Fall 2009 State of the Society Letter |
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As the summer fades into fall, it is time to reflect on the State of the Society, harvesting our collective accomplishments and then planting the seeds that will ensure the continued growth of SSR. To me, the harvest season begins with the Annual Meeting where we come together to hear great science, greet old friends, and meet new ones. The depth of camaraderie that resides within our membership always amazes me and this was quite palpable throughout the entire meeting this summer in Pittsburgh. Indeed, the Program Committee, under the creative leadership of Pat Hunt, deserves kudos for crafting a thought-provoking meeting that reminded us how our reproductive science serves the public good by promoting intellectual, social, and physical well being. As this year’s Annual Meeting turns to the next, we have the opportunity to continue to build upon our Society’s legacy, which nurtures and inspires its membership at all levels. Of course, the first step is to renew your membership, and today would be a good time to start. In addition to helping take the Society to new levels of performance and accomplishment, there are numerous other benefits to membership, including subscriptions to an outstanding journal, Biology of Reproduction, and to the SSR Newsletter; reduced registration fees for the annual meeting; reduced page charges for articles published in Biology of Reproduction; and waiver of the charge for the first color figure if both the first and last authors are members in good standing at the time of initial submission of a manuscript. In short, the strength of SSR resides in the depth and breadth of its membership and your participation will ensure that SSR remains the pre-eminent society in reproductive biology. Now, let us reflect on who we are and what we have done.
Membership
Thanks to the tireless leadership of Janice Bahr and her committee, our total membership increased by 1.7% since July of 2008. The growth can be attributed to increases in Trainee (23%), Associate (5%) and Emeritus (16%) categories. In contrast, our Regular membership, the largest group, declined by 8.5%, a trend that has developed over the last few years. Clearly, this is a trend that we need to reverse and Joe Cloud, the new Chair of the Membership Committee, will be placing special emphasis on recruiting new Regular members. You can help by saying “yes” when Joe, or members of his committee, call upon you to help recruit new members. In addition, I am urging you to encourage your trainees to become members and to upgrade to Regular membership when they leave your laboratory.
Last year the Board approved implementation of a special membership rate (50% of Regular/Associate dues with an online subscription to the journal) for members from developing countries, as designated by the World Bank. This had an immediate impact as demonstrated by the increase in members from Developing Countries from 81 in 2008 to 94 in 2009. To build upon this effort, I have created an International Subcommittee of the Membership Committee that will focus on expanding our international membership to make SSR a truly global scientific society. In addition, the Board will continue to work with the Membership Committee to devise new initiatives that will catalyze further growth of all our membership categories with the intent of achieving a record harvest in 2010.
Biology of Reproduction
BOR remains the premier journal in reproductive sciences providing a beacon that illuminates the role played by SSR in bringing discoveries to scientific and lay audiences. The success of BOR builds upon a foundation of past and present dedicated Editors. On July 1, Editors-in-Chief John Eppig and Mary Ann Handel passed the baton of BOR to its new Editors-in-Chief, Bernard Robaire and Bruce Murphy. John and Mary Ann are to be congratulated for their innovative and conscientious leadership, which has enhanced the integrity and impact of BOR.
Bernard and Bruce are joined by a highly talented group of Associate Editors: Jay Baltz, Dan Carson, Paul Cooke, Dirk DeRooij, Jodi Flaws, Mary Hunzicker-Dunn, John McCarrey, Terry Nett, Debbie O’Brien, Lois Salamonsen, Susan Suarez, and Robert Viger. Bernard and Bruce intend to continue may of the editorial policies put in place by John and Mary Ann. In addition to emphasizing publication of manuscripts with novel findings that clearly advance the field of reproductive biology, Bernard and Bruce are committed to providing an open line of communication with authors to ensure that review of manuscripts meet the highest ethical standards of publication.
In January 2009, BOR unveiled two new offerings, an Open Access option and automatic deposits to PubMed Central (PMC). Both options are intended to help authors comply with funding agency requirements designed to make their research results freely available to any interested party.
BOR’s Authors’ Choice Open Access
Since 2002, SSR has made all accepted papers, in manuscript form, freely available on the Journal site in BOR-Papers In Press; these papers remain free and accessible to all, while the final published paper is under access control for 12 months after publication. Now, authors are offered two options for immediate open access to the final published paper on Biology of Reproduction’s web site.
- Option #1: Authors agree to a charge of $1800 USD, payable upon acceptance; they further agree to pay other publication costs separately (page charges, author alterations, reprints, and color image costs) after final publication.
- Option #2: Authors agree to a charge of $3000 USD, payable upon acceptance. This fee is an inclusive charge covering all publication costs, except reprints.
With both options, the paper will be freely available in its final form on Biology of Reproduction’s web site immediately upon publication, as well as in manuscript form in BOR-Papers In Press.
It is important to note that Minireviews, Special Papers, Editorials, Highlights, Memorials, Additions and Corrections, Errata, and meeting abstracts are freely available on the journal’s site from the date of publication.
PMC Deposit
Authors also have the option at submission to request that their final accepted manuscripts, after copyediting and formatting, be deposited to PubMed Central (PMC) automatically by BOR on their behalf. Papers funded by NIH and subject to the NIH Public Access Policy will be deposited in PMC by BOR and will be freely available on PMC at twelve months after final publication. For work funded by the Wellcome Trust, HHMI, MRC, or any other funding agency that requires public access sooner than twelve months after final publication, authors must choose one of the Authors’ Choice Open Access options listed above. The papers of authors who elect this option will be deposited in PMC for inclusion in PMC International, with an embargo that meets the requirements of the agency that funded the research.
Annual Meeting
As mentioned earlier, the 42nd Annual Meeting of SSR was held 18-22 July 2009 in Pittsburgh. The terrific venue hosted over 1000 researchers and scientists. The overall theme, which was reflected by the President’s Symposium, focused on Reproductive Policy and the Public Good. This was a novel offering and, due to Pat Hunt’s leadership, the 2009 SSR annual meeting achieved an unprecedented level of press coverage. Clearly, a new standard has been set that can only work to the long-term benefit of SSR.
As noted in last year’s State of the Society report, the Pittsburgh meeting marked the beginning of holding our next three meetings at convention centers. In 2010, we will meet in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and in 2011 in Portland, Oregon. Collectively, these three cities provide attractive and easily accessible venues that work financially to the advantage of the Society.
The program co-chairs for 2010 Annual Meeting, Drs. Ruth Keri and Leslie Heckert, are currently working hard to plan the meeting based on the theme of the President’s Symposium: “The Intersection between Genetics, Genomics, and Reproductive Biology.” Dr. Huntington Willard, Director of the Institute for Genome Science & Policy at Duke University, has agreed to chair the symposium as well as speak. Dr. Willard will provide a general overview of “Omics” and its impact on reproductive biology and medicine. Dr. David Ledbetter, Robert W. Woodruff Professor of Human Genetics, Emory University, School of Medicine, will describe advances in genome technology that enhance detection of fetal abnormalities. Dr. Robert Braun, Associate Director and Research Chair at the Jackson Laboratory, will provide more specific insights regarding the role of stem cells in germ cell differentiation. Finally, Dr. John Gearhart, Director of the University of Pennsylvania Institute of Regenerative Medicine, has agreed to present the Keynote address that will integrate all of the aforementioned topics. Thus, we feel that the meeting is off to an exciting start and look forward the program that will unfold under the leadership of Ruth and Leslie.
The 2010 Annual Meeting will also be preceded by an outreach activity entitled “What Does the Science of Reproduction Mean to You?” This program will be designed and led by Dr. Joanie Jorgensen, a faculty member at the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine. The outreach program will be held in Milwaukee on Thursday, July 29th, the day before the meeting starts. Middle school and high school kids from diverse ethnic backgrounds, along with their teachers and parents, will be the target audience. Proposed activities range from wet lab experiences conducted by local volunteers, to opportunities to attend a poster session during the annual meeting, along with the opportunity to meet with selected scientists. Most importantly, the Burroughs Wellcome Fund, through the efforts of Program Officer Rolly L. Simpson, Jr., will provide support for this outreach program, separate and apart from funds normally provided to support activities of the Minority Affairs Committee at the annual meeting, including travel fellowships for students and junior faculty from under-represented minorities. Thus, we are excited about this new offering and anticipate that it will become a permanent feature of our outreach programs.
The Treasury
The main sources of revenue for SSR are membership dues, publication revenues, and the annual meeting. Your membership renewal, therefore, is an essential component of SSR’s fiscal health.
Analysis of revenues and expenditures for the first six months of 2009 indicates that SSR is on track to meet the projections of the revised budget. The Annual Meeting is expected to generate lower revenue, compared to 2008, but expenses will be similarly reduced. Income and expense from Biology of Reproduction is similar in all categories to previous years, with the exception that revenue generated by open access payments is greater than originally expected. There has been a modest decline in the number of library subscriptions of BOR, but this has been offset by the modest increase in subscription price. Over the last six months, the unrealized value of the SSR investment portfolio increased by 8%, an increase fourfold greater than the equities indices. This is due to the incredible talent and stewardship of our Treasurer for the past nine years. Bruce Murphy, who has passed the baton to Marty Matzuk, who will guide the finances of the Society for the next three years. We owe Bruce a deep debt of gratitude for his extensive service.
In the passing of the Treasurer’s baton, Bruce and Marty deemed it useful to delegate active management of the SSR portfolio to a licensed broker. With approval from the Board, Bruce and Marty have retained the services of RBC Investments, with Ann Marie Etergino of the Washington office as the manager. With this new enterprise, we find the Society financially sound and well prepared for the future. Nevertheless, bear in mind that the long-term objective of SSR is to have assets that cover two years of operating expenses, which would be approximately $4 million. Therefore, all of your gifts, regardless of amount, will go a long way in helping your Society meet this goal.
Other Activities
One of the strongest attributes of SSR is the willingness of its members to serve on committees with a can-do spirit coupled with earnest effort. In this regard, the Board and I have begun reorganizing committees with an eye toward increasing efficiency. Three of the ten ad hoc committees (Emeritus, Nominating, and Trainee Affairs) are now being considered by the Bylaws Committee to change the status of each to that of a standing committee. Such a change will enhance their status and stability. All the other ad hoc committees have been reorganized as subcommittees to better serve their parent standing committees. For example, Clinical Outreach has been renamed “Translational Research” and has been introduced as a new subcommittee of the Program Committee. CoRE and Local Arrangments have also been moved to the Program Committee as subcommittees. We also created an International Program Subcommittee under the auspices of the Program Committee to ensure that the Annual Meeting casts a global reach in developing its scientific program. Similarly, we added an International Relations Subcommittee to the Membership Committee to enhance our outreach to the international community. Finally, we disbanded the Future Meetings Ad Hoc Committee and assigned this function to the Public Affairs Committee, which will work in close partnership with the SSR Business Office to enhance their professional meeting planning function. Hopefully, these changes will better serve the needs of SSR.
As other Presidents before me, I will continue to work with the Publications Committee to ensure that we safeguard the well being of Biology of Reproduction, as well as the financial implications stemming from the implementation of the rules for compliance with the “Revised Policy on Enhancing Public Access to Archived Publications Resulting from NIH-Funded Research.” I will also work closely with the Publications Committee to complete the analysis of the financial and scholarly implications associated with moving BOR to an online-only publication.
Recently, the SSR Board approved my request to enroll SSR as a sustaining member of the National Postdoctoral Association. In addition, I have asked the Trainee Affairs Committee along with the Board Liaison to begin developing programs that increase the postdoctoral membership of SSR and to develop programs that enhance their professional development. Our trainees represent the future of our Society and SSR is now in position to offer mentorship that spans seamlessly their entire training experience.
Finally, The Society for Gynecological Investigation (SGI) has invited SSR to organize an “SSR Symposium” for the 2010 Annual Meeting of the Society for Gynecologic Investigation to be held in Orlando, Florida, 24–27 March 2010. This is a new initiative in which the newest and most exciting science from SSR will be presented at SGI. There will be a two-hour symposium with four speakers, each delivering a 30-minute presentation. Mary Hunzicker-Dunn has agreed to organize the symposium entitled “New Frontiers in Ovarian Biology.” Topics covered focus on signaling pathways that regulate ovulation and the formation and function of the corpus luteum. Speakers invited include Tom Curry, Lane Christensen, Geula Gibori, and Richard Stouffer. To complete the exchange, I have asked the Program Committee to invite SGI to organize an “SGI Symposium” as part of the 2010 SSR meeting.
Finally—Thanks!
The President is akin to a turtle on a fencepost and can do no more than those who are willing to provide the support and lift required to move the Society ever forward. Thus, I am indebted to the entire membership for giving me the opportunity to serve as your President. I also thank all of you who have accepted my invitation to serve on standing committees and the newly formed subcommittees. SSR is deeply dependent on your willingness to serve. I also owe a debt of gratitude to Doug Stocco and Asgi Fazleabas for their mentorship, which continues still. Their willingness to share their experiences, insights, and voices of reason continue to be invaluable. I am also fortunate to work with a great group of Board Members who go beyond the extra mile to ensure that the Society functions smoothly and efficiently. And of course, there is Judy Jansen and her staff at the SSR Business Office and BOR Publications Office who care deeply about the well being of SSR and who collectively offer an unprecedented corporate memory coupled with patient advice and instruction. This group offers invaluable service that keeps the Society and me on a steady course.
In summary, I find SSR alive and well and prepared for the future. The Society has given much to its members and it is our collective responsibility to give back more than we have received. We need to continue to grow and expand the membership base, generously donate our time, increase our monetary contributions, and serve however else we can to move SSR to an even higher level of value and accomplishment. I am honored to serve as your President and thank you once again for this great opportunity.
I hope to see all of you in Milwaukee!
Sincerely,
John H. Nilson