I hope all in the United States and elsewhere have fulfilled their civic duty and voted for their favorite candidate in recent local and national elections. It is now time to cast one more ballot. Each year, the Microscopy Society of America asks members to vote for individuals who will provide direction for MSA and the microscopy community. For those of you who are members of MSA this, by voting, is your chance to provide input into who will lead the Society for the next three years. Past-President Peter Crozier and the Nominating Committee have put together an outstanding group of microscopy community leaders willing to volunteer their time for MSA and you. Executive Council consists of the President-Elect, President, Past-President, Secretary, and Treasurer. Members also elect Directors in the biological and physical sciences. This year, MSA membership will vote for President-Elect (Jay Potts or TBD), Treasurer (Janet Gbur, unopposed), Physical Science Director (Huolin Xin or Judith Yang), and Biological Science Director (Kirk Czymmek or Joaquin Ortega). Short biographies and mission statements for all candidates can be found on the MSA website: Welcome | Microscopy Society of America.
The time commitment these volunteers are willing to put forth is considerable. Executive Council has a weekly virtual meeting for at least an hour and the entire Council gives up at least two weekends per year for virtual or in-person meetings. In addition, Council members serve as liaisons to several MSA committees that plan the annual M&M meeting and interact with the general membership through our Local Affiliated Societies, Education and Outreach Committees, Technologists’ Forum, Focused Interest Groups, and more. I hope that all MSA members will reward the commitment of the candidates by taking a few minutes from their hectic schedules to cast their ballot. As a previous MSA President, I know how important it is to the candidates that we participate and provide our input into the direction of the society and microscopy community.
