To foster professional excellence in water well technology, the National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation has established the William A. McEllhiney Distinguished Lecture Series in Water Well Technology.
Initiated in 2000, the lecture series honors William A. McEllhiney, who was the founding president of the National Ground Water Association in 1948, and a ground water contractor and civil engineer from Brookfield, Illinois.
"McEllhiney and the other founders of the Association saw several primary functions for the new national group," explains Foundation Executive Director Kevin McCray, "including serving as a clearinghouse for information and its dissemination, serving as an intermediary in coordinating advances occurring in different parts of the country, and serving as a place to bring contractors together so that they might have a working knowledge of contracting from all parts of the nation. NGWREF's McEllhiney Lecture series promotes and perpetuates those original aims."
Annually, a panel of ground water contractors invites an outstanding ground water contracting professional to share his or her work with the industry. Individuals may nominate themselves or others they believe to be qualified to serve as the NGWREF McEllhiney distinguished lecturer.
Effective May 2005, Franklin Electric Co., the world's largest manufacturer of submersible electric motors, has agreed to underwrite the next three years of this lecture series for presentations to organized groups of contractors and other qualified and interested parties.
Meetings and conventions of state and regional associations are eligible. Foreign associations of ground water contractors, academic institutions teaching water well technology, gatherings of water well regulators, and other bodies with a direct and identifiable interest in water well design and construction are eligible as well.
If you have questions about the McEllhiney Lecture Series, contact Barbette Howell at bhowell@ngwa.org or 800 551.7379 (614 898.7791), ext. 568.