the issues of residuals management. Recommends and assists in implementing appropriate programs for the Member Association, including topics for plant operations seminars. The Committee is seeking new members. Anyone with a background and interest in biosolids processing or management is encouraged to apply. We are in need of individuals from municipalities across the state as well as consulting engineers and agronomists and land application practitioners. Contact Thomas Granato: e-mail: Thomas.granato@mwrd.org Phone 708-588-4059 or fax 708-780-6706. Collection Facilities Committee The Committee is seeking new members. Anyone with a background and interest in wastewater collection systems and pump stations is encouraged to apply. We are in need of individuals from collection systems operations, municipal engineers or Public Works staff, and consulting engineers. The Collection Facilities Committee is responsible for promoting knowledge of wastewater collections systems in Illinois, as well as supporting wastewater collection systems operations personnel in obtaining state certification. Contact Al Hollenbeck at 630/682-4700 or email ahollenbeck@rjn.com. Government Affairs Committee The Committee is seeking active members from municipal engineers, public works staff and consulting engineers. The Committee provides updates on current regulations and policies pertaining to water pollution to its members by the means of sponsoring conference and/or such events. We are looking for individuals who can help in securing speakers, arranging conference and with registration etc. Please contact Jay Patel at jay.patel@illinois.gov or any of the Committee members.  Marketing Are you interested in developing marketing strategies, marketing research, or marketing communications for the association? Are you interested in developing and executing marketing campaigns to expand the IWEA annual conference? If you possess any of the following skills or knowledge areas, you will be able to contribute to the goals of the IWEA Marketing Committee by helping to communicate the association’s image and objectives to our members and prospective members: Knowledge of corporate, industry, government, municipal, or community organizations and publications Graphic design and production of promotional materials Ability to tailor promotional materials to target audiences Write press releases or articles to generate publicity for the association Event planning Knowledge of computerized database management systems for list Management and marketing research Contact Rozanne Ferguson at rferguson@cmteng.com or 630/820-1022. Membership Coordinates programs and activities aimed at recruiting, welcoming and retaining IWEA members. There is an immediate need for Mentors to welcome new members with a phone call and to encourage their participation in association activities. Contact Fred Wu at 312/751-4025 or frederick.wu@mwrd,org. Newsletter An editor is needed for our quarterly newsletter, the Illinois Clarifier. The editor solicits and facilitates the submittal of articles for all IWEA events and its members' activities. Ensures the quality of the newsletter and timeliness of printing and mailing. Contact Chuck Corley at 815/987-7760 or charles.corley@illinois.gov. Program Committee We are looking for new Committee members to represent all fields in our business; from plant operators, sales representatives, lab personal, government employees to engineers and managers. If you would like to offer input into our annual program and help "serve the international community of water environment professionals" (one of IWEA’s primary objectives) please join us. This Committee develops the technical program for the annual conference, including solicitation of abstracts, selection of abstracts for program, and development of technical program. We meet only once or twice a year in person and handle the rest of our business via e-mails, conference and individual phone calls. For the 2006-2007 program year we are also looking for a VICE-CHAIR to serve with the intent of taking over as CHAIR in 2007-2008. Contact Eric Cockerill, Program Committee Chair at eric.cockerill@cte.aecom.com or 312/373-6678 to find out more or join. Public Education and Student Affairs The PE & SA has historically been one of the largest within the IWEA organization. The mission of this Committee is to promote public awareness of IWEA and its membership activities and to educate the general public about the importance of clean water and preserving our environment. Over the years, on-going major activities have including judging at the State Science Fair, Career Fairs, Clean Water Awards for students and an educational display with hands-on activities throughout the week of the Illinois State Fair in Springfield. New members with new ideas for activities are most welcome and needed to sustain and expand this important Committee. Contact Norm Rose at nrose835@sbcglobal.net. Safety Committee 2006 will be a re-forming year for the Safety Committee. Needed are individuals that are very much aware of the need for successful propagation of safety training and visibility. Goal oriented individuals are needed who have the required time to devote to see Safety Committee objectives through fruition. Driven individuals are needed that will lend insight as to where the Committee should be headed and the desire to participate in that endeavor. Contact Mark Termini at mtermini@addison-il.org or (630) 279-2140. Student Chapters The WEF-AWWA Student Chapter Committee for IWEA is looking for a few good women and men. Individuals would be expected to attend chapter meetings (U of I Urbana-Champaign, Illinois Institute of Technology, and/or Northwestern University), help organize new events, make telephone calls, send emails to students and other volunteers, and in general, support these relatively new student chapters. It is estimated that the time commitment would be 4-6 hours per month. Contact Lou Storino at lou.storing@mwrd.org or 312/751-3167.