InfoComm Names Volunteer of the Year, Academy Faculty
InfoComm has named Extron’s Steven L. Somers the Harald Thiel Volunteer of the Year. The industry association also awarded Maxwell Kopsho of Kramer Electronics USA and J. Gordon Moore of Lectrosonics Senior Academy Faculty Instructor status. Kramer’s Clint Hoffman was appointed to an Adjunct Faculty Instructor position.
Maxwell Kopsho
InfoComm has named Extron’s Steven L. Somers the Harald Thiel Volunteer of the Year. The industry association also awarded Maxwell Kopsho of Kramer Electronics USA and J. Gordon Moore of Lectrosonics Senior Academy Faculty Instructor status. Kramer’s Clint Hoffman was appointed to an Adjunct Faculty Instructor position.
Presented at the new InfoComm 100 conference, the annual Harald Thiel Volunteer of the Year Award uncovers and celebrates the volunteer who has contributed greatly to the association. Somers served as event chairman of the InfoComm Projection Shoot-Out Committee from 1998 to 2001, and as the Shoot-Out’s engineering manager, directing and managing the technical design of the event from 1992 to 2001. He was later the chair and technical director of the Large Venue Display Gallery event held at InfoComm from 2003 through 2008, and coordinated technical aspects of the Projection Shoot-Out events held at Photokina and InfoComm Europe, InfoComm Asia, and InfoComm Japan.
Clint Hoffman
“Steve Somers has been a tireless champion of the AV industry and InfoComm International,” said Randal A. Lemke, executive director of InfoComm, in a statement. “From his service in the days of the Projection Shoot-Out to his stellar teaching at InfoComm Shows, Steve has personified the ultimate InfoComm volunteer.”
Kopsho and Moore, who each held Academy Faculty status for at least five years, were awarded the status of Senior Academy Faculty for their contributions to the Academy and the industry and will receive a certificate and special recognition at InfoComm 09 in Orlando. Hoffman, who received Adjunct Faculty status, is required to present at least two hours of instruction a year. He will also receive a certificate of honor and his name posted on the InfoComm Web portal.
J. Gordon Moore
The InfoComm Academy Faculty Program was created to recognize the contributions of its corps of instructors and to contribute to their professional development. Faculty members are nominated by the InfoComm Professional Education and Training Committee (PETC), with final selections made by the association’s Board of Directors. There are three levels to the program: Adjunct Faculty, Academy Faculty, and Senior Academy Faculty.
“The InfoComm Academy program is dedicated to teaching the AV body of knowledge for the betterment of the audiovisual industry and its customers,” said Melissa Taggart, InfoComm senior vice president for certification, education, and standards. “InfoComm looks for the best minds in AV and business to present relevant coursework that provides practical knowledge to the industry that will keep them up-to-date on technology trends. Our knowledgeable faculty members are critical to the success of this program and we are grateful for their participation.”
