Committees
Committee chairpersons are appointed by elected board members for three year terms. The chairpersons select committee members which are approved by the board.
Interested in volunteering?
Visit the Executive Page to contact the chair of the committee you’d like to help with.
Communications Committee
The Communications Committee was established by the Executive Board and was ratified by a vote of the ASB membership in 1997 to focus on the electronic communications within the Society. The Communications Committee is responsible for maintaining the ASB website and its connections to other relevant websites, for publishing the meeting abstracts on the web, and for all other matters related to public relations and communications required to serve the society and its members.
The ASB website was originally created in 1995 by Jill McNitt-Gray when she was Chair of the Education Committee. At that time, the site housed the Biomechanics Graduate Program Database and general ASB information. Gerry Smith restructured the site in 1997, and the first full electronic proceedings of an ASB annual meeting were posted for the 1997 Annual Meeting. The Society obtained its own internet domain name in 1998.
Committee Chair
The Communications Committee Chairperson is appointed by the Executive Board and serves for 3 years. Communications Committee members are selected by the Chairperson and are approved by the Executive Board. The Newsletter Editor is a member of the committee.
Past chairs
- Gerald Smith (1997-2000)
- Gary Heise (2000-2003)
- Kathy Simpson (2003-2006)
- Andy Karduna (2006-2009)
- Zong-Ming Li (2009-2012)
- Michelle Sabick (2012-2015)
- Robert Catena (2015-2018)
- Tarang Jain (2018-2021)
- Srikant Vallabhajosula (2021- 2024)
- Evan Dooley (2024-present)
Community Committee
The American Society of Biomechanics is committed to building a professional community that respects and promotes community and inclusion. We strive to learn from the various perspectives of our membership as we seek common goals for the biomechanics community.
As a Society, we seek to:
- support career development of all members to achieve their highest potential;
- promote sound science and research Justice1;
- promote enhanced engagement in the Society of underrepresented groups through involvement in Society activities and dialogue with leadership; and
- foster respect for diversity and inclusion in our community among our members and leadership.
1As defined in The Belmont Report, http://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/humansubjects/guidance/belmont.html
The Community Committee was formed in 2013 as the Diversity Task Force to provide guidance and oversight to the diversity and inclusion initiatives of ASB members, and it became the Diversity Committee in 2014. The Diversity Committee took over organizing the Women in Science event, which had been a student-led event beginning in 2004, and the Diversity Breakfast, which had also been a student event starting in 2009. In 2015, the Diversity Committee also began administering and awarding Diversity Travel awards to ASB members for attendance at the ASB annual meeting. Finally, the Diversity Committee began planning and hosting the Diversity Outreach event at the 2018 annual meeting. The Diversity Committee developed the ASB Code of Conduct and associated Investigations and Awards and Honors policies in 2020 and 2021, and it manages the anonymous EthicsPoint-based reporting system for the Society. In recognition that the committee’s work is not directed towards advancing individuals with specific identities, but rather to creating a welcoming environment and sense of belonging and providing tips, tools, and advocacy that universally apply across the entire community, the committee was renamed the Community Committee in 2025.
Committee Chair
The Community Committee Chair is appointed by the Executive Board and serves for 3 years. The Community Committee Chair became a voting member of the Executive Board in 2014 when the ASB members approved a change in the ASB Bylaws. Community Committee members are selected by the Chair and are approved by the Executive Board. Each member of the committee represents a different category of membership in ASB.
Past Chairs
- Kate Saul ( 2013-2015)
- Kristin Daigle Zhao (2015-2017)
- Robin Queen (2017-2020)
- Ajit Chaudhari (2020-2023)
- Christopher Wilburn (2023-2026)
Education Committee
The Education Committee was formed in 1985 to provide educational opportunities and services for ASB members. The Education Committee originally selected the Young Scientist and Travel Award recipients but administration of these awards was transferred to the Awards Committee in 1992. The Education Committee has organized tutorial sessions at the ASB annual meetings since 1982 as well as a teaching symposium since 2011. The Education Committee has also evaluated the annual meetings yearly since 1989 but the Executive Board shifted this responsibility to the Program Chair-Elect in 2016. In 2000, the Education Committee was asked to manage the regional student meetings sponsored by ASB. Finally, the Education Committee Chair reports on the activities of the Grants-in-Aid committee to the Executive Board.
Committee Chair
Past Chairs
- Gerald Pijanowski (1986-89)
- Mary Rodgers (1989-92)
- Jill McNitt-Gray (1992-96)
- Suzanne Smith (1996-99)
- Julianne Abendroth-Smith (1999-2002)
- Steve McCaw (2002-2007)
- Nick Stergiou (2007-2010)
- Gerald Smith (2010-2013)
- Cécile Smeesters (2013-2016)
- Kimberly Bigelow (2016-2019)
- Louis Diberardino (2019-2022)
- Allison Altman-Singles (2022-2025)
- Brooke Odle (2025-present)
Membership Committee
Committee is responsible for soliciting and approving new members, connecting and engaging existing members, and communicating with the Executive Board on behalf of the members.
Committee Chair
From 2009 to 2026, the Secretary was also the chair of the Membership Committee.
Following ASB Bylaws amendments approved by the ASB members in April 2026, the Secretary and Membership Chair roles were separated. The Membership Committee Chair is now appointed by the Executive Board and serves for 3 years. The Membership Committee Chair will become a voting member of the Executive Board as of the 2026-2027 term.
Past Chairs
- Savio L. Woo (1977- 1980)
- Malcolm H. Pope (1981-1983)
- Thomas P. Andriacchi (1984)
- Roger M. Enoka (1985-1988)
- Thomas D. Brown (1989-1992)
- M. Melissa Gross (1993-1995)
- J.J. Trey Crisco (1996-1998)
- Scott L. Delp (1999-2002)
- Julianne Abendroth-Smith (2003-2006)
- Max J. Kurz (2007-2009)
- Michael L. Madigan (2010-2012)
- Andrew R. Karduna (2013-2015)
- Stacie I. Ringleb (2016-2018)
- Katherine R. Saul (2019-2021)
- Anahid Ebrahimi (2022-2025)
- Lisa MacFadden (2025-present)
Student Committee
The purpose of the Student Committee is to ensure that ASB is serving its student members in meaningful ways.
For detailed information, please see link to the Student Committee page
Committee Chair
The main responsibility of the student chair is to facilitate student involvement in the Society
Past Chairs
- Norman Murphy (1991-1992)
- Rosemary Spears (1992-1993)
- Timothy Koh (1993-1994)
- Michael Torry, Southern Illinois University (1994-1995)
- Peter Vint, Arizona State University (1995-1996)
- Sheila Stevens (1996-1997)
- Todd Royer, Arizona State University (1997-1998)
- Eadric Bressel, University of Northern Colorado (1998-1999)
- Kathleen E. Costa, University of Southern California (1999-2000)
- Jeremy J. Houser, University of Houston (2000-2001)
- Ugo H. Buzzi, University of Michigan (2001-2002)
- Max J. Kurz, University of Nebraska at Omaha (2002-2004)
- Melissa Scott-Pandorf, University of Houston (2004-2006)
- Katie Bieryla, Virginia Tech (2006-2008)
- Becky Fellin, University of Delaware (2008-2010)
- Meghan Vidt, Virginia Tech – Wake Forest (2010-2012)
- Jennifer Bagwell, University of Southern California (2012-2014)
- Amy Lenz, Michigan State University (2014-2016)
- Katherine Read Knaus, University of Virginia (2016-2018)
- Andrew Vigotsky, Northwestern University (2018-2020)
- Evan Dooley (2020-2022)
- Anna Bailes (2022-2024)
- Paula Kramer (2024-present)