ASHG works toward achieving its mission through the following initiatives:

Advancing Research in Human Genetics
ASHG provides venues to share the newest basic research findings, technological advances and applications of human genetics in the evaluation, diagnosis and treatment of health conditions. The ASHG Annual Meeting serves as the primary venue for interaction among human genetics professionals, and has an annual attendance of nearly 5,000. In addition, ASHG publishes The American Journal of Human Genetics, a highly-regarded scientific research journal that is issued monthly.

Genetics Education: Public Health Initiatives
ASHG’s primary objective is to educate key groups (including health care professionals, patients, at-risk populations, legislators, health policy makers and the media) and provide them with the basic knowledge, resources and tools that they will need to acquire a better understanding of advances in human genetics research and technology, and their translation to health care practice. ASHG also strives to increase awareness of the public health implications (as well as the potential ethical, legal and social issues) related to major research discoveries in human genetics.

ASHG’s genetics education programs and initiatives for consumers primarily focus on disseminating basic information about key scientific concepts in human genetics research. Building on this knowledge, ASHG also educates consumers about a variety of other topics and issues, including:

• Advances in human genetics research and technology, and their translation to clinical applications

• The role of genes vs. environment in determining personal health risk and disease outcome

• The importance of collecting family health history information, and how health care providers can interpret and use it in practice

• Direct-to-consumer genetic testing and test regulation

• Genetic discrimination and related health care legislation

ASHG also works in partnership with other genetics organizations to support and enhance public health education outreach efforts that promote helpful educational programs, resources and tools for consumers and health care providers.
 

Genetics Education: From Classroom to Career

The mission of ASHG’s education division is to promote genetics education at all levels, K-16 and beyond. To fulfill this mission, ASHG sponsors a number of education programs throughout the year and at our annual meeting. Please visit our genetics education Web site, GenEdNet.org, for more information on the Society’s various education programs and resources.

K-12 Outreach: As one of the lead supporters of National DNA Day, ASHG sponsors the Annual DNA Day Essay Contest for Middle and High School students and encourages members of the Genetics Education and Outreach Network to speak to audiences at local DNA Day events, and year round. Network members and teachers can access our Genetics Education Clearinghouse, a standards-based tool that helps instructors identify quality educational materials. ASHG also invites about 250 high school teachers and students to attend an interactive full-day genetics education workshop in association with our annual meeting. Please visit ASHG’s education Web site, GenEdNet, for more information about our K-12 programs and teaching resources.

Undergraduate Level: ASHG is part of the Biosciences Education Network (BEN) and is actively building a digital library of teaching resources for undergraduate educators. The Society also offers instructors the opportunity to attend the “ASHG Undergraduate Genetics Education Workshop” at our annual meeting.

Training and Career Development: ASHG provides information on “Training & Careers in Human Genetics” and an online Guide to North American Graduate and Postgraduate Training Programs in Human Genetics for students, as well as a career toolkit for ASHG trainee members.

Scholarship of Teaching and Learning: ASHG supports the scholarly work of our members that are interested in improving their teaching methods and enhancing their students’ understanding of genetics. Our grant-supported Geneticist-Educator Network of Alliances (GENA) Program provides funding for ASHG members to examine effective pedagogical strategies in the high school and undergraduate classroom.

Policy/Advocacy Efforts

ASHG works with a number other partner organizations as an advocate helping to support and augment efforts to further the interests of human genetics in public policy and legislation. The Society frequently addresses political and ethical issues in human genetics such as: genetic information privacy and non-discrimination legislation, stem cell research, intellectual property issues (including patenting and licensing), issues surrounding genetics and race, translation of genetic testing into health care practice, and the regulation and quality control of genetic tests (including direct-to-consumer genetic tests). Please see the ASHG Policy and Position Statement Archives for more information.

ASHG has been working with the Coalition for Genetic Fairness, though a primary partnership with the Genetic Alliance, to support the passage of the federal Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act (GINA). The ASHG also partners with the National Human Genome Institute (NHGRI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to establish and support a Public Policy Fellowship to train the next generation of advocates who will work to gain support for policies and legislative efforts that espouse human genetics interests.

In collaboration with the Federation of American Societies of Experimental Biology (FASEB), Research!America and the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), the Society works each year to enhance federal funding for research, with a particular (but not exclusive) focus on National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding support.

FASEB Member Society:

ASHG is a member of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB), a coalition of independent societies that serve the interests of biomedical and life scientists. FASEB’s mission is to support its constituent societies and advance biological science. These dual objectives are achieved through collaborative advocacy for research policies that promote scientific progress and education, and lead to improvements in human health. For more information, please visit the FASEB Web site, or read our fact sheet: “What is FASEB Anyway?”

Professional/Medical Board?:
Yes; The American College of Medical Genetics (ACMG)

Paid Staff?

Yes; ASHG employs 12-15 full-time staff members.