Frederick Naftolin
Frederick Naftolin, MD, PhD
SRI President, 1991-1992
During my tenure as president of the SGI (SRI), I attempted to “make the SGI an all-year Society”. The impetus for this effort was that while the Society had become a premier platform for annual communication of scientific reproduction research, it had not become a ”home” for the development of young scientists and for the scientific contributions of reproductive scientists in North America and beyond. A full year presence was needed to showcase the Society and involve it in everyday reproductive medicine. As well, specialty societies were capturing an increasing number of both laboratory and clinical reproductive scientists, who then invested their efforts in those societies, further contributing to the fragmentation of reproductive medicine and science.
I proposed that the Society had to develop a larger footprint. By activities that were year-round, the society would broaden itself and make a place in the larger picture of reproductive sciences and medicine. We could start by recruiting Associate Members who would join before being captured by specialty societies, and, in due course, go on to become full members in the Society.
Further, the Society should develop its own monthly journal. Until then, with the mighty efforts of Dan Mishell, the Society had been wrestling with obtaining the gift of an occasional number of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, to publish an oversubscribed number of pages of articles by members of the Society. We needed to offer publication to more than our immediate membership.
Associate Membership was accepted by Council and the full membership that year. This has been a source of attraction of young scientists and of new full members, as they matured.
The Journal of the SGI was studied and became an entity two years later, under the leadership of Gary Hodgen. The journal has become a mainstay of Reproductive Sciences and has broadened the reach and heft of the Society.
Both of these early steps contributed to the present global SRI. It was a pleasure to move the pivot and even more pleasure to see the SRI make these and subsequent advances without losing its scientific edge and its effect on young scientists.