The advent of Gemini South has required a reorganization in structure in Chile. Malcolm Smith is now Director of CTIO and Head of the AURA Observatory in Chile, which includes both CTIO and Gemini. In his new role, Malcolm serves as the interface between all AURA-operated facilities and the Chilean government, the union of AURA employees in Chile, and all other official organizations in Chile. There is also a new unit in Chile called the AURA Observatory Support Services, which will provide administrative and logistical services to all of the facilities operating on AURA property in Chile. Management of the scientific programs at each facility will continue to be the responsibility of the director of that facility.
These new responsibilities are taking an increasing fraction of Malcolm's time. Therefore, we have decided that it is necessary to appoint an Assistant Director of CTIO, who will be responsible for scientific oversight of both the mountain operations and of the engineering programs of CTIO. The position of Assistant Director was formerly filled by Mark Phillips. We intend to make a new appointment to this position from the current CTIO staff, and consultations with the staff about who might best fulfill the role of Assistant Director are ongoing. I invite any members of the community who have suggestions or comments about this appointment to send them to me.
Sidney C. Wolff