Chuck Alderson has been with the KS Dept. of Commerce since March 2011 and serves as the Director of Aviation & Defense Industry Development.  He works closely with all segments of the KS aviation industry on policy issues and initiatives to grow the industry.  In addition, he works on energy related matters and is involved with an informal group of state agencies looking at issues around the Mississippian Lime Play.   Prior to joining the KS Dept. of Commerce, he served as Senator Brownback’s State Director and was on his Senate staff for twelve and a half years.

David Barfield was appointed chief engineer of the Kansas Department of Agriculture’s Division of Water Resources in June 2007, succeeding David Pope, who retired after 24 years in the position. Barfield is just the fifth chief engineer to serve Kansas since the division’s inception in 1927.   

As chief engineer, Barfield oversees staff of the Division with broad responsibility over the state’s water resources including the administration of over 33,000 active surface and ground water rights; regulation of dams, other water structures, and floodplains for public safety and to protect public property; representing the state on four interstate water compacts; and working with and approving actions of special water districts including Groundwater Management Districts, Watershed Districts, and others.

In addition to leading the Division of Water Resources, Barfield represents Kansas on Western States Water Council; is an appointed member of the State Conservation Commission, is an ex officio member of the Kansas Water Authority, and participates on the Governor’s Natural Resources Subcabinet.  Barfield is the Governor’s appointee to represent Kansas on the Missouri River Recovery Implementation Committee.

Barfield has worked for the Division of Water Resources since 1984.  Between 1984 and 1987, he performed special studies to guide water management decisions; from 1987 to 1992 he served as head of the Dam Safety Unit; and, from 1992 to 2007 he led a technical team working on matters related to Kansas’ interstate water issues, primarily involving disputes over the Republican, Arkansas and Missouri rivers.  

Prior to working from the Division, he worked as a consultant in Minnesota for three years and served as a water resources engineer for three years in developing southern Africa.

Barfield earned a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Kansas in 1978 and a Master of Science in Water Resources Engineering in 1991, also from the University of Kansas.

Barfield and his wife, Cathy, have been married for 31 years, and they live in rural Douglas County. They have three grown daughters.

Rex Buchanan grew up near Little River, in Rice County, Kansas, on the edge of the Smoky Hills.  He has an undergraduate degree from Kansas Wesleyan University and graduate degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He has been at the Kansas Geological Survey, based at the University of Kansas, since 1978, and is currently the Interim Director. He is the co-author of Roadside Kansas: A Guide to its Geology and Landmarks  (rev. edition, 2010) and editor of Kansas Geology: An Introduction to Landscapes, Rocks, Minerals, and Fossils  (rev. edition, 2010), both published by the University Press of Kansas; co-author of The Canyon Revisited: A Rephotography of the Grand Canyon, 1923-1991, published by the University of Utah Press (1994); co-editor of Geowriting, published by the American Geological Institute (1995); and co-compiler of Kansas Groundwater, published by the Kansas Geological Survey (1993).  He has been president of the Kansas Association for Conservation and Environmental Education (KACEE), the Kansas Academy of Science, and the Association of Earth Science Editors.  In 2008 he was named a Fellow of the Geological Society of America, and in 2009 was given the John Strickler award for environmental education from KACEE.

Edward Cross serves as President of the Kansas Independent Oil & Gas Association (KIOGA) where he is responsible for public policy advocacy and interaction with external stakeholders including elected officials, regulators, government decision-makers, and community thought leaders.  At KIOGA, Cross is director of staff, editor of the Association’s publications, serves as an industry spokesperson to media outlets and other forums, and is an industry advocate as a registered legislative agent representing the interests of KIOGA members in both Topeka and Washington, D.C.  He is a licensed professional geologist and certified school business official holding a B.S. in Geology and an M.B.A. from Southern Illinois University.

Julie Cunningham serves as Chief of the OWRB’s Planning & Management Division, where she oversees the State’s water rights permitting, hydrologic studies, well drillers licensing, Dam Safety and National Flood Insurance Programs. She also serves as Oklahoma’s engineering committee representative on four interstate stream compact commissions.

 After graduating from OSU, Julie joined the Board’s Water Quality Division in 1994, where she conducted lake monitoring, supervised Water Quality Standards work, and later served as assistant chief and State Revolving Fund program manager for the Board’s Financial Assistance Division. Julie is an outdoor enthusiast and enjoys gardening…when drought is not in the forecast!!

Bill Eastman was appointed Director, Environmental Services, for Westar Energy in February of 2002.   Bill began his utility career in 1977 with Kansas Gas & Electric spending those early years understanding power plants followed by the development of a technical services group supporting company-wide environmental efforts.  Following the KGE and KPL merger Bill was appointed Manager, Air Programs where he oversaw all aspects of EPA’s air-related programs.

 Bill is a native Kansan raised in Sedgwick County where he attended the Haysville schools graduating from Campus High School in 1972.  He received his undergraduate degree from Wichita State University in 1977. Bill spent seven years on the Haysville School Board working hard to develop a strategic vision for this first class public school system.

 Bill and his wife Sherri have been married for 37 years and have three grown daughters.  They reside in Topeka and are enjoying their 5 (soon to be 6) grandchildren.  When not playing with his grandkids, Bill can be found on the “Eastman” place continuing the stewardship traditions of six generations of Eastman’s in the Flint Hills.

Randy Fannin is professional engineer with 28 years of experience in the exploration and production business.  A native of northeastern Ohio, Randy graduated from Ohio Northern University with a BS in Mechanical Engineering in 1977.  After moving to Houston, Texas, he worked for Marathon Oil for 4 years in pipeline operations, then joining Shell in 1981. At Shell he has held various positions as a staff engineer, operations supervisor and technical team leader.  Leaving Shell in 1998, Randy became a certified high school physics instructor, and taught in the Houston, Texas area.  He returned to Shell in 2005.  His primary experience (13+ years) has been in completions and operations in Shell’s South Texas gas assets.

Randy’s current position is Technical Team Leader–Production Engineering in the Early Maturation group for Shell’s Onshore US businesses.  This role includes providing technical assurance and project oversight for production engineering issues related to new business development and exploration appraisal, as well as mentoring for new Production Engineers joining Shell.

Randy is married with two grown children and two grandchildren.  He is a member of SPE and ASME and is a registered professional engineer in the State of Texas.  He is active as a member of Grace Presbyterian Church and in other civic activities in the Houston area.

Doug Louis is currently the Director of the Conservation Division, which is a branch of the Kansas Corporation Commission. The Conservation Division regulates Kansas’ oil and gas exploration and production activities, as well as eight underground natural gas storage facilities and over 16,000 Class II disposal wells. Prior to working at the KCC, Doug was an exploration geologist for various independent oil and gas companies. Mr. Louis earned a B.S. in Geology and a MBA from Wichita State University.

Larry Mangan is a 1970 graduate of the University of Missouri at Rolla and has spent the majority of his career working in the municipal engineering field.  He has been the City Engineer of Wellington, KS for the last eighteen years where he has supervised a variety of City functions, especially the water and wastewater departments.  Mr. Mangan is a member of the Lower Arkansas Basin Advisory Committee since 2004 and a member of the Regional Economic Area Partnership Water Resources Committee since 2007. 

Dave Newell is a geologist with the Energy Research Section in the Kansas Geological Survey at the University of Kansas in Lawrence, KS.  He received his B.S. degree in geology from Indiana State University and his M.S. degree (structural geology) from the University of Wisconsin – Madison before going to work in petroleum exploration for Mobil Oil in Dallas, TX, and Aramco in Croydon, England.  He joined the Kansas Geological Survey in 1982 and completed his Ph.D. (carbonate sedimentology) at the University of Kansas in 1996.  He is currently researching aspects of Kansas coalbed natural gas, low-BTU gas, and stratigraphy.

Susan Nickerson serves as a Business Executive and Industry Liaison for the Kansas Department of Commerce in the central and northwest Kansas region, working with business, industry and post-secondary education partners to develop workforce solutions in recruitment, retention, training and retraining techniques and administers grant funding for training projects.  The statewide industry focus of her position includes energy, renewable energy and value-added agriculture across the entire state.  She serves as the key field liaison for the State Energy Sector Partnership and Training “green jobs” grant received from the Federal Dept. of Labor in January 2010.

Susan has professional experience in education, non-profit, manufacturing, corporate and government sectors.  She has undergraduate degrees in communication/journalism and art/graphic design, as well as a graduate degree in communication /public relations from Fort Hays State University.  She holds an “Accreditation in Public Relations” (APR) designation from Public Relations Society of America.  Previous positions include university professor, national marketing director for a medical equipment manufacturing company, public relations and development position for a non-profit, and regional director of a Small Business Development Center. 

DaMonica Pierson has enjoyed an 18-year career as an environmental engineer working for Shell, Star Enterprise and Mobil Oil Companies.  She is currently a Senior Regulatory Specialist for the Arrowhead (Kansas) Exploration Team within Shell Exploration and Production in Houston, Texas.  DaMonica has a B.S. in Civil Engineering from UT Austin and a JD from George Washington University Law School in Washington, DC.  She is a native of Dallas, Texas and enjoys traveling, good food, friends and music.

Mark Sievers was appointed to the Kansas Corporation Commission on May 5, 2011, by Governor Sam Brownback. He was elected Chair of the three-member Commission on May 17, 2011.

Sievers is an experienced senior executive, an economist, and a lawyer experienced in policy development, economic policy analysis, and complex public utility litigation. He worked for Verizon Global Solutions where he was responsible for its international legal and regulatory matters. Prior to joining Verizon he held senior positions at GTE, Sprint and Southwestern Bell where he participated in regulatory proceedings throughout the United States and worked on complex corporate transactions. He was a lawyer in private practice in Washington, DC where he represented several start-up telecommunications firms.

He has also worked for the Utah Attorney General and the California Department of Water Resources. Prior to attending graduate school and law school, he was a police officer for the City of Colorado Springs.

He volunteers at SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives) providing advice to small businesses and provides pro-bono legal services to Habitat for Humanity in Teller County, Colorado, an ecumenical Christian organization that builds affordable housing for low-income families.

Sievers' wife of 36 years, Jill, is a lawyer and the Executive Director of Habitat for Humanity in Teller County, Colorado.

He holds a BA in economics from the University of Colorado, an MA and ABD in economics from the University of California, Davis, and a JD from the University of Utah. He is admitted to practice law in Colorado, Missouri, the District of Columbia and the 10th U.S. District Court. He is a graduate of the Leadership Program of the Rockies.

Chairman Sievers' term expires March 15, 2015.

Grant Warnecke grew up in the small town of New Braunfels, Texas. Grant joined Shell as a production engineer in 2009 after receiving his bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering and Economics from Rice University in Houston, Texas. Since joining Shell Grant has been involved in the operation of a mature natural gas field in South Texas, field operations in the Haynesville Shale in Louisiana, and the startup of the Mississippian Lime project in Kansas, which we hope to develop into a new heartland for Shell. In his free time Grant enjoys running, cooking, and exploring the small towns of rural Texas.