“What do you want to be when you grow up?” is the age-old question that we have all asked ourselves at some point in our life. For me, I did not have a solid answer to this question, but there were several things I did know: I wanted to work in the technology field, and I wanted to be outdoors as much as possible. It is not very common to be able to work in technology and be in the great outdoors, so when I heard of land surveying, I knew I had found my perfect fit.

The average age of a surveyor in the State of Utah is approximately 54 years old. This number rings home to me as this is my current age, and I feel I am in the latter part of my career as a surveyor after 33 years. However, the amount of new/incoming surveyors is scarce, and I feel we are not replacing surveyors as fast as they are retiring.

One of my focuses as the UCLS chair is to increase involvement within the organization with the next generation of land surveyors. Many efforts are being made throughout our organization. Our Education Committee has made great strides by working with students K-12 throughout Utah and letting them know who we are and what we do. They have also worked tirelessly to organize auction items for the scholarship fundraiser, allowing students to continue their education in the surveying profession.

We also recognize our higher education institutions, and congratulate Utah Valley University on receiving the ABET accreditation for the Bachelor of Science Degree in Surveying and Mapping.

These are just some of the great things happening in the land surveying profession here in Utah, and I am encouraged to see where we are going.

The purpose of the UCLS is to “Establish common interests of all individuals engaged in the surveying profession; define a standard of care intent on protecting the public welfare; encouraging professional ethics and sound surveying practices; promote public awareness of professional land surveyors and their work; mentor the next generation of surveyors.” As we look ahead to the future, here are some of the happenings within the UCLS:

• The state of Utah was mapped out by many surveyors and has been constantly updated as development has continued. In 1869, the U.S. Coast Survey established a longitude station using astronomical observations and set a monument within the walls of the Salt Lake City LDS Temple grounds to help improve the accuracy of surveying and mapping. A new visitor center building is being constructed over the monument location. The LDS Church is working with representatives from the National Geodetic Survey, the Salt Lake County Surveyor’s Office and the State of Utah Geospatial Resource Center (UGRC) to re-establish the location of the monument to a new resting spot along the same longitude to the north of the new building footprint. The LDS Church agrees that a ceremony should take place for this historical event, and the UCLS would like to be a part of this to help promote the importance of our profession’s hand in this relocation.
  
  
• An important part of our profession is to protect and enhance the Public Land Survey System (PLSS). The state-funded Monument Replacement Rehabilitation Committee (MRRC) grant program has distributed funds to counties to help protect and preserve the PLSS. Thanks to the efforts of county surveyors and other members of the UCLS, this program is successful at accomplishing this task. We look forward to seeing much more work done on the PLSS through the grant program and volunteering time, resources, and other efforts of UCLS members.
  
  
• We have reached out to the Utah Geographic Information Council (UGIC) to discuss the possibility of having a combined conference with both disciplines. This collaboration is long overdue and would greatly benefit all involved.
  
  
• We want to recognize our local chapters for their contributions/efforts in continuing education and involvement in the UCLS. The conference committee is preparing another amazing conference for February 2023 in St. George. We hope to see everyone there. We also want to welcome Matt Clark as chair of the Historical Committee and Spencer McCutcheon as the chair of the Young Surveyors group. We look forward to working with them in their respective organizations.

Thank you all for your continued support in the UCLS, and I encourage you to be involved where you can. For the longest time, I only focused on doing my job on my small point on the map. Over time I began to see there are many other larger quadrants of the map and that we can have a strong encompassing purpose by working together.