So the new Stentor newsletter seemed like a pretty good time to write a get-to-know-you style column, as the post-doctoral representative on the ISOP executive council. A post-doc can be an uncertain time. It can involve new places, new skills, new questions and trying to establish our own independent identity in our respective chosen fields. It’s a little like "finding yourself" as a teenager but hopefully with less drastic changes in wardrobe and hairstyle. Still, lots of possibilities and we could all probably use all the help we can get.

My job as the post-doctoral rep is to try to look out for your interests… actually our interests. That means giving input on issues that get raised by the council from the perspective of someone in our stage of career advancement. It also means trying to raise issues and develop programs that will be of use to post-docs, such as getting people to post post-doctoral and faculty jobs on the employment section of the website.

Primarily though it means being your voice on the council. And that is the real purpose of this little column in the newsletter. I wanted to introduce who I was, and just let you know that my position existed. So if you have information that you think might be useful, for example a great, under-used, funding source for post-docs, or if you know of any post-doc or faculty positions available that are relevant to protistologists, let me know or mail the webmaster, Andrea Habura. We’ll make sure it gets up on the "employment" section of the website. If you’ve got an idea for a program, or a feature to do with the society, the website or the journal that you think would really make a difference, let me know. I’m as busy as you guys are, so I warn you, if you do come up with a really good idea, you might get roped into implementing itJ

Most importantly though, if you have any concerns that you feel really strongly need to be brought to the Executive Committee’s attention or need to be in touch with a society representative and didn’t know who to contact, I’m the guy.

Ok, Best of luck to everyone.

Let's go and push some envelopes, quick, before we become faculty members and have to mark 1000s of freshman biology papers.

Joel
jdacks@ucalgary.ca