Voters approve Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity Committee for addition to bylaws

In June, the ASCI Council issued a statement on diversity, inclusion, and equity. In August, further detail was provided in a Journal of Clinical Investigation Viewpoint, A deliberate path toward diversity, equity, and inclusion within the ASCI. Within these, a plan was described to establish a permanent Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity Committee through proposed amendment of the ASCI bylaws.

A ballot was issued to Active voters on September 29, 2020, proposing the following addition to the organization’s bylaws under “Article VII – Committees”:

Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity Committee. This committee ensures that the organization, its programs, and its mentoring mechanisms promote and recognize diversity, inclusion, and equity. The President, Vice President, and President Elect are standing members of the committee; in the event the Chair role is vacant, the President appoints the Chair, who serves a single 3-year term, from among all Council members. Other committee members may be drawn from across the membership and are added by simple majority vote of the committee; these members serve up to 3-year terms that conclude at the start of the Society’s annual meeting or May 1, whichever is earlier.

By the October 5, 2020, deadline, 52% of voters responded. The results were:

Following the bylaw’s Ballot Review Committee section, these results were received, reviewed, and verified by Benjamin Humphreys (2020-2021 ASCI Secretary-Treasurer) and two Active members identified by random selection from ballots submitted and who agreed to audit the results. Thank you to Christopher E. Barbieri, MD, PhD (Weill Cornell Medical College) and Daniel J. Brat, MD, PhD (Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine) for their service.