TASSA 2014 Conference

Dear Members and Friends of TASSA

It is a great pleasure to share with you our ongoing plans and the progress for the upcoming TASSA 2014 Conference, which will be held at the University of Maryland, College Park, on March 22-23, 2014. As the conference program committee, we are all very excited about this signature event of TASSA; this year’s conference theme will be centered on “Global Opportunities”, which will broadly cover the emerging technical and social challenges as well as related opportunities that are likely to transform our world in the coming decades. Our conference will also focus on another very important and timely theme, that is: “Women in Science, Engineering, and Social Sciences”. We will share with you as our keynote speakers are confirmed and as our program shapes up; so please keep an eye on the upcoming TASSA announcements. Same as the last year, the conference registration will be free of charge to encourage you all to contribute to the success of this important event.

In addition, there are also some unique opportunities that we aim to provide to you through this conference. First, we are proud to launch a new award to recognize and honor the achievements of young Turkish American scientists and scholars. All the members and friends of TASSA are invited to submit a nomination (including self-nominations) for this inaugural TASSA Young Scholar Awards. Each winner, under the age of 35, will receive an Award Certificate at the conference and will deliver an oral presentation during the TASSA meeting. The deadline for nominations is January 6th, 2014, and more details on this award nomination process can be found in this TASSA newsletter.

During the conference, we will also have poster presentations from individual scholars as well as Turkish and U.S. institutions aiming to provide a convenient and informal forum to stimulate the exchange of ideas and build bridges. We expect that attendees from Turkey and the U.S. will find these poster sessions valuable to initiate contact and useful discussions towards fruitful future collaborations. The deadline for poster submissions is January 5th 2014, and the submissions need to be made online at the TASSA website.

Last but not least, the TASSA conference in March will also feature the Turkish American Talent and Innovation Showcase, which will provide invaluable networking and interview opportunities for individual scholars, especially for those who are currently in the job market. This Showcase will also host a number of Turkish and U.S. institutions, including various universities, techno-parks, government organizations/labs, NGOs, companies, etc. and provide them with unique recruitment opportunities by helping them broadly reach the talent pool of the Turkish American scientists and scholars. To be part of this Showcase and reserve your spot, please visit the TASSA conference website.
We sincerely hope that you also share our excitement on this upcoming TASSA conference and we all look forward to having you join us in March and contribute to the success of our meeting!

Best Regards,

Aydogan Ozcan, Ph.D.

Chair of the TASSA 2014 Conference Program Committee