In the April issue of PMP magazine, we feature a question-and-answer session with Dr. Stanton Cope. The retired Navy captain and former director of the U.S. Armed Forces Pest Management Board is director of entomology and regulatory services for Memphis, Tenn.-based Terminix. In February, Dr. Cope was installed as president of the American Mosquito Control Association (AMCA), only the second pest management professional (PMP) in the association’s 81-year history to serve in that capacity. Bill Zawicki, who served in 1999-2000, was the first.
Among Dr. Cope’s many achievements has been to help initiate, along with several others, a Young Professionals (YP) group within the AMCA. The group is designed for students as well as people simply new to the field — those who have five years or less as mosquito control professionals.
“During my time on the AMCA’s Board of Directors as the Mid-Atlantic Region Director, it struck me, as I looked over our annual demographic survey results, that we’re comprised mainly of older members,” Dr. Cope recalls. “I asked about starting a group to help AMCA grow the next generation of members. This group became the Young Professionals.
“The real breakthrough came when AMCA asked [Centers for Disease Control & Prevention] microbiologist Kristy Burkhalter to serve as the advisor to the group,” he continues. “She’s the link between the 100 or so YP members and the board of directors, and has done a fantastic job. Industry support for it is off the charts!”
There are currently about 100 YP members in the association, and the group is abuzz with activity. For example:
- The YP industry shadowing program (ISP). This mentorship program pairs an industry member/exhibitor (sponsor) with a YP member at the AMCA annual meeting. Sponsors provide a fund of $1,000 for travel support for the person and in turn, he or she is assigned to shadow the Industry member/exhibitor and participate in their meeting activities for the duration of the conference.
- The YP Pre-Annual Meeting workshop. This year, the AMCA brought in about 30 YP members the day before the annual meeting began. “The YP committee hosted an all-day workshop just for YPs revolving around developing leadership skills,” says Dr. Cope. “We covered things like job interviews, dealing with the boss, and even meeting with experts in mosquito-related fields to critique their resumes, which they sent ahead of time. We also took head shots for them.” In addition, the YP group broke into teams to role-play a mosquito-borne disease outbreak. They took turns playing the roles of industry representatives and inquiring media.
- The YP Career Roundtable Symposium. Akin to a “speed-dating symposium,” Dr. Cope teases, the YP group hosts a three-hour event during the annual meeting where more than a dozen experts representing different mosquito-related career paths are seated at various round tables in a convention hall meeting room. “You spend about 20 minutes at a table for academia, for example, picking their brains,” Dr. Cope explains. “Then a cow bell rings and you move to another table — whether it’s CDC, industry, USDA, military, research and development or international experience.”
- The YP Social Reception. After the roundtable event, YP members move across the hall for refreshments and networking. Dr. Cope says the favorable feedback he receives from members confirms creating the group was the right move for AMCA. “It is the absolute truth: When I was in grad school, I was so intimidated by these kinds of big meetings that I literally stayed in my room,” he admits. “Being around others in the same boat can make all the difference. You can watch how confident they become over the course of the event.”
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