Dr. Michael Karmis is the Stonie Barker Professor of the Department of Mining and Minerals Engineering and the Director of the Virginia Center for Coal and Energy Research at Virginia Tech. His broad research interests are in mine planning and design, ground control and the sustainable development of energy and natural resources. He has authored more than 150 scientific papers, reports, Proceedings volumes and textbooks and has directed numerous research projects funded by government agencies and the private sector. A Professional Engineer in the U.S.A. and a Licensed Engineer (Eur Ing) in Europe, Dr. Karmis has been active in consulting with the minerals industry, consulting companies, government organizations and legal firms. He served as the 2002 President of the Society for Mining, Metallurgy and Exploration (SME) and the 2002/03 President of the Society of Mining Professors. He is a Distinguished Member of the SME, a Fellow of the Institute of Quarrying and a Fellow of the Institute of Mining and Metallurgy. He has received numerous recognitions and awards by major scientific, professional and industrial organizations.

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IAN SADLER studied natural sciences at Cambridge University England and graduated with a first-class honors degree followed by a master’s from Cambridge. He joined the iron and steel industry in 1972 and quickly became one of the youngest foundry managers in the world. He has held positions of increasing technical and managerial responsibility for nearly three decades. He is currently president of Miller Centrifugal Casting Co., Cecil, Pa., and is a past president of the Iron & Steel Society. Miller Centrifugal Casting manufactures a wide range of rolling mill sleeves for the hot rolling of long products and seamless pipe.

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Ms. Craig started her professional career in 1989 as a petroleum engineer at Mobil Oil Corp. and Phillips Petroleum Corporation. From 1989-1992 she was West Area Operations Manager at Phillips Petroleum, then from 1992-1994 she became Manager, Worldwide Drilling and Production, and President, Phillips Petroleum Resources Ltd (1994-1996). From 1996-1999 Ms. Craig was Federal Relations Representative, Phillips Petroleum Company, in Washington, DC. Ms. Craig received BS degrees in mineral engineering chemistry and chemical and petroleum refining engineering from Colorado School of Mines in 1973 and 1980, respectively, a Masters of business administration from Regis University, and MSc degrees in international political economy and mineral economics and business, also from the Colorado School of Mines. Ms. Craig is a member of SPE, the American Economic Association, and the Colorado School of Mines Alumni Association. She was the 1998 President of SPE. In 1987, Ms. Craig received the SPE Young Member Service Award; president of the Colorado School of Mines Alumni Association in 1988, Visiting Committee, Colorado School of Mines Chemistry Department (1997, 1999); and Distinguished Achievement Medal (1999).

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Dan J. Thoma received his BS degree in Metallurgical Engineering from the Unversity of Cincinnati. During that time, he worked at NASA-Lewis Research Center in Cleveland, OH. He continued his education at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, where he received his MS and PhD degrees in metallurgical engineering. Dr. Thoma has been employed at Los Alamos National Laboratory since 1992, where he is currently the team leader and project leader for Alloy Design and Development within the Metallurgy Group in the Materials Science and Technology Division. Dr. Thoma is very active in professional society activities. He is a current member of TMS, ASM, MRS, and ACerS. Within TMS he has served two terms on the Board of Directors as programming director. In addition, he is the chair of the Solidification Committee and serves on the Powder Materials Committee and the Nuclear Materials Committee. He has also served on the Education Committee and MPMD. Dr. Thoma is the 2003 TMS president.

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Theodore F. Lyon began his career with Conoco, Inc. in the petroleum refining and petrochemicals business, in which he held various maintenance, operations, and project management positions. He has held various operations, management, and executive positions, including Vice President of Eichleay Engineers & Constructors, Inc. Ted is currently Managing Director of Operations - Iron and Steel for Hatch Associates Consultants, Inc. In this capacity, he has global responsibility for operations for the Iron and Steel Business Unit of Hatch. This involves project development, process design, operations support, and project delivery for steel industry projects around the world. Additionally, Ted has responsibility for the operations of Hatch’s Pittsburgh, PA office. Lyon earned both his B.S. degree in mechanical engineering (1980) and an M.B.A. (1993) from the University of Pittsburgh. He is a registered professional engineer in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Mississippi, and Louisiana.

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Arlie M. Skov retired to Santa Barbara CA after a 42–year career with Sohio Petroleum, BP Exploration, and Arlie M. Skov, Inc. He earned a BS degree in Petroleum Engineering at the University of Oklahoma (with special distinction) in 1956, and attended the Basic Advanced Management program at the University of Virginia in 1966.

His career included several engineering and management postings at Sohio and BP, including Manager, Special Projects, Assistant Chief Engineer, Manager Production Planning (for the development of the giant Prudhoe Bay oil and gas field on the North Slope of Alaska), Manager New Technology Development, Director Production Technology, and Senior Consultant. His areas of expertise include reservoir engineering, improved oil recovery, reserves estimation, field development, arctic technology, planning, and economics. Mr. Skov has been an active member of SPE and AIME for over five decades, joining while in college. He was elected to several offices, including Section Chairman, in the Oklahoma City Section. He also served on the society-wide Board of Directors of SPE from 1971 to 1974, and as member and chairman of many committees, both ad hoc and standing. He served as President of SPE in 1991, and as President of the SPE Foundation 2004-05. He has also served on several AIME Committees, most recently as Chair of the AIME Hoover Gold Medal Award Committee in 2005. He served on the AIME Board in the Seventies and again in 1995-96. Mr. Skov was named an SPE Distinguished Member in 1985, received the SPE Distinguished Service Award in 1988, and was named an Honorary Member of SPE and AIME in 1998. In 2005, he attained membership in SPE’s Legion of Honor. He also served on the National Petroleum Council from 1996 to 22002 at the invitation of three US Secretaries of Energy.

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Dr. Brajendra Mishra received his Bachelor of Technology [1981] degree in Metallurgical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology in Kharagpur, India and his M.S. [1983] and Ph.D. [1986] in Materials Science from the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. He is a professor and associate director of Kroll Institute for Extractive Metallurgy and Advanced Coatings & Surface Engineering Laboratory at the Colorado School of Mines. Prior to joining CSM in 1990, Prof. Mishra served at Tata Steel in India. He has also served as a Faculty Consultant for Motorola Corp. Prof. Mishra is the President of faculty Senate [2006-08] at CSM.
Dr. Mishra’s current research interests and contributions are spread over two major needs of the day - Environmental management by developing chemically benign processes and - Materials development with enhanced properties. His research interests bridge across the process and the physical metallurgy of materials. He teaches both aqueous and high-temperature corrosion of materials, chemical processing of materials, physical chemistry of iron and steelmaking and engineering thermodynamics. Dr. Mishra has authored over 250 technical publications in refereed journals and conference proceedings. He holds six patents and has authored/edited 16 books. Dr. Mishra is also a member of the ASM International, NACE and Electrochemical Society. He is a Fellow of ASM.
Brajendra served as the 2006 President of The Mineral, Metals & Materials Society (TMS) of AIME. Headquartered in the United States but with a large international membership, TMS is a professional organization that encompasses the entire range of metallurgical & materials engineering, from minerals processing and primary metals production to basic research and the advanced applications of materials. Brajendra has held several leadership positions within TMS for the past fifteen years in publication, programming, outreach and financial divisions of the society. Mishra has been on the Board of Directors for TMS for the past seven years and is currently involved with international programming activities and Foundation growth.

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Ms. Filas has over 25 years of experience in surface and underground mining operations, engineering, and regulatory support. Her efforts have included mine development plans, waste containment facility design, reclamation plans and surety estimates, project permitting, comprehensive environmental site and compliance audits, multi-disciplinary environmental evaluations, and storm water and sedimentation control designs. She has developed numerous designs and permitting documents which have successfully passed the scrutiny of the domestic and international regulatory community.

Ms. Filas has in-depth experience in mine-related environmental, closure and reclamation evaluations for projects around the world. She also has substantial expertise in working with the environmental and social performance standards and guidelines of the World Bank Group. Ms. Filas is President of Knight Piésold and Co. Prior to joining the firm, she held responsible engineering and environmental positions with Atlas Minerals, Summit Minerals, U.S. Steel Corporation, and Monterey Coal Company. She is a licensed professional engineer in several states and a certified environmental manager.

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J. Rick Rolater, AIME Executive Director, began this assignment on April 1, 2003.  Since 1996, he has been self-employed as a dealer in collectible mineral and fossil specimens as owner of By Nature Gallery.  His prior experience includes founding and serving as CEO of several companies including Discovery Channel Stores, Provident Bancorp of Texas, Paragon Communication Systems, and Rolater, Ducote & Company CPAs.  Following graduation from the University of North Texas with a BBA in Accounting, he worked as a CPA with Arthur Young & Co. and as a financial advisor.