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The Organization of Scientific Area Committees for Forensic Science

Forensic Science Standards Board

The Forensic Science Standards Board (FSSB) is the governing board of OSAC. It aims to:

Facilitate the promulgation of standards that will support the development of quality benchmarks and enhance consistency across the forensic science community.
Discuss and address issues related to the OSAC standards development process.
Coordinate the activities of OSAC's Scientific Area Committees (SACs), subcommittees, and Standards Review Panel (SRP).

FSSB Meetings

The FSSB meets virtually each month and in person each quarter (spring, summer, fall, and winter). Beginning in March 2023, the FSSB established a public session at its quarterly meetings to provide stakeholders with an opportunity to share feedback on agenda items or matters within the FSSB's authority. The FSSB will consider all public feedback, and remarks may be submitted by the submitter or by the OSAC Program Office on the submitter's behalf. Visit the FSSB Meetings page to see the agendas and calls for public feedback for upcoming FSSB meetings.

FSSB Members

FSSB members include:

the chair of each SAC
one NIST representative (Ex Officio member)
a maximum of six members-at-large
seven forensic science professional association representatives (AAFS, AFQAM, AFTE, ASCLD, IAI, NAME, SOFT)

SAC Chairs

Photo of Elissia Conlon, OSAC FSSB member — **Elissia Conlon**, Medicine SAC Chair

Michael Kessler, Chair of OSAC's Scene Examination SAC — **Michael Kessler**, Scene SAC Chair

Photo coming soon — **Reta Newman**, Seized Drugs & Toxicology SAC Chair

Lora Sims, FSSB Member, Chair of OSAC's Digital/Multimedia SAC — **Lora Sims**, Digital/Multimedia SAC Chair

Photo of Carl Sobieralski_FSSB member — **Carl Sobieralski**, Biology SAC Chair

Photo of Henry Swofford — **Henry Swofford**, Pattern/Impression SAC Chair

Tatiana Trejos, Trace Evidence SAC Chair — **Tatiana Trejos**, Trace Evidence SAC Chair

Professional Association Representatives

Photo of Laurel Farrell 2027 — **Laurel Farrell**, Society of Forensic Toxicologists (SOFT) Representative

Jeffrey Gurvis, IAI Representative — **Jeffrey Gurvis**, **FSSB Chair**, International Association of Identification (IAI) Representative

Photo of Sarah Kerrigan 2027 — **Sarah Kerrigan**, American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS) Representative

Erica Lawton, AFTE Representative — **Erica Lawton**, Association of Firearm and Tool Mark Examiners (AFTE) Representative

**Catherine Cothran Nigra**, Association of Forensic Quality Assurance Mangers (AFQAM) Representative

Jeffrey Nye, FSSB Executive Secretary — **Jeffrey Nye, FSSB Vice Chair**, American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors (ASCLD) Representative

Keith Pinckard, NAME Representative — **Keith Pinckard**, National Association of Medical Examiners (NAME) Representative

Members at Large

Jose Almirall, Chair of OSAC's Chemistry/Instrumental Analysis SAC — **Jose Almirall**, FSSB Researcher

**Thomas Busey**, **FSSB Executive Secretary**, Indiana University Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, FSSB Researcher

Michael Coble, FSSB Researcher

Photo of Lynn Garcia — **Lynn Garcia**, Texas Forensic Science Commission, FSSB liaison to OSAC's Legal Task Group

William Guthrie, Mathematical Statistician, National Institute of Standards and Technology — **William Guthrie**, National Institute of Standards & Technology (NIST) (retired), FSSB Statistician

**Pate Skene**, University of Colorado, FSSB liaison to OSAC's Human Factors Task Group

NIST Ex Officio Member

Marcela Najarro, NIST Ex Officio

Presentations

OSAC FSSB Overview, International Association for Identification (IAI) Conference, July 30, 2018.
OSAC Affairs Update, International Association for Identification (IAI) Conference, July 30, 2018.

Created September 30, 2025, Updated October 5, 2026

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