Research Mentor News, December 2018

BUILD Trainees Bring Home Awards from ABRCMS

Hannah C. Rattu Mandiss, Madison Kane and Joel Monroy

Twenty Year One Scholars presented at the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS) in Indianapolis last month. Two current and one former CSULB BUILD trainees brought home Certificates of Achievement for their presentations.

  • Madison Kane (Current Year One Scholar from Biomedical Engineering, Mentor: Dr. Perla Ayala)
  • Hannah C. Rattu Mandiss (Current Year One Scholar Marine Biology, Mentor: Dr. Brian Livingston)
  • Joel Monroy (2016 Associate Cohort Chemistry and Biochemistry, Mentor: Dr. Brian Stolz

For images from ABRCMS see “CSULB BUILD in Pictures” below. Stay tuned for the January 2019 issue for a full ABRCMS story.

Let Us Spotlight Your Work

Currently, we are spotlighting CSULB BUILD students and graduate mentors in the BUILD Center, on the bulletin board outside the BUILD Center, on the website, in this newsletter, and in social media. We would like to do the same for our faculty mentors—you! Please take a moment to download the survey (Word File) and return it to the Digital Media and Communications Specialist. The questionnaire also includes a section where you can choose where your spotlight is shared.

Participating in this spotlight campaign is a great opportunity to increase your visibility among potential mentees, as well as fellow mentors for potential collaborations. You are doing wonderful research and we’d like to highlight that to the BUILD community and beyond.

Call for Abstracts: BUILD Annual Research Symposium

CSULB BUILD is hosting its fourth and final Annual Research Symposium to showcase the diversity and breadth of health-related research conducted at CSULB. The symposium, which will have the theme of “Community: Turning our wealth of diverse perspectives into improved health," will provide a unique opportunity for individuals to collaborate, share research findings, and to promote health equity and scientific leadership with an emphasis on diversity.

CSULB and BUILD faculty and research partners are encouraged to present their research in the form of an oral presentation and/or a health-related research demonstration. In addition, encourage your BUILD mentees to submit abstracts for poster presentations about health disparities, behavioral and/or biomedical, or social, cultural, and environmental effects on health-related research, as well. The abstract submission deadline is January 25, 2019. Learn more here.

Reminder: 12/11 Around the World Mingle Jingle

globe with snow flakes

You are invited to celebrate the season with foods from around the world at December’s Faculty Mentor Mixer with fellow mentors, BUILD graduate mentors and BUILD staff. The menu hasn’t been finalized yet, but you can look forward to Vietnamese, Greek, Mexican and Indian selections. Come join us on Dec. 11, 2018, from 11:30 am to 1 pm.

Expanded BUILD Fellows Program is looking for Students

Do you have Juniors on your research team who are not in a CSULB research program? Please tell them about the BUILD Fellows program. We are looking for undergraduate students interested in pursuing a Ph.D. from the Colleges of Engineering, Health and Human Services, Liberal Arts or Natural Sciences and Math. They must have one full year left at CSULB starting in June 2019 and already be on a research team to join our larger cohort of BUILD Fellows next year. Applications have opened and the deadline is March 1, 2019, so now is the time to apply. BUILD Fellows Application can be found here.

Mentor Supply Funds for BUILD Year 5

Please contact Marie Reed for instructions on spending your “Mentor Supply Funds” for Year 5.

Please keep the following in mind:

  1. You will have until Feb. 28, 2019, to spend out 50% of your funds.  You will have until May 31, 2019, to spend out the remaining funds.  These funds cannot be carried over.
  2. You are required to complete the ATI/E&IT checklist and have it approved by the Purchasing Department PRIOR to the purchase of electronics and software. You can download a PDF of the form here. The completed form should be sent directly to Purchasing@csulb.edu for approval.
  3. Please refer to your mentor newsletters for announcements, updates, and purchasing guidelines.

Increased Hours Allowed for Trainees During Year’s End

During the semester, hours that BUILD Trainees can work are limited to 15 hours per week. However, during the Winter break, trainees may be able to work extended hours. Below is the schedule for Winter hours.

Dec. 24-28: Monday is the last day of the semester and campus will be closed the remainder of the week. Do not sign for hours Tuesday through Friday.
Dec. 31-Jan. 4: Maximum of 8 hours per day – Dec. 31 and Jan. 1 are holidays, do not sign for hours on these days
Jan. 7-11: Maximum of 8 hours per day, 40 hours for the week
Jan. 14-18: Maximum of 8 hours per day

November Colloquium Highlights

The second Fall Colloquium held on Friday, Nov. 9, featured Leonardo Leon, Ph.D. a Postdoctoral Scholar with the School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science at University of California San Diego. Dr. Leon attended CSULB as an undergraduate and was in the lab of Paul Weers, Ph.D. in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. He stressed the importance of finding the right mentor and networking to learn about the environment of different labs in order to avoid a bad fit. He also shared about his research experience and his journey to earning a Ph.D.

A CSULB BUILD Success Story: Wilma Figueroa

Wilma Figueroa, Year Two Scholar

BUILD provides a variety of educational opportunities, training, and near-peer and faculty mentorship, to students who might not have considered pursuing a career in research. It provides a supportive environment for students to explore their scientific interests and gain valuable research experience.

Wilma Figueroa, a Year Two Scholar in the California State University Long Beach (CSULB) BUILD program, is an excellent example of how this National Institutes of Health-funded program can make a positive impact on the lives of promising college students.

Continue reading here.

GMs of the month – November

Graduate Mentors (GMs) are an important part of the CSULB BUILD program, providing near-peer support to our trainees. The GMs for November were Sung Jun “Sunny” Park and Curtis Andrews. You can learn more about them here. This month’s spotlighted GMs will be announced mid-month.

Schedules for Research Curriculum Courses

Six courses are on the Spring 2019 schedule of classes. BUILD trainees are required to take at least one research course per year during their time in the program. Associates are required to complete the Introduction to Research Methods course. The courses are open to all students. RSCH courses can be found in the “University Research” section of the Schedule of Classes.

  • Research Career Exploration (UNIV 150): Monday and Wednesday from 5-6: 15 pm (for freshmen only)
  • Interdisciplinary Approaches to Health Disparities (RSCH 207): Monday and Wednesday from 8-9:15 am
  • Introduction to Biomedical Research Methods (RSCH 296A): Tuesday and Thursday from 8-9:15 am
  • Scientific Research Communication (ENGR 361):  Monday and Wednesday 9:30-10:45 am and Friday 9-11:45 am
  • Advanced Biomedical Research Methods (RSCH 496A): Wednesday from 5:30-8:15 pm
  • Advanced Behavioral Research Methods (RSCH 496B): Tuesday and Thursday from 9:30-10:45 am

CSULB BUILD in Pictures – ABRCMS

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.

  • ABRCMS Highlights – CSULB BUILD took trainees to the Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS) in Indianapolis last month 20 trainees had the opportunity to present their research and two took home a Certificate of Achievement. (See the first story for names of the winners.)

Acknowledging BUILD in Your Presentations/Publications

Please remember to acknowledge the funding from National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under Award Numbers UL1GM118979, TL4GM118980, and RL5GM118978 on work supported by BUILD, including support from BUILD student trainees, mentor appreciation fund, BUILD research and equipment grants. When you review your mentees’ posters, also check to make sure they have included the correct grand numbers. For a sample acknowledgment statement, NIH resources and policy, please visit the “Acknowledging BUILD in Your Publications” page on our website. It can be found under Mentors > Current Mentors.

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 Trainee, please contact the Student Training Core Director at Jesse.Dillon@csulb.edu.

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