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Would you like to be part of a new and exciting Diversity & Outreach Committee within the Academy? After more than a decade of diversity-related informal activities, the Academy has instituted an annual Diversity Reception at its meetings and offered a diversity-related workshop at last year’s annual meeting in Las Vegas, NV.

We are now hoping to create a formal Diversity & Outreach Committee that will help shape the future of the Academy. Please contact Nikolas P. Lemos if you would like to help develop this new committee into being the leader in building diversity in all aspects of forensic science through ongoing assessment, development of new programs, and building consensus. We collaborate with all eleven sections to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion throughout the entire Academy.

The mission of the committee will be to build a broadly diverse community consisting of membership, staff, practitioners, faculty, students, trainees, and researchers to nurture a culture that is welcoming and supportive, and to engage in diverse ideas for the provision of culturally competent education, research and discovery, and expertise in forensic science.

The committee’s priorities will focus on the objectives:  (1) to develop and execute a comprehensive strategic plan for diversity and outreach that supports the Academy’s leading role in advancing science and its application to the legal system; and, (2) to promote professionalism, integrity, competency, and education; and to foster research, improve practice, and encourage collaboration in the forensic sciences.