WORKSHOP: Increasing Minority Involvement In Integrative and Comparative Biology, to be held at the annual meeting of SICB, Atlanta, Georgia, January 4-8, 2000

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Expanding the reach of pure research beyond the confines of the academy is essential if we are to address problems facing society into the 21st century. Pure research is required to allow creative approaches to problems facing society and to expand the scope of knowledge. However, to maximize the impact and usefulness of scientific inquiry, it is important that participants in science represent the diversity of people within the society. The goal of the proposed workshop is to bring together individuals who are committed to expanding minority participation in the field of integrative biology and in increasing access by the minority community to the resources of the Society of Integrative and Comparative Biology (SICB). SICB is a national society whose members are scientists in many areas of organismal biology, including biochemistry, physiology, endocrinology, developmental biology, neural biology, comparative morphology, ecology, evolution, behavior, and systematics. SICB was formally known as the American Society of Zoologists. The recent name change has provided the impetus to make a number of other important changes in the goals and directions of SICB. One of these important changes is the recognition that SICB should play significant roles both in the integration of ideas and approaches in science and in expanding access to science to all members of the American social structure. To this end, the society would like to initiate a program that will encourage minority participation in areas of Integrative and Comparative Biology and increase the role of minorities and minority institutions in our annual scientific meeting, which is the major function of the society. A workshop format will be used to organize and initiate this new program. This workshop will include scientists, students, representatives from potential sources of funding, and members of the scientific community from traditionally minority institutions. This group will represent a broad range of perspectives and a broad geographic range. The goal of this workshop will be to produce a plan to develop programs that will increase awareness of careers in Integrative and Comparative Biology among minority students and provide financial assistance for students to participate in future meetings of SICB. Further, the workshop will be the forum for the development of plans for obtaining funding and implementing programs designed to build a long-term program within SICB to increase minority participation at all levels of the society and in the field of Integrative and Comparative Biology. The workshop will take place at the annual meeting if SICB in Atlanta during January 2000. The participants will include representatives from SICB, the National Science Foundation, the Mellon Foundation, the United Negro College Fund (UNCF). Administrators and Academics from Historically Black and Minority Colleges or Universities that represent a broad geographic range, and an undergraduate and a graduate student who has participated in a minority oriented program.