The American Society of Biomechanics is the primary society for biomechanics research in the United States. The Society's annual meeting brings together an interdisciplinary group of researchers interested in the application of mechanical principles to biological problems, both basic and applied. The 2016 annual meeting, which will be held in Raleigh, NC is being hosted by faculty at North Carolina State University. The meeting will feature a variety of activities designed to foster lively interchange of ideas, includng podium presentations, thematic poster sessions, invited symposia, keynote lectures, poster presentations, topical tutorials, and laboratory tours. Student participation and mentoring are priorities for the Society. Meeting attendance is anticipated to exceed 800 delegates, of which about 40% are expected to be students. Thus, mechanisms have been established to specifically encourage and support the participation of women, underrepresented minorities and persons with disabilities. The 2016 meeting will include several activities to foster diversity and support the needs of attendees from diverse backgrounds. These activities include a one-to-one mentoring program, student award sessions and breakfasts to provide a forum for the discussion of career strategies and issues for women and minorities, as well as social events that will serve to engage student participants. We will extend last year's Diversity Scholarship program to encourage greater attendance by students and trainees from under-represented groups. A new innovation at this year's meeting will be a STEM educational outreach program to share educational biomechanics activities geared for middle school students, establish a digital archive of lesson plans for public use, and provide engagement between our meeting and local middle school students from backgrounds underrepresented in the STEM field through a biomechanics expo. Funding of this proposal will enable continuation of the Diversity Scholarship and establishment of the STEM outreach expo and educational archive programs to ensure that our society builds the most diverse base of young active members who over time will become the future leaders of the society and the field.
The American Society of Biomechanics is the primary scientific organization for biomechanics research in the United States. The annual meeting will be hosted by faculty of North Carolina State University at the Raleigh Convention Center and Marriott Raleigh City Center in Raleigh, North Carolina from August 2-5, 2016. This proposal seeks funding to continue a Diversity Scholarship program targeted to increase attendance by students and trainees from under- represented groups and establish a new STEM educational outreach program to provide engagement between ASB members and youth from backgrounds under-represented in STEM.
