STC Gabriel L. Plaa Award of Distinction

PURPOSE

The Plaa Awardis the STC’s highest distinction and honours an individual who has made outstanding and sustained contributions to the field of toxicology and to the STC.

SELECTION

The Awards committee is chaired by Past President and includes the junior councillor plus two members appointed by the Board from the general membership and who are not members of the Board. In current practice, the Past President as chair of the committee, nominates two members who have familiarity with the candidates work.

ELIGIBILITY

To be considered for this award, the nominee must:

1. be a Canadian citizen;
2. demonstrate their significant contributions to the field of toxicology and to the STC.

NOMINATION PROCESS

Nominations must be made by two regular members of STC (i.e. the Sponsors), in good standing, but no member may nominate more than one candidate during any one year. Nominations must be accompanied by:

1. A summary, not to exceed two pages, clearly describing the nominee’s contribution to the science of toxicology in Canada and to the STC, and particularly sustained impact that benefits toxicology in Canada. The summary should include specific examples and aspects that may not be evident from the CV. The summary should also highlight the nominee’s mentoring activities, formal or informal, such as supervision of undergraduate, graduate students and postdoctoral fellows; administrative and/or management responsibilities; support for new colleagues, involvement in outreach programs, involvement in product development programs, etc;
2. Copies of no more than five manuscripts and other documents considered by the Sponsors to be pertinent to the award. Other documents could include policy briefs, technical reports, patents, proprietary submissions, subcontract reviews, etc. It is acknowledged that it may not be possible for Sponsors to provide copies of proprietary information;
3. The nominee’s CV and a brief biographical sketch suitable for press release.

For all the STC awards, nominees who are not granted the award in the year of the nomination will be automatically included among the nominees in the two subsequent years unless the Sponsors explicitly request otherwise. Sponsors will be invited to update previously submitted information.

CRITERIA

The following weighted criteria will be used by the Selection Committee:

The decision of the Selection Committee shall be final. Only one award will be made annually, and there is no obligation or duty to make the award when, in the opinion of the Selection Committee, there is no qualified nominee. Once the Selection Committee has completed their deliberations, the Chairperson will notify the Board their decision, and will in turn notify the successful nominee as appropriate. Applications should be mailed or e-mailed to STC by July 1st.
The Award takes the form of an engraved plaque plus a cheque for $500. Presentation of the award will be made at the president’s reception following the Annual General Meeting. One of the nominating members will be invited to introduce the awardee and the award will be presented by the President.

CONTACT

If you have any questions, feel free to contact Élyse Caron-Beaudoin (elyse.caronbeaudoin@utoronto.ca) or Anne Marie Gannon (anne.marie.gannon@hc-sc.gc.ca).

GABRIEL L. PLAA AWARD OF DISTINCTION WINNERS