For Immediate Release
Contact: Anna Marie Kinerney, Marketing/Meetings Manager
301-493-0290 ext.106; akinerney@asprs.org
The 2002 ASPRS Fellow Award winners are CHARLES J. FINLEY, JOHN G. LYON and MICHAEL S. RENSLOW. The ASPRS designation of Fellow is conferred on active Society members who have performed exceptional service in advancing the science and use of the mapping sciences (photogrammetry, remote sensing, surveying, geographic information systems, and related disciplines).
The designation of Fellow is awarded for professional excellence and for service to the Society. Candidates are nominated by other active members, recommended to the Fellows Committee, and elected by the ASPRS Board of Directors. Up to 0.3 percent of the Society's active members may be elected as Fellows in any one year. The nominee must have made outstanding contributions in a recognized Society specialization whether in practice, research, development, administration, or education in the mapping sciences. Members of the Fellows Committee and the Executive Committee are ineligible for nomination.
Below please find biographical information about each of the award recipients.
Charles J. Finley was the program manager for Earth System Sciences in the Office of Mission to Planet Earth when he retired from NASA in 1994. Prior to that he was a program manager for seven years in the Level II Space Station Program Office in Reston, Virginia where he first managed the Engineering Master Schedule, later the integration of international elements with the main station, and finally the allocation of on-orbit spacecraft volume resources to the various international partners. Before going to Space Station in 1987, Finley managed the Crustal Dynamics Program at NASA Headquarters. This program was part of the Interagency Geodynamics Program in which NASA, together with USGS, NOAA, NSF and DOD, worked with many international partners throughout the 1980s on the study of tectonic plate motion, polar motion and earth rotation and related earthquake research. NASA's main contribution was in development of precise positioning instrumentation; i.e., Very Long Baseline Interferometry, Satellite and Lunar Laser Ranging, and GPS Differential Correction techniques. Earlier in his NASA career Finley managed the GEOS and Lageos satellite programs and worked closely with the Landsat, Seasat and Large Format Camera Programs.
Finley earned his BS in mining engineering from Penn State in 1951. After a Korean tour as a bombardier and a radar/photo reconnaissance navigator, he attended The Ohio State University Institute of Geodesy, Photogrammetry and Cartography and received his MS in 1959. Captain Finley was chief of the Gravity and Astronomic Survey Branch where he conducted surveys throughout South and Central America. He also was project manager for the operational test and evaluation of the PC-1000 Photogrammetric Camera and for the APCS involvement with the Army, Navy and NASA in the first geodetic satellite program.
Following additional graduate work at Ohio State, Finley managed research and development for the Spacetrack satellite surveillance systems in the Space Defense Program Office as well as investigated the metric capabilities of the optical bar panoramic camera for mapping. He served in Southeast Asia and returned to Hanscom AFB as chief of the Plans and Programs Division for the AWACS Program Office for the final two years of his Air Force career. Finley retired from the Air Force in 1976 and joined NASA as its Geodetic Program manager.
Finley joined the ASP while a student at Ohio State in 1957. He was president of the Ohio State Geodetic Science Club in 1964 and 1965 and served as chairman of the Program Committee for the Great Lakes Region of the ASP in 1972. He was deputy Director and director of the Primary Data Acquisition Division in 1981 and 1982 respectively. He is currently chairman of the Platforms and Navigation Committee in that division. He is also a member in the American Geophysical Union, the Potomac Geophysical Society and the Air Force Association.
Michael S. Renslow's career began in 1967 as a civilian surveyor for the U.S. Air Force for three years. After receiving his BS degree in geography from San Francisco State University in 1971, Renslow worked for the U.S. Forest Service in California, as a surveyor and photogrammetrist in various positions of increasing responsibility. In 1982, he left government service and became the general manager of Pacific Aerial Surveys. Renslow and his family moved to Oregon in 1989, where he continues to play a prominent role in the aerial photography and digital imaging industry. He held various positions in private practice and, in 1996, joined Spencer B. Gross, Inc., a photogrammetric mapping firm located in Portland, Oregon, where he currently serves as vice president.
In recent years Renslow has been very active in research and development for applications of lidar mapping technology and has an established reputation for expertise in this field. He has also participated in lidar research projects with Oregon State University, the University of Oregon, and the University of Washington. He has published several papers on the subject and has presented numerous workshops and technical sessions at local and national conferences throughout the country.
Renslow has 28 years of active participation in ASPRS. He joined ASP in 1973 and was elected to the Northern California Region Board in 1978 and served as region president in 1982. The following year he was elected to the ASPRS Board of Directors. In 1987, he was elected to the Executive Committee where his service totals 11 years. He was elected to the Columbia River Region Board in 1990 and served as region president in 1992. He was elected ASPRS vice president in 1997, and served as ASPRS president in 1999-2000. Renslow is currently the ASPRS treasurer, co-chair of the Evaluation for Certification Committee, and an active participant on the Lidar Committee.
Other roles he has played in the Society include director of the Professional Practice Division, membership on the IGIF Board of Trustees, and ASPRS program chair for GIS/LIS 92. He also was active in the following committees: By-laws, Awards, Strategic Planning, Public Relations (Chair), Division Directors (Chair), Nominating (Chair), Standards (Chair), Government Affairs, and Professional Conduct. He has received four Presidential Citations, three Outstanding Service Awards, the Merit Award, and the Ford Bartlett Award. He is an ASPRS Certified Photogrammetrist.
Founded in 1934, ASPRS is an international professional organization of 7,000
geospatial data professionals. ASPRS is devoted to advancing knowledge and improving
understanding of the mapping sciences to promote responsible application of
photogrammetry, remote sensing, geographic information systems and supporting
technologies. For additional information about ASPRS, visit our web site at
http://www.asprs.org.
NOTE: Digital Copies of these awards photos are available upon request.
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(28 March 2002)