ARRO Executive Committee nominations due March 14, 2024!
ARRO is now accepting nominations for the 2024-2026 ARRO Executive Committee! Current PGY-2 and PGY-3 residents are eligible for a two-year appointment beginning in May 2024. Nominations must be submitted via email to ARRO by Thursday, March 14. Nominations should include a current CV, a statement identifying the one subcommittee to which the nominee is applying to lead (Education, Communications, Global Health or Equity and Inclusion) along with their vision and ideas for ARRO (one-page maximum), and a letter of good standing from the nominee’s residency program director.

These materials will be posted on the ARRO website for the duration of the elections, which will run from March 21 – April 4. Residents training at the same institutions as current executive committee members are not eligible for nomination. We strongly encourage residents from smaller programs to run for an executive position. Visit the ARRO website for more information. Furthermore, while we encourage attending support for candidates on social media, please kindly refrain from soliciting attending physicians to privately message or send mass emails on your behalf. We wish to maintain the integrity of this election by promoting equity and minimizing this type of influence. The Executive Committee will review such activity which may result in consequences up to and including disqualification.

Please submit your nomination and send any questions via email to ARRO by Thursday, March 14, 2024, 11:59 p.m. Pacific time.

*Eligibility: All PGY-2s and PGY-3s are eligible except for those from institutions that currently have a resident serving on ARRO as a Junior Executive Member (University of Wisconsin, New York Presbyterian, Mayo Clinic Rochester and Stanford University).

Global Health Scholars Grant applications open
Applications for the 2024 Global Health Scholars Grant are now being accepted! The deadline to submit an application is Friday, April 12, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. Pacific time. Individuals interested in pursuing a global health rotation are invited to submit their applications to obtain a $2,500 travel grant to help cover the costs of the rotation.

In addition to the application, a letter of support from your program director, a letter of support from the sponsor institution, a personal statement, and a project description must be included with the application.

If you have any questions, please reach out to Joy Ogunmuyiwa, MD, MPH, or Emily MacDuffie, MD for more information.

2024 ARRO Educator of the Year award: Nominations now open!
ARRO is now accepting nominations for the 2024 ARRO Educator of the Year award! ARRO strives to promote and recognize educational excellence in radiation oncology training programs. Each year, ARRO presents the annual Educator of the Year Award to one outstanding faculty member at each participating institution. The chief resident at each program is invited to submit the name of one faculty member who will be provided with a certificate from ARRO. You may consider physicists, biologists or other faculty members if appropriate. Please discuss this award with your fellow residents and ask your chief to submit one nomination from your program for Educator of the Year. Please submit only one nominee per institution. Be sure to submit your ARRO Educator of the Year Award nominee to ARRO before the deadline on April 24, 2024, by completing the application.

NEW AWARD ALERT: 2024 ARRO Resident Educator of the Year Award
We are excited to announce that nominations are now open for the inaugural ARRO Resident Educator of the Year award! As ARRO recognizes outstanding attendings for their educational efforts each year, starting in 2024 we will also recognize residents for their educational achievements. The ARRO Resident Educator of the Year Award will honor those who demonstrate outstanding dedication, innovation and effectiveness in teaching medical students, residents and other colleagues in radiation oncology. All PGY2-PGY5 radiation oncology residents are eligible to be nominated, and two residents will win the award in 2024. Individuals can nominate themselves or others for this award. Residents and attendings are eligible to submit nominations. Nominations will be scored based on the following categories as they relate to education projects: project/content development, innovation and creativity, impact on others, and leadership.

For each nomination, the following are required: nominee email, institution of training, CV, and a letter of support for the nominee explaining why this individual deserves the award. Please submit your ARRO Resident Educator of the Year Award nomination to ARRO before the deadline on May 1, 2024.

Join the ARRO/ASTRO Climate Change Task Force
Climate change is all around us. Want to help ASTRO as we work toward creating more sustainable cancer care and conferences? Apply to join our Climate Health, Equity and Sustainability Task Force (CHEST). Please email Katie Lichter with questions.

Society for Women in Radiation Oncology Chair position openings
The Society for Women in Radiation Oncology (SWRO) is excited to announce that they are currently recruiting and accepting applications for various chair positions on their Executive Committee! The currently open positions are for Vice Chair, Membership Chair, Events and Outreach Chair and Communications Chair. View details for each position. If interested, please email us a copy of your CV and a personal statement describing which positions you are interested in and why by March 8, 2024 at 6:00 p.m. Eastern time.

Call for volunteers: Shaping the future of radiation oncology education
Building on the 2023 study by Jeans et al. published in IJROBP, we're embarking on the next phase! We're calling for dedicated volunteers to define and describe Entrustable Professional Activities (EPAs) for U.S. radiation oncology. The study, led by ROECSG, employed a deliberative process with diverse stakeholders to define EPAs and curricular content domains in radiation oncology. Now, we need your help to delve deeper into those critical competencies and develop a workbook to serve as a blueprint for stakeholders such as residency programs and licensing bodies.

Contact Mustafa Basree to join our team and/or if you have any questions. Depending on the extent of contribution, writers will be listed in the EPA/curriculum book published to ROECSG's website.

Calling all residents who have taken their Physics ABR board exam: We need your help!
Varian recently made a comprehensive study guide for the Physics ABR board exam, which will be available for all residents to access and use to study for the exam. Before they can make the study guide public, they asked for our help to vet the content. If you have taken the exam and would be willing to vet one to two chapters (takes about 30 minutes total), we would really appreciate it! Our goal is to vet the study guide in time for residents to be able to use the guide for this year's exam. Please email Kelsey Corrigan if interested!

ASTRO Coding and Coverage Seminar
The ASTRO Coding and Coverage Seminar, designed to provide information to ASTRO members (radiation oncologists, radiation physicists, dosimetrists, radiation therapists), coding professionals and practice administrators on the topic of CPT codes and coverage within radiation oncology, is available through 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on March 15, 2024. The code set within radiation oncology is very complex and reflects ongoing changes due to changes in health care policies, private and public payer coverage determinations, and national correct coding edits and modalities within the practice of radiation oncology. Correct coding reflects collaboration between the radiation oncology clinical team, but also between professional coders and practice administrators. Correct coding has widespread impacts on code development and valuation, which could potentially have long-term effects on coverage and reimbursements for all members in the radiation oncology community. The ASTRO Coding and Coverage Seminar will address these topics, strengthening the knowledge and practice of clinical coding within the specialty of radiation oncology.

This seminar is hosted in the ASTRO Academy. Discounted resident and student rates are available. *Residents and Students can join ASTRO for free to receive the discounted rates.

ASTRO 2024: The Call for Abstracts is open
The Call for Abstracts has opened for ASTRO 2024 held in Washington, DC, from September 29 – October 2! This is a great opportunity to share important findings with colleagues and interact with leaders in the field. Accepted abstracts represent all aspects of oncology, radiation oncology, and radiation therapy for non-oncologic conditions. The scientific program will feature cutting-edge research in all major disease sites, as well as special physics and biology oral abstract sessions. Accepted abstracts will be published in the International Journal of Radiation Oncology • Biology • Physics ASTRO Annual Meeting Proceedings. Review the abstract submission guidelines thoroughly and complete your submission by March 12, 2024.

ASTRO 2024 Annual Refresher Course: Save the date and register today!
You're invited to save the date and join us virtually from April 17-19 for the 2024 ASTRO Annual Refresher Course! We'll provide a comprehensive review of the latest treatment methods and core competencies for the major disease sites with a look at the emerging trends and technologies impacting daily practice. The virtual format combines live sessions with live Q&A. Registration includes three eContouring sessions, and the Refresher onDemand. New this year, Pediatrics will be covered in a special in-depth onDemand offering. Here's a preview of the course schedule. The Annual Refresher Course is a great review for anyone preparing to take their boards.

Register now for Advocacy Day in Washington, DC, from May 20-21, 2024
ASTRO is eager to welcome you back to another exciting in-person Advocacy Day. Engage with your senators, representatives and respective staff members on the policy issues critical to radiation oncology. As a meeting participant, you can expect:

• Face-to-face conversations with members of Congress and staff, scheduled by ASTRO, about what matters to you, your practice and your patients
• Expert policy panels and discussions on ASTRO legislative priorities
• Lobbying “how to” so you are comfortable and know what to expect on the Hill
• Networking opportunities with ASTRO leaders, volunteers, residents and peers

A limited number of EAGL awards (travel grants) of $400 each are available for residents and nurses interested in attending. Visit the Advocacy Day webpage for more information, including the travel grant application and deadline. With more Medicare reimbursement cuts, prior authorization delays, and darkening prospects for cancer research funding all impacting radiation oncologists and their patients, it's more important than ever to make your voice heard. Register and book your hotel now!

Connect with ASTRO Leadership on the ROhub Student Community
Looking for an easy and direct way to connect with ASTRO leadership with questions and issues important to you? Join the conversation with ARRO leadership and ASTRO Board members, including Howard Sandler, MD, MS, FASTRO; Jeff Michalski, MD, MBA, FASTRO; and Geraldine Jacobson, MD, MPH, MBA, FASTRO. Introduce yourself to the community on the Introduce Yourself thread and feel free to pose any questions you have about the field of radiation oncology. All student, graduate student, and PGY-1 members have already been subscribed to daily digests and added to the community. To view the community, navigate to ROhub and select My Communities or visit the community directly.

You can also enroll in Mentor Match, hosted on ROhub, today in a few easy steps.