Hello ACA Members,

A big thank you to everyone who shared feedback throughout the annual meeting in Denver and beyond! As your Executive Director, I’m committed to creating a safe and open space where all members can communicate and help make our association better. I want you to know that leadership is listening to your thoughts about communication within the ACA and is actively working to address these concerns. Stay tuned for more updates, but in the meantime, we’re starting to communicate a bit differently at HQ.

To help improve how we connect and share ideas, we’re excited to introduce a new set of forums designed to facilitate discussions on topics that matter to our members. These forums will serve as a platform for us to engage, collaborate, and support each other more effectively. Here’s a quick rundown of what you can expect:

1. Annual Meeting Exchange: This forum is for sharing your thoughts and insights about the annual meeting. We’ll be closely examining how we run our meetings, and this is a great space to let us know what you’d like to see in the future.

2. Beyond ACA: Meetings & Events of Interest: Have a workshop, event, or conference that ACA members might be interested in? Share it here! This is a space for discovering and sharing information about scientific events happening outside the ACA.

3. Early-Career Scientist Forum: Dedicated to our early-career members, this forum is a place to network, seek career guidance, and get support from the ACA community.

4. General Forum: A space for all members to discuss general thoughts, insights, and perspectives on any topic.

5. Structural Science Techniques, Methods & More Forum: Dive into discussions on structural science and all things related in this dedicated forum.

6. Leadership Forum: For those who have served or are considering serving in leadership roles within the ACA. This is a space to collaborate, discuss, and share information about leading within the association.

We encourage everyone to give the forums a chance! Post, reply, and engage in the conversations. As a special incentive, the first 25 people that start a new thread by September 30th, will receive a branded ACA tumbler.  

Let’s use these forums to strengthen our association and improve the ways we connect as a community. Your voice matters, and we’re excited to hear from you!

Additionally, as Executive Director, I am committed to improving my communication with members. To that end, I’m reactivating this blog and plan to regularly share updates and insights about the association’s activities. I encourage everyone to engage with these posts and share your thoughts and ideas in the comments—this is a great way for us to connect and for your voice to be heard.

I'm excited to begin a new chapter at ACA, where we can connect and collaborate virtually, bridging the gap despite our physical distances.

If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to leave a comment below.  Thank you again for your continued support and participation.

Warm regards,
Kristin Stevens
Executive Director, ACA