BECON MEETING MINUTES

BECON MEETING – August 18, 2004

Minutes

The NIH Bioengineering Consortium (BECON) met from 3 to 4:30 PM on Wednesday, August 18, in Room 7111 at the Rockledge 2 Building on Rockledge Drive in Bethesda , Maryland . The following text provides the minutes of this meeting.

The Evolving Role of BECON – The role of the BECON at the NIH was discussed in view of changes in scientific priorities over the past eight years since the Consortium was established, the NIH Roadmap Initiative, and the establishment of the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) in 2001. This topic produced the longest discussion at the meeting and addressed issues such as the relationship of BECON to the NIBIB, the administrative home of BECON, the mission of the BECON or a similar organization, the scope of “bioengineering” at the NIH, the success and valuable contributions of the Consortium, and the role of BECON in implementing “team science” changes.

Fourth BRP Grantee Meeting Summary – The Fourth BRP Grantee Meeting was held on July 29-30 at the Bethesda Hyatt Hotel in Bethesda , Maryland . Over 200 grantees, BECON representatives, and NIH staff attended the meeting. The new format (oral presentations, poster displays, and plenary presentations and discussions) was well-received by the grantees.

BRP Evaluation Subcommittee – The BECON subcommittee to evaluate the BRP program has not met since the July BECON meeting. However, comments on the evaluation effort were obtained during the BRP Grantee Meeting, and a questionnaire has been transmitted to NIH project managers of fourth and fifth year BRP grants to request information for the assessment.

BECON Symposium Topic Subcommittee - The BECON subcommittee to recommend a topic for the 2005 symposium has not met since the July BECON meeting.

Team Science Implementation Status – The BECON Team Science Subcommittee has not met since the July BECON meeting. The next meeting will be scheduled for the near future. Issues such as co-PI's and “credit” for grants are being addressed by the subcommittee and are very much of interest across the NIH.

Additional Items – The following items were discussed but were not on the meeting agenda:

1. Formation of a BECON Tissue Engineering/MATES Subcommittee was discussed at the July BECON meeting.
2. Consideration is being given to inviting the NIH Roadmap Coordinator to the September BECON meeting. The purpose of this visit would be to discuss possible BECON support of the Roadmap.

Next BECON Meeting – The next BECON meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 15, from 3 to 4:30 PM in Room 7111 at the Rockledge 2 Building. A preliminary agenda will be available about a week before the meeting.