Staff Forum Introduced at GSDM

Two informational meetings of the Staff Forum were held on Tuesday, January 17, and Thursday, January 19. The purpose of the Forum is to allow for discussion of issues of concern among the staff and to establish and maintain a formal system of two-way communication with the GSDM Executive Committee. By-laws were handed out at the meetings and a call for officer candidates and election commission members was made. One officer and one alternate from each of three categories—clinical, administrative, and research—will be elected to represent the staff. Officer elections will take place the week of March 14.

Leading the formation of the Staff Forum was Lori Brady and committee members Kristen Donovan, Mary Ellen Sholes, Afaf Hourani, and Carole Loughran.  Also instrumental in the formation of the Forum were ASP Goal Champion for Staff Development Dr. Thomas Kilgore;  Dr. Neil Fleisher, who shared his process for constructing the Faculty Forum; and Dr. Karl Flanzer.

Said Brady to the staff, “This is your forum. The by-laws being handed out here are the result of many meetings and many months of work. With these by-laws in place, we hope to create a very successful Staff Forum.”

Added Dean Jeffrey W. Hutter, who welcomed the staff and thanked them for attending the meetings, “Use this opportunity to voice what you feel as a staff member to be important, don’t hold back.” He added, “I look forward to working with all of you, especially the staff representatives on the Executive Committee.”

Dean Hutter also noted that he and other members of the faculty will not be present at meetings of the Staff Forum going forward, so that staff members can really feel comfortable discussing issues in an environment made up solely of their peers.