ACS Chapters have 70-Plus Years of History

Although 1952 may be best known as the year that brought us the Corvette and Queen Elizabeth II, it also was a significant year in American College of Surgeons (ACS) history.

Although 1952 may be best known as the year that brought us the Corvette and Queen Elizabeth II, it also was a significant year in American College of Surgeons (ACS) history.

In 1952, the College issued charters to 28 local chapters, the most granted in a year since the ACS started issuing them in 1951. This year, 18 of those remaining chapters are celebrating their 70th anniversary (see Table 1).

These 18 local chapters, and 100 others worldwide, continue to complement ACS membership by providing outstanding educational programming, advocacy efforts, networking and leadership opportunities, and mentorship at the local level.

The ACS congratulates all the chapters celebrating platinum anniversaries this year. Please keep ACS Chapter Services, Division of Member Services, informed of any special activities during this momentous year, and the ACS will highlight them on social media and in the ACS Brief.

ACS Chapters: The Early Years

According to Eleanor K. Grimm, Secretary to ACS Founder Franklin H. Martin, MD, FACS, from 1913 to 1935, and then Secretary to the Board of Regents, Executive Committee, and Administrative Board, “a so-called chapter of the ACS” first organized in Chicago, IL, circa 1916.* The purpose of this chapter was to produce a daily bulletin concerning clinics in Chicago hospitals.

Chapters, as we know them today, began forming in Edmonton, AB (1928), Brooklyn-Long Island, NY (1930), Hawaii (1931), Southern California (1941), and Georgia (1943). By all accounts, the mission of these early chapters was to meet the needs of local surgeons, and although the ACS was aware of them, they were not officially authorized by the ACS.

As chapters continued to form, starting in 1949 the Board of Governors and Board of Regents began discussions about the value of chapters. Both bodies endorsed the organization and expansion of local chapters, and Governors were encouraged to form local chapters to “elevate the prestige of the College by promoting interest in its ideals, improving conditions of surgical practice, and by stimulating better surgical training.”^†

At the November 1950 meeting of the Board of Regents, the Regents approved a proposed charter and set of bylaws for local chapters (see Figure 1). The Regents determined that chapters were heterogeneous in organization and structure and that it would benefit the College if chapters used a standard set of bylaws and had a similar organizational structure.

For a chapter to receive a charter, it first needed to organize members at the local level, appoint officers, and adopt the approved bylaws issued by the College. Once these criteria were met, a chapter could submit its application to the Board of Regents for approval. The process of granting chapter charters remains similar today.

In 1951, 17 chapters received charters (see Table 2). By the end of 1952, the ACS had 45 chapters in the US, Canada, and Latin America.

ACS Chapters Today

In many ways, chapters have changed little since they were standardized more than 70 years ago. The ACS now has 118 chapters worldwide—65 in the US, three in Canada, and 50 internationally. At their core, ACS chapters strive to offer benefits to ACS members at the local level, including:

• Networking opportunities that enable members to build strong professional relationships with surgical peers
• Opportunities to participate in advocacy activities at the state and federal levels that impact surgeons and patients
• Convenient educational meetings and local continuing medical education
• Leadership opportunities within the chapter council that can translate to future leadership roles within the College
• A forum to engage and mentor young surgeons, trainees, and medical students
• Occasions to give back to the profession through volunteerism, both domestically and internationally

If you are interested in getting involved with your local ACS chapter, visit facs.org/member-services/chapters/find or contact Luke Moreau at lmoreau@facs.org for details about domestic chapters and Brian Frankel at bfrankel@facs.org for more information about international chapters. 

Historic Highlights

The first meeting of chapter officers took place at the 1951 Clinical Congress in San Francisco, CA. The goal of this meeting was to allow chapter officers to meet, exchange ideas, and hear reports from Officers of the College. Similar chapter officer meetings continue to this day.
The Brooklyn-Long Island Chapter holds Charter No. 1, but it almost went to Edmonton. According to the minutes of the April 1951 meeting of the Board of Regents, it was suggested that Edmonton receive Charter No. 1 because it was the first chapter organized in 1928. The assignment of charter numbers was held in abeyance at that meeting, and the Brooklyn-Long Island Chapter was ultimately granted Charter No. 1.

Acknowledgment

The author would like to thank Michael Beesley, Assistant Archivist, ACS Division of Member Services, for his help in researching and locating early references to ACS chapters in the Board of Regents minutes and the Bulletin.

*Eleanor K. Grimm Transcript Notebooks, Volume VI, Chapters, Reel 40, page 3.
^†Local Chapters of the College. Saunders P. Bull Am Coll Surg. 1950;35(3)187-188.