This will be my final contribution to the SEA newsletter as President. It provides me with the opportunity to reflect on what we have accomplished in the last two years and where we are going in the future. We emerged from COVID hungry for contact and renewed academic vigor, even as we struggled with less time and money allocated for educational endeavors. As a society, we have worked hard to provide our members with enhanced mentoring, resources and support. We continue to work together to address the issues we all face and develop creative solutions to our problems. I am proud of our demonstration of resilience and enthusiastic attack on problems that others have resigned themselves to.
We have shined in our integration of research and technology into education. Our mentoring network for research is robust and successful. We share ideas on how to apply the latest tools to conduct research and facilitate teaching and learning. It has been a great joy for me personally to reconnect with former trainees and partners through SEA designed programs to help them navigate their research and careers.
We have also tackled issues of wellness, diversity, equity and inclusion. We speak out on important issues and work hard to create better learning environments and workplaces for all our learners and staff. The work of our committees and task forces has been emulated and disseminated widely in these areas and we should be proud of how SEA is pushing forward in these critical areas.
Our committees are thriving and growing as we enhance member engagement. There are clear lines of succession for committee leadership and many opportunities to get involved in our Society. As we grow, we will need to do more work to welcome new members and I am confident that the leadership team, taking cues from our membership, will tackle these important questions.
I am truly grateful for the opportunity to lead the SEA over the past two years. It is the culmination of almost twenty years of service to this great organization. Throughout my tenure, I have been grateful to continue to participate in facilitating workshops and panel discussions as well as learning from others as an active participant in meeting activities. I aim to continue my service to this organization long after my term as president ends. I hope you will indulge me as I attend meetings and work to hone my craft as an educator with your help. I am honored to work alongside you to Support, Enrich and Advance anesthesia education and those who teach. Thank you all for being my friends and partners!
Best,
John
