Association for Women Geoscientists, Minnesota Chapter

Networking Breakfasts
Friday - Feb 11 at 7 am

Please join members of the AWG board for a networking breakfast at the Parkview Café at Raymond and Bayless in St. Paul (map attached). This informal gathering is designed to help all members and friends of AWG find out more about what the local chapter can do for it members and to help us all make connections. Please join us! Please encourage students to attend!

Future networking breakfasts:

March 11, April 8, May 13

Joint Luncheon Meeting with AIPG - March 1: 11:45 am:

Kelly Inn Best Western
I-94 & Marion St.
St. Paul, MN
(651) 227-8711

Board member Lesley Perg (professor, University of Minnesota Geology and Geophysics) will present the annual AIPG/AWG lecture at the monthly AIPG meeting. Please see the AIPG website for further details: http://www.aipgmn.org/monthly.htm. Lesley’s talk will be on her innovative work using radionuclides to provide clues to dates of geologic events along the California coast. There are ample applications for this technique in Minnesota, too.

Upcoming Events
May 2005
North-Central GSA May 19, 2005

Check the GSA Website for Events.

AWG is sponsoring a luncheon event, Opportunities in Earth Science for All Americans. Sponsored by the Association for Women Geoscientists. Invited speaker Marilyn Suiter.
Fri., May 20, noon–1 p.m. No cost, but reservations required.

More information will be forthcoming—please plan to attend this important event and help us spread the word!

News and Views from the President’s Desk
Happy New Year! We are well on our way to an exciting new year! We have several events coming together this spring, please read through the newsletter and put a few of them on your calendar!

I would like to welcome several new members Kelly MacGregor, Sara Wilson and Simone Cole to our Minnesota Chapter of AWG. If you are new to AWG, the Minnesota Chapter, or a lapsed or current member, I hope you will join us for one of our monthly networking breakfasts at Parkview Café on Raymond, in St. Paul. One of our goals, here at the MN Chapter, is to initiate and strengthen members’ relationships with industry, government and academic geoscientists. We had the opportunity already this year to watch a new member come to the networking breakfasts, take on a leadership role as treasurer and to reap the benefits of the AWG network in getting an industry job. How exciting for all of us!

Sara Wilson, BS University of Hawaii, was recently hired as a geologist and business manager by Edward Kramer & Sons Inc., their Burnsville, MN office. She starts her full-time position February 7th. Congratulations Sara and to all of our networking breakfast folks in realizing the potential of AWG! Sara’s experience over the past six months (aside from being patient), has once again demonstrated to all of us, the powerful nature of network connections in facilitating in realizing our personal and professional goals. So I hope you will come join the network!

I would also like to publicly acknowledge and thank Jane Willard for her many years of service to the Minnesota AWG Board. Her tireless efforts on behalf of AWG have kept our chapter moving along for quite some time. Thanks again Jane!

Finally, please take a few minutes to look at the information regarding the upcoming North Central GSA regional meeting, May 19-20. AWG will have a booth in the exhibition hall and we are sponsoring a luncheon with a great speaker, Marilyn Suiter. Please consider submitting an abstract to one of the many exciting scientific theme sessions or share your favorite classroom, lab or field exercises in one of two NAGT sponsored education sessions. If you are a K-16 educator, we hope you will register for the teacher workshop and spend the day learning about ways to excite and engage your students in Earth Science.

All for now folks, looking forward to seeing you at one of our upcoming exciting spring events!

--Megan Jones, President, Minnesota Chapter, AWG.