|
Contact
Us
|
|
home
> meetings > 1997 >
spring.htm
|
Site
Map |
| 1997
Annual Spring Meeting - Summary |
 |
SUMMARY
ASSOCIATION OF NEUROSCIENCE
DEPARTMENTS AND PROGRAMS
SPRING MEETING SUMMARY
Georgetown University Conference Center
Washington, DC
APRIL 19-21, 1997
The Annual Spring Meeting of
the Association of Neuroscience Departments and Programs was held from
April 19 -21, 1997 at the Georgetown University Conference Center in
Washington. The meeting began on Saturday with a workshop on minority
recruitment. Organized by Joe L. Martinez, Jr., ANDP councilor
(University of Texas, San Antonio), the session considered outcomes of
the Minority Fellowship Program in Neuroscience and legal challenges to
further efforts in affirmative action and the achievement of diversity
in academic settings. Ivy M. Dunn (Northwestern University) discussed
networking and institutional factors that can favor success in preparing
a diversity of students and presented the 1997
Association for Ethnic Diversity in the Neurosciences (formerly
Neuroscientists of Color), which she has helped to foster. An update on
legal issues was presented by Renee M. Landers, Deputy General Counsel
(Department of Health and Human Services).
The agenda for Sunday featured
discussions of collaborations among funding agencies and among faculty
of individual colleges and universities in efforts to optimize research
and didactic education for undergraduate and graduate students in
neuroscience. Programs that do and do not cross boundaries between
neuroscience and areas such as molecular and cellular biology were
contrasted as were programs conducted within or between departments, in
a sense a reevaluation of neuroscience departments and programs was
discussed.
Sunday's program began with an update on
the ANDP Web site (www.andp.org) by Robert E. Fellows, ANDP past
president (University of Iowa). He presented the project just underway
to utilize the Web to conduct the third ANDP survey of programs and
demographics and described the use of the Web site to present the book,
Neuroscience Training Programs in North America, in an accessible,
up-to-date way. Following that project was a session moderated by Robert
W. Baughman (NINDS) on NIH's jointly sponsored predoctoral training
program in the neurosciences, a collaboration among NIA, NICHD, NIDCD,
NIDR, NIGMS, NIMH, NINDS and NINR. Also representing these institutes
were Henry Khachaturian (NIMH) and Joseph Drage (NINDS). There was
considerable interchange among the attendees as this topic was
discussed. Joining this discussion on trends in training mechanisms and
goals was Michael Oberdorfer (NEI).
The discussions of academic organizations
and their alternatives for funding and conducting graduate programs were
kicked off by R. Ranney Mize, ANDP president-elect (Louisiana State
University Medical Center). James L. Roberts (Mt. Sinai School of
Medicine) introduced discussion of alternate organizations of
curriculum, and Dennison A. Smith (Oberlin College) anchored the
presentation of complementing and overlapping issues for primarily
undergraduate institutions. Smith also represented FUN, Faculty for
Undergraduate Neuroscience, of which he is president. Other contributing
panelists were Nicholas C. Brecha (UCLA), George V. Rebec, ANDP
treasurer (Indiana University) and Richard S. Lewis (Pomona College).
Sunday was capped by a keynote address by Robert Pollack (Columbia
University), titled Hard Days on the Endless Frontier, in which he
explored personal and philosophical aspects of a changing research
culture.
The meeting concluded on Monday with two
sessions on the impact of Washington policy on neuroscience. Steven E.
Hyman, director of NIMH, spoke on NIMH After One Year, leading a lively
discussion on the future of agencies central to the missions in
neuroscience. Finally, there was a session which was organized by Kathie
L. Olsen, (National Science Foundation and the Office of Sen. Conrad
Burns [R-Mont.]) on Policy and Process in the Government's Support of
Research and Training in Science: Views from the Senate. Congressional
staff members from authorization (Pat Windham), appropriations (Jack
Chow) and an individual senator's office (Paul Van Remortel) gave an
enlightening presentation on how legislation is created, debated and
carved out of the legislative product that is the U.S. Government.
Following tradition and the organization's mission, several ANDP
representatives visited with elected officials and their staffs in the
House and Senate to discuss issues concerning research and the education
of the next generation of neuroscientists.
|
