Research Mentor News, February 2018

New BUILD Associate, Scholar and Fellow recruitment is underway. Is your mentor profile up-to-date and appealing to these young, future scientists? Read on to learn more.

December Faculty Mixer Highlights

On Tuesday, Dec. 12, 2017, CSULB BUILD hosted a holiday faculty mixer featuring an assortment of delicious spring rolls from Brodard Chateau (Vietnamese); tacos, rice and beans from Holé Molé (Mexican); and Greek salad and kabobs from OPA! (Greek). We had a full house with more than 50 faculty and staff attending. To view selected photos from the event, visit the mixer’s page.

The next mixer will be held on April 11 from 11:30 am to 1 pm. Mark your calendars now, so you won't miss it!

Mark Your Calendars: Annual CSULB BUILD Research Symposium is March 2

The third Annual BUILD Research Symposium will be held on Friday, March 2, 2018, from 9 am to 2 pm, at the University Student Union Ballrooms at the California State University, Long Beach, campus. Check-in opens at 8:30 am. For more information and to register, visit the Symposium page on our website.

Recruiting for 2018-19 School Year Now in Progress

BUILD is now actively recruiting for next year’s cohort of Associates, Scholars and Fellows. Applications are due in March, so you may be approached by new potential mentees. You can help with this process in the following ways:

Meet with potential mentees to discuss their research interests and your research needs to determine whether they would be a match for your group BEFORE they apply to BUILD to streamline the placement process.

Promote Informational Sessions. Several info sessions are being held this month to inform students about research training opportunities with BUILD, MARC U*STAR and RISE. If you know students in your lab or classes who might be a good match for these programs, let them know about the sessions. Although all four sessions will include information for anyone interested in research training opportunities, each session will have additional information tailored to undergraduate students in specific colleges. Here is the upcoming schedule:

  • Feb. 8, 2018, held in SSPA-006, will have additional information of particular interest to undergraduate students in the Colleges of Health and Human Services and Liberal Arts.
  • Feb. 21, 2018, held in PH1-117, will have additional information of particular interest to undergraduate students in the Colleges of Liberal Arts and Health and Human Services.
  • Feb. 22, 2018, held in ECS-312, will have additional information of particular interest to undergraduate students in the Colleges of Engineering and Natural Sciences and Math.

You can find out more about these and future Info Sessions on our website.

Fellows and Year 2 Scholars Are Graduating May 11

students throwing their graduation caps in the air

This is an exciting time for our second cohort of Year 2 Scholars, and our first cohort of Fellows, who will be graduating from the BUILD program at the end of this semester. Many have already heard back from universities about acceptance into PhD and Masters programs.  As we learn about these we’ll be posting it to our social media accounts, as well as providing an update in forthcoming issues of this newsletter. Thank you for helping preparing them for this achievement.

Fellows and Year 2 Scholars will be asking for your assistance in a couple of projects this semester, including the CSULB Research Competition and the BUILD final research report. Please make yourself available so they can be as successful as possible.

Also, we will be holding our annual Commencement event for Year 2 Scholars on May 11 at the USU Ballroom! If you have a Fellow or Year 2 Scholar in your lab, keep your eyes open for your invitation.

Scholars Will Need Your Help

Year 1 and some 2 Scholars are now applying for their summer internship programs. They may need your assistance with completing the applications or with letters of recommendation. Also, Year 1 Scholars will be preparing research summaries and presentations and may need your feedback and support. Please do your best to assist them.

Associates Will Need Your Help

Many Associates will now be applying to continue as Scholars either to continue with you or to switch to a new research group. They will need a letter of recommendation from you to continue in the program. Please speak with your mentee about their interest in staying in the program and staying in your research group.

Remember: Deadline to Spend 50% of Funds Is this Month

As a Research Mentor, you have funds available to purchase supplies. You need to spend 50% of those funds by Feb. 28, 2018, and the remainder by May 31, 2018. These funds cannot be carried over. Please contact Marie Reed if you have any questions.

Mark Your Calendars for BUILD Multicultural Workshops

We have three upcoming opportunities for you to attend the BUILD Multicultural Workshops. José Rodriguez, our new Multicultural Innovation Coordinator has updated the workshops, so the ones listed below are all new.

  • Cultivating a Culture of Invitational Dialogue in Diverse Mentoring Relationships. You have two times from which to choose: Tuesday, Feb. 13, 10 am to noon in PSY-233, or Friday, Feb. 16, 1 pm to 3 pm in PSY-101.
  • The Structure of Effective Interactions During Mentoring Conversations with Diverse Students. You have two times from which to choose: Tuesday, April 17, 10 am to noon in PSY-233, or Friday, April 20, 1 pm to 3 pm in PSY-101.

As a reminder, attending at least one workshop is required of all BUILD mentors who have or will be accepting trainees into their lab. Even if you have already satisfied this requirement, we invite you to attend workshops of interest.

For more information, visit the Multicultural Workshops webpage. To register, contact José Rodriguez.

Acknowledge BUILD in Your Papers and Submit the PMCID

Before you know it, the BUILD Annual report to NIH will be due. Keeping track of the output from the trainees’ research is an important part of this reporting. Remember, as you submit papers, and other results of research supported by BUILD, to acknowledge the program. In addition, we need the PMCID numbers for papers. You can find instructions here.

CSULB BUILD in Pictures

CSULB BUILD’s Facebook and Instagram accounts are filled with pictures of our Associates, Scholars, and Fellows. Each month we’ll highlight a collection here.

•    National Mentoring Month – All BUILD campuses participated in National Mentoring Month in January. You can check out what was posted on Instagram here and Facebook here.

Be Prepared

If you'd like to know what is coming up in the BUILD Learning Community for your mentee, download the current syllabus. This will give you a heads up on what events your mentee is required to attend and therefore will not be available to work in your lab at that time. This page will be updated each semester with the new syllabi.

Communicating with BUILD

We invite your news about your BUILD Trainee and any questions, comments, concerns, or suggestions about BUILD. If you have any of these, in relation to being a BUILD Research Mentor, please contact us at BUILD.mentors@csulb.edu. If you have any concerns about your BUILD Student, please contact us at Jesse.Dillon@csulb.edu

Be sure to keep an eye out for the March newsletter.