Council Meeting

Changes in membership are focus
of Annual Council Meeting

by Jenny Kucera

SEG has experienced many positive changes in 2013—reflected in the governance of The Society, and ultimately, the benefits it provides to members.

Representatives of SEG Sections, associated societies, and Districts attended the 2013 Annual Council Meeting as part of SEG's International Exposition and 83^rd Annual Meeting Sunday, 22 September, in Houston, Texas.

Council Chair Mike Graul called the Annual Council Meeting to order and welcomed the 46 members in attendance. He introduced the outgoing President David Monk and Parliamentarian Ted Bakamjian.

During the Seating of the Council, a quorum (one-third of all Council members, or 31) was present. Graul mentioned the special rules proposed for the meeting regarding time limits on debate and number of times an individual may speak on a proposal, and the rules were adopted as presented.

Printed copies of the Council Agenda Book and the SEG 2013 (preliminary) Annual Report were distributed at the Council Meeting. No new agenda items for the Council Meeting were added, and the agenda was therefore adopted as presented. The Council will approve the full Annual Report (with audited financial statements) before the 2014 Annual Meeting.

Proposed amendments to the SEG Bylaws were presented to the Council in two separate proposals: 1) Bylaws housekeeping items, and 2) a Membership proposal facilitating the admission process for professional members to the Active Member class.

Regarding the housekeeping items, the modifications to the Bylaws were intended to reword and clarify items to reduce ambiguities or conflicts. Council members voted to accept the Housekeeping items.

In a lively conversation during the Council Meeting, Council members discussed the procedures regarding changes to SEG membership requirements (defined in SEG Bylaws Article III, Section 1.a). After much dialog on both sides, a majority of delegates approved the motion to postpone discussion until an indefinite time, sometime before the 2014 Annual Meeting.

The Council then heard reports from the Boards of Directors. In his Presidential Address, outgoing President David Monk discussed the highlights of his term and how things change, encouraging SEG to recognize the changing demands of our membership. 2013 saw a new governance model with a re-invigorated Council and a larger, more diverse Board of Directors. A travel safety policy was offered to Members, and The Society continues to collaborate with other societies such as AAPG, EAGE, GSA, and Near-Surface groups.

This Annual Meeting in Houston is SEG's largest one yet. Registration was 8944 attendees as of the Council Meeting Sunday afternoon and continues to reach record numbers. The 2013 Annual Meeting also offers the largest technical program and largest exhibition in SEG's history.

Also during Monk's term, SEG Real Estate Corp. broke ground to construct a new office building on the existing campus in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. Expected completion of the Class-A expansion is December 2014.

Chairpersons of SEG Subsidiaries and Corporations summarized their activities of the past year. Reports included SEG Foundation Board of Directors, Tom Smith; SEG Global, Inc., Ricardo Rosa Fernandes; SEG Real Estate Corp., Gary Servos; and SEAM Board of Directors, Manik Talwani. Full reports of the activities of these boards are included in the SEG 2013 Annual Report.

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