Kirsten Brown.jpg)
Candidate Statement: Over the past fifteen years, I have been fortunate enough to call the AAA my professional home. Through that time, I have cultivated diverse networks of scholars, leaders, and educators within our society. It is through these networks and connections that I will advocate for the expansion of two key areas: (1) member programming/engagement and (2) training and educational opportunities. Member programming and engagement create a sense of community and inclusion, two values that the AAA embraces. Of critical importance in this discussion is the need to consider programming options to target all members’ career levels more effectively. Based on the feedback from the Professional Development sessions at the 2021 virtual meeting (“Anat Chat Lounge: What's Next: Dialog for Full Professors”) and the 2022 meeting (“The Invisibility Cloak: Navigating & Supporting Mid-career”), mid-career and established career faculty are ideal groups to target. As the Associate Director of Teaching & Learning and Career Development at GWSMHS, I have focused my efforts on expanding professional development opportunities for these specific groups through half-day workshops, faculty collaboratives, and seminar series. Such targeted member programming would dovetail existing efforts by the Board through the support of similar programs, such as the Anatomy Scholars Program (ASP) and the upcoming Developing and Elevating Leaders with Tools for Advancement (DELTA) Program.
As outgoing chair of the EAC, the second area I would like to see expanded is supporting education and training for all members. In recent years, the EAC has made committee diversity a priority. While we lean heavily towards anatomy education at the medical level, we have added members with expertise within more bench-based research, graduate education, and health sciences programs. Based on member feedback, our programming for the annual meeting has similarly prioritized anatomy education across a variety of learners and settings. As part of my tenure on the Programming Committee, I have embraced what “education” means more broadly within the society, including the training and education of scientists. At the upcoming annual meeting, I will be chairing a session on “Developing the Scientific Workforce: Current Trends and Future Opportunities.” My professional contacts outside of the AAA are experts in addressing these topics from multiple perspectives (government and higher education), further expanding the AAA’s footprint. At GWSMHS, I collaborate with colleagues to provide training in effective teaching and learning for scientists, bench researchers, postdocs, and graduate students through our Teaching Essential Series (TES). We targeted these groups because there was no equivalent programming opportunity in existence at GWSMHS. Should I be elected to serve, I would welcome the opportunity to advocate further for programming for anatomists to promote scientific and educational discovery. In closing, I want to emphasize that serving on the Board would be a continuation of my service to the AAA and one of the highest honors of my professional career. It would also allow me to continue to give back to an organization that has made me the person I am today.
Current Position/Institution: Associate Director, Teaching & Learning Resources and Career Development, Center for Faculty Excellence; Vice Chair for Education & Associate Professor, Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology, George Washington School of Medicine & Health Sciences
Ph.D. Institution: Ph.D. in Functional Anatomy & Evolution, Johns Hopkins University, 2011
Earlier Positions: Instructor (2011-2013) and Assistant Professor (2013-2019), Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology, George Washington School of Medicine & Health Sciences (GWSMHS)
Teaching: [current] Gross Anatomy (medical, physician assistant, and graduate students); Neuroanatomy (medical); Clinically Applied Anatomy (Urogynecology Fellows); Principles of Effective Teaching (Faculty and Residents); [past] Human Embryology (graduate and undergraduate students); Neuroanatomy (graduate and undergraduate students); Gross anatomy (undergraduate students); Gross Anatomy and Neuroanatomy Discipline Lead for the GWSMHS medical curriculum
AAA Committee/Roles: Educational Affairs Committee (EAC) (2018-2022); EAC Associate Chair (2019-2020); EAC Chair (2020-2022); EAC Professional Development Committee Representative (2021-2022); Program Committee (2021-2022); Working Group for AAA 2023 Standalone Meeting (2022); Nominating Committee (2019-2020); Judge, Pittsburgh Regional Meeting (2018); Founder, Women in Anatomy Interest Group (2017-present); Committee for Early Career Anatomists (2013-2016); Symposium Organizer (2023; 2019; 2016; 2014)
Awards: American Association of Medical College’s (AAMC) Early Career Women Faculty Leadership Development Seminar Participant (2019); AAA Young Faculty Travel Award (2012); American Association of University Women American Dissertation Fellow (2011)
Research Interest: Best practices and future directions in in anatomy instruction; student performance and learning in the anatomical sciences; development and assessment of faculty programming needs.
Other Professional Memberships Currently Maintained: International Association of Medical Science Educators (IAMSE); American Association of University Women; American Association of Medical College’s Group on Women in Medicine & Science (AAMC GWIMS)
Web Link: https://apps.smhs.gwu.edu/smhs/facultydirectory/profile.cfm?empName=Kirsten%20Brown&FacID=2077907296