Seven ACES members are running for six spots on the American Copy Editors Society’s executive committee in the 2017 election. Candidates for secretary and treasurer are unopposed. The top four of five nominees for the at-large positions will be seated. All terms are two years in length.
The candidates are presented in order of the position sought and then in alphabetical order. Click on each name to see biographical information and their answers to questions about what they can offer ACES and what their ideas are for the future of the organization.
All information, including photographs, was provided by the candidates. Some candidates nominated themselves; some were nominated by other ACES members.
Electronic ballots will be available Feb. 15 to March 1, and voting information will be sent to each eligible member in good standing as of Feb. 1 via email. If you do not receive an email, please contact ACES Secretary Brady Jones.
Treasurer: Sara Ziegler
Secretary: Neil Holdway
At large:
TREASURER: Sara Ziegler, Law360 (incumbent – self nominated)
I’m a copy editor at Law360, a legal newswire.
saraziegler@copydesk.org
Nominee contributions to ACES:
I have been treasurer for the past two years, responsible for the finances of ACES. I have also helped run the headline contest and the ACES Education Fund auction.
Why do you feel you are the best candidate?
I take seriously my role as the steward of ACES’s finances. I want to be the best caretaker possible of our resources, and I strive to make my work transparent.
What do you envision for your future role in ACES?
ACES is on solid ground financially, and I intend to keep that going. I want to put our money to the best possible use for all of our members.
SECRETARY: Neil Holdway, Daily Herald (Chicago) newspaper (incumbent – self nominated)
Assistant managing editor/copy desk: I’m the lead editor at night overseeing and producing news front pages and the website, I help plan our front-page coverage, I help set and communicate policy and style, and I oversee nine copy editors.
nholdway@me.com
Nominee contributions to ACES:
ACES treasurer 2005-2015, then a board member at large. Education Fund treasurer since 2005. Worked on ACES newsletter 2002-13. Helped organize 2003 national conference in Chicago. Led redevelopment of ACES’ website 2012-14, and I’m the project manager for ACES’ 2017 branding and website update. I’ve led several training sessions for or on behalf of ACES, 2003-16.
Why do you feel you are the best candidate?
As treasurer I was a leader in the operations and record-keeping of ACES, and I will continue that as secretary. I’ve also had the technical acumen to ensure ACES’ website and all its online forms run smoothly over the past several years. I plan to help guide ACES’ future using members’ and fellow board members’ advice, and be a face of ACES nationwide.
What do you envision for your future role in ACES?
With ACES membership larger than ever and national conference attendance at its highest ever, and with our regional boot camps in demand, ACES must keep striving to provide excellent customer service and smooth operations for its members, and it must continue to tweak and update our training offerings to meet what editors of all kinds are seeking.
BOARD: Samantha Enslen, Dragonfly Editorial (incumbent – self nominated)
Samantha Enslen runs Dragonfly Editorial, an agency that offers copywriting and editing services to companies worldwide.
sam@dragonflyeditorial.com
Nominee contributions to ACES:
I’ve spoken at ACES events over the past few years. I’ve also been able to build Tracking Changes, ACES’ quarterly journal. I get to work with ACES members around the country to explore their ideas and develop content for the journal. I also manage its design and production.
Why do you feel you are the best candidate?
I’m a copyeditor who runs an editorial agency. That gives me two perspectives. Editing day in and day out keeps me focused on the tools and resources that working copyeditors need to do their job well. And the skills I’ve learned running a business translate into helping run our organization effectively.
What do you envision for your future role in ACES?
I think the biggest challenge facing ACES is our growth. Growing is good — but managing a big organization with a volunteer board is tough. Over the next two years, I’d like to focus on standardizing our operating practices and adding paid staff positions to better support member needs.
Over the next year, the ACES board will be working on strategic planning initiatives for the near- and long-term future. Thinking about the next 3-5 years, what three initiatives should be our top priorities and why?
BOARD: Sheri Gibson, Louisiana Art & Science Museum (self nominated)
Management of website, social media, digital and print publications, and exhibition and promotional signage; copywriting; graphic design; editing of internal and external documents
sgibson@lasm.org
Nominee contributions to ACES:
I attended this year¿s annual conference in Portland, and will be attending the 2017 conference in St. Petersburg, at which I will also be providing a presentation. I follow and engage with ACES on social media, and am also planning on enrolling in the Poynter ACES Certificate in Editing.
Why do you feel you are the best candidate?
As the only editor for my organization, juggling many different types of duties, I have come to understand the significant value of ACES as a professional resource. I would be honored to share what I have learned and help others become more engaged with this wonderful resource and organization.
What do you envision for your future role in ACES?
I would like to help increase an awareness of the organization and a more wide-spread recognition of the importance of quality editing.
Over the next year, the ACES board will be working on strategic planning initiatives for the near- and long-term future. Thinking about the next 3-5 years, what three initiatives should be our top priorities and why?
BOARD: Nick Jungman, University of Oklahoma (incumbent – self nominated)
I manage the department that includes the student newspaper and the yearbook at the University of Oklahoma. I also teach news editing.
nickjungman@ou.edu
Nominee contributions to ACES:
I have been a presenter at every ACES conference since 2011. During my term on the board, I have chaired the annual headline contest and created the new booklet that features the contest. I coordinated the ACES boot camps in Norman, Oklahoma, and Miami in 2016.
Why do you feel you are the best candidate?
I have 22 years’ experience as an editor and educator. I have been a passionate advocate for editors and their importance in any publishing environment. Much of my experience has involved exploring how editors’ roles must adapt as publications switch to digital platforms.
What do you envision for your future role in ACES?
The next two conferences, in Chicago and Providence, offer opportunities for ACES to expand its reach to new members. My background is in editing for journalism, but I see great potential for students to have careers editing in other fields, and I’d like ACES’ outreach to other industries to continue.
Over the next year, the ACES board will be working on strategic planning initiatives for the near- and long-term future. Thinking about the next 3-5 years, what three initiatives should be our top priorities and why?
ACES must continue to beef up the training it offers and make sure that training is relevant to editors across industries and to editors at different experience levels. Similarly, we’ve made strides in recent years in making sessions at the annual conference more sophisticated, but there is more we can do. We have an all-volunteer model for leading both training and conference sessions, but our organization may be large enough now to invest in speakers and trainers, and that’s something we need to explore.
BOARD: Maisha Maurant, Health Alliance Plan (nominated by Christine Steele)
I am HAP’s chief corporate editor and chief of website content. I manage strategists, writers and graphic designers to develop internal and external communications.
mmaurant@hap.org
Nominee contributions to ACES:
At the ACES 2016 conference, I participated on the Women in Management panel.
Why do you feel you are the best candidate?
I have more than 20 years of diverse communications experience. As a result, I understand the importance of copy editing in a variety of environments: newsroom, nonprofit and corporate. This puts me in the ideal position to advocate on behalf of ACES’ varied membership.
What do you envision for your future role in ACES?
I would like to work with the board to create more resources for ACES members working outside traditional media. I also have a strong interest in growing our support of digital communications. Finally, I’d like to support our programs that focus on training young editors.
Over the next year, the ACES board will be working on strategic planning initiatives for the near- and long-term future. Thinking about the next 3-5 years, what three initiatives should be our top priorities and why?
BOARD: Heather Saunders, Just the Write Type Editing (self nominated)
Editor and proofreader specializing in STEM and medical projects.
just.the.write.type.editing@gmail.com
Nominee contributions to ACES:
I am passionate about ACES and have attended every conference since becoming a member. Shortly after becoming a member, I became interested in encouraging more freelancers to be involved and volunteered to help develop the ACES Freelancer Directory and assist with updates. I participated as a trainer at the ACES Boston Boot Camp and as a guest on #ACESchat in 2016 and will be a session panelist at the 2017 conference.
Why do you feel you are the best candidate?
As the ACES Freelance Directory Coordinator and with three years of experience coordinating events for the EFA Boston chapter, I have experience contributing to a volunteer organization. As a freelance STEM editor, I can represent the growing freelancer membership, as well as editors specializing in STEM fields.
What do you envision for your future role in ACES?
As conference attendance has shown, the number of freelancers and editors working in non-journalistic fields is increasing. I envision continued expansion into offerings for other types of editing (fiction, medical, technical, etc.) and freelancers. Further, I envision increased interorganizational communication, which could present opportunities for growth and richer experiences within ACES.
Over the next year, the ACES board will be working on strategic planning initiatives for the near- and long-term future. Thinking about the next 3-5 years, what three initiatives should be our top priorities and why?
ACES has developed a strong sense of community among editors from many different fields. I believe ACES can be positioned to enrich this sense of community by encouraging smaller meet-ups and increased involvement in local chapters so members can continually develop and collaborate between yearly conferences and regional boot camps. Also, ACES could continue to provide professional development by delivering more training and educational opportunities for intermediate and experienced editors. Further, it would be beneficial to encourage editors to consider how the changing faces of journalism and publishing are likely to impact their future.