A M W A NEWS Slate of Officer Candidates for the 2021-2022 Election Katrina R. Burton / 2020–2021 AMWA President-Elect One of the duties I’ve enjoyed most about serving as President- Elect is the opportunity to chair the Nominating Committee, a group appointed by me and charged with selecting a slate of AMWA officers for the 2021-2022 service year. Many thanks to members serving alongside me on this year’s Nominating Committee, including Cyndy Kryder, MS, MWC; Tenille L. Lawson, PharmD, BCPS; Julie Munden, BA; Rajalaxmi Natarajan, PhD; JoAnna Pendergrass, DVM; Jill Roberts, MS; Theresa E. Singleton, PhD; and Susan Krug, MS, CAE (AMWA Executive Director), an ex officio nonvoting member. Each year, interested members are invited to submit a Board of Interest form for consideration of 1 of 3 elected offices: President-Elect, Secretary, and Treasurer. The Nominating Committee reviews the forms and qualifications of candidates who meet the criteria and collectively agrees on a candidate for each officer position to submit to the Board of Directors (BOD) for consideration. I’m honored to present the following candidates who were presented and ultimately approved by the BOD at the June meeting: • President-Elect: Elise Eller, PhD • Secretary: R. Michelle Sauer Gehring, PhD, ELS • Treasurer: Julie Phelan, MBA, MD President-Elect Elise Eller, PhD, an AMWA member since 2009, is cur- rently a Director-at-Large on the AMWA BOD and is the Chair and Board Liaison of the Member Awards Committee. Previously, she was Chair and Board Liaison for the 2019-2020 Annual Conference Program Committee. She was Board Liaison for the Chapter Leader Community in 2018-2019; served on the Chapter Advisory Council Task Force, the Constitution and Bylaws Committee, and the Chapter Support Committee; and chaired the Chapter Handbook Committee in 2014. At the chapter level, she organized the 2011 and 2013 chapter conferences for the Rocky Mountain Chapter and served as President of the Rocky Mountain Chapter from 2013 to 2017. She also served as Chapter Delegate to the AMWA BOD from 2012 to 2017. Originally a freelance medical writer, Elise is now a medical writer and consultant at Whitsell Innovations, Inc. Elise lives in Colorado, where she likes to hike in the foothills above Boulder. Secretary R. Michelle Sauer Gehring, PhD, ELS, an AMWA member since 2009, is in her third year on the BOD (since the 2018-2019 term) and currently serves as Secretary and Liaison to the AMWA Journal. Previously, she served on the Annual Conference Planning Committee from 2013 to 2020, chaired the commit- tee for the 2019 Annual Conference in San Diego, and was a member of the most recent Editor-in-Chief Search Task Force. At the chapter level, Michelle served as the Treasurer (2012-2016), Program Chair/President-Elect (2016-2017), and President (2017-2018) of the Southwest Chapter, as well as Chapter Conference Committee Chair from 2015 to 2018. At the national and chapter level, she has led multiple open ses- sions, webinars, and roundtables on grantsmanship, research development, copyright laws, and professional develop- ment in the academic and freelance sectors. In addition, she teaches AMWA's Ethics for Science and Medicine Workshop and multiple medical writing courses for the University of California San Diego Extension. She has authored and con- tributed to multiple AMWA Journal articles and serves as a peer reviewer as needed. When Michelle isn't teaching or volunteering for AMWA, she serves as the Senior Research Scientist for The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston's Center for Advanced Heart Failure, the Copyeditor of PURSUE, and the Managing Editor of The VAD Journal. Michelle is also the co-owner of RnA Editing, LLC, and resides in Texas with her husband and 2 daughters. AMWA Journal / V36 N3 / 2021 / amwa.org 129 Treasurer Julie Phelan, MD, MBA, an AMWA member since 2009, is in her fifth year as Treasurer on the BOD and as Chair of the Budget & Finance Committee (2016-2021). She has previously been a member of the Budget & Finance Committee (2015- 2016), the Communications Committee (2014-2015), the 2015 Salary Survey Task Force, and the Online Community and Social Media Committees (2012-2014). At the chapter level, she was President of the Greater Chicago Area Chapter (2013-2016), serving previously as President-Elect (2012-2013). She also served as Membership Chair for the chapter (2011-2015) and as a Chapter Delegate to the Board (2013-2016). She has written articles for the AMWA Journal and currently serves as AMWA’s Registered Agent. She was awarded an AMWA fellowship in 2017. Julie is President of Biomedisys, Inc, and enjoys fishing. Procedure for Additional Nominations As required by AMWA’s Bylaws (Article IV.2e-f), these nomina- tions were announced to the AMWA community by email more than 60 days before the annual business meeting. A nomi- nee who is unopposed for any office is declared automatically elected at the annual business meeting. As stated in the bylaws, additional nominations for President-Elect, Secretary, or Treasurer may be made by any member provided the member meet the criteria set forth by the BOD. The criteria and process is listed below: • member dues must be current, and member must be in good standing • nomination is submitted in writing to the Secretary of AMWA at least 30 days in advance of the annual business meeting. This year’s annual business meeting is scheduled on November 12, 2021 • nomination must clearly state the qualifications of the candidate and be signed by 50 members in good standing as of the date of the receipt of the nomination • nomination must be accompanied by a letter from the can- didate stating that he or she is willing to serve if elected AMWA LIVE WEBINARS Tools, tips, and tricks for medical communicators. www.amwa.org/events Only $20 for Members Can’t attend a live webinar? You won’t miss out! All registrations for live webinars include access to the recorded video in AMWA Online Learning. 130 AMWA Journal / V36 N3 / 2021 / amwa.org A M W A NEWS http://www.amwa.org/events