Previous Meetings
2017 Meeting
Meeting Information and Schedule
Meeting Sponsors:
Meeting Contacts
Dr. Miguel Garcia-Diaz
Dr. Stella Tsirka (styliani-anna.tsirka@stonybrook.edu)
Ms. Odalis Hernandez (odalis.hernandez@stonybrook.edu)
2015 Meeting
The 2015 National DGS Meeting was held July 10-12 at the University of Cincinnati, Vontz Center for Molecular Studies.
2013 Meeting
The 2013 National DGS Meeting was held June 14-16 at the University of North Texas HSC-Ft. Worth.
2011 Meeting
The 2011 National DGS Meeting was held at Michigan State University in East Lansing, MI from July 7-9, 2011.
2009 Meeting
The 2009 National DGS Meeting was held jointly at LSU and Tulane University in New Orleans from April 22-24, 2009, following ASPET’s Experimental Biology meeting.
2007 Meeting

2005 Meeting
Meeting History
This meeting evolved in response to discussions over the past two years amongst training program directors at the Graduate Student Colloquium at FASEB. In the spring of 2004 at the FASEB meeting in Washington, an informal meeting of Directors of Graduate Studies identified a number of challenges faced by training programs and some innovative solutions used by others. At this meeting, a strong consensus was reached that a national meeting dedicated to exchanging information concerning these challenges and solutions would benefit all. Further, many Directors felt that this forum could be used as an opportunity to build a healthy lobby for the discipline of Pharmacology and the training programs run under this discipline.
Some of the issues identified include:
Umbrella programs – Can they help or hurt our ability to recruit and train the best students?
How can training programs respond to reorganization of medical school curriculums, i.e. movement to organ based instruction, that often prevent participation of graduate students in core curriculum courses?
Medical Pharmacology – Do we train students in the medical school course or develop a special course for graduate students?
How can we increase the visibility of Pharmacology as a discipline in undergraduate curriculums? Do current undergraduate programs in Pharmacology represent a fertile ground for recruiting students?
What core knowledge and approaches do all Pharmacology trainees need?
What emerging skills will be required by our students to become leaders in academia, industry, and regulatory affairs?
What funding opportunities and priorities exist at the NIH and other sources?
These are but a few of the common issues faced as Directors. An impressive list of scientists who have agreed to participate in the meeting has already begun to be complied.
Peter Preusch, NIGMS; Predoctoral Training Programs in Pharmacology
Anne Zajicek, Deputy Director NICHD; Pediatric Pharmacology Initiatives
Rochelle Schwartz-Bloom, Duke University; Undergraduate Programs
Robert Gould, Vice President Merck; Industry Training Needs
Lee Limbird, Meharry Medical College; Perspectives from a Pharmacologist
Lou DeFelice, Vanderbilt University; Minority Recruitment and Retention
Roger Chalkley, Vanderbilt University; Umbrella Programs
The meeting in July 2005 addressed these issues, allowed ample time for discussion, and identified additional issues. This meeting was an informal and working gathering of scientists who carry out the day-to-day operation of training programs and who have a passion and interest in graduate training. A major goal was to initiate a continuing dialogue on graduate training in pharmacology.