2010 USP Convention Membership Meeting

April 21–24, 2010
Grand Hyatt Washington
Washington, D.C.

The USP Convention's Membership Meeting is held once every five years to bring together USP Convention volunteer members to discuss and provide guidance on issues relating to USP's future. At the meeting, members:

elect USP's Council of Experts from a pool of nominated candidates;
elect USP's Officers and Trustees, who have fiduciary responsibility for USP between meetings;
adopt resolutions that advance the mission and vision of USP; and
confirm USP's structure and operational framework as they review and vote upon amendments to USP's Constitution and Bylaws.

Resolutions
USP has delivered a call for resolutions to its member organizations and delegates. The preliminary report of the Resolutions Committee will be posted in the Delegate Notebook in advance of the meeting. Propose a resolution.

The USP Convention's Membership Meeting is open to the public but only USP members are eligible to vote on the governance work explained above. During the open hearings, all attendees may participate during the debate on resolutions and Constitution and Bylaws amendments. Registration and program information will be posted on this page later in 2009.

Officers and Trustees

The Nominating Committee for Officers and Trustees is seeking candidates for the positions of President, Treasurer, and trustee to serve on the 2010-2015 USP Board of Trustees.

The deadline for nominations is November 30, 2009.

Two nominees will be selected by the Committee for each of the following positions:

President (traditionally a physician)
Treasurer
Trustees representing pharmaceutical sciences (2 positions)
Trustees representing medical sciences (2 positions)
Trustee representing the public interest
Trustees-at-Large (3 positions without regard to their affiliation)

For more information and to submit an online application. The proposed slate of Officers and Trustees for the 2010–2015 cycle will be posted in the Delegate Notebook prior to the Convention meeting.

Council of Experts Nominations
USP invites qualified candidates—pharmaceutical scientists, academicians, regulatory professionals, healthcare professionals, and others—to apply to serve as scientific decision makers on the Council of Experts (the chairs of all USP Expert Committees (71KB)). Applications will be accepted until December 18, 2009. The Nominating Committee for the Council of Experts will review the qualifications of applicants and develop the final slate of nominees. The Convention Membership will elect the 2010–2015 Council of Experts at the 2010 Convention membership meeting. The slate of nominees will be posted in the Delegate Notebook in advance of that meeting.

Constitution and Bylaws Amendments
The USP Constitution and Bylaws (C&B) are considered the organization's primary governing documents, second only to the organization's Articles of Incorporation which incorporated USP in 1900. The C&B essentially provide the framework within which USP operates, sets standards, and governs itself. Thus, it is critical that the C&B contain sufficient safeguards for USP's structure and processes to preserve the credibility of USP's standards setting authority. At the same time, the documents must be flexible enough to allow the organization to evolve and grow over time. Like any organization, USP periodically assesses the C&B to determine whether the documents continue to meet the organization's needs. This review usually occurs prior to the five-year membership meeting, so that any needed changes can be discussed by the membership and voted upon in person in accordance with existing C&B provisions. Although not required by the C&B, the President typically forms a committee composed of members to perform this review and propose C&B amendments to the entire membership. The C&B Committee has conducted its review, obtained member feedback, and is developing its final proposal for Board review and presentation to the Membership for discussion and vote at the 2010 Membership Meeting. The Report of the C&B Committee will be posted in the Delegate Notebook in advance of the meeting.

Beal Award for Distinguished Volunteer Service
This pinnacle award recognizes a person who has made outstanding contributions to the public health while serving as a USP volunteer. Nominations for the Beal Award have closed and the 2010 Beal Award Selection Committee is in the process of reviewing all complete submissions to determine the winner – all Committee decisions are final. The winner will be announced in December 2009 and receive the award at the 2010 Membership Meeting in April 2010.

Herbert S. Carlin, D.Sc., M.Sc., Recipient of the 2005 Beal Award

Since 1970, Dr. Herbert Carlin has chaired more than 35 USP committees and panels. From 2000 to 2005, he served in the following positions: chair of the Nomenclature and Labeling Expert Committee; member of the General Policies and Requirements Division Executive Committee; member of the Information Division Executive Committee; member of the Nominating Committee for the Council of Experts; member of the Ad Hoc Committee on Taxonomy; and member of the Ad Hoc Committee on Standardized Imprint Codes for Solid Oral Dosage Forms. In 2000, Dr. Carlin became an Honorary Member of the USP Convention in recognition of his efforts as a member of the Committee of Revision (the predecessor group to the Council of Experts), as chair of the Nomenclature Committee since 1985, and for his long-standing commitment to USP. Beyond his scientific service, Dr. Carlin has been a member of the USP Convention in five separate cycles. He was also a member of the Nominating Committee for the 2005-2010 Council of Experts.

Archive
View reports and presentations from the last Convention held in Washington D.C. from March 9–13, 2005.