SfN Celebrates Opening of Its New Headquarters Building in Washington
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| Stephen Heinemann and Edward Perl, SfN's first president, cut ribbon, formally opening the building. |
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The Society for Neuroscience celebrated its new headquarters building and office space in Washington, DC, with an opening gala on May 5. Approximately 150 guests attended, including past presidents, representatives from the Spanish and Italian embassies, SfN committee chairs, NIH directors, and other leaders in the sciences.
The evening's events began in the building lobby, where SfN President Stephen Heinemann welcomed attendees to the dedication ceremony. "This new building represents many things to the Society. Among the most important is that it embodies the vision and mission shared by all of SfN's leaders," said Heinemann. "This building is a sign that neuroscience and the Society are committed for the long term to supporting and playing a role in the research enterprise, and to maintaining a strong presence in our nation's Capital."
Past President Carol Barnes, head of SfN's Real Estate Committee, spoke about the environmentally responsible strategies behind the headquarters' construction. "As the chair of the Society's real estate committee, I am very pleased that this building reflects the personal values of environmental responsibility that we as neuroscientists feel are important. It also serves as a visible symbol in our nation's capital of the excitement of neuroscience - something about which all SfN members are very proud," she explained.
Heinemann and Edward Perl, SfN's first president in 1969, then cut a ribbon, formally opening the building.
A reception in SfN's office space gave attendees an opportunity to tour the ninth through eleventh floors and chat with colleagues and SfN staff over drinks and hors d'oeuvres. Also, they were able to see and learn about the three-story, three-dimensional mural hanging in the space's central stairwell (see article on page 4). The mural, dedicated at the gala by SfN President Stephen Heinemann, is based on a drawing of the mouse neocortex by Santiago Ramón y Cajal, who shared the Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine with Camillo Golgi in 1906. This year marks the centennial of their achievement.
The festivities then moved two blocks away for dinner at the Madison Hotel, where SfN President-Elect David Van Essen toasted the Society and the field of neuroscience.
Teresa Ramón y Cajal Asensio, great granddaughter of Santiago Ramón y Cajal, spoke about her great grandfather's legacy, and thanked the Society on behalf of the other members of her family also in attendance.
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