The Mechanical Contracting Education & Research Foundation's (MCERF) Board of Trustees met last week and elected new officers and trustees, approved funding for a number of new education initiatives and agreed to continue supporting key programs. New officers are: MCERF President, MCAA Past President Bob Armistead of Armistead Mechanical, Inc., (Waldwick, NJ); Vice President, Scott Berger of Arista Air Conditioning Corporation (Long Island City, NY); and Treasurer, Tim Brink of the MCA of Eastern PA.  Armistead praised outgoing President Jack Wilhelmi for his vision in leading the Foundation during a very challenging financial climate.  Nominations were also entertained for two new trustees and a new faculty advisor.  During 2012, MCERF will continue to support MCAA's Funding Educational Excellence (FEE) program, key elements of which include student internships, student attendance at the MCAA convention, student chapter grants, and the annual faculty training "boot camp" which augments university professors' knowledge about our industry and its key systems to enhance their instruction of mechanical-related courses. MCERF will also underwrite a number of tuitions to help industry members learn how to facilitate more effective strategic planning and negotiations, and will continue to fund and improve the OPUS (Online Piping and Usage Specification) website (http://www.opuspiping.org).  The trustees also explored "special projects" for possible implementation in 2012.

For more MCERF information or to contribute, please contact Dennis Langley at dlangley@mcaa.org.