Newsletter

Director's Corner

Things are picking up here in the Education office. We started recruiting a few months ago for our summer undergraduate research program and ended up receiving 141 applications (95 complete) for approximately 20 research slots. We received applications from students all over the country with majors as diverse as chemistry, biological engineering, materials science and engineering, computer science, physics, optical engineering, math, electrical engineering, mechanical engineering, biology and biochemistry. We are in the process of matching students with faculty members. We will place many of our candidates in labs at UW, UA and GIT.

Mentoring a summer undergraduate researcher is one of the main ways faculty can participate in the Center's education and recruiting efforts. While we have already placed our STC-funded students, you are welcome to look over any application information we have in order to find an undergraduate you would like to hire for the summer. Simply contact our office at EHRDO@chem.washington.edu. Brief application data is available on a password protected website...full applications are available as PDFs. If you are a faculty member and interested in having an undergraduate researcher this summer, we encourage you to apply for an REU supplemental grant for any of your existing NSF grants.
--Jasmine Bryant

Program Updates
Responsible Conduct of Research Modules

Several members of the Center have worked to pull together these initial RCR modules. They are in their final stages of revision and design and will be available in the next few weeks. We plan to pilot-test them with a few "volunteers" before rolling them out to the entire Center membership.

Topics included in the web-based training include: scientist's rights and obligations, collaboration, communication and grants management, and intellectual property.

Education Digest
Effective Mentoring

Almost everyone can use a mentor at some point in his or her career. From undergraduates trying to choose a major to new faculty members just starting to build a lab, access to a supportive mentor can help make the process less overwhelming. Serving as a mentor also brings rewards. Mentors gain satisfaction from helping someone achieve their goals, and from working relationships that can result in productive collaborations later on. Everyone, not just faculty members, can be a mentor. Peer-to-peer mentorship - at the graduate, post-doctoral, and faculty levels - can be quite productive. If you are thinking about participating in a mentoring relationship, you might consider reading or referencing Adviser, Teacher, Role Model, Friend: On Being a Mentor to Student in Science and Engineering. This short book from the National Academy Press offers advice on how to structure a mentoring relationship so that it is beneficial to all parties. Some of the tips from the book are summarized below.

• Be a good listener. Offer constructive advice without dictating choices.
• Build meaningful relationships that bridge the personal and the professional.
• Focus on guiding the individual towards a position of increasing independence and self-sufficiency.
• Don’t try to create a clone of yourself.
• Be attentive to cultural and population-diversity issues.

For many students, especially non-traditional students, the availability of quality mentoring can make the difference between staying in science and choosing another major. This summer, Education and Partnership programs will be sponsoring about 20 undergraduates through the summer REU program. Our goal is to provide meaningful mentoring relationships for each of these students. Towards that end we collecting resources to offer to those who will be involved with the REU program. If you have any suggestions or input, please let us know.

A Few Moments With...
Dr. Glen Shen

Glen Shen joined the Center in December as our new Managing Director. Prior to joining the STC, Dr. Shen was a faculty member at UW in Oceanography, a supervisory scientist with the USDA, VP of Operations for a biotech company in Singapore, and a Branch Chief with the US Air Force Research Lab in Florida. Little known fact (but easily found with a Google search): his nickname was Smiley when he played left field on the UW intramural softball team - if you've met him, it's not hard to figure out why. Welcome to the Center, Glen!

Who was your most influential teacher and why?

Frank Breston, my 7th grade industrial arts teacher taught me that crafting things with my hands could be as satisfying as solving a tough math or chemistry problem. To this day, I still enjoy making a simple piece of furniture and fixing things around the house. He also impressed upon me that it’s not enough to quietly excel -- that if one is going to contribute on a larger scale, one must step up one day to become a leader.

My graduate thesis advisor, Ed Boyle, showed me that it is possible to be a supervisor with high-expectations, ace scientist, mentor, and friend all at the same time. Certainly one can’t realize this model in all working relationships, but the general approach has enabled me to enjoy my professional life along many different career paths. Work should be fun, and solid interpersonal relationships are usually the key.

How would you explain your work with the Center to your grandmother?

I have come to realize over the years that neither my grandma nor mom really care to understand what it is I am doing professionally (am I taking this question too literally?!). Their main concern is that I feel productive and happy (and OK, that they can brag about me and my siblings to all their friends). I think grandma would like to know that I am helping to manage a unique science and education program involving hundreds of high caliber university scientists, postdocs, and students from around the country. I would explain to her that one day soon, this Center’s fundamental discoveries will affect everyone on the planet in many positive ways.

What's your favorite thing to do when you're not working?

Over the past several years, I have lived largely out of a suitcase shuttling between San Francisco, Singapore, Seattle, and the panhandle of Florida. One of the nice things about being back for good is that I can resume my favorite leisure activity which is to be afloat in Northwest waters. A personal priority is to find a simple boat and shine up my fishing rod. The main attraction is the quiet and the splendor. A fish in the boat is an unexpected bonus.

Comments / Questions / Suggestions?