STMA officially installed its 2011 Board of Directors during the association’s annual meeting in Austin, TX earlier this month. Troy Smith, CSFM, Denver Broncos Football Club, was elected STMA’s 19th President and James Michael Goatley, Jr., PhD, Virginia Tech, is President-Elect. Chris Calcaterra, M.Ed., CSFM, CPRP, City of Peoria Sports Complex, Peoria, AZ ascends to the office of Immediate Past President. Martin Kaufman, CSFM, Ensworth Schools, Nashville, TN was elected to the Secretary/Treasurer position.
Four new Directors have joined the STMA Board; three were elected and one was appointed. Those elected include:
· Allen Johnson, CSFM, Green Bay Packers, WI, representing the Facilities used by Professional Athletes category
· Mike Tarantino, Poway Unified School District, CA, representing Schools K-12
· Jeff Fowler, Penn State University Cooperative Extension Services, Franklin, PA was elected to an At-Large Director position.
President Smith appointed Jeff Salmond, CSFM, University of Oklahoma, to an At-Large Director position. Smith also appointed previous board member David Pinsonneault, CSFM, CPRP, Town of Lexington, MA, to the Parks and Recreation’s open Director position. Rene Asprion from Diamond Pro/TXI, Dallas, TX was elected to a 2-year term as Commercial Director. He was appointed to the board last year to fill the vacant Commercial Director position.
Returning to the Board for the second year of their terms are Chad Price, CSFM, Vice President-Commercial, Carolina Green Corp.; Pamela Sherratt, Academic Director from The Ohio State University; and Ron Hostick, CSFM, who serves on behalf of the collegiate membership segment from San Diego State University.
The 13-member board participates in quarterly meetings and provides leadership by chairing more than half of STMA’s 22 committees.
The Sports Turf Managers Association’s 22nd Annual Conference and Exhibition saw more than 900 sports turf managers, academics, and other practitioners from all over the world gather in Austin, TX for the green industry’s premier sports turf specific event. Including exhibit personnel, more than 1,500 people were on site; more than 160 companies exhibited.
Individual attendance figures outpaced the 2010 show in Orlando, FL by more than 100 people. Despite poor weather around the country, and unseasonably cool weather in Austin early in the week, attendees arrived mostly as scheduled to take advantage of educational tracks, the exhibition, off-site tours, banquets and receptions.
Those attending the conference took advantage of more than 90 hours of sports turf specific education, including an entire day of educational Pre-Conference Workshops Wednesday.
Dr. James Beard, a legend in the sports turf industry, gave the keynote address on the past, present and future of sports turf management, and then attendees were entertained by a Texas trio, the Swing Riders, whose songs and stories brought smiles to all.
The Annual STMA Conference and Exhibition is supported through the generous sponsorship of the following companies: Barenbrug USA; Covermaster, Inc.; Diamond Pro/TXI; Hunter Industries; Jacobsen; Rain Bird Corp.; The Toro Company; and World Class Athletic Surfaces, Inc.
The 2012 STMA Conference and Exhibition, which will be the association’s 23rd annual event, will be January 10-14, 2012 in Long Beach, CA. The Exhibition will be at the Long Beach Convention Center and the official hotels of the event are the Westin Long Beach and the Long Beach Hyatt.