Our Mission
OPA's mission is to bring together OSU-affiliated postdocs in a social setting in order to build a postdoc community on campus, to identify needs for professional development and well-being, and to communicate those needs to the university.
Our charter can be downloaded here.
Our Goals
To mentor one another and forge professional and personal connections among all OSU postdocs.
To coordinate professional and personal development opportunities for all OSU postdocs.
To improve the campus environment for all OSU postdocs.
Our Membership
All postdocs, broadly defined, at Oregon State University are automatically members of OPA. This includes postdoctoral fellows, postdoctoral scholars, and research associates. However, our professional development award is reserved only for postdoctoral scholars and postdoctoral fellows. Lecturers and instructors are encouraged to join by contacting us. All are welcome at any event and encouraged to become involved with a committee. Also you may join the National Post-Doctoral Association for free as a member of OPA.
You may opt out by contacting our membership chair.
Our Structure
OPA consists of a Board of Directors (BOD) and various committees to plan events and engage the university. Our BOD consists of five executive officers (President, Vice-President, Secretary, Event coordinator, and Treasurer) and various committee chairs and coordinators. All of these positions are annually elected by the general OSU postdoctoral community. Contact us if you are interested in coming to a BOD meeting, looking to help out with a committee or interested in running for office. Any OSU postdoc is eligible to partcipate.
We also work together with the Office of Post-Doctoral Programs (OPP) in the Graduate School to enhance post-doctoral life at OSU. Right now, Steph Bernell is the Associate Dean we work most closely with.
Bylaws
You can find the most recent version of our bylaws here.