 From L to R: Alex Forbes, Secretary; Roger Wakimoto, President of the American Meteorological Society; Lauren Pounds, President; Reggie Roakes, Co-Symposium Chair The East Mississippi Chapter of the NWA and AMS was excited to accept the 2017-2018 Student Chapter of the Year award from the American Meteorological Society at its Annual Meeting in Phoenix, AZ, this week.
President Lauren Pounds, Secretary Alex Forbes, and Co-Symposium Chair Reggie Roakes were at the Annual Meeting to accept the award Tuesday morning. The chapter was awarded for the group’s efforts in creating numerous member opportunities for broadening professional networks and knowledge, as well as strengthening the chapter’s role within the national AMS community. President Lauren Pounds said, "Receiving the award was an incredible honor. The past and current officers have put in so much effort to provide students with opportunities and skills that they aren’t able to receive in the classroom." She continued, "I appreciate of the recognition and hope to continue to grow this organization." The AMS Annual Meeting is the world’s largest yearly gathering for the weather, water, and climate community. It brings together great minds from a diverse set of scientific disciplines – helping attendees make career-long professional contact and life-long friends while learning from the very top people in the atmospheric sciences. AMS is the nation’s premier scientific and professional organization promoting and disseminating information about the atmospheric, oceanic and hydrologic sciences. With more than 13,000 members, AMS includes researchers, educators, students, enthusiasts, broadcasters and other professionals in weather, water and climate. For more, visit www.ametsoc.org.  The East Mississippi Chapter of the NWA and AMS is excited to announce that the Southeast Severe Storms Symposium XVII will be held on March 23-24, 2019, at Memorial Hall on the campus of Mississippi State University.
This year's symposium will feature four keynotes with diverse backgrounds in the field of meteorology. Erik Rasmussen is the current project manager for VORTEX-SE. Rasmussen was the field coordinator of the first of the VORTEX projects in 1994-1995 and a lead principal investigator for VORTEX2 from 2009-2010, as well as involved in other smaller VORTEX offshoots and many field projects. Rasmussen has a B.S. from the University of Oklahoma, a M.S. from Texas Tech University, and a Ph.D. from Colorado State University. Janice Huff is the chief meteorologist at WNBC-TV in New York City. Huff has worked in markets such as Chattanooga, Tennessee, Columbus, Georgia, St. Louis, Missouri, and San Francisco, California. She moved to NBC, in New York, in 1995 and has worked at NBC since. Huff graduated with a B.S from Florida State University. Aubrey Urbanowicz is the chief meteorologist at WHSV-TV in Harrisonburg, VA. Urbanowicz is originally from Connecticut and worked in the corporate world for 12 years before entering the meteorology field. She graduated from Mississippi State's distance program with a B.S. in Geosciences with a concentration in Broadcast Meteorology. Will Simmons is a pilot for the 53d Weather Reconnaissance Squadron out of Keesler Air Force Base in Biloxi, MS. Commonly referred to as the Hurricane Hunters, his squadron’s primary mission is to intentionally fly into tropical storms and hurricanes to collect data that aid in forecasting. To date, Captain Simmons has 80 hurricane eye penetrations, including 5 passes through Category 5 Hurricane Irma. The Hurricane Hunters also support winter storm reconnaissance as well as research missions that have taken Simmons around the world. Prior to joining the Air Force Reserve in 2012, Simmons graduated from Mississippi State University in 2011 with a B.S. in Geosciences and was part of the 2010-2011 WxChallenge championship team. He then worked for two years at WCBI-TV in Columbus, MS as an on-air meteorologist where he earned the Certified Broadcast Meteorologist designation (#596). Simmons also holds a Master of Business Administration from Louisiana State University. Additionally, we are introducing a poster session to this year's symposium. Abstract submissions for that and a general presentation are now open on eastmsnwaams.com. Abstracts are due March 1. Pre-registration opens today and will be open through March 20. For questions, comments, and concerns, please reach out to the executive board directly at eastmsnwaams@gmail.com. Click here to register and submit abstracts.  Madison Campbell, a senior meteorology student, and Reggie Roakes, a current graduate student and recent graduate of Mississippi State, have been named Co-Symposium Chairs for the 2018-2019 academic year.
Madison will oversee the planning processes and university relations. Reggie will handle the public relations side, including event promotion. President Lauren Pounds said, "Madison and Reggie have both exemplified their dedication, drive, and selflessness throughout their time as chapter members." She continued, "They both have big, creative ideas to further improve the symposium. We’re thrilled have two extremely qualified and eager students plan the 17th Annual Severe Storms Symposium!" With over a dozen applications, which is a record amount for the chapter, the executive board simply did not have enough slots to fill with all of the qualified candidates. Madison and Reggie assumed the roles immediately after the chapter meeting on September 18. East Mississippi Chapter of the NWA & AMS Awarded the 2019 “Local Student Chapter of the Year” Award7/15/2018  The American Meteorological Society announced Sunday that the East Mississippi Chapter of the National Weather Association (NWA) and American Meteorological Society (AMS) was awarded the 2019 “Local Student Chapter of the Year” award.
The chapter was awarded for creating numerous opportunities for members to broaden their professional networks and knowledge, and for strengthening the chapter’s role within the national AMS community. Lauren Pounds, a senior at Mississippi State and current President of the chapter, said “Our goal as an organization is to provide our students with opportunities that will make a lasting impact on their budding careers. It is an honor to have our efforts nationally recognized. Thank you to every officer, advisor, and student who have dedicated their time to our chapter; they made this a reality.” Pounds served as Secretary from April 2017 – April 2018. She was elected President in April 2018. Alex Forbes, a sophomore at Mississippi State and current Secretary of the chapter, said “It is an honor to have the AMS recognize us on a national stage in my first year on the team. It could not have been done without our members, previous officers, and professional mentors from the field of meteorology.” Forbes previously served as Symposium Chair from September 2017 to April 2018. He was elected Secretary in April 2018. Caroline MacDonald, a graduate student at Mississippi State and former Vice President of the chapter, said “Over the past few years, as a chapter, we have worked to create an engaging environment at our university to prepare students for their future career. It is incredibly humbling to see our work be recognized at the national level. I thank every person I’ve served on the executive council with, our members, our department, and our amazing facility and advisors for helping us along the way and making this possible.” MacDonald served as Vice President during the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 school years. Student representatives from Mississippi State University will be traveling to the American Meteorological Society’s annual meeting, located in Phoenix, Arizona, this upcoming January to accept the award. The East Mississippi Chapter of the NWA and AMS is Mississippi State University’s student meteorological organization. The chapter promotes excellence in operational meteorology through research, forecasting, broadcasting, and education. The officers work to build relations between all who work with and study meteorology in east Mississippi and the surrounding area. The American Meteorological Society (AMS) is the nation’s premier scientific and professional organization promoting and disseminating information about the atmospheric, oceanic, and hydrologic sciences. The organization has more than 13,000 members include researchers, educators, students, enthusiasts, broadcasters and other professionals in weather, water, and climate. Would you look at that! We got a face-lift!
Welcome to the new home of the East Mississippi Chapter of the NWA and AMS. Our new website will become the backbone of our organization in the months and years to come. We have new features that provide an all-in-one experience without having to be bounced around between sites. The new site will house our new News Feed, Merchandise, and Member Portal (for dues paying members only). The News Feed will be your one-stop-shop for all announcements and information regarding chapter events and the Southeast Severe Storms Symposium. We will also use it to recognize members who make major accomplishments in the field of meteorology. The Merchandise page is the place to get official MSU Meteorology gear. We are revamping our line-up of products and will be slowly adding as the year progresses. The Members page will be full of exclusive content for dues paying members. Our officer team will be working throughout the Fall and Spring semesters to keep it updated with job openings, internship opportunities, and contacts of recent graduates for mentorship. It is a page you will not want to miss out on, so join the club today! Distance students- there is a membership option for you as well! Additionally, the Symposium page will house all previous Symposia content and future Symposia information. Check out the new site and let us know how you like it! |
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January 2019
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Lauren Pounds, President
Marti Calhoun, Vice President Alex Forbes, Secretary Shannon Falkner, Treasurer Madison Campbell, Symposium Chair Reggie Roakes, Symposium Chair |
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EAST MISSISSIPPI CHAPTER OF THE NWA AND AMS
P.O. BOX 5448 MISSISSIPPI STATE, MS 39762 |
