Contents
Message from the President
Sarah A. Woodin
Message from the President-Elect
John Pearse
Message from the Treasurer
Ron Dimock
Message from the Program Officer
Catherine Loudon
Message from the Secretary
Sunny K. Boyd
Divisional Newsletters
Comparative Endocrinology (DCE)
Comparative Physiology and Biochemistry (DCPB)
Evolutionary Developmental Biology (DEDB)
Committee Reports
Student Support Committee
Brian Tsukimura, Chair
The Student Support Committee (SSC) wishes to announce 2 award opportunities this Fall, 2005. A similar letter has been sent out to each graduate student member of the SICB in early October. The membership of the SICB has generously set aside funds to provide two forms of research awards, the Grants-In-Aid-of-Research (GIAR)and Fellowship of Graduate Student Travel (FGST). Students can apply to only ONE program per year. Students have a "lifetime eligibility" to receive only one award (FGST or GIAR). To apply for both the GIAR and FGST, please visit the Society website, http://www.sicb.org/awards.php3 and complete the online application. Please read the instructions carefully. Please understand that the SICB requires the applicant to contact their recommenders and arrange that letters be sent. The Deadline for applications and Letters of Support is November 21, 2005.
In Fall 2004, 80 applications were submitted for the GIAR. The SSC reviewed these at the San Diego meeting (January, 2005) and made 26 awards (32%) for a total of $24,000 to students from the 9 different divisions of the Society. In Fall 2004, 15 applications were received for the FGST and the SSC granted 4 (27%) FGST for a total of $6000. Both award categories have a good level of funding percentage, and the SSC encourages all graduate student members of the SICB to apply.
Support for students presenting at the Orlando meeting (2006) have the opportunity to apply for the Student Support Program, which offers either housing accommodations or registration costs in exchange for half day services at the conference. The deadline is October 28, 2005. Apply at: http://www.sicb.org/meetings/2006/studentsupport.php3
The SICB has a strong history of supporting students. This being illustrated by the awarding of $30,000 in student research grants every year. In addition, the SICB, through the SSC, provides housing for students making presentations at annual meetings. In San Diego (2005), 249 students were housed at a cost of $36,700. In addition, 70 students received registration waivers at a cost of $2,660. Thus, the total expended on student support in 2005 was $69,360.
As this is my last year on the SSC, I wish to thank the current and numerous past members of the SSC who have made serving on this committee a great pleasure. Their hard work has epitomized the SICB commitment towards encouraging and promoting our next generation of research scientists. After the Orlando meeting, I will leave the SSC in the very competent hands of Adam Summers, who will be able to continue to improve and expand our future support for our students.
Student/Postdoctoral Affairs Committee (SPDAC)
Shea R. Tuberty, Chair
As the SPDAC chair, I have the honor of leading a team of very enthusiastic divisional representatives to develop a new orientation format at the Orlando SICB meetings in January. Please see the list of new and returning divisional reps and the agenda for the SPDAC workshops below. After reading over the workshop ideas, if you know of anyone that you would like to nominate for a workshop panel position please forward that name to myself or your division rep. This would be a great way to provide some well-deserved kudos for your hard-working faculty mentors or provide a venue to show off your favorite professor, postdoc, or mentor with the rest of the SICB student membership- sense of humor is appreciated!
This year SPDAC will revamp the "First-timers Orientation" and make it a more informative program for both returning members and newbies. It will be entitled "The SPDAC Welcome and SICB Meeting Orientation" and will occur beginning at 5:30pm on Wednesday, January 4th. If you have been granted a student registration/housing award -- you must attend! Please see the list of material to be covered below. Suggestions for further materials to be included are welcome!
Membership
Chair: 2004-'07
Shea Tuberty Appalachian State University
Assistant Professor tubertysr@appstate.edu ; (828) 262-6857
Divisional Representatives Animal Behavior: 2005-'08 Lawrence Spezzano Miami University (of Ohio) Graduate student spezzalc@muohio.edu Comparative Endocrinology: 2004-'07 Darren Lerner University of Massachusetts, Amherst Graduate student dlerner@forwild.umass.edu Comparative Physiology and Biochemistry: 2005-'08 Joanna Joyner-Matos University of Florida Graduate student jjoyner@zoo.ufl.edu Developmental and Cell Biology: 2004-'07 Candace McGuinness University of South Carolina Graduate student timcandace@bellsouth.net Ecology and Evolution: 2004-'07 Sofia Hussain University of South Florida Graduate student smhussai@mail.usf.edu Evolution and Developmental Biology: 2005-'08 Nathan Bird George Washington University Graduate student nbird@gwu.edu Invertebrate Zoology: 2003-'06 Ben Miner Bodega Bay Marine Lab Postdoc bgminer@ucdavis.edu Neurobiology: 2004-'07 Mark Frye California Institute of Technology Postdoc frye@caltech.edu Systematic and Evolutionary Biology: 2005-'08 Rena Bryan University of Florida Undergraduate renabr@ufl.edu Vertebrate Morphology: 2005-'08 Russell Main Harvard University Graduate Student rmain@oeb.harvard.edu
WORKING AGENDA FOR THE 2006 SICB MEETINGS IN ORLANDO FLORIDA
The Student and Postdoc Affairs Committee Welcome and SICB Meeting Orientation. (Wednesday, First day of meetings)
A) We will discuss some tried and true ideas on "How to get the most out of your SICB meeting." Powerpoint presentation with bulleted info including:
i. How to find relevant talks/posters during the meetings
ii. How to find everyone at the meetings -- This should focus on the importance of schmoozing with the PIs, hobnobbing/socializing
iii. How to approach a "big guy or gal"
iv. How to enter or leave a room/move between rooms
v. How to plan your meeting
vi. How to get involved in SICB or attend business meetings and the importance of attending the meetings (exposure, recognition).
B) Lightning round of 1st timers' questions.
SPDAC Free Lunch (Second day of meetings) -- this 20K lunch has been canceled this year due to budget constraints -- sorry!!
Workshops (Last Evening of meetings)
Two workshops are being planned and will be held one after the other
6:00-7:00pm
Workshop #1: "Optimizing Your Graduate School Experience"
i) dealing with funding your graduate studies (even after TAships expire)
ii) finding a good mentor (CUR, COS, societies, web listservers)
iii) getting research funding as a graduate student
iv) getting to meetings and making future connections (aka, networking)
v) building your CV to impress future hirers
vi) how to get the "right" postdoc for the "right" job
Perhaps this will be paneled by postdocs? We definitely encourage students to attend both.
7:00-8:00pm
Workshop #2: "Strategies for Landing an Academic Job/Postdoc"
i) Differences in the requirements for an RO1, comprehensive, and undergraduate liberal arts college (or hybrid of the above) resume.
ii) Paneled by new and senior faculty SICB members from each of the 3 levels of academic institutions.
iii) Each group will give a basic level of research/teaching/service expected at their college or university.
iv) A question and answer session will follow up the panel discussions.
SICB Society-Wide Evening Social in Honor of Students and Postdocs
Join your fellow SICB members for a Society-Wide Social on Saturday, January 7, from 8:00-9:30 pm. Coffee, desserts and fruit will be served and a cash bar will be available.
USEFUL WEBSITES FOR SICB's STUDENT AND POSTDOC MEMBERS
SICB's Student/Postdoctoral Affairs Committee (this site currently only lists contact information of the Committee Members, so look for future developments!): http://www.sicb.org/committees/studentpostdoc.php3
Sigma Xi : Grants-In-Aid of Research -- March 15 and October 15 deadlines annually. (http://www.sigmaxi.org/programs/giar/appopen.shtml)
Natl. Acad. Sci. USA: Web Guide to Enhancing the Postdoctoral Experience: http://www4.nas.edu/pd/postdoc.nsf
Natl. Acad. Sciences USA "Postdoc Resources": http://www4.nas.edu/pd/postdoc.nsf/web/resources?OpenDocument
"Postdoctorate.net": http://www.postdoctorate.net/
"Postdoc Jobs Online" (& University Job Bank): http://www.post-docs.com/
"University Job Bank": http://www.ujobbank.com/
Science Careers webpage: http://recruit.sciencemag.org/
If you know of other useful sites for the student/postdoc membership or you would like additional information, contact the Student/Postdoctoral Affairs Committee Chair (tubertysr@appstate.edu) or see the Committee's SICB webpage (given above)