Missouri Society of
Professional Surveyors
Presents
69th Annual Conference
October 1-3, 2026
Oasis Hotel & Convention Center
2546 N. Glenstone Avenue
Springfield, Missouri
Conference Registration Information
Date and Location
October 1-3, 2026
Oasis Hotel & Convention Center
2546 North Glenstone Avenue
Springfield, MO 65803
Planning Committee
- Susanne Daniel
- Shane Machin
- Michael White
- Mark Wiley
- Debrah Wolfe
Speakers
- Tom Bryant, PLS
- Sean Cleveland
- Jackson Craft
- Timothy Devaney, PLS
- Gary R. Kent, PS
- Joseph V.R. Paiva, PhD, PLS, PE
- Jim Peterson, PE, PLS, PhD
- Darrell D. Pratte, PLS
- Mark Schnesk
- Austin Shockley
- Pat Stack
- F. Shane Terhune, PLS
Agenda
Select the button to download a copy of the conference agenda.
Registration Information
Registration fee is $400 for Members and $600 for Non-Members.
The deadline for registrations is Monday, September 14, 2026. After this date, a 10% processing fee will be added to all registration fees. The registration fee includes instructional materials, refreshment breaks, a lunch and breakfast each registered day, and a cocktail reception with exhibitors. To register, complete the attached registration form and mail, fax or email with your payment to MSPS.
Membership Dues
We will be checking the membership status of each registration. If your MSPS 2026 membership dues are not paid you may add that amount to your registration fee. $145.00 for PLS and $35.00 for Associate members.
Location and Lodging
The Oasis Hotel & Convention Center is the site for the 2026 Annual Meeting of MSPS. A special room rate of $134.00 for single/double rooms has been extended until Monday, August 31, 2026. Reservations can be made by calling 888-532-4338. Parking is complimentary for all guests and attendees. Ask for the conference special rate and identify yourself with MSPS when making reservations.
Oasis Hotel & Convention Center 2546 North Glenstone Avenue Springfield, MO 65803
BOOK ONLINE
https://www.choicehotels.com/reservations/groups/WV70Z4
Group Code: BSQPLJ
Golf Tournament
The Golf Tournament benefitting the MSPS PAC Fund will be held at the Bill & Payne Stewart Golf Course on Thursday, October 1, 2026.
You may pick your partner or a foursome, If you do not have a partner, one will be provided to you. Tee-time starts will begin at 12:30 pm with a shotgun start. The cost is $85 per person and includes 18 holes, a cart and two mulligans.
Bill & Payne Stewart Golf Course
Course 1825 E. Norton Road
Springfield, MO 65803
Hospitality Room
A hospitality room will be provided on Thursday and Friday during conference hours. Please see the registration desk for hospitality room location. A map of the area will be available at the registration desk.
Continuing Education
This course has been approved for 21.5 Professional Development Units (PDUs) by the Missouri Board of Architects, Professional Engineers, Professional Land Surveyors and Professional Landscape Architects (2.0 hours of Standards).
PDU breakdown on days is as follows:
Thursday – 8.0 PDUs
Friday – 7.5 PDUs
Saturday – 6.0 PDUs
Cancellation Policy
MSPS reserves the right to cancel the program and return all fees in the event of insufficient registration. A participant may cancel a registration at any time, however all refunds are subject to a $25 processing fee. No refunds will be given after Monday, September 14, 2026.
For More Information
Send registration or administrative questions:
Sandy Boeckman
msps@missourisurveyor.org
Online Registration
Paper Registration
Please fill out and submit to:
Missouri Society of Professional Surveyors (MSPS)
722 E. Capitol Avenue
Jefferson City, MO 65101
573-635-9446
Fax: 573-635-7823
msps@missourisurveyor.org
http://missourisurveyor.org
Speakers Bios
- Tom Bryant, PLS, is a professional land surveyor with more than 30 years of experience working in surveying. He graduated from Southeast Missouri State University in 1978 with a Bachelor of General Studies degree, studied at the University of Missouri-Rolla under Dr. Richard Elgin, and graduated from the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, where he studied under Dr. David Knowles, with an associate’s degree in surveying in 1984. Tom worked for several surveying and engineering companies in the Saint Louis area, implementing field to finish techniques, robotics and GPS into daily usage, until 2005 when he became employed by Seiler Instrument Company to head their Technical Support and Training activities in Saint Louis. In April of 2008, Seiler Instrument Company was awarded the contract to build and implement a statewide Real time VRS network for the Missouri Department of Transportation and Tom was assigned the position of Project Manager tasked with getting the Missouri Real Time Network operational. This was accomplished on February 1, 2010. Tom is a past President and newsletter editor for the Saint Louis chapter of MSPS, and has been a presenter at numerous surveying workshops in the Midwest. Since May of 2014, Tom has been the Trimble Geospatial Sales Representative for Seiler Instrument Company’s Illinois Geospatial Territory. Tom is also an Adjunct Instructor in the Civil Engineering Departments at Washington University and was at Saint Louis University for ten years, both located in St. Louis MO.
- Sean Cleveland, Assistant Manager of Geospatial Technical Support for Seiler Geospatial, has over 20 years of experience in the land survey field. Sean has assisted in leading a team dedicated to technical support, training and effectively utilizing a diverse range of geospatial products.
- Jackson Craft, Geospatial Product Support Specialist for Seiler Geospatial, is a Geospatial professional with seven years of field experience in cadastral, construction, and infrastructure projects, starting with residential construction staking and sectional surveys at Aylett Survey, followed by wind farm development surveys at Westwood, and later leading projects as a Party Chief at McClure involving various survey types including ALTA/NSPS Land Title and Bathymetric surveys. Jackson holds a Certified Survey Technician credential from the National Society of Professional Surveyors, supported by coursework in Cadastral Surveying from the University of Wyoming.
- Timothy Devaney, PLS, is a Land Surveyor and one of two Team Leaders for a geospatial group of more than 60 professionals in McClure Engineering Company’s Midwest region. He was first introduced to geospatial technology and its applications while studying precision agriculture during his B.S. in Agronomy at Missouri State University, completed in 2007. After graduating, Tim continued exploring geodesy and precision layout through post‑baccalaureate research and work as a photovoltaic systems designer and installer. He officially discovered his passion for land surveying while serving as a Survey Crew Chief and completing the coursework required for Missouri licensure. Tim joined McClure Engineering in 2017, where he earned his PLS license and has remained deeply engaged in the evolution of survey technology. He has since completed an M.S. in Geographic Information Science from Northwest Missouri State University. Tim is passionate about teaching and learning alongside fellow surveyors. He is a strong advocate for the NSPS CST program, has successfully guided 10 individuals through NSPS‑CST certification, and is currently tutoring another group of candidates. He is an active member of the MSPS Young Surveyors Committee and serves as chairman of the MSPS Technology and GIS Committee. Outside of surveying, Tim enjoys spending time outdoors, working on his small family farm, and raising honeybees.
- Gary R. Kent, PS, Gary Kent is a Professional Surveyor with Schneider Geomatics in Indianapolis. After 37 years, he transitioned to part-time in 2020 and formed Meridian Land Consulting, LLC through which he provides training, consulting and expert witness services. Gary was Chair of the Joint ALTA/NSPS Workgroup responsible for the ALTA/NSPS Standards from 1995 to 2021 and continues to be actively involved with the standards. He has presented programs on boundaries, standards, risk management, easements, leadership, safety and other topics multiple times in all 50 states. Gary served on the Indiana State Board of Registration for Professional Surveyors from 2004 to 2025 and is a past-president of both ACSM and the Indiana Society of Professional Land Surveyors.
- Joseph V.R. Paiva, PhD, PLS, PE, is President of Midwest Geospatial Academy (MGA). He is also instructor at MGA and is instrumental in helping educate the PLSs of the future, as MGA’s courses are accepted by the Missouri Land Surveying Board for meeting the education requirements. Information on the coursework offered at MGA can be found at www.geospatialacademy.us. Joe is also CEO of GeoLearn LLC (www.geo-learn.com), an online provider of video-based continuing education for land surveyors. Joe is past president of the Surveying and Geomatics Educators Society and has been involved in surveying education at the college level and for continuing education since the 1970s. Joe believes that the crisis facing surveying due to decreasing numbers of land surveyors can only be solved with participation from the practitioners doing more than encouraging young people to enter the profession.
- Jim Peterson, PE, PLS, PhD, is a Support Representative for Leica Geosystems. He has over 36 years of experience as a professional surveyor, engineer, constructor, mapper, educator, and researcher with his FAA Remote Pilot Certificate. He completed his Civil Engineering Ph.D. in 2015 where he focused surveying and mapping. His career took him across North America, Europe, and Australia promoting mobile mapping and unmanned aircraft systems (UAS). He was an Assistant Professor at several universities where he taught surveying and construction. He was also the program coordinator of a UAS degree. His professional career includes Consolidation Coal Company, McCarthy Bridge & Heavy, the Center of Expertise for Photogrammetric Mapping at the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers. He has been a Vice-President of aerial mapping companies such as Sanborn & Surdex. He also managed and owned several engineering, surveying, construction companies, and was a Domain Expert for Trimble Navigation and Gatewing. He was part of a $20 million dollar research project through the National Science Foundation using UAS to collect high accuracy imagery to model the effects of climate on plants. He also had a research project with the Natural Resources Conservation Service where he investigated using UAS for wetland compliance. Prior to coming to Leica, he was a project engineer for the City of Springfield, Missouri where he managed infrastructure projects. He is passionate about all things geospatial, teaching, and his research.
- Darrell D. Pratte, PLS, began his career in land surveying in 1974 as a chainman at Smith and Company, a multi-discipline engineering and surveying, firm located in Poplar Bluff, Missouri. Gaining licensure in 1985, Pratte accepted a complimentary membership to the Missouri Association of Registered Land Surveyors (MARLS). The position of State Parks Surveyor with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources
(DNR) became available in 1987. In 1991, he left the Division of State Parks to work directly for the Cadastral Survey Section of the Land Survey Program (LSP) in the Division of Geology and Land Survey of DNR. Pratte was first elected to the MARLS Board of Directors in 1999. The following year MARLS changed its name to the Missouri Society of Professional Surveyors (MSPS) In 2002, Pratte was promoted to Chief of the Geodetic Survey Section of the LSP. Continuing on this management track, Pratte accepted the position of Missouri State Land Surveyor (SLS) in July of 2008. The following year he served as President of MSPS. In 2013, during Pratte’s tenure as SLS, the Land Survey Program transferred from the DNR to the Missouri Department of Agriculture. 2013 brought the beginning of several accolades, starting with MSPS Surveyor of the Year. In 2016 he was awarded Surveyor of the Year by the St. Louis Chapter of MSPS, followed in 2017 with the Robert E. Myers Service Award. After 35 years with the State of Missouri, Pratte retired to Desloge, Missouri in November of 2021. In 2022, Pratte was elected to the Surveyors Historical Society (SHS) Board of Directors. - Mark Schnesk, Professional Services Manager and Autodesk Certified Instructor at Seiler Geospatial, Mark has over thirty years of experience as a civil engineering technician along with experience in surveying and geospatial analysis. Mark graduated from Michigan Technological University. He is an Autodesk Certified Instructor, AutoCAD Civil 3D Certified Professional, AutoCAD Certified Professional, and an FAA Certified sUAS Pilot.
- Austin Shockley, Geospatial Support Specialist for Seiler Geospatial, brings several years of field experience in the land surveying industry. Over the past two years, Austin has been a key member of Seiler’s Geospatial Technical Support team, providing front-line technical assistance, training, and field solutions to customers across a variety of geospatial products.
- Pat Stack is a GNSS, Robotics, and Mobile LiDAR Product Specialist for Seiler Geospatcial. Pat has over thirty years’ experience with 3D scanning, Civil and Surveying sales and support for Seiler Instrument Company. Pat attended and successfully completed several Trimble 3D Laser training seminars at Trimble Navigation headquartered in Westminster, Colorado. Additionally, Pat has presented at several regional Land Survey Conferences across the Midwest.
- F. Shane Terhune, PLS, began his surveying career in 1978 with Williamson Engineering in St. Joseph, Missouri, as an entry level rodman and chainman. Shane attended courses from the University of Missouri-Rolla, Longview Community College, and Johnson County Community College. In 1991 he became a licensed Professional Surveyor in Missouri and in 2006 was licensed in Kansas. Shane has served as the elected Andrew County Missouri Surveyor since 1996. Shane has taught surveying courses part-time at Missouri Western State University and served on the Land Survey Advisory Board for the Metropolitan Community College for 8 years. Shane served on the Board of Directors of the Missouri Society of Professional Surveyors from 2001-2008, is a member of the National Society of Professional Surveyors and a Past member of Missouri Association of County Surveyors. Shane established Terhune Surveying and Mapping LLC in Savannah, Missouri in 2010, and still operating it today. He is a member of the National Council of Exams for Engineers and Surveyors (NCEES) and currently services on the Exam Committee for both Professional Surveyors and FS. Shane was appointed to the Land Survey Division of the Missouri Board for Architects, Professional Engineers, Professional Land Surveyors, and Landscape Architects, by Governor Mike Parsons and confirmed by the Missouri State Senate in January of 2022, currently serving as the Land Survey Division Chair.