Region 23 Judges Annual Report 2020
Patricia Randall
Region 23 Judges Training Chairman
Greetings Region 23 Members,
It is that time of the year again to provide you with an update on the status of the Region23 American Iris Society Certified Judges. Here is the 2020 roster of our Certified Judges and their current status:
Apprentice Judges: Scarlett Ayers and Jacqueline Pountney.
Garden/Exhibition Judges: Eva Barry, Debra Bilberry, Howard Dash, Frances Day, Betty Gunther, Steve Kelly and Loui Reyes.
Master Judges: Pegi Blackwell-Smith, Helen Crotty, Henry Day, Phil Doonan, Patricia Feather, Ken Fladager and Cindy Rivera.
Retired Judges: Dr. Scott Jordan, Maxine Perkins and Valerie White.
Emeritus Judge: Patricia Randall.
A few of our judges were able to provide and/or acquire judges training sessions early in the year to ensure that their advancements, or required hours of classroom training was met. Thanks to those judges who provided those hours for their fellow judges. We have four student judges that have been duly endorsed by fellow judges, and will advance to Apprentice Judge Status in 2021, they are:
Mary Moon, Isabel Olsen, Kevin Konetzni and Robin Kishbaugh.
I am looking forward to working with these forthcoming judges. They are very iris literate and will provide great judging skills to all of us.
We will have the hours from the Regional Convention 2019 that will be recorded. There have been affiliate judges providing training sessions for their groups, such as, the Enchanted Vista Iris Society’s two first meeting programs for 2020, which were also a one hour credit judges training session. Thanks Judges for providing these great programs/training sessions.
Judges Steve Kelly and Howie Dash of Las Cruces both provided the required two hour, one-on-one training sessions for Scarlett Ayers and Jacqueline Pountney, so they could meet their training requirements to move to Garden/Exhibition Judges Status as of January l, 2021. Thank you Steve and Howie for your support and service.
This covid viris was quite the bombshell to our nation and foreign countries. Hope all of you stayed home to stay safe and well. No excuses now for not having time to get all the work done in our gardens. Bonnie Nichols, AIS Judges Training Chairman provided the following source of information regarding judges training credits for 2020.
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American Iris Society Judges Training Information for 2020
Bonnie Nichols, AIS Judges Training Chairman
Because of the government-imposed restrictions on large gatherings due to the coronavirus, the American Iris Society Annual Convention, Median Iris Convention, and the Louisiana Iris Convention have been canceled, as well as many (if not all) of the spring regional meetings. This means that opportunities to take garden and class room judges training will be very limited, if not impossible.
If your region has trainees that have completed their requirements to move to Apprentice or Garden/Exhibition Judges Status, they will move automatically. If you have Garden/Exhibition Judges that have met their requirements to become Master Judges, they will advance automatically.
If your region has Student, Apprentice, Garden/Exhibition, or Master Judges that lack hours for 2020, the decision has been made to extend their eligibility for one year.
I am in the process of evaluating online Judges Training classes and will let you know as soon as they become available for your clubs and regions.
Everyone is charting new ways of doing things. None of us have been through such a horrific event which has impacted our entire world. I appreciate your patience and will be happy to answer any questions you or your judges may have. Thank you, Bonnie J Nichols, AIS Judges Training Chairman, (214) 676-9892, bjnhtn@aol.com.
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Below is some additional information provided by Bonnie Nichols, AIS Judges Training Chairman, on potential judges training sessions via the AIS website.
Web Judges Training Information
In a few weeks the AIS will begin what could be a changing trend in how we conduct Judges Training. If not in the long run, most certainly during 2020. I’m sure you have questions, because like our new online JT, seems like our world is making new rules about daily life EVERY day.
How we are expecting this process is: Interested persons will register online. Andi will push the information out.
People that register will provide – name, Region, Judges status, and if they are taking the class for credit. We will have interested parties that may not be in the JT program now – but hopefully will become interested. Your contact information will be listed for JT registrants to contact you to let you know they have taken an online class. If you need to verify, Andi and I will have the registration list. At the first JT session, we will provide the test once the person registers. They can print or not print to keep for their records. If we see this isn’t successful, then we will change directions on the test.
Please bear with us. We are all learning. I have a hard act to follow. In that Gary did amazing webinars. They are recorded if you missed them or want to see them again.
Please respond back if you are still the judges training chairman for your region. If you are NOT, please let me know who is. Please feel comfortable forwarding my email to them.
I hope each of you will have the opportunity to attend the sessions. We are packing a lot of materials in a one hour session. We talked about making the sessions longer; however, spread from east coast to west coast time differences could be an issue as well as foreign attendees.
I will be sending your reports for completion later this summer. I appreciate everyone’s work and dedication to the American Iris Society. It was a season not to forget (or maybe to forget) with virtually no shows, conventions, garden tours, and now maybe most fall regional meetings. However, upward and onward to 2021. We will look back on these times and hopefully remember how our world came together to kick this nasty virus to another planet far-far away. Stay safe! Bonnie J Nichols, AIS Judges Training Chairman.
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PS If any Region 23 Judges view these training sessions and take the tests, please forward a copy of the test to me for credit for hours of training acquired. Please include your Region (23) and Name on the copy of your test so you can receive the training credits allowed. Mail tests to Patricia Randall, 758 Hood Road, SE, Rio Rancho, New Mexico 87124, or email your copy via patannran@hotmail.com.
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The Fall 2020 Regional Convention, to have been hosted by the Albuquerque Aril and Iris Society, was cancelled due to the virus pandemic and has been rescheduled to August 2021.
Although we will not be attending our regular Fall Regional Meeting I have selected Steve Kelly and Howie Dash to receive my personal judges award for their service and support for 2020. They will receive their awards at the Region 23 Fall Convention 2021. Congratulations guys!!!
Patricia Randall
Region 23, Judges Training Chairman
