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What is SEMCOGSEMCOG Officers
SEMCOG’s officers are made up of a Chairperson, First Vice Chairperson (who is Chairperson elect), four Vice Chairpersons, and Immediate Past Chairperson. SEMCOG Bylaws require that officers be balanced between the blocs (Counties, Cities & Villages, Townships, and Education) of the organization. Voting delegates or elected-official alternates to SEMCOG’s Executive Committee are eligible for SEMCOG officer positions. Officers are elected at SEMCOG’s June Annual Meeting. The following officers will serve for the 2010-2011 term.
SEMCOG 2010-2011 Officers
Robert J. Cannon
Chairperson
Supervisor, Clinton
Township |
Cannon was first elected to the Clinton Township Board in 1984 and has been Supervisor since 2000. Some of his accomplishments include establishing the township's Wellness Committee and Fire Safety Committee, spearheading the establishment of a community library, and gaining support for televising township board meetings. Before becoming a SEMCOG officer, Cannon chaired the Transportation Advisory Council. He received his MBA and undergraduate degrees from Wayne State University and taught in the Utica School District for 25 years. Cannon and his wife have four children. |
John A. Scott
First Vice Chair
Commissioner, Oakland County |
Scott has been an Oakland County Commissioner representing District 5 (comprised of Keego Harbor, Lake Angelus, Sylvan Lake, and a portion of Waterford Township) since 2002. As a commissioner, he serves on several committees and chairs Planning and Building, the Personnel Appeal Board, and the Sanitary Appeal Board. At SEMCOG, Scott is a member of the Executive Committee and the Transportation Improvement Program Development Committee. He is also a past County Bloc Vice Chair and Nominating Committee member. Scott is a sales engineer for Royal Oak based McMasters Koss Company. As First Vice Chair, Scott will become SEMCOG Chairperson in 2011. |
Gretchen Driskell
Vice Chairperson
Mayor, Saline |
Driskell has been an elected official in Saline since 1993, serving as mayor since 1999. She is a member of the local planning commission and economic development boards. She was instrumental in establishing Saline's first historic district and the Saline Farmers Market. She is also actively involved with regional economic development issues and sits on the Ann Arbor SPARK Executive Board. She is a former Vice President and board member of the Michigan Municipal League. In addition, she also serves on the Washtenaw Area Transportation Study (WATS) and the Ann Arbor SPARK Executive Committee. Driskell has been involved at SEMCOG since 2001; she is a past chair of the Transportation Advisory Council and is a member of the Executive Committee. She holds an MBA from George Washington University. |
Joan Gebhardt
Vice Chairperson
Trustee, Schoolcraft College |
Gebhardt was appointed to the Schoolcraft Board of Trustees to fill a vacancy in January 2007 and went on to win the seat in her own right the following May. Since 2007 she has been an active and supportive member of SEMCOG. She serves as the chair of the Educational Bloc and is a member of the Executive Committee, and Transportation Improvement Program Development Committee, and a past member of the Member Services Task Force. In 2008, Joan Gebhardt was elected Wayne County Commissioner in District 12 representing Westland, Inkster, and south Livonia. Gebhardt also works for Speaker of the House Andy Dillon and was appointed to the State Utility Consumers Participation Board by Governor Granholm. She is retired from public education as a teacher and principal. Gebhardt and her husband have two children and one grandchild.
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Susan Rowe
Vice Chairperson
Councilperson,
City of Wayne |
Susan Rowe was elected to the Wayne City Council in 2003, and previously served as a member of the Zoning Board of Appeals. She considers herself to be “recycled,” as she served on the Madison Heights City Council from 1985-1988, and was a member and chaired their Zoning Board of Appeals for eight years. Rowe serves on the MML Board of Trustees, the Elected Officials Academy board, and as a member of the Finance Committee and the Legislative Governance Committee. She has received Levels I, II and III of the EOA, and has served Region 1 as secretary, vice chair, and chair. At SEMCOG, she is a member of the General Assembly, Executive Committee, and Regional Review Committee; she previously chaired the Community Economic Development Advisory Council, and is now the co-chair of the Economic Development Strategy Task Force. She received SEMCOG’s Regional Ambassador Award in 2007. Rowe currently works for the University of Michigan-Dearborn, in the office for Government Relations. She is the program coordinator for the Institute for Local Government, a partner of MML’s in providing training to local elected officials, and school board members in the Southeast Michigan region. |
Michael Sedlak
Vice Chairperson
Clerk, Green Oak
Twp. |
Sedlak has been Green Oak Township Clerk since 2000 and also serves on the township's Planning Commission. In 2003, Sedlak achieved Certified Municipal Clerk status from the International Institute of Municipal Clerks. In addition to his elected position, Sedlak has served on the township fire department since 1986 and is currently a captain. He is an EMT-Specialist for Livingston County EMS and is the recordings secretary for the Livingston County Fire Chiefs Association. At SEMCOG, Sedlak represents Livingston County townships on the Executive Committee and is a member of the Transportation Advisory Council and the Bylaws & Legal Committee. Some of his accomplishments include the successful passing and renewal of fire/police millages, adding affordable housing components to subdivisions, and is part of the board that approved and built the engineering-award-winning water and sewer systems in Green Oak. |
Robert Hison
Immediate Past Chair
Mayor, St. Clair
Shores |
Hison has served on St. Clair Shores City Council since March 1984. He was appointed mayor in 2004 and elected mayor in 2005. He has a long record of service to SEMCOG, including past chair of the Finance and Budget Committee and received SEMCOG's highest honor — the Regional Ambassador Award — in 2005. He is a member of the Executive Committee. Hison is retired from Detroit Diesel. In June 2010, he was elected to the board of the National Association of Regional Councils.
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Paul E. Tait
SEMCOG
Executive Director |
Tait joined SEMCOG in 1972 and has served in a variety of planning and administrative capacities. He became Executive Director in 1998. He attended the Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government in summer 2002. Tait is involved with the National Association of Regional Council (NARC) and is a past Board member. |
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