Who's Who

During the review you may receive emails and messages from:

• Panel Support Scientist (PSS): A member of STScI staff who is there to be a point of contact and make sure everything goes smoothly. They'll handle any additional conflicts of interest you may have and send you reminders and updates. (For discussion panelists, during the review they will handle any problems so you can concentrate on the review, and call in any help that is needed. They will also make sure the conversations stay focused on the scientific merit of the proposal and do not discuss the identity or expertise of the team.)
• Science Policies Division (SPD) Manager: Usually the person who invited you to serve on the panel. An STScI staff member who will advise you on any policy matters.
• Telescope Allocation Committee (TAC) Technical Managers: Aleksandra Hamanowicz, Amber Armstrong, and Brett Blacker coordinate all the meeting logistics.

Virtual panelists may also receive messages from:

• Panel Chair & Vice Chair: Responsible for running your panel and facilitating the discussions.
• Events Planning Group (EPG) Administrators: STScI staff members who handle meeting registration.
• WASABI: The STScI software team behind the SPIRIT web review tool.

Who should I contact for help?

If in doubt, contact your PSS and they will redirect your question to the correct person. But here are some common concerns and who to contact:

• Conflict of Interest: PSS
• Problems accessing SPIRIT: WASABI team and/or TAC Technical Managers
• Questions about the HST instruments and their capabilities, or technical feasibility of a proposed program: PSS (They will check for possible conflicts among STScI staff and contact an appropriate instrument scientist on your behalf. Please do not do so on your own.)
• Meeting scheduling constraints: Panel Chair & Vice Chair
• Any potential Dual Anonymous, page limits, or formatting/font size violations or issues: PSS and SPD Manager
• Updates on your reading/grading/commenting progress: PSS and SPD Manager

You can also contact the HST Help Desk (https://hsthelp.stsci.edu) with any questions that you may have, including questions about science policy or technical performance. In your correspondence, please identify yourself as a TAC member. If your question is about a specific proposal, please state the ID for the proposal associated with your question.

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