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It has been my honor to serve a second term as president of the ESATYCB. It is with tremendous pride that I reflect upon the accomplishments of our organization over the past 27 years, and with enormous excitement and anticipation that I look towards the events to come. Over the past quarter century, biology has expanded into previously inconceivable areas, continuously changing our ways of thinking and experimental design and providing us with increasingly intricate levels of understanding. There has been a need for constant reevaluation of where we stand and a continuous evolution in thought to accommodate these changes, and the ESATYCB has adapted accordingly. Despite all that has driven the changes in our field, the mission of the ESATYCB has remain steadfast – to foster excellence in biology education by providing a forum for discussion of teaching principles, practices, and of current developments in biological research. As biology changes, so too do our means for communication and exchange of ideas. New technologies have allowed the rapid flow of huge amounts of information across the world with essentially the entire body of the World’s knowledge accessible from one’s living room or office. For our own organization, the central forum for the exchange of ideas and discussion regarding the direction of our field has been the Annual Conference. By providing access to experts in the field, opportunities for faculty to communicate and collaborate with each other, community college faculty access to learning and teaching resources, faculty opportunities for speaking and writing engagements, invitations to host or join interactive webcasted events, and personalized information relevant to activities on SUNY community college campuses and other National Biology conferences, members have virtually unlimited resources before them. The theme of this year’s conference is particularly relevant in “Inquiry-based Laboratory and Undergraduate Research,” as we prepare both ourselves and our students for a future that we currently have only hints as to what it may hold. By extending our educational environment, increasing accessibility to campus resources, and facilitating the flow of information amongst ourselves and the international community we can provide ourselves with the best tools and methods to continue to expand in the necessary directions and adjust to new roles.
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