STED Committee Teleconference
Conference Call Agenda and Notes
Thursday December, 2, 2010
(1:00-3:00 pm Eastern Time)

Notes recorded by Steve Anthony

Dial-in Logistics    Purpose    Agenda    Attendees    Discussion Notes

Dial-In Logistics

Conference Date:	12/02/2010
Conference Time:	1:00-3:00 pm ET
Bridge Call-in #:	703-648-4848
# of Ports/Lines:	??
Conference Code #:	48928#

Purpose

Attendees List:

• Invited - Alan Ward, Barbara Kerans, David Pollock, Dianne Jefferies, Franceska Wilde
  Harry Jenter, Joyce Williamson, Mike Nolan, Lynn Taylor, Steve Blanchard, Steve Anthony
  Steve Lipscomb, Theresa Lane, Bill Hazel, Mike Ierardi
• Attended - Alan Ward, Joyce Williamson, Mike Nolan, Lynn Taylor, Steve Blanchard, Steve Anthony, Steve Lipscomb, and Bill Hazel

Agenda And Discussion Notes

External communication reports

• None reported.
• Action items
• Alan Ward will promote STED at the USGS Pacific Northwest Science Conference in March 2011.

Regional Co-op status

• No progress reported.
• Action items
• None

STED web page

• Comments on the new web page
• Need access for Lynn Taylor to post meeting notes on the new web page.
• Organize meeting notes by year beginning with more recent.
• Need technical offices to maintain their training web page.

• Office of Surface Water Training (OSW)
• Office of Water Quality Training (OWQ)
• Office of Groundwater Training (OGW)
• Solicit additional feedback from STED and target audience.
• Action items
  • Barb Kerans will notify the STED when the new web page ready is for additional review. Request feedback within 2-weeks.
  • Bill Hazel will remind each representative from the technical offices on the STED of the need to keep their training web page up-to-date.
  • Lynn Taylor will contact Mike Ierardi for access to post meeting notes.

Water quality principles

• No update report provided.
• Action items
  • None

Surface water policy and procedures course

• Mike Nolan reported that beta test was successful; no major problems identified.
• Jim Kolva will complete final review over the next two weeks.
• Action items
  • Mike Nolan will confer with Steve Blanchard to decide if we should ask a selected number of students to take the course prior to making the course available to all employees.

Essential and recommended technical courses

• Bill Hazel recommended that the STED provide the technical offices with a list of expectations for how the technical offices can help the STED better achieve its mission.
  • For example, in addition to essential and recommended technical courses, it would be helpful if the technical offices kept the STED informed of courses currently available so that this information can be communicated on the STED web page.
• Action items
  • Bill Hazel will work with the representatives from the technical offices to draft a list of expectations for how the technical offices can help the STED better achieve its mission.

Technical needs survey

• Alan Ward distributed results from the survey; response rate was 26%.
• Bill Hazel recommended that we extend the deadline for supervisors to respond.
• Action items
• Alan Ward will work with Bill Werkheiser to offer supervisors a 2-week extension.

CHIDER conference June 6-9, 2011

• No new information to report at this time.
• Action items
  • None.

Committee rotation

• Bill Hazel and Steve Anthony will rotate off the STED in March 2011.
• New chairperson needed to lead the STED.
• Action items
  • Steve Blanchard will work with the “regional water coordinators” to identify candidates to serve as the Hydrologic Technician and Studies Section Chief representative to the STED.

Next conference call:

STED Committee Activities – 2010

Current Activities

1. Continue to develop, populate, maintain, and promote the STED web page as the primary source of STED communication to WRD personnel.
2. Continue to promote Technology Enabled Learning and establish an electronic learning repository for WRD personnel featuring links to a wide variety of instructional and informational material.
3. Promote the development of "Essential and Recommended" training programs for all disciplines, including Information Technology, for use by all scientific and technical WRD employees.

Future Activities

1. Investigate opportunities for a WRD advanced scientific education program to meet USGS mission goals and encourage career development.
2. Consider the advantages of a regionally based cooperative education program with selected colleges and universities as a means to promote training of potential future scientific and technical WRD employees.