January 23, 2010 Dear ASM member, I am writing on behalf of the Northeast Branch of the American Society of Microbiology to encourage you to also join our local ASM branch. Membership in the Northeast branch is only $15, yet it allows us to sponsor an array of outstanding programs for our membership. You may not be aware of the mission and current opportunities sponsored by the branch, so I wanted to list a few of them for you: Branch Dinner Lecture Series - Dinner followed by scientific lectures by world-renowned microbiologists, a wonderful time to meet with old colleagues and new. Many of our speakers are selected from the ASM Branch Lectureships Program (ASBL), a select group of speakers nominated by their peers for their inspirational message and communication skills. Clinical Microbiology Workshops - Topics include: Parasitology, Anaerobe Identification, General Skills Based Sessions, Antimicrobial Resistance Testing, and Mycology. Multidisciplinary Sessions on Public Health and Epidemiology - Examples include a one day session on arbovirus surveillance and control attended by local and regional experts. Career Nights - These events show case career opportunities in microbiology fields ranging from environmental microbiology to clinical microbiology to public health. These programs are sometimes co-sponsored with other professional groups. An important mission of the branch is to sponsor the development of the next generation of microbiologists. We support three student branches in ME, NH, and MA whose membership includes college students, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows. We have also co-sponsored programs for high school students; arranged for tours of local biotechnology companies, and annually support and judge at seven State Science Fairs. We had over 70 students attend a recent dinner lecture on biofilms given by ASM President Roberto Kolter. Every four years we sponsor a regional branch meeting, a mini-ASM general meeting, in our local area; here we given students an opportunity to present posters and give talks, in addition to an excellent series of platform talks and exhibits. At a time when fewer of us can afford to attend national ASM meetings on a regular basis, the branch provides a rich assortment of high quality, local activities at a very reasonable cost while fostering an array of opportunities for member professional development. Therefore, please consider joining the Northeast branch through the ASM estore or by downloading a 2010 NEB-ASM membership application from our branch website. Please also check our branch website for a listing of upcoming events. We look forward to your participation in branch activities. Regards, James Kirby, President Northeast Branch, ASM