When is a summer school not in the summer? When it’s the Health Physics Society’s (HPS’s) 2008 professional development school, tentatively titled “Topics in Accelerator Health Physics.” Formerly called the HPS summer school, in 2008 this learning opportunity is expected to be held from January 31 through February 2. Sponsored jointly by the Accelerator Section and the Northern California Chapter of the HPS, the school is planned to follow on the heels of the 2008 midyear meeting in Oakland.
The draft proposal for the school is being reviewed by the boards of directors of the Accelerator Section and the Northern California Chapter. The next step will be to get approval from the HPS Continuing Education Committee and the HPS Board of Directors.
The school’s administrative dean, Linnea Wahl of Lawrence Berkeley Lab, is working on the local arrangements for the school. By holding the school at the Oakland Marriott, the same venue as the midyear meeting, we hope to cut down on travel costs and make the school as attractive as possible to the midyear meeting-goers and to international participants.
Not only is the timing a departure from past schools, but the school’s curriculum also breaks new ground. The academic deans, Don Cossairt of Fermilab and Vashek Vylet of Duke University, have developed a draft schedule of courses that offers two concurrent tracks, one to provide an overview of accelerator health physics and the other to provide more in-depth coverage of special topics in accelerator health physics. We are working now to line up several very distinguished instructors for the courses.
The proposed schedule of courses is listed below. If you have any comments or suggestions, please contact one of the deans (Don Cossairt, Vaclav Vylet, or Linnea Wahl). We’ll keep you posted as the 2008 professional development school takes shape.
Track 1: Overview of Accelerator Health Physics
Track 2: Special Topics in Accelerator Health Physics