Join A Committee

How to Apply

1. Review the list of SAHM committees and their charge below.
2. Indicate up to three committees in order of preference by completing and submitting the application for committee volunteers.
3. Include a brief statement (no more than a paragraph) describing your interest and qualifications for each committee you list.
   • Example for the Advocacy Committee: I have been involved in advocacy work no matter the community I reside. I consider adolescent medicine as “the boots on the ground”, interwoven in communities working directly with the patients and various groups that champion adolescent health. From my experience developing programs and being a board member of various organizations, I have become a natural leader and am very passionate about programs that promote the health and well-being of children and their families. I know that I am privileged to have a voice that is respected. I hope to be able to represent those less fortunate and create change that impacts those that need it most. 

Once applications have been collected, SAHM headquarters will provide each committee chair with submitted applications specific to their committee for review and recommendations. President-Elect Bonnie Halpern-Felsher will review committee chair recommendations and forward a final list to President Manuel Ángel Oscós-Sánchez for appointment. Final decisions will take into account the applicant’s preference and recommendations made by the committee chair while also ensuring each committee roster includes a diverse representation of the SAHM membership.

Questions? Contact SAHM Director of Operations, Sheila Lee via email or phone:
(847) 686-2348.

Standing Committees and Sub-Committees (click here for a listing of all SAHM committee’s and current chairs)

Youth Engagement Committee

• This is a new SAHM committee for 2024. SAHM seeks to develop and formalize its capacities in Youth Engagement. SAHM members have recurrently identified Youth Engagement as a key mechanism to achieve SAHM’s goals and objectives. SAHM currently has members with valuable knowledge, skills, and expertise in Youth Engagement as related to the five-overarching advocacy, clinical, education, professional development, and research strategies of the new Aspirational Plan. The SAHM Youth Engagement Committee will provide a structure to help SAHM develop a feasible, sustainable, and organized approach to Youth Engagement. We hope to identify and select SAHM members with expertise in Youth Engagement as related to the advocacy, clinical, education, professional development, and research.

Advocacy Committee

• Identify the substantive issues that will be priorities for SAHM advocacy efforts.
• Develop and/or sign onto letters to Congress and the White House. Join in congressional testimony consistent with SAHM priorities and stated policies.
• Work with the Program Committee to develop workshops or institutes for presentation at Annual SAHM Meetings.

AWARDS COMMITTEES

Awards Career Sub-Committee 

• Determine the recipients of the Outstanding Achievement in Adolescent Medicine Award and the Student and Fellow-in-Training Career Development Awards.

Awards Research Sub-Committee

• Determine the recipient of the SAHM/Iris F. Litt Visiting Professor in Adolescent Health Research (both the site and the professor), the Robert H. DuRant Award for Statistical Rigor and Innovation in Adolescent Health Research, and the Charles Irwin New Investigator Award.

Awards Service Sub-Committee

• Determine the recipient of the Millar Award for Innovative Approaches to Adolescent Health Care and the recipient of the SAHM/Adele D. Hofmann Visiting Professor in Adolescent Medicine and Health (both the site and the professor).

Development Committee

• Develop and implement an annual appeal with broad options for financial support of SAHM by members.
• Develop and implement a mechanism to maintain and expand industry support for the annual meeting, and other SAHM programs.
• Develop and implement a mechanism to expand corporate support for SAHM.
• Explore the development of revenue-producing programs and projects.

Diversity Committee

• Support the discovery and dissemination of knowledge that includes diverse perspectives and reflects the racial and ethnic diversity of the population.
• Advocate on behalf of policies to promote health among diverse populations of adolescents and reduce racial/ethnic adolescent health inequities.
• Construct a workforce development plan that emphasizes outreach and recruitment of providers from diverse backgrounds.
• Create an educational plan to bring tools that increase knowledge and skills in working with diverse adolescent populations.
• Improve the integration of ethnic/racial/sexual diversity and inclusiveness into international, national, regional, and local SAHM activities.

Education Committee

• Develop an education plan for SAHM in consultation with the Director of Programs, the Program Committee and the Communications Committee.
• Develop a long-range plan for content areas and delivery mechanisms for major educational activities and how such activities may be integrated: annual meeting, JAH (e.g., review articles), website, etc.
• In consultation with the Website Committee, recommend a plan for re-development of the website, including content and delivery of educational resources electronically (e.g., distant learning, links to other appropriate websites and educational materials, webcasts from annual meetings and other meetings to members unable to attend), communication modalities with the membership (increasing communication with and among regional chapters and individual membership, etc.)

FSAHM Review Committee – (FSAHM status is required to serve)

• Review and determine eligibility of applicants applying for FSAHM status.

HEALTH SERVICES COMMITTEES

• Chronic Illness Committee
• Committee on Substance Use
• Eating Disorders Committee
• Mental Health Committee
• Nutrition Committee
• Sexual and Gender Diverse Youth Committee
• STI/HIV/AIDS Committee
• Sexual/Reproductive Health Committee
• Vaccinations Committee
• Violence Prevention Committee

Health Services Committees offer members the opportunity to:

• Become an expert panel on a selected crucial adolescent health issue.
• Develop and disseminate new and existing clinical tools and resources for use by primary care clinicians, adolescent health specialists, and families of adolescents to raise awareness of adolescent health topics and improve the health care of adolescents.
• Review, revise and /or create appropriate positions on this topic for SAHM.
• Advise the Executive Committee, the Board of Directors and the Advocacy, Communications, Research and Education Committees of opportunities to demonstrate this expertise.
• Respond to inquiries from the public and the press in collaboration with the Executive Committee and the Board of Directors.

Multidisciplinary Membership Committee

• Develop and implement a plan to recruit SAHM members from the professional disciplines of medicine, nursing, psychology, dietetics, social work and public health.
• Develop and implement a plan to promote and retain student/trainee membership in SAHM in all disciplines, and coordinate the plan for an enlarged mentorship program.
• Coordinate the matching of annual meeting registrants who want to have a designated Meeting Mentor with a senior SAHM member attending the Annual Meeting who have volunteered to be mentors.

PROGRAM COMMITTEE
Program Committee Working Groups – We invite you to contribute your perspective and your time to the Annual Meeting.

Membership on the working groups of the Program Committee is a one-year term (March to March) beginning at the start of the Annual Meeting and concluding after the meeting. Along with reviewing abstracts and educational sessions (workshops and institutes), the working groups will meet via teleconference throughout the year. Members of the working groups must be members of SAHM during their term.

Responsibilities of working group members include:

• Review and score approximately 15-25 Workshop/Institute submissions
• Review and score approximately 10-20 Hot Topic submissions
• Focus additional efforts on one of the following working groups

Program Committee working groups:

• Abstract Review Sub-Committee Review and select submitted research abstracts for annual meeting
• Educational Sessions The Educational Sessions working group plays a large role in the development of the educational content of the SAHM annual conference. The working group meets at the SAHM annual conference and as-needed about four times a year. Member responsibilities are to review the scoring rubric each year to see if it needs to be revised, review and score submitted workshop proposals, and provide topic recommendations and speakers for the invited workshop series. Feedback on the educational content of the meeting and how and if it can be improved is essential to our mission. There are opportunities for leadership and career development within this group and at the annual conference.
• Hot Topics Be a part of the group that picks SAHM’s HOTTEST sessions! The Hot Topics working group reviews Hot Topic submissions and chooses sessions for the annual conference. Meetings occur during the annual conference Program Planning Committee meeting, and generally early in the calendar year, to finalize Hot Topic session selection for the conference. Other discussion generally occurs via email intermittently throughout the year. Hot Topic working group members also have the opportunity to serve as co-chair and moderate sessions.
• Networking/Career Advancement Sessions The Networking and Career Development working group meets virtually each month to develop programs for the annual conference. Past events have included roundtable discussions, daily mindfulness and movement activities, virtual competitions, and run-of-show for the closing ceremony. The working group coordinates with other Program Committee working groups to arrange networking opportunities such as discussions with plenary speakers, coordinated timing of programs to allow for natural networking, and support for youth engagement and student/trainee events. There are opportunities to support career development at each annual conference and within this working group!
• Plenary Sessions The Plenary working group will identify keynote speakers on the most recent, prominent health issues affecting youth and young adults. The sessions are usually presented by international and nationally renowned experts in fields that span all determinants of adolescent health and medicine. Members of the Plenary working group meet as needed to identify the speakers, coordinate scheduling and travel arrangements. In partnership with the youth engagement work group, young plenary speakers are coordinated to provide responses which align with the health expert speakers.
• Research – Poster Symposia and Platform Research The Poster Symposia and Research Abstract working group meets to review advances in adolescent health and medicine research presented through research abstract posters and platform presentations. Working group meetings vary in frequency during the year with responsibilities including: reviewing the scoring rubric, preparing the call for proposals, reviewing the proposals and determining the selections for the research awards. Young investigators and research innovators look forward to these awards to support advancements in their research careers. Among the top scoring abstracts, a select number of abstracts will be reserved for live platform presentations whose moderators will be coordinated by members of this group.
• Youth Engagement Youth and young adult voices are essential to our work as adolescent health professionals. Participation in the Youth Engagement working group informs the youth engagement strategic plan and supports youth-engaged activities for the SAHM annual conference. The working group is responsible for creating a positive, safe and empowering environment for youth who engage with the SAHM leadership and membership. This group is an intergenerational team made up of adolescent health professionals, medical trainees and young consultants (non-medical trainees ages 18-25). Members of this working group review conference workshop abstracts that propose involving young people and design and implement all youth engagement-specific activities at the annual meeting. Past conference activities have included youth engagement training sessions and youth engagement networking sessions.

Publications’ Editorial Board (PEB) Committee

The members of the PEB work alongside the Director of Publications to help author groups through the process of submitting and intent for a position paper and if approved, to final publication of a position paper of the Society.

The PEB consists of ten members, not including the Director of Publications.  PEB members are to serve a two-year term and are eligible to serve a maximum of three consecutive terms.  Membership of the PEB should reflect the diversity of the Society including, but not limited to, gender, sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, professional discipline, and geographic spread.

Roles and Responsibilities of the PEB

The members of the PEB work alongside the Director of Publications to help author groups through the process of submitting an intent for a position paper and if approved, publication of a position paper of the Society.

Expectations for PEB Members

• Assume the role of liaison for 1-2 authorship groups per year
• Keep in contact with their assigned author groups throughout the duration of the development, review and approval process and provide editorial guidance
• Provide high level review of 10 position papers and intents per year along with members of the PEB
• Participate in five meetings per year via teleconference and meet in-person at the SAHM Annual Meeting.

Research Committee

• Explore linkages to professional organizations with common research interests, such as the Society for Research on Adolescence.
• Encourage the conduct of interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary research including the development of models for the annual meeting and for the Journal of Adolescent Health.
• Propose research programs at the annual meeting that will be of interest to investigators across multiple disciplines at all levels of expertise.
• Serve as a resource for investigators regarding the legal and ethical issues involving adolescents as subjects of research.