David Radcliffe, Chair, called the meeting to order and introduced Gerard Kluitenberg (Chair-Elect), Dani Or (Past Chair), Jon Wraith (Incoming Chair-Elect), and Glenn Wilson (SSSA-ASA Board Representative).
The minutes of the 2003 business meeting were adopted without modification.

S-1 Early Career Award
Art Warrick, chair of the S-1 Early Career Award Committee, presented the 2004 S-1 Early Career Award to Frank Casey.

David Radcliffe reported that members of the 2004 S-1 Early Career Award Committee were Art Warrick (chair), Per Moldrup, Glendon Gee, and Dani Or. Art Warrick will rotate off the Committee for 2005 and Ty Ferre has been appointed to serve a three-year term. Per Moldrup will serve as chair for 2005 and David Radcliffe will replace Dani Or (as Past Chair of S-1) for a one-year term.

Recognitions
David Radcliffe recognized the following S-1 members who received awards at the 2004 meeting: Laj Ahuja (Don and Betty Kirkham Soil Physics Award), John Corey (Soil Science Professional Service Award and SSSA Fellow), Harold van Es (SSSA Fellow), Dani Or (SSSA Fellow), and Renduo Zhang (ASA Fellow and SSSA Fellow).

Report from SSSAJ Editorial Board: Sally Logsdon (S-1 Technical Editor)
Sally began her report by stating that professional soil scientists are not being adequately served by SSSAJ. The Board plans to address this in the future. The Board has decided to switch to continuous publication mode in mid-2005, which means that the electronic version of SSSAJ will be posted on-line monthly while the print version of the journal will continue to be published bimonthly. The only negative consequence of continuous publication is that page numbers will no longer be consecutive within divisional sections in the print version of the journal. Sally noted that submissions are rebounding from last year. She also mentioned that the "open access" issue might impact SSSAJ. The Board will be giving this matter considerable attention in the year ahead. The Board is also discussing a modified structure for SSSAJ to address a concern that the divisional structure of the Journal is negatively impacting submissions. One possibility under consideration is to use "issue areas" for grouping papers. This would modify, but not eliminate the divisional structure. The board is also considering eliminating the division numbers (e.g., S-1) from the Table of Contents. S-1 members were encouraged to give input to the Board on this matter. Finally, Sally noted that the Board voted to include book reviews in SSSAJ.

Report from VZJ Editorial Board: Rien van Genuchten (Editor)
Rien presented a positive report on the status of Vadose Zone Journal. Submissions to VZJ are increasing steadily, as is the number of papers being published (138 papers in 2004, totaling some 1425 pages; this is impressive for only the second year of full publication, and compares well with many other journals, including SSSAJ, which will have about 2090 pages in 2004). Five different special sections (collections of papers resulting from symposia) were published in 2004 and an additional four special sections are scheduled for future publication. Rien expressed some concern that we need to continue to submit high-quality papers to VZJ. But the main concern is increasing subscriptions. Personal subscriptions are increasing steadily, but institutional subscriptions are lagging behind. This is a matter of serious concern. S-1 members were strongly encouraged to contact librarians at their respective institutions and recommend subscription. Rien reported that Thomson ISI has not yet included VZJ in its collection of scholarly journals, but this is expected to happen in the near future. He also identified a need to increase citation of papers published in VZJ. Finally, he reminded members to sign up for "Email Alerts" on the VZJ home page (www.vadosezonejournal.org) to receive notification when a new issue comes out (generally on or around the 15th of February, May, August and November). In closing, Rien encouraged S-1 members to continue submitting high-quality papers, encourage others to do the same, and keep encouraging library subscription.

Report from SSSA Leadership: Michael Singer (SSSA Past President)
Michael Singer began his report by endorsing Rien's comments. He encouraged S-1 members to make personal contact with librarians regarding subscriptions to Vadose Zone Journal. He also mentioned that SSSA leadership has received numerous complaints about the fact that program booklets were not mailed to registrants prior to the meeting. This was due, in part, to the fact that the deadline for submitting abstracts was intentionally pushed back. He indicated that program booklets would continue to be distributed by mail prior to the annual meeting until the on-line version of the program becomes an acceptable alternative. He also noted that each society - ASA, CSSA and SSSA - had its own program cover this year. This is part of an effort to bring individual identity to each society. Dani Or raised a question regarding the possibility of instituting a fee for abstract submission. Michael mentioned that this is being considered but it will not happen in 2005.

Report from SSSA and ASA Board of Directors: Glenn Wilson
Glenn Wilson reported on the activities of the SSSA and ASA Boards. His oral report was accompanied by a two-page written report (see next section).

ASA Business: The ASA Board is considering a proposal to separate the tri-societies management and services from the ASA program. The proposal includes reducing the size of ASA Board to 15 members and removing SSSA and CSSA representation. The proposal also includes developing a new management entity for the tri-societies. The proposed Executive Board would consist of the President, President-elect and Past President of ASA, CSSA and SSSA (nine members); the ICCA representative; and the ASF representative. A motion was made to encourage the tri-societies to proceed with the proposed structural changes. The motion carried unanimously after limited discussion. Bob Luxmoore expressed concern that the structural change would result in only A-division representation in ASA. He stated that we need to preserve the identity of Agronomy as a science and that Agronomy as a whole is not well represented by the A divisions. Luxmoore suggested that some C and S divisions need to remain affiliated with ASA. If there is sufficient support for structural changes, the by-laws will be changed and there will be a mail-out vote by all ASA members. Glenn also mentioned a proposal to have thematic meetings for 2005 with limited division themes that coincide with the independent themes of each society. No discussion followed, so Glenn asked individuals to provide him with feedback to take back to the ASA Board.

Glenn noted that ASA ended 2003 with an increase in net assets of $271,525 and a balance of $1,768,044. ASA will maintain the current dues rate assuming a 3% decrease in membership. The draft budget projects SSSA ending with a net gain of $20,000. SSSAJ had a net income of $225,259, but VZJ lost $81,754. The ASA Board plans to continue publication of VZJ for at least one more year, but has indicated that VZJ is in a critical year to become financially independent. Wilson's report on ASA business ended with a request for input regarding the possibility of a SSSA Newsletter covered by an increase in dues.

SSSA Business: The SSSA Board is considering the SSSA Strategic Plan for 2005-2010 prepared by the SSSA President, President-elect and Past President. An overview of the six strategies in the Strategic Plan was presented. Particular attention was given to Strategy One (Society Structure). The Board is considering a proposal to restructure the SSSA Board of Directors so that it consists of only 15 voting members. The new Board would consist of an executive committee (President, President-elect, and Past President), eleven divisional representatives, and a representative of certified professional soil scientists. It would also include the Executive VP of the tri-societies and the SSSA Editor-in-Chief as ex-officio members. A motion was made to support the proposed restructuring of the SSSA Board of Directors. The motion carried unanimously.

Glenn reported that the Board has decided to work with Oxford Press to publish SSSA books and monographs beginning in 2005. He also highlighted a need for SSSA to lead a national effort for the certification and licensing of professional soil scientists, which is addressed in Strategy Four (Professional Development) of the Strategic Plan. The Board is considering the possibility of providing financial support in the amount of $150,000 for this effort through a three-year commitment from the SSSA Special Opportunity Fund. Following discussion, it was decided to send a message of support for this initiative, but not at the expense of VZJ. Glenn also asked for input on whether or not SSSA should provide support for a full-time development officer for the Smithsonian soils exhibit. The Board is considering this as part of Strategy Five (Public Policy and Outreach).

Other Business
David Radcliffe reported that 194 volunteered papers were submitted to Division S-1 for the 2004 meeting. This represents a substantial increase from 131 submissions for the 2003 meeting. Division S-1 ranked fourth in total submissions behind S-11 (237), S3 (256) and S6 (219).
Don Nielsen gave a brief update on the 18th World Congress of Soil Science, scheduled for July 2006 in Philadelphia. Participation was encouraged.

David Radcliffe introduced incoming Division Chair Gerard Kluitenberg, who thanked David for his excellent service to the Division and adjourned the meeting.

Respectfully submitted,
Gerard Kluitenberg