Dan O’Hanlon of West Virginia, will speak on:

1. Developing a State Queen Producers Association
2. The Nation’s first Beekeeper Immunity bill
3. Writing Grants to support beekeeping

O’Hanlon has been a beekeeper & queen producer in West Virginia for 23 years. He is an officer in his local bee club and is the founder of the West Virginia Queen Producers., an organization dedicated to supporting local queen producers. Dan led the effort to pass the first bill in the nation granting beekeepers immunity from civil liability. Dan was recently selected as the "2011 Beekeeper of the Year" by the WV Beekeepers Association.

Ernesto Guzman of Ontario, Canada, will speak on:

1. Africanized honey bee breeding
2. Increasing wintering success
3. Nosema ceranae has long been established in North America

Guzman Teaches Introductory Beekeeping, and does research on the genetics of defensive behavior of European, African and hybrid honey bees. He is Professor and leader of the Honey Bee Research Centre, School of Environmental Sciences, University of Guelph, Ontario, Canada.

Larry Connor of Michigan, will speak on:

1. Rebuilding after heavy colony loss
2. A small-scale, efficient cell and virgin production system
3. Planting for bees

Connor is a monthly contributor to the American Bee Journal and Bee Culture Magazine. He has written four books, three on beekeeping—the most recent is Queen Rearing Essentials. Editor/publisher of Wicwas Press, Connor teaches beekeeping master and queen rearing classes and is based in Kalamazoo, Michigan.