April 2026
Issue 1
Letter from the President
This is my final message through the ACTS Connection as President, and I find myself feeling both grateful and proud as I reflect on the past two years. Watching ACTS expand its reach and sharpen its sense of purpose has been one of the true privileges of my career.
Over the last six months, the Board has been focused on re-energizing our strategic framework. These initiatives place a renewed emphasis on year-round member engagement through our Professional Development Committee and a broader focus on Professional Identity within translational research. Through our training and digital badging initiatives, we are intentionally expanding beyond the traditional "principal investigator" model to support the diverse career pathways essential to translational teams-including team science facilitators, clinical research professionals, data scientists, and workforce educators.
Together, we launched two new Special Interest Groups and built the Fellows of ACTS (FACTS) program from the ground up, recognizing 36 significant contributors to translational science and ACTS. We also continued the vital advocacy work required to protect the NCATS “line item.” We have developed a closer working relationship with NCATS Leadership. None of this happened in isolation; it happened because this community shows up for the mission every single day.
I want to offer a heartfelt thank-you to our Executive Director, Kim Stelmaszak, and her remarkable team. Their steady leadership, creativity, and commitment have supported me, the Board, and ACTS as a whole, more than most people ever see.
At the Translational Science 2026 meeting, Dr. Felicity Enders will step into the role of ACTS President. Felicity has been a tireless champion for our field, and I know ACTS will flourish under her guidance. It has been an honor to serve, and I look forward to cheering on our continued progress from the sidelines.
Sincerely,
Allan Brasier, MD
ACTS President
ACTS Updates
Pack your Bags for Translational Science 2026
Translational Science 2026 is right around the corner! That means it's time to pack your bags and start planning your trip. Get a head start by getting the Translational Science Mobile App, where you can organize your schedule, connect with attendees and sponsors, and find posters and session rooms with ease. Just download Engagefully from the App Store or Google Play, then search for "Translational Science 2026." Don't forget to also preview everything there is to see and do while you're in Milwaukee.
Translational Science 2026 will be held in Milwaukee, WI from April 20-23, 2026. Registration is still available online, so make your plans to join us today!
New Thematic Issue from JCTS
The Journal of Clinical and Translational Science (JCTS) invites you to read their latest thematic issue: "Institutional Transformation to Support Community Based Participatory Research and Patient- and Community-Engaged Research." This special issue provides strategies to strengthen community and patient engagement in research in which collaborative knowledge creation is valued and centered in the history, knowledge, and evidence within communities. These curated articles and more are available to read for free online.
Want to contribute to a future thematic issue? View the open call for papers and learn how you can submit your research year-round and gain visibility through one of science's fastest growing open access journals!
Stories from our Members
By finding ‘bright spots’ in the opioid crisis, VCU researchers are mapping a path to better outcomes
Fatal drug overdoses have been Virginia’s leading cause of unnatural death since 2013, and researchers from Virginia Commonwealth University and the Virginia Department of Health say more than five Virginians die every day from an opioid drug overdose. Behind the statistics are parents, children and neighbors lost to the opioid crisis — a human tragedy felt in every zip code, leaving a wake of grief that no ledger can truly capture.
While the headlines often focus on the areas hit hardest, researchers are now looking in a new direction: toward the communities that are beating the odds.
CTSA Summit drives translational science toward measurable public impact
Leaders from across the CTSA consortium convened March 2–3 for the Translational Science Impact Summit: Driving Translational Science Toward Measurable Impact, a two-day virtual event sponsored by the CTSA Translational Impacts Working Group.
Guided by a focus on measurable outcomes, the summit highlighted how translational science accelerates the movement of discovery into policy, population health improvements, and real-world benefit. The program emphasized shared methods used across the consortium to plan, implement, and evaluate translational research for maximum public impact.
Want to see your institution's stories featured in this section? Fill out our story submission form to share your recent articles!
Engage with ACTS
Special Interest Groups
ACTS offers its members the opportunity to participate in Special Interest Groups (SIGs) related to the field of clinical research and translational science. SIGs connect individuals who share similar goals and interests, providing a channel to network and participate in knowledge and resource sharing among peers.
Career Center
We're excited to announce a quality of use upgrade for the ACTS Career Center! We have added a dual single sign on option for our Career Center. Your current membership login credentials now allow you to log directly into our Career Center. Try it out here.
Don't forget ACTS members get a 50% discount on job postings - just use code ACTSMEMBER to save!
Upcoming Events
Translational Science 2026: Building Trustworthy Translation - Rigor, Reproducibility, and Real-World Impact
Baird Center, Milwaukee, WI | April 20-23, 2026