Nominating Committee Chair Carlota Grimes has announced candidates for the 2009 Board of Directors elections. Candidates will make brief presentations at the meeting on September 13, 2008. The election will be conducted by online voting in September, and results will be announced at the November member meeting.

Grimes expressed thanks to all the candidates for their willingness to run for office. She also thanked fellow Nominating Committee members Marco Hansen and Carolina Modesto for their participation.

The candidates’ statements and photos are presented below.

For President

Michael Blumenthal

I have been a member of the Austin Area Translators and Interpreters Association (AATIA) for over 20 years. I have served as Director of Finance, Director of Membership, Director of Professional Development, interim President, Co-Coordinator of the Spanish Special Interest Group, and I am now completing my second year as elected President.

This has been a watershed year. Accomplishments include establishing the AATIA blog, inaugurating an office and meeting space at 201 East 2nd Street as part of the International Center of Austin, completing workshops with Xosé Castro (Spanish / English Comparative Grammar), Ted Wozniak (Business Development), and Paul Makinen (WordFast CAT software), joining Greenlights non-profit organization, and refining operating procedures for the Nominating Committee. A committee is currently developing procedures for electronic voting for this year’s election.

Goals for 2009 include continuing to develop the blog, creatively utilizing our office/meeting space, offering multiple professional development opportunities, promoting and supporting special interest groups, inviting more participation from members, and having fun. The success of the AATIA depends on all of us working together, honoring our profession, and enjoying what we do.

For Secretary

Julie Nordskog

I have been a member of AATIA since 2006 and served in the past year as Secretary. While continuing to work part-time in translation and research, I have recently accepted the position of Program Coordinator of the Brazil Center at the University of Texas. I have been honored and grateful to be a member of the AATIA community. This has been a year of great advances for the association. I hope to continue to serve with diligence and enthusiasm in the capacity of Secretary in 2009 and would appreciate your vote.

For Director of Finance

Jonathan Cole

I have been an AATIA member since 2002 and served one year on the board as Director of Communications. The members of the association have consistently provided me with information and encouragement. This support helped me become an English to Spanish translator, first at the Texas Education Agency and, currently, at the Department of Aging and Disability Services.

When the treasurer position was vacated this year I wanted to contribute to the success of AATIA and the board agreed to appoint me as interim treasurer. Handling the association’s finances is a new endeavor and a learning experience for me and I am enjoying the challenge. If elected for the coming year, I will look forward to providing positive ideas for the association and an accurate accounting of the board’s finances.

For Director of Membership

Gisela Greenlee

As many of you probably know, I have served previously as the Director of Membership, for a period of 3 years.

We have been going through a series of exciting changes over the past year and I would be very happy to be a member of the board again. My goal and promise to the membership is that I will strive to handle all matters pertaining to membership in a timely and professional manner and to be available to new and existing members for any questions they may have regarding their membership with AATIA. I will also work on finding ways to increase our membership by contacting prospective members and former members and inviting them to join/rejoin our organization. I look forward to the election process and hope to serve on the board again in 2009.

For Director of Communications

Tony Beckwith

As the incumbent Director of Communications, I have mainly been concerned with the launch of the Association’s blog, at www.aatia.net. The creation and maintenance of the blog has provided us with a way to transition to a more dynamic presence in an electronic world. I believe this is an important step, just as important as it was to create our own website ten years ago. The next step was to gradually phase out the print version of our newsletter, and rely on electronic media to communicate with our members and provide them with all the news and information they used to receive via The Letter. There is still much work to be done in this area, and I would appreciate your vote so that I might serve one more term. Many thanks.

For Director of Professional Development

Patricia Bown

I have been involved with the translation industry for 13 years, all of it at McElroy Translation Company. I have served as Translator Coordinator, Translation Manager, Vendor Manager, and now Director of the Project Management Office. I work closely with sales, operations, IT, and various industry organizations. The McElroy staff is currently immersed in implementing some seriously new technology, workflows and processes to respond to changes in the market that once seemed impossible!

Speaking of change, I am an enthusiastic proponent of embracing change. I believe that learning and awareness enables one to manage and take advantage of change, and that’s the main of many reasons why I am interested in serving as Director of Professional Development.

I would consider it an honor to serve AATIA in this capacity. My goals would be two: (1) To build on the reputation AATIA already has for providing excellent educational opportunities; and (2) to broaden the array of topics covered, hoping to appeal to even more of the local population of translators and interpreters.