Pathology Chair Named AAAS Fellow

St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (ALSAC)
Friday, 14 November 2003

James Downing, M.D., chair of Pathology at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital has been awarded the distinction of AAAS Fellow. Election as a Fellow of AAAS is an honor bestowed upon members by their peers.

Awarded to 348 members this year, these individuals have been elevated to this rank because of their efforts to advance science or applications that are deemed scientifically or socially distinguished. New Fellows will be presented with an official certificate and a gold and blue (representing science and engineering, respectively) rosette pin Saturday, February 14, at the Fellows Forum during the 2004 AAAS Annual Meeting in Seattle, Washington.

This year's AAAS Fellows will be announced in the AAAS News & Notes section of the journal, Science on Oct. 31, 2003.

As part of the Section on Medical Sciences, Downing was elected AAAS Fellow for elucidating the function of the AML1/ETO transcript and its genes in normal and leukemic cells.

The tradition of AAAS Fellows began in 1874. Currently, members can be considered for the rank of Fellow if nominated by the Steering Groups from the Association's 24 sections, or by any three Fellows who are current AAAS members (so long as two of the three sponsors are not affiliated with the nominee's institution), or by the Chief Executive Officer.

Each Steering Group then reviews the nominations of individuals within its respective section and a final list is forwarded to the AAAS Council, which votes on the aggregate list.

The Council is the policymaking body of the Association, chaired by the AAAS President, and consisting of the members of the Board of Directors, the Retiring Section Chairs, delegates from each electorate and each regional division, and two delegates from the National Association of Academies.

For more information, or to contact St. Jude Children's Research Hospital (ALSAC), see their website at: www.stjude.org