Dr. Avery August, Howard Hughes Medical Institute Professor, faculty within the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology, and Cornell University vice provost for academic affairs, was elected as councilor for the American Association of Immunologists (AAI) by the AAI membership via the AAI 2021 election. His tenure as councilor will go from 2021-2025 and he will later serve as president of the association.

“The AAI has been my disciplinary society home for my entire career, and it is a real privilege to be elected by my fellow immunologists to the AAI council. I am eagerly looking forward to collaborating with the leading minds in the field to support the immunology community,” said August.

August studies the role of tyrosine kinases in the regulation of the immune response, and the role of intracellular signaling in regulating T cell differentiation and cytokine production, particularly inflammatory and pro-inflammatory cytokines during lung immune responses.

The AAI is led by a council composed of eight leading scientists who are elected by voting AAI members, with August serving as the newest elected member. This volunteer leadership is responsible for promoting the goals of the association to advance the knowledge of immunology and its related disciplines. It determines the nature and types of programs that can best achieve these goals, such as through meetings, publications, courses, awards and advocacy programs.  

Founded in 1913, The American Association of Immunologists is an association of professionally trained scientists from all over the world dedicated to advancing the knowledge of immunology and its related disciplines, fostering the interchange of ideas and information among investigators, and addressing the potential integration of immunologic principles into clinical practice. AAI owns and publishes The Journal of Immunology, the largest and most highly cited journal in the field, as well as ImmunoHorizons, an open-access peer-reviewed journal dedicated to the science of immunology.

August joins current AAI president (for 2021-2022), in the leadership at the AAI. Dr. Gary Koretzky is  vice provost for academic integration, director of the Cornell Center for Immunology, faculty in the Department of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine, and also adjunct professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Department of Microbiology and Immunology.

-Written by Lauren Cahoon Roberts