Hey, wait. Me, an old-timer? Heck no!It seems like just yesterday when Iattended my first College and UniversityMachine Records Conference (yeah,that's what they called it back then).
Machine records? Remember that unittabulating equipment and those 80column punch cards? Heck, the punchcards were so popular we got to use themas our meal tickets at last year's 40thanniversary meeting of the College andUniversity Computer Users Association.Did the name really change?
I was asked by the CommunicationsCommittee to share my own personalCUMREC background and perspectiveswith you, and my feeling for the organization and how it's grown and prosperedover the years. I'm more than glad to doso.
The year was 1972 and I'd beenworklng as the Assistant Director ofAdmissions at Wayne State University inDetroit since 1968.1 didn't even knowwhat a CUMREC was an Edsel orsome other new name for one of thoseDetroit specials? We were moving awayfrom punch card technology to an on-line(not really) terminal system for enteringour admission applications. My systemsanalyst was George Crockatt (one of thefirst Frank Martin Award winners). Well,George convinced me we should puttogether a paper on our TEARS (Termi-nal Entered Application Record System)and present it at CUMREC '73 inMilwaukee, WI. We worked really hardon the paper, George doing most of it andme attempting to figure out what it was Iwas supposed to be presenting and thenpracticing it each evening before my newbride. The paper was done and submitted(no WordPerfect or anything, justWhiteOut). The presentation waspracticed and polished and off we went toMilwaukee in George's old Buick.
George kinda took me under his wing andshepherded me around, so I got to meetall the REAL old-timers: Frank Martin,Leo Corbaci, Mack Usher, C.C. Mosier,Jack Thornton, Wayne Ostendorf, HarrisOlson, and John Chaney to name a few.If you think I'm old now, those guyswere old then!
As fate would have it, we werescheduled to present first thing Tuesdaymorning. Well, I called George from myroom only to hear the VERY faintest ofvoices on the other end of the line. Sureenough, George had come down with thedreaded "conference laryngitis" andcouldn't make his portion of the presenta-tion. So, this young rookie, who's scaredstiff, got to make the whole presentationwhile George flipped the overheadtransparencies and kept winking to methat I was doing good. Yeah, thanksGeorge!
Let's fast forward from almost 23years ago to some more recent andmemorable CUMRECs for me. Eventhough I haven't been to 23 straightCUMRECs, I think I've attended about18 of them. I missed a few because ofshort budgets, workload issues, etc. In1981, after 13 years at Wayne State, Imoved to Binghamton University tobecome the University Registrar. What agreat job Jack Thornton did in Waco,Texas for the 28th annual meeting ofCUMREC in 1983. His Texas Eveningon the Brazos River Queen boat wasgreat. I even bought some plastic cowboyboots in Waco and think I perrnanentlyinjured my feet from trying to do theTexas two-step in those darned things.
In 1987 I was off to Atlanta for the32nd meeting of CUMREC. We held a little contest to award a female and malethe top prize for the 'Awfullest FlowerdyShirt" contest. They posted little stickersall over you if they thought you had themost awful shirt! Mine was prettyterrible, but I finished second in somevery close competition.
Okay, I know I've been talking aboutthe fun side of my CUMREC experiencesand giving you only a very partialpicture. At EVERY CUMREC annualmeeting I've attended, I've always comeaway with new ideas, better ways ofmaking improvements in my operations,and a new set of friends that have all beenvery special to me. I thought it was timeto start contributing something back to anorganization I received so much from. In1986, I was appointed to the EditorialCommittee (now the CommunicationsCommittee). I was fortunate enough tochair that committee for three years. Isincerely thank the CUMREC member-ship for electing me to the Board ofDirectors in 1989. During my six yearson the Board, we undertook two majorstrategic planning initiatives which havepositioned CUMRBC very well as weforge ahead toward the next millennium.CUMREC is in a strong position to meetthe rapidly changing challenges ofinformation technology and data commu-nications all of us are living with.CUMREC is a strong friend and ally foryou as you prepare for the future at yourinstitutions. I was fortunate enough tohave your Board select me as President in1992 and the following two years asChair of the Board of Directors. Thesewere special years in my life. I know Iwas attempting to give back to CUMRECall the great things that CUMREC hadgiven me.
I thank all of you for the opportunitiesyou've presented me and I hope you'llsee fit to contribute back to CUMREC inone of many ways - attend the conferences, present a paper, serve on acommittee, become involved. CUMRECis you.
Contributed by:
Herb Riley, Registrar
Binghamton University
hrily@bingvaxa.cc.binghamton.edu
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