Surveyor Says! The NSPS Podcast

NSPS Government Affairs Consultant John Palatiello joins host Curt Sumner to discuss the much talked about issue of Occupational Licensing, from its origins to the present-day legislation and government policy threatening licensure. Clearly, whether related to circumstances wherein licensure is critical (for Professional services such as Surveying), or whether licensure for some occupations limits...

Host Curt Sumner talks with Trent Turk about the SAMSOG Education Foundation, Inc. (SAMSEF) which was established by the Surveying and Mapping Society of Georgia. The 501c3 foundation was created to provide a tax deductible mechanism for donations of money and other gifts which can go directly to students to assist in their education related to a career in land surveying in Georgia.   Listeners ca...

Trent talks about his path into the Surveying profession, and encourages those (including his daughter) who wish to be the next generation of surveyors to “learn a lot, and take your time” through the various steps required for licensure, and to never stop learning. He is a proponent of the 4-year degree plus experience requirement. Trent also discusses his passion for mentoring, and the Mentoring...

Mark Husik, Executive Director for the New Jersey Society of Professional Land Surveyors, talks with Curt Sumner about his background, including his work on a project initiated during the presidency of the senior President Bush, a variety of activities during his tenure with NJSPLS including the recent opening of a second surveying degree program in the state, and the circumstances related to the...

This episode of “Surveyor Says! The NSPS Podcast” highlights the Certified Survey Technician (CST) program during a conversation with Norm Ellerbrock, a CST Board member. He recently sat down with Tim Burch to talk about his introduction into surveying, starting his own business, and how mentoring is important to teaching the future practitioners. Norm provides an overview of the program, the path...

NSPS Registered Lobbyist John “JB” Byrd and host Curt Sumner discuss the status of several Bills in the U S Congress about which NSPS has an interest, as well as the importance of NSPS collaborating within various coalitions related to GPS, and the importance of the NSPS PAC.

Throughout the many years that ACSM, and now NSPS, has been an active member of the International Federation of Surveyors (FIG), John Hohol has been a primary leader of the NSPS delegation. John joins host Curt Sumner to talk about the importance, and benefit, of the relationships developed with our international  peers. Among his many accomplishments in FIG is the role he played in the formation...

Jim Coan joins host Curt Sumner to talk not only about his perspective as the NSPS Director representing the Land Surveyors Association of Washington (LSAW), but also about his career and dedication to teaching those who are interested in becoming involved in surveying. He also talks about his most recent motorcycling adventure.

This episode of “Surveyor Says! The NSPS Podcast” highlights the Trig-Star program with a conversation with Jerry Juarez, Chair of the Trig-Star Committee. He recently sat down with Tim Burch to talk about the history of the program, how it works with local surveyors and schools, and the latest advancement in online testing for the competitions. Jerry shared his “sales pitch” to educators and admi...

Matt Morris, NSPS Director representing the Montana Association of Registered Land Surveyors (MARLS), joins host Curt Sumner for a conversation about his career as a licensee and business owner in Choteau, Montana.

Continuing to ask the question “What is Surveying?”, this episode of “Surveyor Says! The NSPS Podcast” connects us with Linda Foster, a professional land surveyor AND GIS professional (GISP) from South Dakota. Linda was recently appointed to the NSPS Board of Directors to represent the South Dakota Society of Professional Land Surveyors (SDSPLS), where she served as President in 2019. Her degree i...

This week on “Surveyor Says! The NSPS Podcast” brings another opportunity to turn the tables on fellow surveying podcasters! Shane Neeley and Connor Brown are the hosts of “The Shane & Connor Show,” proudly presented by our affiliate and good friends at the Texas Society of Professional Surveyors (TSPS). The duo recently connected with our own President-Elect, Tim Burch, to discuss how their webin...

This edition of “Surveyor Says! The NSPS Podcast” proudly brings a new series named “What is Surveying?” and will feature guests from all corners of the globe explaining what defines today’s surveying profession. The inaugural episode brings a titan of the GIS community, Mr. Brent Jones, URISA President-Elect. He currently oversees Esri’s worldwide strategic planning, business development, and mar...

Are you fully caffeinated and ready for an energetic guest? Then we have the episode for you! “Surveyor Says! The NSPS Podcast” introduces us to Sherry Toutges, a professional land surveyor from California. She recently joined Tim Burch to share her career highlights from discovering surveying at Fresno State University to her current role at Caltrans. Sherry talks about providing training to new...

In the past, NSPS has brought you conversations with our Government Affairs about the issues, but what about the people behind the work? “Surveyor Says! The NSPS Podcast” brings a behind-the-scenes talk with the NSPS Federal Lobbyist, John “JB” Byrd. He recently joined Curt Sumner and Tim Burch for an in-person interview after our first non-virtual NSPS Executive Committee meeting in 18 months. JB...

This episode of “Surveyor Says! The NSPS Podcast” catches up with Nolan Mark, a professional surveyor licensed in Kentucky, Indiana, and Michigan. He currently leads the ISPLS Young Surveyor Network and coordinates their monthly “Roundtable Tuesdays” featuring guest speakers and happy-hour networking. He recently put up his own shingle, On the Mark Surveying, based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, all whil...

NSPS Government Affairs Consultant John Palatiello and NSPS Lobbyist JB Byrd join host Curt Sumner to review the successes NSPS has enjoyed during its 2020 legislative and federal agency outreach.

Is Lyme the only disease ticks carry? The answer is a big “No”, but Lyme does deserve a lot of PR for many reasons. The CDC claims that there are about 400,000 new cases each year in the United States. To put that in perspective, that is 1.5 times the number of women diagnosed with breast cancer each year, and 6 times the number of people diagnosed with AIDS each year. During the last 25 years the...

As we wind down Women’s History Month for 2021, it is fitting that our final guest for this special month is exceptional in her own right. NSPS appreciates our longstanding partnership with the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), so it is our pleasure to have Dominica VanKoten, Chief Cadastral Surveyor for the BLM. Prior to her current position, she led the Eastern States Office for BLM from 2008 to...

Happy National Surveyor’s Week! Our guest this week is Galen Scott from the National Geodetic Survey (NGS). As the Constituent Resources Manager, Galen is involved with many of the tools and programs going on within NGS. He chatted recently with Tim Burch about the GPS on Benchmarks program and how important having crowdsourced data is for completing the geoid base for the 2022 datum changes. Gale...

In keeping with the theme of Women’s History Month, our very special guest for this episode is Juliana Blackwell, Director of the National Geodetic Survey (NGS). She recently talked with Tim Burch to share her career path leading up to her current position at the helm of the nation’s oldest federal science agency. From her days on a NOAA research ship, in the field with a survey crew collecting ge...

Our second episode for Women’s History Month goes “down under” with a lovely chat with Peta Cox, an Australian surveyor based in New South Wales. She recently time warped with Tim Burch (a 17-hour time difference!) to discuss the similarities of surveying on either side of the Pacific Ocean. Peta talked about her early interest in being outside being key to her choosing land surveying, teaching in...

With March being Women’s History Month, we start strong with our “Future Focus” series and welcoming Sarah Walker, a dynamic Nevada Young Surveyor who recently passed both of her NCEES exams. She recently sat down with Tim Burch to discuss how she was introduced to surveying, how she enjoys doing boundary retracement, and weekends on her dirt bike finding new mountain trails. Sarah also shares how...

The new posters are here! The new posters are here! We welcome Elly Ball of the “Get Kids into Survey” initiative back for another chat about the two new posters, exciting news about the ongoing comic book series, and hints on what lies ahead for the ladies from England. Tim Burch recently sat down with Elly to talk about all things GKIS, surviving the pandemic, and gearing up for more educational...