amercrystalassn.org

The American Crystallographic Association (ACA) lists several distinct award, grant, and student programs on its website: the Etter Student Lecturer Award, poster prizes, the Travel Grant Program, the Annual Three Minute Thesis Competition, the Excellence in Structure award, and the Fellows designation. Most of these are tied to the ACA Annual Meeting, and the site groups them under "Meeting Awards & Grants" and "Association Awards." The pages describe what each program is, but they do not publish eligibility rules, dollar amounts, or deadlines in the text available here — for those specifics you need to open the individual program pages or contact the association.

Meeting Awards and Grants

These programs are organized around the ACA Annual Meeting and are the main route for students and early-career researchers to get recognition and travel support.

Two practical points follow from how the site is organized. First, because these are meeting awards, the natural sequence is: register for and attend the annual meeting, present in the relevant format (talk or poster), and then be considered through the corresponding program. Second, the Travel Grant Program is listed alongside the awards rather than under general membership benefits, which suggests it is administered in connection with meeting participation — confirm the application window on its own page before you book travel.

The Annual Three Minute Thesis Competition is worth planning for separately. It rewards clear, short spoken explanations of research rather than poster or lecture format, so if you are deciding between submitting a poster and entering the competition, the competition is the better fit when your goal is science communication practice and a general-audience pitch.

Association Awards and Fellows

Beyond meeting-specific recognition, the ACA lists:

• Excellence in Structure — an association-level award.
• Fellows — a designation for members recognized as Fellows.
• Award Nomination Information — a dedicated page explaining how nominations are submitted.
• Current Award Winners — a page listing recent recipients.

The presence of a separate nomination-information page matters: association awards and Fellows are typically driven by nominations from colleagues rather than self-application. If you want to recognize a mentor or collaborator, start with the Award Nomination Information page to see what a nomination package needs, then check Current Award Winners to understand the caliber and range of past recipients. The site does not state nomination deadlines in the material available, so verify timing before assembling a package.

Student Programs Beyond Awards

The site's Outreach & Education section lists additional student-facing programs that are not awards but are relevant if you are looking for training and community:

• Growing Crystals, Growing Curiosity — an outreach-oriented program.
• ACA Summer Institute for Structural Science — a summer educational program.
• Sponsored Programs — programs supported by the association.

For a student deciding where to start, the Summer Institute is the most direct educational offering, while the awards and Travel Grant Program are the routes to recognition and funding at the Annual Meeting. The site does not publish cost, eligibility, or application logistics for these programs in the text available, so treat the program pages as the authoritative source.

How to Decide What to Pursue

Use these conditions to choose:

• You are presenting at the Annual Meeting and need financial help → look at the Travel Grant Program first, and confirm its application timing before committing to travel.
• You are a student giving a talk or poster → the Etter Student Lecturer Award and Poster Prizes are the matching recognition routes.
• You want to build communication skills → the Annual Three Minute Thesis Competition.
• You want to honor a colleague's body of work → the Award Nomination Information page, with Current Award Winners as a reference for what strong nominations look like.
• You want structured training rather than recognition → the ACA Summer Institute for Structural Science.

One caution: the site's navigation mixes meeting awards, association awards, and education programs across several menus, so it is easy to land on the wrong page. Use the "Meeting Awards & Grants" and "Association Awards" groupings as your map, and check each program's own page for the details the overview does not provide.

amercrystalassn.org is the home of the American Crystallographic Association (ACA), a professional society for crystallography and structural science. The site is a working hub for the field rather than a general reference library: it is where members join and renew, where annual meeting and workshop programming is announced, where awards and travel grants are administered, and where the association's publications and community resources are collected. Some areas, such as the member landing page and member exchange, sit behind a member login, so expect parts of the site to be member-only.

What the organization is

The ACA describes itself as a society of "Society Memberships & Industry Connections," organized around National Divisions and Scientific Interest Groups (SIGs). Governance runs through a Leadership Council and committees, with a separate Leadership Track for SIG leadership. The association's subject scope is visible in its publication Structural Dynamics, which has a current issue and upcoming special topics, and in outreach programs such as "Growing Crystals, Growing Curiosity" and the ACA Summer Institute for Structural Science.

Main areas of the site

What the site is currently promoting

The homepage highlights a call for proposals: "Share Your Expertise — Propose an ACA 2027 Workshop!" The prompt "Have a workshop idea taking shape?" invites members to help shape the educational program for the ACA 2027 Annual Meeting in San Jose, California. This is a useful illustration of how the site functions — it is the channel through which the community contributes to meeting programming, not just a place to read about it.

Who it's for and how to use it

• Prospective or current members: start with "Become a Member" and the Member Landing Page; corporate options are listed separately under Corporate Membership.
• Students and early-career researchers: the awards and grants section is the practical entry point — Etter Student Lecturer Award, poster prizes, travel grants, and the Three Minute Thesis competition all have dedicated pages.
• Anyone planning to attend or present: check Meetings & Activities and the Calendar & Events for the annual meeting, future meetings, and workshop information.
• Job seekers and employers: the Job Opportunities section and the open employment posting form serve both sides.
• Researchers looking for the society's science: Structural Dynamics and the RefleXions and Media archives are the publication-facing areas.

Practical notes

A member login appears in the site navigation, and several linked areas (Member Exchange, Member Landing Page) are framed as member resources — plan on an account for those. The site does not publish pricing or fee information on the pages reviewed here, so membership cost and any login requirements should be confirmed directly through the membership pages rather than assumed.

The American Crystallographic Association (ACA) site at amercrystalassn.org gathers its publications, job listings, and event calendar in a few recurring navigation areas. The site's menus list Structural Dynamics (with Current Issue and Upcoming Special Topics), RefleXions Archive and Media Archive under the Reference Shelf, Job Opportunities, and Calendar & Events. Use the paths below to reach each resource; the site also has a Search box and Member Login in its header.

Publications

Structural Dynamics journal

The journal appears as a top-level menu item with three sub-pages named in the site navigation:

• Current Issue — the latest published content.
• Upcoming Special Topics — forthcoming themed issues.
• About Structural Dynamics — journal background and scope.

Start from the Structural Dynamics menu rather than a direct article link, since the site exposes the journal through these section pages.

Archives and reference material

Under Reference Shelf, the navigation lists:

• Media Archive
• RefleXions Archive
• ACA History Center

These are the places to look for past newsletter content and historical material. The Reference Shelf also lists Fellows, Award Nomination Information, and Current Award Winners, which sit alongside the archives but cover recognition rather than publications.

Member-only content

Member Exchange and ACA Insights appear in the navigation as member-facing sections, and the header includes Member Login. The site does not state whether these pages are readable without an account, so treat login as a likely requirement and sign in first if a link does not open.

Job Postings

Job Opportunities is listed in the main navigation and again in the footer area. Employers reach it through Post an Open Employment Opportunity, which appears in the same menu group as Submit a Press Release and Add an Event to Our Calendar. If you are hiring, use that submission link; if you are job hunting, go straight to Job Opportunities.

Events and Calendar

Calendar & Events is the central listing, and Add an Event to Our Calendar is the submission route for organizations that want an item included. Related meeting pages in the navigation include:

• Annual Meeting
• Future Meetings
• IUCr2026 Calgary
• Workshop Information

The site's current front-page feature is a call for proposals: "Share Your Expertise — Propose an ACA 2027 Workshop!" for the ACA 2027 Annual Meeting in San Jose, California. If your interest is speaking or running a session rather than attending, that proposal page is the entry point.

Advertising and Press Releases

Two promotional routes are listed together in the navigation:

• Advertise With Us — for organizations promoting products or services to the ACA community.
• Submit a Press Release — for announcements.

The site does not publish rates or eligibility rules for either on the pages captured here, so expect to request details through the linked forms.

Quick reference

Practical tips

• The navigation repeats between the header and footer, so if a link is hard to spot at the top, scan the footer list.
• Several sections (Member Exchange, ACA Insights) sit behind Member Login; have your credentials ready before following those links.
• For anything not covered by the menus above, use the Search box in the header rather than guessing a URL.

You can start the ACA membership process from the Become a Member link in the site's main navigation, which sits alongside Member Landing Page, Corporate Partnerships, and Corporate Membership under the Membership section. The site distinguishes individual membership from corporate membership, and the member landing page is the entry point for existing members. The public page evidence does not list dues, application form fields, or eligibility rules, so confirm those details on the membership pages themselves before applying.

Individual membership: where to start

The navigation structure on amercrystalassn.org places membership options in one group:

• Become a Member — the path for new individual members.
• Member Landing Page — the area for people who already hold membership.
• Corporate Partnerships and Corporate Membership — the organization-level options.
• Current Corporate Partners — a list of existing corporate members.

For an individual, the practical sequence is:

1. Open the ACA site and locate the Membership section in the navigation.
2. Select Become a Member to reach the individual sign-up path.
3. Review the membership information presented there — the public excerpt does not reproduce fees or the form, so read the page content rather than assuming terms.
4. Complete the application or account steps shown, then use Member Login for ongoing access.

Expected result: you reach the membership application or account-creation flow for individual members. If the page asks you to log in first, use Member Login and look for a create-account option there.

If you are already a member

Use Member Login in the header, then go to the Member Landing Page. That landing page is the member hub referenced in the site navigation; the excerpt does not enumerate its contents, so treat it as the starting point for member services rather than a confirmed list of benefits.

Corporate membership: a separate track

Organizations are routed through Corporate Partnerships and Corporate Membership, not the individual sign-up. The site also maintains a Current Corporate Partners page, which is useful for checking whether your institution already participates before approaching the association about a corporate arrangement. The excerpt does not state corporate tiers, pricing, or what each partnership includes.

What the site shows about member activity

Membership connects to several programs visible in the navigation, which is a reasonable way to judge whether joining fits your goals:

• Meetings & Activities, including the ACA 2027 Annual Meeting in San Jose, California, and IUCr2026 Calgary.
• Workshop Information and a call for ACA 2027 workshop proposals — the homepage currently highlights "Share Your Expertise — Propose an ACA 2027 Workshop!"
• Awards & Grants: the Etter Student Lecturer Award, Poster Prizes, Travel Grant Program, and the Annual Three Minute Thesis Competition.
• Outreach & Education: Growing Crystals, Growing Curiosity and the ACA Summer Institute for Structural Science.
• Community: National Divisions, Scientific Interest Groups, and Society Memberships & Industry Connections.
• Publications and resources: Structural Dynamics, the Reference Shelf, Media Archive, RefleXions Archive, and ACA History Center.
• Career tools: Job Opportunities, an events calendar, and the Action Toolkit.

If your reason for joining is presenting at the annual meeting, competing for a student award, or tapping travel support, those programs are the concrete member-facing activities to check before you commit.

Common sticking points

• Assuming one membership type. The navigation clearly separates individual and corporate routes; pick the one that matches who is joining.
• Looking for prices on the homepage. The public excerpt contains no dues or fee information, so budget questions have to be answered on the membership pages or by contacting the association.
• Confusing login with sign-up. Member Login is for existing accounts; new members should begin at Become a Member.
• Missing deadlines. Workshop proposals for ACA 2027 and meeting-related awards run on schedules published on their own pages — check those pages rather than the homepage summary.

For anything not stated on the site — current dues, renewal dates, or the exact benefits attached to each category — the reliable step is to open the membership pages directly or contact ACA through the details published there.

The American Crystallographic Association (ACA) is inviting workshop proposals for its 2027 Annual Meeting in San Jose, California, through a call posted on its website under the heading "Share Your Expertise — Propose an ACA 2027 Workshop!" If you have a workshop idea taking shape, the association's message is direct: help shape the educational program for the meeting. The site confirms the call and its location, but the excerpt available here does not list a submission deadline, a proposal form, or required fields — so the practical first step is to locate the current call page on amercrystalassn.org and follow the instructions posted there rather than assuming a format.

What the call actually says

The homepage evidence shows only the announcement itself:

• Heading: "Share Your Expertise — Propose an ACA 2027 Workshop!"
• Subheading: "Have a workshop idea taking shape?"
• Body excerpt: "Help shape the educational program for the ACA 2027 Annual Meeting in San Jose, Cali[fornia]"

That establishes three facts you can rely on: the meeting year (2027), the host city (San Jose, California), and the fact that workshops are part of the annual meeting's educational programming. Anything beyond that — session length, expected audience size, whether proposals are reviewed by a committee, or whether proposers must be ACA members — is not supported by the available page text.

Where to find the submission details

The site's navigation, as captured in the page text, includes a Meetings & Activities section with a Workshop Information entry, alongside Future Meetings, Annual Meeting, and IUCr2026 Calgary. These are the natural places to look for the full call:

1. Open amercrystalassn.org and go to Meetings & Activities.
2. Check Workshop Information for general guidance on how ACA workshops are organized and proposed.
3. Check Future Meetings and the Annual Meeting pages for the 2027 San Jose meeting, where a proposal link or contact would most likely be posted.
4. If no form is visible, use the site's contact or leadership listings (the Governance section lists Leadership Council, Committees, and SIG Leadership) to ask which committee owns workshop programming.

A realistic proposal outline

Because the site excerpt does not specify a format, treat the following as a working draft to adapt once you have the official requirements — not as the ACA's stated template. A workshop proposal for a scientific society meeting typically needs to answer:

The "Growing Crystals, Growing Curiosity" and "ACA Summer Institute for Structural Science" programs listed under Outreach & Education show that ACA already runs educational programming for varied audiences; framing your workshop's level relative to those efforts can help reviewers place it.

Common sticking points

• Assuming the deadline. The available page text gives no date. Confirm it on the live call page before planning around it.
• Proposing a talk instead of a workshop. A workshop implies active participation and learning outcomes; a proposal that reads like a symposium abstract may be redirected.
• Ignoring logistics. Hands-on software sessions need to state computer and license requirements up front, since those affect room assignment.
• Skipping the member question. Membership categories and a "Become a Member" path exist on the site, but the excerpt does not say whether proposers must join. Ask before assuming either way.

Bottom line

The ACA has publicly opened the door to 2027 workshop proposals for its San Jose annual meeting. Start at the Workshop Information and Annual Meeting pages on amercrystalassn.org to get the official requirements, then draft your proposal around topic, audience, format, and outcomes. If the site does not answer a question about deadlines or eligibility, contact the association through its listed governance channels rather than guessing.