Welcome to the Web Site for the 53rd Annual Meeting of the North Central Branch of the Entomological Society of America. The meeting will be held at the Ramkota Inn in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, from March 8 through 11, 1998. The Program Chair, Marlin Rice, has put together a particularly intriguing and educational program, and the Local Arrangement Committee, co-chaired by Mike Ellsbury and Billy Fuller, have done an outstanding job to make the meeting one you should want to attend.

You already have seen the marvelous illustration of the American burying beetle, Nicrophorus americanus, by Jon Bedick at the University of Nebraska. We selected this endangered species as a symbol for our meeting because of its occurrence, albeit in small numbers, in South Dakota and Nebraska. To commemorate this magnificent insect, Jon's illustration has been printed on coffee mugs and name tags that you will receive when you register for the meeting. In addition, some poster-size copies of the illustration will be available for sale in the registration area.

Our program for 1998 is exciting! The ever-popular Linnaean Games, challenging brilliant students' minds about sifnifica and insignifica in the entomological world, and the Photo Salon, with its incredible photographs of insects, should encourage you to arrive on Sunday. However, if that's not enough, we have a special treat for you. Dr. Darlyne Murawski, a Reseach Associate at Harvard University and author and photographer for National Geographic magazine, will present a Special Program, Butterflies and Moths: The Joys of Discovery, on Sunday, March 8, at 8:00 p.m. The general public also has been invited to attend this marvelous event, so arrive early to ensure you have a place to sit.

The Opening Session will begin at 8:30 a.m. on Monday, March 9, followed by student competition presentations. In the meantime, posters will be available for viewing all day long. A syposium focused on corn rootworms, the graduate student symposium, and submitted papers highlight the program on Monday afternoon. The finals of the Linnean Games and another Photo Salon will be held Monday evening, followed by a Mixer intended for all members to visit with old friends and meet new friends and students.

More posters, including student competition, and some exciting symposia (Insect Resistance Management and Bt Corn, and Insect Rarity) get our program off to a great start on Tuesday, March 9. The Awards Luncheon will be held immediately after the completion of the morning program. More submitted paper presentations and two symposia (European Corn Borers and Bt Corn, and Biological Control of Weeds) fill up Tuesday afternoon. Then, to encourage all members to attend, the Final Business Meeting will be held early Tuesday evening. Another Mixer to encourage interaction among students and Branch officers, committee members, and award winners will be held immediately after the Business Meeting.

Wednesday, March 11, also is chock full of program. In addition to the BCE symposium, two other programs will be held primarily for our stakeholders: Forensic Entomology Symposium, and a Workshop of Certified Crops Advisors. And last, but far from least, Paul Johnson and Mike Jeffords have planned a spectacular Insect Expo for elementary children from a four-state area. If you haven't already volunteered to help, please do so. The expos are one of the best things we can offer to the public.

The program is ready, the program and meeting planners are excited about our meeting, and the officers and committee members are prepared to help in any way we can. I strongly encourage you to attend the meeting and get involved with the North Central Branch. The week of March 8 through 11 should be exciting and rewarding for all of us, and I look forward to seeing you there!

-Kevin Steffey, President
North Central Branch, ESA

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