The Foundation is always looking for outstanding junior clinical or post-doctoral fellows to attend the Forbeck Forums.
During the meeting recipients of the award have an unrivaled opportunity to interact with international experts in their particular field of cancer research. The meeting chairs will be responsible for bringing together a small group of international experts in the field to debate the topic and present their latest data to the attendees in a private setting. The meeting is held in a “think-tank” environment where active discussion of new ideas and concepts is promoted. Participation is by invitation only.
The Foundation annually selects junior clinical or post-doctoral fellows to be Forbeck Scholars. Scholars apply to a specific Forbeck Forum. They need to have an extremely high level of scientific achievement as well as relevance to the topic. Awardees attend the Forum they applied to and then the Scholar Retreat for the following three years. During the Forum, recipients of the award have an unrivaled opportunity to interact with international experts in a particular field of cancer research. The Scholar Retreat, which they attend for the subsequent three years, gives them further opportunities to interact with their peers from different fields of cancer research and meet with international experts to discuss their work. Existing awardees have found these interactions invaluable in developing collaborations as well as opening up a variety of career opportunities.
Awardees are selected by a group of past Forbeck Scholars. Scholars selected for Fall meetings will attend a spring Retreat and scholars selected for Spring meetings will attend the fall Scholar Retreat. During these three years, the Foundation will pay for all travel, meals, and accommodation for these meetings. All Forbeck meetings, including the Retreats, allow a maximum of 5 slides. Scholar presentation during the retreat may be more of a chalk talk. Mentors present on a mix of science and career.
Other benefits of being a Forbeck Scholar are being able to attend any other Forbeck Forums they are interested in. There may be limits on the number of Scholars allowed at a certain meeting or a cap on number of meetings one can attend if this becomes an issue. Forbeck Scholars may also apply to chair a Forbeck Forum on the topic of their choosing.
The Forbeck Foundation annually awards young oncologists with the Forbeck Scholar Award to recognize them for their achievements, research and dedication to the field. Scholar applicants go through a rigorous application process by the Scientific Advisory Board. The award has become a highly prized recognition in the field.
Each year, current Forbeck Scholars and senior scientists, known as Mentors, are invited to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin for a scientific gathering. Here, the Scholars share their research with their Scholar peers and Mentors. The Scholar program is inclusive of attending one initial Forbeck Forum during their acceptance year, and three consecutive years of Scholar Retreats thereafter - sponsored by the Forbeck Foundation. The duration of the Scholar Program has proved to foster long lasting collaborative relationships which positively impact the cancer research field throughout the future.
The opportunity for Scholars to connect and form relationships with researchers from completely different areas of cancer research and to have a sort of peer review is one of the most valuable roles of the Retreat. Through the Mentors, the Retreat offers the Scholars guidance on practical career issues such as writing grants and preparing successful scientific publications.
Each year, the Scholar Retreat coincides with the Foundation’s annual ‘Blue Jean Ball’ fundraiser. All Scholars attend this event, it is an opportunity to meet with families whose lives have been directly affected by cancer. This experience resonates particularly with scientists who unlike clinicians do not have contact with patients, by putting a human face on cancer.
October 2021 Scholar Retreat in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin
