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LONE STAR PERSPECTIVE
“So, let me tell you, I am excited about our upcoming meeting.”
One of the things I really enjoy about being a member of IAFP is attending the Annual Meeting and visiting the multiple locations where it is held. Our meeting is large enough to contain a variety of subjects and presentations, but small enough to be held in a variety of locations. We all likely belong to some of the larger professional organizations as well As I write this column, I am on my way home from Columbus because the Program Committee and Executive Board just finished meetings there as part of our planning for the Annual Meeting. While there, we had an opport-unity to view the surrounding area, check out the facilities and try some of the local food. The meeting facility is going to work very well for us. Everything is in one convenient location, and the three hotels where we have rooms are all connected to the convention center, either directly or by skywalks. We will have a larger exhibit hall than we have had in the past, so we shouldn’t be turning anyone away this year due to a lack of space. There are impressive shopping opportunities close to the hotels and Convention Center, with unique shops and restaurants everywhere. I have been told that there are at least 22 restaurants within short walking distance of the convention center and hotels. I really enjoyed the dining I experienced in the area and the wide variety of local restaurants to pick from, many in restored buildings with interesting historical significance. This is going to be a fun meeting. We have excellent facilities, easy access from our hotels and lots of unique places for socializing after the meetings. And, yes, for those of you who are wondering, there is an Irish pub within walking distance. Apparently, that is a traditional meeting place for some of our members. We also have a great program being developed for this year’s meeting by the Program Committee. In case you are not familiar with the process the Program Comm-ittee follows to put together our meeting, here is the breakdown of the proceedings. The Program Committee members are assigned submitted abstracts to review according to their area of interest, if possible. They go through those abstracts prior to meeting and are prepared to discuss them with fellow Committee members. The Committee meets at the location of the approaching Annual Meeting for two days to review, discuss and, sometimes, edit abstracts. The abstracts are grouped by subject matter and then sorted with selected symposia to make up the organization of the Annual Meeting. The Program Committee volunteers a tremendous number of hours to do this. First, they spend time at home reviewing the abstracts that were sent to them, then they meet all day Friday and into the night reviewing all the abstracts several times. Rejected abstracts are traded with another review group and reviewed again, along with a representative of the Executive Board, to make sure a rejection is truly due to one of the stated reasons for rejection. The Committee is very careful not to reject an abstract without the consensus of the group. Their goal is not to see how many abstracts they can accept or reject, but to make sure the quality of the meeting is sustained, and they do an outstanding job. Their work is not completed until they meet again the following day to review symposium proposals and group everything into the final order for the Annual Meeting. Grouping into the final meeting program order is essential to the success of the meeting. There are so many possible conflicts that can exist: presenters needing to be in two places at once, two dairy symposia being held at the same time, etc. It gets very complicated, so it is always impressive when the final program comes together. The most impressive thing about the whole process, though, is the dedication of the Program Committee to a quality meeting, realizing that their time and effort is all voluntary. So the next time you enjoy the meeting content, make a point to thank a Program Committee member. It doesn’t all just come together by accident. The Chair of our Program Committee this year is Emilio Esteban, and the Vice-Chair is Indaue Mello-Hall. They both did a superb job leading the group and making sure we have a top-notch scientific program this summer. While I am talking about the meeting, there is another item I need to mention. Every year, one of the most successful fundraising efforts for the Foundation is the Silent Auction, and it is also one of our most entertaining fund-raising events. If you have not participated in the past, there are a couple of ways you can. First, donate something! If you have an item that you think might be of interest to members, you can donate it to the Silent Auction to be put up for bid. Items of special interest are those that have some sort of connection to food safety or have a historical significance to IAFP, but you can donate any-thing on which you think people might be willing to bid. Second, you can join in on the bidding. There is no limit to what you may find up for auction, including antique laboratory equipment, microbiological art and clothing, trips to exotic locations, cheese and wine baskets, registration to upcoming IAFP meetings, and the list goes on and on. It is worth your time to look, and it is of great benefit to our Foundation when you bid. If you haven’t been around to watch all the snipers trying to beat each other out for a special item at the end of the auction, you have really missed out on the fun! So, let me tell you, I am excited about our upcoming meeting. The IAFP staff is working full steam to get everything ready;our Program Committee has put together a great program and the local arrangements folks are making sure everything is in place to welcome us to Ohio. All we need is for you to be there. So don’t miss out. As always, you can E-mail me at gacuff@tamu.edu. |