Sam Castaneda to be Awarded the 2018 Distinguished Service Award

ROCKVILLE, Md. - Jan. 30, 2018 - PRLog -- The recipient of the National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) 2018 Distinguished Service Award (DSA) is Sam Castañeda, director of the Visiting Scholar and Postdoc Affairs Program at the University of California, Berkeley. The DSA represents appreciation for an individual or entity that has demonstrated either a profound, sustained, or leadership contribution to improving the postdoctoral experience.

Sam Castañeda has worked for the University of California (UC) -- at both the Berkeley and Los Angeles campuses -- for more than 35 years. Over the course of his tenure, he has created innovative programs that provide support to international students and scholars. He has also simultaneously held leadership positions with the California Regional Chapter of NAFSA:  Association of International Educators. At the national level, Castañeda is the founder and current chair of the NAFSA Postdoc Special Interest Group and institutional liaison between NAFSA and the NPA.

At UC Berkeley, Castañeda is the founder and director of the Visiting Scholar and Postdoc Affairs (VSPA) Program -- the first postdoc office in the UC system and one of the first in the United States. As director of UC Berkeley's VSPA Program, he is responsible for the oversight of postdocs and visiting scholars through a variety of professional support systems.

With regard to the NPA in particular, Castañeda was a founding member of the NPA Advisory Council, the first chair of the International Committee, and author of the NPA International Postdoc Survival Guide, which is still in use today, with annual updates. He was chair of the inaugural, fifth, tenth and 15th NPA Annual Conference local planning committee and was responsible for fundraising approximately $180K.

One nominator expressed that Castañeda, "has tirelessly devoted his time to create informative sessions supporting the postdocs' scientific life, as well as develop and sustain a plethora of customized programs supporting postdocs' non-scientific life. He has created innovative sessions that assist them in navigating and understanding American life while retaining their unique cultural identity." In mentioning his lengthy history with the NPA it was stated, "…through his commitment to the success of the National Postdoctoral Association, he has worked tirelessly to improve the experience of the postdoc."

The NPA applauds Castañeda for his various contributions and the profound impact they have had on the postdoctoral experience.

The DSA will be presented at the 16th Annual Meeting (http://www.nationalpostdoc.org/?2018AnnualConference), hosted by Case Western Reserve University, April 6-8, 2018. Recent recipients of the Distinguished Service Award include the Postdoc Executive Committee at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Nancy Schwartz, Ph.D., dean for Postdoctoral Affairs and co-director of the Office of Graduate Affairs, University of Chicago, professor in the Departments of Pediatrics and Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and director of the Kennedy Research Center.

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The National Postdoctoral Association (NPA) is a nonprofit, 501(c)3 educational association headquartered in Rockville, MD. Founded in 2003, the NPA seeks to provide a national voice for postdoctoral scholars; to facilitate positive change for postdocs; and thereby to advance the research enterprise in the United States. The NPA serves the postdoctoral community, including more than 9,600 individual members and some 200 organizational members. The NPA provides support to the postdoctoral community through resources, toolkits, professional development and networking opportunities.