OSAC Appointments

Near the end of 2020, OSAC (Organization for Scientific Area Committees) appointed new members to the Trace Materials subcommittee. Microtrace Research Microscopist Jason Beckert was among those recent appointments. Microtrace now has four representatives that have been appointed to OSAC, working in several tasks related to trace evidence. OSAC works to develop standards and guidelines in order to improve the quality and consistency of the forensic science community’s work.

All four Microtrace scientists are members of the Trace Materials subcommittee of the Chemistry: Trace Evidence Scientific Area Committee of OSAC: Ethan Groves, (chair, Geological Materials task group),  Dr. Christopher Palenik (Paint and Tape task groups), Dr. Jack Hietpas (Geological Materials task group), and Jason Beckert (Hair and Fibers task groups). Microtrace scientists have served on various subcommittees of OSAC since the committee’s inception.

OSAC

OSAC is providing a framework for long-term coordination across forensic science disciplines and is part of NIST’s commitment to support forensic science through an initiative launched in partnership with the Department of Justice (DOJ) in February 2013. As part of this effort, the DOJ established a new National Commission on Forensic Science in January 2014 to provide policy guidance to the U.S. Attorney General and help set priorities for standards development.

As a non-regulatory agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, NIST promotes U.S. innovation and industrial competitiveness by advancing measurement science, standards and technology in ways that enhance economic security and improve our quality of life. To learn more about NIST, visit here. To learn more about NIST’s efforts with forensic science, visit here.

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