As President of the American Automatic Control Council (AACC), it gives me great pleasure to welcome you to the 2011 American Control Conference (ACC). It has been a tradition for ACC to be held in western United States every third year, and we are pleased to return this year to the west after St. Louis (2009) and Baltimore (20010), and hold the ACC in San Francisco, the twelfth most populous city in the country, renowned for the diversity of its culture. San Francisco also has a special place in the history of AACC, since the last IFAC World Congress held in the United States was held in this city, in 1996.
The American Automatic Control Council is the umbrella organization responsible for organizing the annual American Control Conference and representing the member societies in the International Federation of Automatic Control (IFAC). The AACC Board of Directors, composed of representatives from each of the eight member societies (current roster including AIAA, AIChE, ASCE, ASME, IEEE, ISA, SCS, and SIAM, with SIAM being the latest addition, from January of this year), meets twice a year, one of which is during the ACC. The Board is responsible for the nomination and selection of the General and Program Chairs for each conference, and approval of the budget for each ACC. The General and Program Chairs select the Operating and Programming Committees, select plenary speakers and special sessions, and set the general tone of the conference. The Board is also responsible for the AACC awards, from selection of the awards committee chair to the final approval of the slate of candidates recommended by that chair based on recommendations of award subcommittees. AACC awards are presented during the ACC, and this year, as in the last couple of years, the Awards Ceremony will be held separately from the ACC Luncheon (this time right after the late afternoon sessions, again on the second day of the conference). This arrangement will allow us to focus on and recognize the accomplishments of the awardees during the ceremony, and will give you more time to converse with your colleagues during the luncheon. There will, however, still be a short program during the luncheon.
On behalf of the AACC, I thank Rahmat Shoureshi (General Chair), Faryar Jabbari (Program Chair), and the entire operating and programming committee members for their efforts in making this a successful conference. I also thank each member of the AACC Executive Committee and Board of Directors for their efforts in and contributions to the AACC operation, and particularly to Pradeep Misra, AACC Secretary, for ably shepherding each ACC from inception to closure, and to Jordan Berg, AACC Treasurer, for keeping a close eye on the ACC budgets and finances.
I wish you a stimulating, rewarding, and enjoyable conference.
Tamer Başar
AACC President, 2011