Hello IFTSA!

As your midterm exams are underway, I felt it would be great to give you a little update from IFTSA, as well as provide you with an opportunity to procrastinate that studying.  The 2014-2015 IFTSA Board of Directors recently met to discuss the coming year and how we can continue to make IFTSA a more transparent, global, and interactive organization for our members.  Here are some of the things we’ve been up to:

This year IFTSA created a new vice president position, the VP of Marketing, in order to improve how we communicate and market opportunities to our members.  This position, held by Lily Yang, has already been a huge success.  Lily and her marketing group have been amping up our social media, so be sure to like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (@IFT_SA) to get all the latest updates!

We have been increasing the number of opportunities available for our members to help progress and influence IFTSA. Susan Hammons has been doing an excellent job of aligning volunteer positions with those students who want to get more involved.  If you are interested, let her know (hammonss@purdue.edu)! We can do our best to find a position that works for your schedule and experience.

The Competitions Task Force has been working feverishly to improve our competitions including the launch of a brand new competition, the IFT Global Student Innovation Challenge, and two significantly adapted competitions (Chapter of the Year and DSDC).  Be sure to look through the competition rules carefully for any changes from last year!

Lastly, IFTSA has been investigating the redistribution of our geographic area.  This is being assessed to ensure even distribution of chapters in each area and, when possible, reduce the travel distances for chapters attending area meetings.  The new areas will be announced at the beginning of November!

Be sure to check the blog for posts all things food science and OFG! The bloggers have been posting some great articles and IFTSA updates several times a week!

If you ever have any questions, comments, concerns or ideas regarding IFTSA, please always feel free to reach out to me to let me know.  I always love to hear from members about things they like or we could do better.  Comment your ideas or reach out to me via any of the means below.

Thanks and enjoy your semester!

Jay Gilbert
2014-2015 IFTSA President
jaygilbert53@yahoo.com
Twitter: @jaytgilbert