The Research Foundation of the American Society of Colon and Rectal Surgeons

This successful early history of the Research Foundation resulted from organization, energy, and fundraising, thus allowing the institution to start the millennial with adequate assets. The Foundation organized itself with a Board of Trustees, a Scientific Committee, and a Young Researchers Committee. The Scientific Committee expanded to its current size in 2000. With the specialization in the scientific fields, the Committee members were selected for their acumen in outcomes research, clinical trials, basic science, and statistics. The Scientific Committee has always been the backbone of the Foundation. They reviewed and scored all submissions. Their workload was and remains significant. For the past quarter century this Committee handled the volume of reviews efficiently, allowing the Research Foundation to fund high-quality work.