Notebook: County GIS specialist honored

Goodhue County GIS Specialist Sarah Schrader was one of three people selected to receive the 2012 Polaris Leadership Award from the Minnesota GIS/LIS Consortium.

The award recognizes active, established leaders in the geospatial community. It was something Schrader said she was humbled to receive.

“I’m kind of speechless,” she said. “I see it as a really big honor. And just knowing all of the other wonderful people who have received it in the past — it’s just overwhelming.”

Schrader was nominated for the award by her supervisor, Goodhue County Land-use Management Director Lisa Hanni, who has also been a Polaris award recipient in the past.

Following an extensive approval process, the Minnesota GIS/LIS Consortium Board of Directors narrowed its finalists down to three winners for the Polaris Leadership Award.

“It’s based off of Polaris being the North Star, and the North Star is actually made up of three separate stars,” Schrader explained.

Schrader will officially receive the award at the Minnesota GIS/LIS Consortium’s annual conference in October.

• Red Wing Shoe Co. President Dave Murphy was named to Minnesota Public Radio’s board of trustees, MPR announced Monday.

Murphy serves on a number of boards, including those for Fairview Health Services Corporate, the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, the American Apparel and Footwear Association and Wenger Corp. Previously, Murphy was vice chair for the Minnesota chapter of CEO’s Against Cancer.

“We are pleased to welcome Dave Murphy to the Minnesota Public Radio Board,” board Chairman Ian Friendly said. “Dave’s extensive business experience, leadership acumen and dedication to community will serve MPR well as we continue to focus on serving our audience.”

• Xcel Energy has named Tim O’Connor its acting chief nuclear officer.

“Tim has extensive experience working with both boiling and pressurized-water reactors and has the leadership skills and experience to operate our nuclear facilities safely and reliably,” Xcel Energy Chairman, President and CEO Ben Fowke said. “He has 30 years of commercial nuclear experience, including work on improving plants’ regulatory, construction and overall performance.”

O’Connor was formerly the vice president of engineering and nuclear regulatory compliance and licensing, as well as former site vice president at Monticello, Minn., nuclear plant. He has been working with his predecessor, Dennis Koehl, to help create a smooth transition before Koehl leaves the company Sept. 14.

• For the 23rd consecutive year, Wieser Concrete Products Inc., of Maiden Rock, has been awarded status by the National Precast Concrete Association as a certified plant.

Wieser’s Portage, Wis., location also received the status in 2012, marking its 16th consecutive year. Wieser Concrete in Roxana, Ill., earned the honor for the second year in a row.

NPCA’s Plant Certification Program has been in place since 1987 and is used to ensure a high degree of excellence among precast operations.

NPCA President Ty E. Gable said contractors purchasing Wieser products can be assured they are receiving products from an organization dedicated to quality.

• Hiawatha Broadband Communications has been named to the list of the Top 100 Fiber-to-the-Home companies by Broadband Communities Magazine.

This is the fourth consecutive year HBC has been honored by the magazine for contributions to “building a fiber-connected world.” The company has been expanding far beyond its home location of Winona, Minn.

“HBC recently completed construction of fiber optic networks in Dover, Eyota, Elgin and Plainview and brought full fiber-to-the-home service to Red Wing and Lake City this summer,” President and CEO Gary Evans said.

“We are proud of the great workforce we have at HBC and the efforts they have made to extend fiber optic services throughout southeastern Minnesota,” Executive Vice President Dan Pecarina added.