The terms of Allan Robinson (Harvard University), Paul Bentzen (University of Washington), and Ted Strub (Oregon State University) on the U.S. GLOBEC SSC expired at the end of 1996. Allan was a long-time member of the SSC (having served two terms of 3 years each), served as the chair of the Long-Range Planning Committee and was principal author of the U.S. GLOBEC Long-Range Science Plan (U.S. GLOBEC Report No. 12), and was especially active in GLOBEC International activities. Paul, leaving the committee after serving one term, was actively involved in the preparation of the Northeast Pacific Implementation Plan, and often reminded the committee of the value of genetic and molecular approaches for studying population dynamics and structure in the marine environment. Ted's contribution to the U.S. GLOBEC program has been immense. He chaired, or co-chaired three workshops and was the principal author for two reports (U.S. GLOBEC Reports No. 7 and No. 11) on the California Current System and was an active participant in numerous other workshops and reports. Recognizing his past contributions to the program, and perhaps hoping to get more in the future, the SSC renominated Ted to serve another three year term. Ted agreed to stand for reelection and was unanimously re-elected.

Also at the end of 1996, the terms of two ex-officio members of the SSC, Brian Rothschild and Bill Peterson, expired. Brian has served on the SSC, either as a regular or ex-officio member, since the SSC was formed. Partway through this period, Brian became the Chair of GLOBEC International (at which time he became ex-officio on the U.S. SSC) and led that fledgling program through its initial startup phase to eventual acceptance as a core project of the IGBP. Bill served as ex-officio on the SSC for one year following three years as the U.S. GLOBEC program manager in NOAA headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland. It is largely through the efforts of Bill as program manager that the program stands in as good as stead as it does, and we thank him for his service to the program, both as program manager and later on the SSC.

U.S. GLOBEC accepted nominations for new SSC members until late-December 1996. We especially encouraged nominees with backgrounds in salmon/fisheries oceanography, genetics, and zooplankton ecology. We were pleased to receive numerous well-qualified nominations. Following established procedures, the U.S. GLOBEC SSC welcomes four new members: Bill Pearcy (Oregon State University), Bob Francis (University of Washington), Stewart Grant (NOAA), and Mike Dagg (LUMCON). They and Ted Strub have terms that expire in December 1999.

Other members on the SSC are Bob Beardsley, Loo Botsford, Mike Fogarty, Dale Haidvogel, Eileen Hofmann, Anne Hollowed, Mark Huntley, Val Loeb, Dave Mountain, Peter Ortner, Tom Powell (chair), Steve Reilly, Jim Schumacher, and Jose Torres.