May 2011 - arrl-odv - reflector.arrl.org

[arrl-odv:19971] ARRL asked to testify
by Sumner, Dave, K1ZZ 21 May '11

21 May '11

Kay has asked me to fill you in on a positive development on HR 607. The Subcommittee on Communications and Technology has scheduled a hearing for Wednesday, May 25, 2011, at 10:30 a.m. in 2322 Rayburn House Office Building. The title of the hearing is "Creating an Interoperable Public Safety Network." A couple of days ago we were contacted by David Redl, the staff counsel John Chwat and I met with back on March 11 (see [arrl-odv:19753] Board Confidential: Meeting report on HR 607). He asked the ARRL to provide a witness for the hearing. Kay has asked Chris Imlay to appear on our behalf. As the subcommittee prepares its own approach to the issue, this gives us the opportunity to get into its records the points we have been making over the past three months with regard to HR 607. Chris is preparing the testimony The hearing announcement is on the House Energy and Commerce Committee website: http://energycommerce.house.gov/hearings/hearingdetail.aspx?NewsID=8615 Dave K1ZZ/8

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[arrl-odv:19969] NLI Hams Meet With Rep. King 5-19-2011
by Joyce Birmingham 21 May '11

21 May '11

Clear DayGood evening, On Thursday May 19, 2011 Mike Lisenco N2YBB, phoned me to tell me about the NLI delegation visit to Rep. Peter King. I told Mike that I would contact HQ regarding this meeting. I sent A. Pitts an email of the Press Release that Mike Lisenco had posted on the NLI Section Website. On Friday morning, information about the meeting was posted on the Hudson Division Website - http://www.hudson.arrl.org and a update was sent my twitter feed http://www.twitter.com\KA2ANF Later this weekend or early next week, the May edition of the Hudson Division Newsletter will also have information on the meeting. http://www.hudson.arrl.org/beacon/2011/201105hudsonbeacon.pdf 73, Joyce KA2ANF Subject: NLI Hams Meet With Rep. King - 70 cm is SAFE!!! May 19, 2011, Massapequa Park, NY. A delegation of Amateur Radio operators from the Long Island / New York City area met this morning with Congressman Peter T. King (R-NY) to discuss his recent proposed legislation, HR 607, and its impact on Amateur Radio. Congressman King said that he fully understands and appreciates the importance of Amateur Radio and the service it provides to the community, and that he would see to the modification of the bill so that the 420 - 440 MHz band would be excluded from the spectrum to be auctioned. The delegation included Mike Lisenco, N2YBB, ARRL Section Manager for New York City / Long Island (NLI), Peter Portanova, WB2OQQ, NLI Local Government Liaison (LGL), George Tranos, N2GA, NLI State Government Liaison (SGL), and Jim Mezey, W2KFV, NLI ARES Section Emergency Coordinator (SEC). The Congressman went on to explain that it was never his intention to remove the 70 centimeter band from Amateur use. He further asked us to get the word out and inform the Amateur Radio community that 70 centimeters is not in jeopardy, said Lisenco. Lisenco, Mezey and Tranos spoke about the importance of Amateur Radio emergency communications while Portanova, who is also the local AMSAT representative, addressed satellite and other amateur use of the 70 centimeter band. The Congressman was very receptive to the group, who also extended an invitation to attend Field Day locations in his District. ARRL - The national association for Amateur Radio Joyce A. Birmingham, KA2ANF ARRL Director - Hudson Division 235 Van Emburgh Avenue Ridgewood, NJ 07450-2918 201-445-5924 ka2anf(a)arrl.net

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[arrl-odv:19966] IN-News
by Kustosik, Lisa, KA1UFZ 19 May '11

19 May '11

<<051811.doc>> IN-Newsletter <<Microsoft Word Picture>> Vol. 34, No. 20 May 18, 2011 -- Covers the period May 8-14. Upcoming Meetings and Events Programs & Services Committee: June 18 @ 8:30am - ARRL HQ Regulatory Information Reported by Dan Henderson, N1ND The past two weeks have been extremely busy, with a large amount of time spent preparing for three forum presentations and the DX banquet speech for Dayton. The Dayton Field Day forum will feature Vice Directors Kermit Carlson, W9XA, Andrea Hartlage, KG4IUM, David Norris, K5UZ, and SC Section Manager Mark Tarplee, N4UFP. Carlson will focus on improving VHF/UHF activities at the Field Day site. Hartlage will address the importance of incorporating youth into Field Day activities. Norris will talk about effectively interacting with officials from served agencies, government officials and the press. Tarplee will speak about the importance of Field Day from the Section leadership perspective. The Regulatory Information Manager will speak during the Dayton forum on "Antennas and the Law" at the invitation of facilitator Jim O'Connell, W9WU. His portion of that forum is entitled "Taking the First Steps", and will concentrate on common problems that cross his desk at the beginning of antenna zoning problems. He will present an overview of resources that the ARRL has available to assist amateurs in this area. The RIB third forum at Dayton will be the ARRL Legislative Update presentation. EVP David Sumner, K1ZZ, will address ARRL efforts at the Federal level while the RIB Manager will talk about how the ARRL is involved at the State level. They will also talk about the ARRL Grassroots program, the Legislative Update newsletter, and the role Section leadership plays in the process. A one-page handout on this topic was prepared for distribution at the Legislative Booth at the Dayton ARRL Expo. The Field Day station locator count is up to 632 stations, with sites listed in 48 states, as well as six Canadian provinces/territories and Puerto Rico. This is comparable to the totals listed the past two years at this stage of the process. As Field Day approaches in June, we will be doing several web stories to highlight the locator as well as an increased emphasis on VHF/UHF operating in FD 2011. We have been requested to write a press release for the upcoming Gulf Division-sponsored webinar on CC&Rs which is scheduled for June 1. This will be finished after confirmation from all of the participants. We also handled numerous information requests on reciprocal licensing as well as queries about flying while carrying amateur gear and special event callsigns for Field Day. On May 6, we participated in a teleconference with ARRL General Counsel Chris Imlay, W3KD, Pacific Division Director Bob Vallio, W6RGG, and John Ronan, K3ZJJ, who is president of the Mt. Diablo ARC. The discussion was a request from Ronan for ARRL assistance as MDARC attempts to address an ongoing problem over VHF/UHF band planning, frequency coordination and the incorporation of digital technologies (or lack thereof) by the regional frequency coordinating group NAARC. It was explained that the ARRL stays out of disputes over frequency coordination and would not become involved with the political problems confronting the leadership and members of NAARC. We also strongly suggested that MDARC reconsider their plan to petition the FCC for a declaratory ruling asking the FCC to detail specifically the authority / responsibilities of frequency coordinating groups. Media & Public Relations Reported by Allen Pitts, W1AGP The annual report is about to go to the printer. With help from Jim Sutton, VE4SIG, (a recent PR-101 graduate) the changing links in the PR-101 course were updated to current addresses. The Hello-Radio.org website, the first of the three promotional sites, has been moved to the ARRL's own servers and should "go live" very soon after testing is complete. The other two websites will follow, but they will keep the same web addresses for them as there are many publications with the Hello-Radio, Emergency-Radio and WeDoThat-Radio.org addresses. Development Reported by Mary Hobart, K1MMH Preparations are complete for the annual Donor Reception in Dayton. We are expecting 144 guests this year, including some new faces. The Second Century Campaign will be introduced to ARRL donors at the reception in the remarks of Campaign Chairman David Brandenburg, K5RQ. At the reception ARRL will welcome 15 new members who have reached Maxim Society status since last May. Thanks to Margie for putting this event together with the staff at Meadowbrook Country Club. Maryann will be manning the Development Office while Margie and I are at Hamvention. The Second Century Campaign Committee is not full at this writing, but those who have accepted the invitation will be introduced at the reception and meet informally in Dayton on Friday afternoon. The Spectrum Defense Fund revenue YTD total has reached $121,028 or 35% of its 2011 goal. The Diamond Club revenue has reached $121,678 or 43% of its 2011 revenue goal. The Education & Technology campaign mailing will be completed after Hamvention weekend. Lab Reported by Ed Hare, W1RFI W1AW A report of a spurious emission from W1AW's 10 meter (CW) transmission, including key clicks, was reported by a member. The transceiver used was brought to the Lab, where Bob Allison measured it with our spectrum analyzer and storage oscilloscope. The keying waveform was normal and created no key clicks. No spurious emissions were found. Note: clicks can be falsely created within some receivers with the noise blanker engaged. Electronic Publications Software issues continue to trickle in. An issue for which there is no good answer is the demise of legacy DOS software, which is not supported by the latest Windows operating systems. Nor are authors interested in rewriting programs they wrote decades ago. RFI Mike Gruber assisted Matthew Urick of the FCC Field Office in Philadelphia with a power line noise investigation in the Pittsburgh area. Also present were Mike Martin of RFI Services, at Mike Gruber's request, and the complainant, Bob Thacker, K3GT. The utility in this matter, Duquesne Light & Power, had wanted to charge the complainant for RFI investigations. Although this problem had been going for over a decade, the team was able to demonstrate to the FCC that the noise was coming from a number of poles that they identified. By the end of the day, they had identified noise sources in all directions but one. Mike's understanding is that the FCC will now be sending the utility some form of communication as early as next week. Special thanks to Mike Martin for his invaluable assistance. This effort was extremely successful. A professional RFI investigator from another nearby utility has taken a closer look at the longstanding power line noise case of J.C. Flynn, W4FGC in Lakeland, FL. Although this case has been the subject of several visits by the FCC, the problem remains ongoing. The local investigator has located four nearby sources, which have now been communicated to the utility. As previously noted, this has been one of the more difficult cases to resolve. A preliminary review of some fluorescent lights from Home Depot shows them to meet Part 18 limits and labeling requirements. More will be done after Dayton and Plano. Product Review Bob Allison started testing of a mid priced, modern HF/6m transceiver. Testing so far has gone smoothly and will be completed before Bob's departure for Dayton. Bob also created two new procedures for the testing of transverters. Due to the popularity of long digital transmissions needed for EME and Meteor Scatter, frequency drift and power reduction over time are now important performance factors. Test results for these two factors will now be published for all transverter Product Reviews, first to be featured in July QST. Technology Museum Plans of our new technology museum are under way. Initially, most of the display cases in the hallway and in the Editorium will be placed inside the old "Cage Room", recently emptied from renovations to the Lab. Along with the display cases, the antique equipment from the Lobby will also be displayed. The room will eventually include three active operation positions; a 30's station, 50's station (Joe Walsh equipment) and an early 70's Novice station. This project will make way for a more modern display of Amateur Radio in our Lobby. It will also make way for the placement of a 1920 era receiver that replaces the 50's boat anchors on HPM's desk at W1AW. This receiver will have the ability to tune 200 meters and down. As with HPM's original 1920 era station, a remote rotary spark motor switch and Morse key controlling "Old Betsy" will also adorn HPM's desk. Sales and Marketing Reported by Bob Inderbitzen, NQ1R ARRL's large truck shipment for Hamvention, 12 pallets, left for Dayton on May 11. Exhibit badges and related materials were shipped to the 74 "ARRL team" members for the 2011 ARRL National Convention in Plano, Texas. The event will be held June 10-11. We are enjoying a brisk sales climate as members respond to the introduction of a couple of new ARRL publications (solicitations sent by mail and email). The warehouse crew fulfilled 1,104 packages for publication and product orders, 324 membership premiums, and QST mailing supplements. Work is underway on a comprehensive marketing survey to help support planning for a digital edition of QST. The survey will be conducted by Readex, a research firm that has conducted studies for ARRL in the past. The survey will be conducted by mail and email, and will include domestic and international surveyed populations from among current members, lapsed members, and FCC licensees (non-members). Membership & Volunteer Programs Reported by Dave Patton, NN1N W1AW On Monday, May 9, Rhode Island Section Manager Bob Beaudet, W1YRC and Rich Langlois, W1TBR paid a visit to W1AW. In addition to operating the station, Rich also calibrated W1AW's frequency counters and checked the Hameg spectrum analyzer installed in the Harris racks. On Thursday, May 12, Matt Strelow, KC1XX and Andrew Toth - both of XX Towers, Inc. - were on hand to finish the cold-galvanizing spraying of the three 60' towers. (They began the spraying process during the April 2011 tower inspections.) The cold-galvanize spray reduces the effects of the surface rust that appeared on the tower legs. Joe processed regular QSL card requests. He also processed 5 Qualifying Run certificates and 4 endorsements. He wrote material to be used for an OSCAR 1 pamphlet (to be handed out at Dayton). Joe also conducted frequency measuring tests on all the broadcast equipment. Field Organization/Public Service Team Leona Adams and the Field Organization Team are prepared to count ballots for the Nevada Section Manager election on Tuesday, May 24. The ballots are due at Headquarters by Friday, May 20. Ken Bailey (of the Emergency Preparedness Team) and Steve Ewald were invited by Citizen Corps to make a 5 minute presentation on their Webinar of Tuesday, May 10. ARRL was among the several Citizen Corps-affiliated organizations and partners who participated and answered questions from the online audience. One radio amateur from Maryland has completed certification to become an Official Observer this past week. A report of CB amplifiers being sold on Amazon was referred to the FCC. Chuck Skolaut received updates on repeater interference in Eastern Massachusetts, Northern New Jersey, and Arizona. A previously unidentified signal heard on 14097 kHz was tentatively identified as PropNet http://www.propnet.org Reports of interference to the International Handicapped Net and the ARMS Net (both on 20 meters) were received and forwarded to the respective OOCs for follow up. Also, a report of a shortwave broadcaster on 7125 kHz was tentatively identified as Radio Conakry (Guinea). Sincerely Compiled by, Lisa Kustosik, KA1UFZ Assistant to the CEO Staff Absentee List All Staff 5/30 Holiday All Staff 7/4 Holiday Joe Carcia 5/26pm-5/27 Vacation Steve Ford 8/8-8/12 Vacation Scott Gee 5/19-5/20 Vacation Mike Gruber 5/31-6/3 Vacation `` 7/11-7/15 Vacation Joel Hallas 5/17-5/27 Vacation Dan Henderson 5/25-5/27 Vacation `` 7/5-7/8 Vacation Bob Inderbitzen 8/8-8/12 Vacation Sabrina Jackson 5/26-6/6 Vacation Zack Lau 6/16-6/17 Vacation Diane Petrilli 8/8-8/12 Vacation `` 8/31-9/2 Vacation Allen Pitts 5/26-5/27 Vacation `` 6/15-6/17 Vacation `` 7/1 Vacation `` 7/20-7/22 Vacation `` 7/28-7/29 Vacation John Proctor 6/22-7/8 Vacation Hamfest/Member Contact/ARRL Representative/Meetings Bob Allison 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Margie Bourgoin 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH/Vacation Jackie Ferreira 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Steve Ford 5/19-5/24 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH/Vacation Mike Gruber 5/19-5/20 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Ed Hare 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Dan Henderson 5/19-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Mary Hobart 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Sabrina Hughes 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Amy Hurtado 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Harold Kramer 5/19-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Diane Petrilli 5/19-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Allen Pitts 5/19-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Dave Sumner 5/18-5/22 Dayton Hamvention, Dayton, OH Steve Ford 6/1-6/3 Assoc. Media Publishing Conference Dan Henderson 6/2-6/8 Wyoming State Convention, Cheyenne, WY Bob Allison 6/8-6/11 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Jackie Ferreira 6/8-6/12 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Mike Gruber 6/9-6/10 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Dan Henderson 6/9-6/12 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Mary Hobart 6/9-6/11 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Amy Hurtado 6/8-6/12 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Bob Inderbitzen 6/8-6/12 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Harold Kramer 6/9-6/12 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Diane Petrilli 6/8-6/12 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Allen Pitts 6/9-6/12 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Barry Shelley 6/9-6/12 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Dave Sumner 6/9-6/13 ARRL National Convention, Plano, TX Brennan Price 6/13-6/22 ITU-R Working Party 5A, Geneva Dave Patton 6/23-6/26 Friedrichshafen, Germany Brennan Price 6/23-6/26 Friedrichshafen, Germany Brennan Price 7/13-7/16 BOD Meeting/Committee Meeting, Windsor, CT Brennan Price 8/5-8/6 Texas State Convention, Austin, TX Chuck Skolaut 5/23-5/26 NVOAD Conference, Kansas City, MO

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[arrl-odv:19965] FW: DX Report Revised
by Kramer, Harold, WJ1B 18 May '11

18 May '11

Hi, Marty and I are plan to discuss this issue further but I just wanted to get back to ODV as well as my discussion with him. Briefly, Marty is right about LoTW being much more efficient as opposed to a paper application. It takes about an hour to process a paper app and minutes for a LoTW only app. Many apps are hybrids - a combination of both paper cards and LoTW records, so it is very difficult to separate out the categories. Obviously, the more people who use LoTW, the more accurate and faster our processing time becomes. The LoTW certificates for the new PJ entities couldn't be activated until 2010 processing was completed. Once that was done, things moved remarkably fast. Heading out to Dayton early tomorrow. Hope to some of you there. 73, Harold Harold Kramer, WJ1B ARRL Chief Operating Officer 860 594 0220 From: Marty Woll [mailto:n6vi@socal.rr.com] Sent: Monday, May 16, 2011 6:33 PM To: Kramer, Harold, WJ1B; arrl-odv; Ford, Steve, WB8IMY; Glass, Katie, KB1ULQ; Hare, Ed W1RFI; Inderbitzen, Bob, NQ1R; Jahnke, Deb, K1DAJ; Johnson, Debra, K1DMJ; Patton, David NN1N; Pitts, Allen W1AGP; Somma, Maria, AB1FM Cc: Moore, Bill, NC1L (ARRL Awards Branch); Fusaro, Norm W3IZ; Taratula, Sharon Subject: Re: [arrl-odv:19951] DX Report Revised Hi, Harold. Unless I missed, the charts on DXCC processed-QSO volume do not specify how many were LoTW confirmations, how many were field-checked and how many were cards sent to HQ. Since the amount of work by staff varies greatly among these three modes, I don't see how absolute volume is a useful metric. QSLs must be examined by expert eyes, field-checked entries need only be keyed in, and LoTW credits should involve practically no staff time other than confirmation of payment for credits used the mailing of certificates or endorsement stickers. Unless the data excludes LoTW-confirmed contacts, this appears to mix apples and oranges as far as workload. I see that actual applications are down for each of the last two years. As for the impact of the new PJ countries, I got more than a few grumbles about the delay in crediting them to DXCC totals. We knew in advance when it would happen; did it take over four months for the initial operations to submit docs and apply for certificates? Also, would it be correct to assume that most of those seeking credit did so through LoTW matches rather than with QSL cards? Thanks for the acknowledgement of my involvement with an interim user-keyed-in VUCC format, but Mike Keane wrote the routine that enabled my simple CSV files to be read automatically into LoTW. As I detailed in an earlier private e-mail, there is still at least one bug in that process - or in LoTW logic - in this regard. Until you start processing a volume of card-based or hybrid applications, we can't tell for certain whether it's in Mike's conversion routine (I think not) or in LoTW hybrid-app logic (I suspect so). In any case, I'm happy to discuss the issue but have heard from no one since I raised the issue a couple of weeks ago. I hope this sort of thing gets some priority, since resolving it means we can openly promote member-keyed input for card-based apps that much sooner, further reducing the need for staff intervention. See you this weekend. 73, Marty N6VI

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[arrl-odv:19963] Awards Report -Word 2003 Format
by Kramer, Harold, WJ1B 17 May '11

17 May '11

GM, At last night's PSC Meeting, a few of the members of the Committee asked me to email them the Award Department Report as a Word 2003 document rather than a 2007 format docx. I decided to mail it to the entire Board in case anyone else was having a problem. 73, Harold Harold Kramer, WJ1B Chief Operating Officer ARRL -the national association for Amateur Radio 225 Main Street Newington, CT 06111 (860) 594 -0220

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[arrl-odv:19960] FW: 2011 Dayton Donor Reception attendee list
by Hobart, Mary K1MMH 17 May '11

17 May '11

My apologies. It looks like I sent you 2 copies of the program. Here is the attendee list. 73, Mary K1MMH Mary M. Hobart, K1MMH Chief Development Officer ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio(tm) Telephone: 860-594-0397 Fax: 860-594-0259 email: mhobart(a)arrl.org <mailto:mhobart@arrl.org> From: arrl-odv-bounces(a)reflector.arrl.org [mailto:arrl-odv-bounces@reflector.arrl.org] On Behalf Of Hobart, Mary K1MMH Sent: Tuesday, May 17, 2011 9:22 AM To: arrl-odv Subject: [arrl-odv:19959] 2011 Dayton Donor Reception Importance: High Good morning, We are closing in on the finishing touches for the 2011 Donor Reception on Thursday evening in Dayton. Many of you will be attending, but some not. I wanted you to be aware of who we will be entertaining that evening and the notes on the program. Documents are attached as of this morning. We may have last minute changes, but this is the lion's share of the information. Let me know if you have any questions. 73, Mary K1MMH Mary M. Hobart, K1MMH Chief Development Officer ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio(tm) Telephone: 860-594-0397 Fax: 860-594-0259 email: mhobart(a)arrl.org <mailto:mhobart@arrl.org> <<Dayton Donor Reception Program 2011.doc>> <<Dayton Donor Reception Program 2011.doc>>

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[arrl-odv:19961] ODV and cc:
by Kay Craigie 17 May '11

17 May '11

A Director has reminded me that when we post to the ODV, it is usually a good idea not to cc: people who are not on the ODV. Because we use "Reply All" to post responses to messages, our replies are not kept within the Board unless we remember to zap the cc: addressees before hitting "Send." If a message posted to the ODV also needs to be sent to Staff or others who are not on the ODV, I respectfully suggest sending two messages. Thanks and 73 - Kay N3KN

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[arrl-odv:19959] 2011 Dayton Donor Reception
by Hobart, Mary K1MMH 17 May '11

17 May '11

Good morning, We are closing in on the finishing touches for the 2011 Donor Reception on Thursday evening in Dayton. Many of you will be attending, but some not. I wanted you to be aware of who we will be entertaining that evening and the notes on the program. Documents are attached as of this morning. We may have last minute changes, but this is the lion's share of the information. Let me know if you have any questions. 73, Mary K1MMH Mary M. Hobart, K1MMH Chief Development Officer ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio(tm) Telephone: 860-594-0397 Fax: 860-594-0259 email: mhobart(a)arrl.org <<Dayton Donor Reception Program 2011.doc>> <<Dayton Donor Reception Program 2011.doc>>

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[arrl-odv:19958] AMSAT/TAPR Banquet, Friday at Dayton
by Price, Brennan, N4QX 17 May '11

17 May '11

If anyone would like to attend Friday night's AMSAT/TAPR banquet in Kettering, I ordered one ticket that I will be unable to use. I'll ask Martha at AMSAT to transfer my ticket to the first person to ask. Information here: http://www.amsat.org/amsat-new/hamvention/2011/Banquet.php 73 de Brennan HI/N4QX

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[arrl-odv:19952] Introduction to Emergency Communications Course Up and Running Online!
by Kramer, Harold, WJ1B 16 May '11

16 May '11

FYI - Sent to SMs and also going to SECs. 73, Harold Harold Kramer, WJ1B ARRL Chief Operating Officer 860 594 0220 From: smlist-bounces(a)reflector.arrl.org [mailto:smlist-bounces@reflector.arrl.org] On Behalf Of Ewald, Steve, WV1X Sent: Monday, May 16, 2011 3:56 PM To: smlist Subject: [smlist:6596] Introduction to Emergency Communications Course Upand Running Online! Hello, Section Managers. Debra Johnson, K1DMJ, Education Services Manager, has the following news about the online Introduction to Emergency Communications Course. 73, Steve Ewald, WV1X Supervisor, Field Organization Team ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio(tm) 860-594-0265 sewald(a)arrl.org ================================================== Introduction to Emergency Communication Course Up and Running Online! We're happy to report that we have been accepting enrollments for the new Introduction to Emergency Communications course since early April and the first online session of the new course has been successfully launched and is running smoothly on the new Moodle platform. Three 9-week sessions each with 25 seats have been opened for enrollment, one each in April, May and June. The April and May sessions filled quickly. Seats are still available in the June session. All systems-the registration and payment system, the single-sign-on to the online platform, the back-end administrative database and the online course platform are functioning well. Students and mentors do face a learning curve using the new online platform and there are hurdles with browser settings, but these are on-going issues that are part of the customer service support requirements for this type of product. Though we are pleased with the roll-out experience of this new course and the IT integration it represents we have not widely publicized the availability of the course. We need to re-build our cohort of mentors to support students who enroll in the course and until we are able to so we do not want to encourage more interest than we can support. Your help in encouraging capable and qualified volunteers in your section who might lend their support to the program as online mentors will be appreciated! * For a description of the new course go to our online catalog at: http://www.arrl.org/online-course-catalog * To review qualifications for online mentors and field instructors, go to: http://www.arrl.org/mentoring-online-courses and http://www.arrl.org/requirements-for-field-instructors. We will be printing a transcript of the course content for use in field classes and are currently preparing it for publication. When we have a commitment on the delivery of that publication we will provide that information. Debra Johnson, K1DMJ Education Services Manager ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio(tm) 225 Main Street Newington, CT 06111-1494 (860) 594-0296 Fax: (860) 594-0259 djohnson(a)arrl.org <mailto:djohnson@arrl.org> _______________________________________________ smlist mailing list smlist(a)reflector.arrl.org http://reflector.arrl.org/mailman/listinfo/smlist

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