Message from the President
As the fall begins, I wanted to provide you with an update about various ASCI activities under way and coming up.
We are excited about the transition of the Journal of Clinical Investigation to Editor in Chief Gordon F. Tomaselli and his Editorial Board at Johns Hopkins University, which took effect July 1. You’ll be hearing from Dr. Tomaselli about new initiatives in the coming months. For the time being, Howard Rockman remains as JCI Insight Editor, with a recently expanded academic Editorial Board and a diverse roster of Consulting Editors, nearly all of whom are drawn from the ASCI membership.
Several calls for nominations are currently open. In recognition of the challenges recently faced by our colleagues in Texas and Florida, we are extending the deadline for 2018 ASCI membership to October 5 (from September 22). Nominations for the 2018 Stanley J. Korsmeyer Award are due October 13, and nominations for the 2018 Donald Seldin~Holly Smith Award for Pioneering Research are due November 10. We will call for Young Physician-Scientist Award nominations in mid-Fall and Council nominations in December.
In order to address particular priority areas, the ASCI Council has created several task-specific committees: a Publications Committee that I co-chair with Dr. Tomaselli; a Development Committee chaired by Kieren Marr (the current ASCI President-Elect); and an Advocacy Committee chaired by Kim Rathmell (the current ASCI Vice President).
The ASCI has had longstanding advocacy relationships with the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) and Research!America. These organizations are at the forefront of fighting for support of basic and clinical research, in addition to supporting sound policies to ensure the success of the biomedical research enterprise. I applaud the efforts of Laura Niedernhofer, who recently completed her 4-year term (2013-2017) as the ASCI’s representative to the FASEB Board. Talat Alp Ikizler has kindly agreed to serve the ASCI as the next representative (2017-2021). In addition, Councilor Donna Martin will serve as the ASCI’s representative to FASEB’s Science Policy Committee for 2017-2020. Dr. Rathmell will serve in the role of FASEB Board Advisor (a 1-year term).
Over the last few years, the ASCI has raised funds from a small group of committed ASCI members to support several programs, notably the Seldin~Smith Award and a program to support the attendance of HHMI Medical Fellows and others at the AAP/ASCI/APSA Joint Meeting. As President, I encourage you to consider becoming (or continuing to be) a donor toward these programs or to the ASCI in general. We know that the physician-scientist community is important to you, and you can help the ASCI nurture and celebrate physician-scientists across the career spectrum with a contribution of any size.
Sincerely,
Benjamin L. Ebert, MD, PhD
President, 2017-2018
The American Society for Clinical Investigation
