Field Reporter

Field Reporter

Candidates for the Field Reporter Award will prepare and submit “Field Reports” about operating sessions that they have attended.

Each Field Report must include:

  1. A written introduction to the layout and the session, minimum 200 words, including name of host, date, name of layout, approximate number of attendees, and other useful information.
  2. 6 medium+ to high-resolution photos of the session. See guidelines.
  3. 6 captions, one for each photo, minimum of 30 words each.
  4. Confirmation from the session host that you have permission to submit the report.

Submitted Field Reports will be approved for credit at the sole discretion of the OPSIG-AP.

Certain Field Reports might be candidates for publication in the Dispatcher’s Office Magazine. Layout owners will have the opportunity to both review and reject any proposed article depicting their layout and session.

When a candidate has submitted 5 Field Reports in aggregate that have been approved, the Field Reporter Award will be awarded.

Certain Photo Guidelines and Suggestions:

  • Photos showing paperwork underlying the session or job you held.
  • A photo of yourself with the Host in the layout room.
  • At least one photo showing something the Host does or provides that you think is worth telling people about, which could be something big or a tiny detail you appreciated. This is a very important consideration; we would like every submission to have an element of sharing ideas and learnings that other operators can benefit from.

Best Practices:

  • Do not allow your activities as a Field Reporter to interrupt the session or aggravate your Host.
  • Remember, your OPSIG is focused on operations content, not scenery shots or railfan shots unless your caption ties those photos into a discussion about operations.

Application for Credit: Field Reporter Achievement

Procedure Revised May 2026

Unlike the other AP Achievement Award applications, this submission process is a little more complex because of the large volume of data (such as high-res photos) that we will need from you.

First Step: We will set up a personal folder for you to upload to. Write to us at submission@opsig-ap.org and ask for a folder and an upload link.

Then: Submit your field reports via upload.

  • Field reports are only accepted if their subject is operating sessions that occurred after March 1, 2026. We are looking for applicants to write field reports for this specific purpose, as compared to gathering info and photos from sessions that occurred before March 1, 2026.
  • In addition, field reports must be submitted within 45 days of the session… but to be clear, you can submit one at a time, and each submission can be months apart, no problem.

The ideal format to upload is a Word document, a PowerPoint presentation, or a similar application.

  1. Your submission must include your full name and address.
  2. Indicate whether you are an OPSIG member. This is a member-only program.
  3. Confirm that you have reviewed the field report requirements on this page, as described on the intro slide and in the Guidelines section.
  4. Include all of the session’s important details, particularly the date and city/state. The scale of the railroad and other interesting statistics are welcome. We keep all information confidential. As a reminder, the session date must have been after March 1.
  5. Confirm that the Host of the subject session has given permission for you to photograph and write about their session. As a reminder, we will seek additional Host permission later if OPSIG is considering publishing in the Dispatcher’s Office magazine.
  6. If you are sending in a single field report, it never hurts to remind us along the lines of “This is my 3rd field report submitted”, so we can make sure you are getting all of the credit you have earned.
  7. Send us the highest-resolution photos reasonably possible, please.