Staja “Star” Booker, PhD, RN, assistant professor, was elected to the Board of Directors for the US Association for the Study of Pain, USASP as of July. In her new role, Star will represent the vested interests of early career pain scientists, including but not limited to, junior faculty, postdoctoral fellows, graduate students and others beginning their career in pain. Serving three years in this role, Star’s goals as a board member include ensuring that diversity, inclusion and under-represented pain scientists, patients and research participants become an embedded part in the organization, while also meeting the needs of the members she is representing within the organization. As her first official board position, Dr. Booker is excited to help lead a transformative and transparent scientific society from its inception.
“This is an exciting time for USASP to chart new territory in pain science,” Booker said. “The goal of this association is to bring together diverse perspective on pain science to directly improve the lives of people with pain. Our mission is to promote scientific advances, clinical interventions and community outreach to reduce the burden of pain.”