Member News

ITC Holdings CEO speaks on leadership at Lawrence Tech Feb. 28
Joseph Welch, chairman, president and CEO of ITC Holdings Corp. in Novi, will discuss “The Power of Leadership” at the President’s Leadership Seminar, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 1-2 p.m. at Lawrence Technological University, 21000 West Ten Mile Road, Southfield. The seminar, which is free and open to the public, will be held in the Science Building auditorium. 

The President’s Leadership Seminars, inaugurated by Lawrence Tech President Lewis Walker last year, provide a forum for leaders who can show that innovation results from collaboration among diverse disciplines and a desire to solve an important problem. The seminars relate to the areas of expertise and the academic programs offered at Lawrence Tech.

Welch will discuss his own leadership style and how it was formed. He will talk about the importance of leadership education and how leaders are developed at ITC. He will also describe the challenges involved in creating ITC, what it has become, and its future direction.

ITC Holdings is the nation’s largest independent electricity transmission company. It invests in the electric transmission grid to improve system reliability, expand access to markets, lower the overall cost of delivered energy and allow new generating resources to interconnect to its transmission systems in seven states.

As chairman, president and CEO, Welch has been focused on providing best-in-class service to customers. He has been a leading voice for developing an energy policy that will support an evolving energy future and national economic development. Since the beginning of his career in the utility business in 1971, Welch has held positions of increasing responsibility in electricity transmission, distribution, rates, load research, marketing, pricing, and regulatory affairs. He established ITC Transmission as a stand-alone entity from its parent corporation in 2003. Welch has a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from the University of Kansas and is a licensed professional engineer in Michigan. He is the co-author of “Competitive Energy Markets: The Power of Choice.”

Over $1,500 Awarded to Artists in the Michigan Annual XXXVIII
Over $1,500 in cash prizes was awarded to the winners of the Michigan Annual XXXVIII art competition at the Anton Art Center.  The winners were selected by juror Andrea Eis.  The cash prizes were sponsored by the Anton Art Center. First Prize was given to an untitled oil painting on linen by Gail Potocki of Grand Junction.  Second Prize went to a suspended work of bone and steel, Enzyme, by Fair Haven’s Joe Culver.  Rochester artist Judy Munro took Third Prize with her oil painting, Guys Making Pies. 

Three Honorable Mention ribbons were also awarded:

• Linda Allen (Grosse Pointe), Spirit
• Marnie Victoria Fender (Davisburg), Memory      Game Quilt
• Doug LaFerle (Royal Oak), Mad Science

Eis, Chair of Oakland University’s Department of Art, selected 38 pieces out of 214 submitted by artists from around the state.  The exhibition, a long-standing Art Center tradition, will run through February 24, 2012.  Most of the pieces on exhibit are available for purchase. Also being held in conjunction with the Michigan Annual XXXVIII is a mini-exhibition of Mount Clemens historical artifacts from the collection of the city’s mayor, Barb Dempsey.

A Michigan printmaking drop-in workshop will be held in conjunction with the Michigan Annual XXXVIII.  Thanks to sponsorship by The Hagen Family Foundation, the workshop is free to attendees and will give visitors of all ages a chance to try their hand at linoleum block printmaking.  The workshop will be held Sunday, February 12, 1-4 pm.  No registration is necessary. For more information about the Anton Art Center, or to make a donation or become a member, call the center at 586-469-8666 or visit www.theartcenter.org.  The Anton Art Center is open Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm; Friday, 10 am to 6 pm; and Sunday, 12 noon to 4 pm.  The center is closed on Mondays.