Standing Committees

Communications Committee

[email protected]

The duties of the Communications Standing Committee are to carryout public communications on behalf of the ACA and the structural science community and to review requests made to the ACA for outreach funding.  Communications Committee members are encouraged to manage social media posts (Facebook, X, LinkedIn) in conjunction with the Director of Administrative Services and the Chair of the YSIG. The Communications Committee shall also be in charge of reviewing requests made to the ACA for funds to support outreach activities on a regular basis and to make recommendations to council.  The committee shall meet at least once per year, and the chair of the committee is responsible for presenting a written report to Council during the Annual Meeting.

2025 Composition:

(C) Veronica Carta (22-25)

Charles Bou-Nader (23-26)

Christina Bourne (24-27)

Nichole Valdez (25-28)

Past Committee Members:

Steven Kelley (21-24)

Rajni Bhardwaj (20-23)

Louise Dawe (19-22)

Krystle McLaughlin (18-21)

Education Committee

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The duties of the Education Committee are to review proposals for workshops held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting and make recommendations to ACA Council on which workshops to include in the program, to review proposals for the ACA Small Molecule Crystallography school and make recommendations to ACA Council, and to review the applications for Student Travel Awards for the Annual Meeting and make recommendations to ACA Council.  The committee shall meet at least once per year, and the chair of the committee is responsible for presenting a written report to Council during the Annual Meeting.

 2025 Composition:

(C) Matthew Brown* (22-25)

Yinka Olatunji-Ojo (23-26)

Tiffany Kinnibrugh (24-27) 

Tim Stachowski (25-28)

Past Committee Members:

Karen Glass (21-24)

Christine Zardecki (20-23) 

Cassandra Eagle* (22-23)

Jennifer Aitken* (18-21)

Allen Oliver (19-22)

Meeting Committee

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Established in 2018, the duties of the Meeting Committee will be as follows:

Act as program chairs for the Annual Meeting:

(a) collect session proposals from SIG chairs, including a priority ranking for inclusion in the program;

(b) arrange the program for the Annual Meeting, including session dates/times; special lectures, evening events, opening/closing ceremonies, and any other activities attached to the Annual Meeting and

(c) any other duties outlined in the Guidelines for Program Chairs document.
Contribute to meeting site selection by:

• suggesting potential sites for consideration;
• reviewing proposals negotiated by the Director of Administrative Services and CFO;
• making recommendations to ACA Council.
• Proposing themes for upcoming meetings.
• Investigating additional methods for improving the Annual Meeting.

2025 Composition:

(C) Samantha Powell (22-25)

Stacey Smith (23-26)

Sarah Bowman (24-27)

Christine Beavers (25-28)

Past Committee Members:

Anna Gardberg (21-24)

Brandon Mercado (20-23)

Carla Slebodnick 

Nozomi Ando

Stephen Ginell 

ACA Diversity, Equity &Inclusion Standing Committee 

[email protected]

Established in 2024, the duties of the Committee will be as follows:

• Coordinate periodic DEI-related training for ACA Council, SIG officers, general members and associated stakeholders (including meeting vendor representatives).
• Coordinate with all ACA SIGs to sponsor at least one half-day DEI-related session at each ACA annual meeting.
• Coordinate with the ACA Council and Executive Director to identify potential funding mechanisms for DEI-related training and to assist ACA Council and ED with applications for funding.
• Assist the Nominating Committee in identifying a diverse slate of nominees for Officers and members of Standing Committees.
• Assist the Awards Committees in encouraging a diverse slate of nominations for ACA Awards.
• Assist the ACA President in identifying suitable candidates for the ACA representative to the AIP Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging, and Accessibility (DEIBA) Strategic Framework Work Group and the Liaison Committee on Underrepresented Minorities.
• Contribute DEI-related content to the ACA newsletter RefleXions.
• Contribute DEI-related content to the ACA Communications Committee for ACA social media outlets (e.g., Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc.).
• The committee shall meet at least once per year.
• The Chair of the committee is responsible for presenting a written report to Council during the Annual Meeting.

Composition of Committee:

• Four members elected by membership of the Association by letter ballot from a list of candidates submitted by the Council which may be supplemented by nomination from the general membership, signed by five members. Plurality vote shall constitute election.
• Members shall each serve for a period of four years and shall be eligible for re-election but shall not serve for more than eight consecutive years.
• The chair shall be chosen by the Council from among the elected members.
• In the case of the formation of a new Standing Committee the initial members shall be elected for two, three and four years.
• In the case of a vacancy on the committee, the remaining members of the committee may, with the approval of the President, appoint another member to fill the unexpired term.
• The committee may appoint subcommittees to assist them when necessary.

2025 Composition:

(C) Alexis Davidson (24-25)

Alice Thwin (24-26)

Callie Saeher (24-27)

Kenneth Childers (25-28)

Past Committee Members:

Nichole Valdez (24-24)