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THE DELEGATE NATCA'S BIENNIAL CONVENTION | APRIL 17-20, 2018 4 Friday is the third and final day of the 17th Biennial Convention and is devoted to the theme "to form a more perfect union." The constitution drafted by our nation's founding fathers in Philadelphia established expectations around human rights and made it possible for our nation to continue to advance as the understanding of these rights evolved over time. Within NATCA, our members have also always worked to improve the Union and never declared their work complete. The effort to continually improve our Union continues here in Philadelphia. Noted NATCAvists Dawn Johnson and Richard Kennington will lead a panel on Friday and explore the various paths NATCA members have taken to improve the Union, and how they found their passion within the Union. Johnson was hired by the Federal Aviation Administration through the Collegiate Training Initiative in 2005, when she began her career as an air traffic controller at Atlanta Center. Johnson is currently the NATCA Eastern Service Area Air Traffic Safety Action Program (ATSAP) analyst, a position she has held since 2014. Johnson is also the Chair of the National Reloaded Committee. In Johnson's role as a NATCAvist, she has worked on various projects and has held numerous representational positions including facility and regional NATCA Reloaded Rep, Facility Training Rep, Training Review Board Rep, and has served on the IFATCA (International Federation of Air Traffic Controllers' Associations) and NATCA Communicating For Safety conference planning committees. Richard Kennington began his NATCA activism by taking over the duties of restocking the candy and soda machines at Portland ATCT (PDX). After a few years of serving the local on small ad hoc projects, he became the local Vice President and later the FacRep. Currently, he represents the Northwest Mountain Region on the National Legislative Committee. He also conducts monthly pilot outreach seminars around Oregon and southern Washington, showing general aviation pilots how they can better operate in the National Airspace System. These moderators' diverse experiences clearly demonstrate that there is no one right way to be involved with NATCA. Johnson and Kennington will lead an eclectic group of panelists in discussion that will explore their successes and acknowledge the challenges associated with being involved in different ways within NATCA. The panel will cover topics like the difficulty of managing personal and family commitments alongside NATCA efforts. Jim Slaughter is serving again as Convention Parliamentarian this week. It is his ninth NATCA Biennial Convention. Slaughter's role is to make certain the Convention follows the rules and to advise the presiding officer, committees, and delegates on procedural issues. He is an attorney, Certified Professional Parliamentarian, and past President of the American College of Parliamentary Lawyers. Slaughter is the author of two books on meeting procedure, The Complete Idiot's Guide to Parliamentary Procedure Fast-Track and Notes and Comments on Robert's Rules, Fourth Edition. He has served as NATCA's Convention Parliamentarian since 2002. ✪ To Form a More Perfect Union GETTING INVOLVED, STAYING INVOLVED: INCREASING PASSION AND ACTIVISM WITHIN NATCA Dawn Johnson Richard Kennington NATCA'S TRUSTED PARLIAMENTARIAN: JIM SLAUGHTER continued from page 3 PANELISTS: • Nick Daniels, FacRep, Fort Worth Center, NATCA Academy and Training • Sam Navarro, FacRep, Seattle ATCT, NATCA Reloaded • John Bratcher, Chair, NATCA Benefits Committee, NATCA Organizing Committee, FacRep, Fort Smith ATCT • Della Swartz, Region X Professional Standards Program National Workgroup • Trisha Pesiri-Dybvik, Western Pacific Region Chair, National Legislative Committee • Bob Obma, Indianapolis Center, NATCA Outreach Panelists will discuss how NATCA leverages the collective voice of our members to negotiate and collaborate on programs that are crucial to operating the NAS safely and efficiently, protecting NATCA members, and making real progress in various arenas. Topics will include labor relations, modernization and infrastructure, training programs, Professional Standards, hiring and staffing, safety reporting, and legislative issues. Panelists will take a high-level view of how initiatives in these different areas are implemented and how they affect the system and our members. PANELISTS: • Tom Adcock, National Training Lead • Eugene Freedman, Special Counsel to the President • Steve Hansen, Safety Committee Chairman • Dean Iacopelli, Eastern Regional Vice President • Garth Koleszar, National Professional Standards Representative • Andrew LeBovidge, Southwest Regional Vice President • Jim Ullmann, Director of Safety and Technology

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