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Undergraduate Research Opens Doors for Biology Student

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Not many students can say that they befriended a janitor during their time as an undergraduate. Senior biology major Kylie Leffler, can however, thanks to late nights in the lab, along with being able to say that she’s completed an undergraduate research project.

“It’s a much more personalized experience than you would get in a classroom,” Leffler said of her research experience. “Even if you were to go and see your professors in office hours or study groups, (undergraduate research) is just totally different.”

Beginning in the spring of 2013, Leffler has worked with biology professor Ami Ahern-Rindell on several projects centered on undergraduate research. The capstone of this work has been her senior thesis, and acceptance into the Council on Undergraduate Research’s “Posters on the Hill” conference, where Leffler will present her findings to U.S. Senators.

Leffler began her undergraduate research venture when Ahern-Rindell approached her to write a book review on Undergraduate Research in the Scicences: Engaging Students in Real Science for the “CUR Quarterly, a publication of the Council on Undergraduate Research. She then earned a Murdock Scholarship to join Ahern-Rindell’s summer research team and take on a research project of her own.

“To be honest, (my favorite part of doing research) was probably working with my advisor,” Leffler said. “You get to know your professor as a person and as someone who’s so invested in the work that you are doing.”

Leffler’s research focused on a fatal genetic disorder, Gangliosidosis, as it was present in unique sheep models in hopes that it would give light to knowledge about this condition, which also affects humans. Being that the project was done the summer before her senior year, it naturally led to Leffler’s senior thesis on the same topic.

“I think it was just kind of generally understood that when you start research with Dr. AR, a thesis will come out of it,” Leffler said.

Undergraduate research is often said to add immensely to the learning students do in the classroom, and Leffler’s experience was no different.

“Being forced to take the initiative yourself not only helped me be more efficient in how I learn and how I think about things,” Leffler said, “but it has also given me the confidence boost that I can do things on my own and I can be resourceful, and then ask for help when I need it.”

Ahern-Rindell agreed that Leffler has grown in the process and contended that working with students can be beneficial to professors as well.

“One of the advantages of having students work with me is that they bring in these unique ideas. That’s one of the things that really excites me about working with students,” Ahern-Rindell said.

Leffler is now looking forward to presenting her research at the Posters on the Hill Conference and to pursuing her plans after graduation, the development of which she accredits to her undergraduate research experience.

“I was originally just planning on going the MD route, but I am now thinking about the MD-PhD program, specifically because of my experience with my research,” Leffler said. “It would combine the research aspect with my initial interest in medical school.”

Leffler and Ahern-Rindell agreed that undergraduate research can be a valuable asset to a student’s time at UP, and Leffler urges students in any field to seek out such opportunities.

“Even if you aren’t approached, at least ask about it,” Leffler said. “Take the initiative to approach a professor even if someone hasn’t approached you.”

Story by Clare Duffy

Sr. Angela Hoffman, O.S.B., Outstanding Higher Education Teacher in Science and Mathematics

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Sr. Angela Hoffman, O.S.B., chemistry, has been named the Oregon Academy of Science 2014 Outstanding Higher Education Teacher in Science and Mathematics. Hoffman has helped undergraduate students with more than 150 projects involving the ingredient Paclitaxel and the anti-cancer drug Taxol (marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb). University of Portland environmental science professor Bob Butler was the recipient of the same award in 2013.

Paclitaxel is found originally in the rare and rapidly vanishing Yew tree, native to the Pacific Northwest. Taxol is used to treat ovarian cancer, breast cancer, the AIDS-related cancer Kaposi’s sarcoma, and other conditions. Hoffman currently has four patents from 1997, 2003, 2006, and 2010, all pertaining to recovering taxanes (including Taxol) from soil around yew trees and other plants that are grown to produce Taxol.

This past November, several dozen yew trees were planted on the University’s River Campus. Known as “Sr. Angela’s Yew Garden,” the garden is home to more than 10 different varieties of the yew tree, which Hoffman and her students will use for their research.

Hoffman was recognized in 2012 as an American Chemical Society (ACS) Fellow for her “outstanding achievements in and contributions to Science, the Profession, and the Society.” In 2007, Hoffman was chosen as an American Association for the Advancement of Science Fellow in 2007.

The Oregon Academy of Science promotes scientific research and education in Oregon representing all areas of the natural sciences and social sciences. To see a video interview with Sr. Angela go to http://youtu.be/KbVC2xYcfVU. For more information, contact Steve Kolmes, environmental studies, at 7291 or kolmes@up.edu.

Sourced from UpBeat.

Assistant Professor of International Languages and Cultures has received Graves Award in Humanities

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Assistant Professor of International Languages and Cultures, Alexandra Hill  has been awarded an Arnold L. and Lois S. Graves Award in the Humanities. This competitive award, offered biennially, is “intended to encourage and to reward outstanding accomplishment in actual teaching in the humanities by younger faculty members.” The Graves Awards are administered by Pomona College under the auspices of the American Council of Learned Societies. The award recognizes excellence in teaching, and the funding that accompanies it is designed to help with research-related expenses. This award will help Dr. Hill begin a new project investigating the museumification of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) in the months leading up to the twenty-fifth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall, an experience that will support her course Remembering Divided Germany, GRM 353.

Susan Baillet Awarded with the Becky Houck Award for Excellence in Advising

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Susan Baillet has been awarded the Becky Houck Award for Excellence in Advising.  Professor Baillet was honored at the CAS All-College Celebration February 26th.

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Susan Baillet became a faculty member at the University of Portland in 1983. She received a B.S. with honors in Psychology from Trinity College, then her M.A. and Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from the University of Denver. She is interested in the cognitive psychology, particularly human memory, forgetting, false memory, and language. Dr. Baillet is an Advisor and the Program Administrator for the Neuroscience Minor. In 2008 Dr. Baillet was honored with the Alexander Christie Award. She has served as an Advisor for Psychology majors and during her time has mentored hundreds of students interested in Psychological Sciences careers.

The All-College Celebration is held annually to recognize achievements by faculty and departments within the College of Arts and Sciences.

Five Faculty Members Awarded Tenure and Promotion

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Please join us in congratulating the following faculty members who were recently awarded tenure and promotion, effective July 1, 2014:

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Professor Andrew Golla, Drama, tenured and promoted to associate professor;

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Dr. Christin Hancock, History, tenured and promoted to associate professor;

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Dr. Patrick Murphy, Music, tenured and promoted to associate professor;

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Dr. Craig Swinyard, Mathematics, tenured and promoted to associate professor;

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Dr. Eugene Urnezius, Chemistry, tenured and promoted to associate professor.

Larson, Hiro Receive Fulbright U.S. Scholar Grants for 2014-2015

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MollyLars150University professors Lars Erik Larson and Molly Hiro have been selected to receive Fulbright U.S. Scholar Teaching Grants to India for the 2014-2015 academic year. Larson and Hiro are both English professors at the University, and a married couple as well. They joined the faculty in 2005. Larson and Hiro anticipate that they will serve for one semester at a university or set of universities in India, possibly New Delhi. The J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board will inform them of their destination at a later date.

Hiro was an award-winning teacher at UCLA before coming to UP, and currently serves as chair of the English department. Her academic areas of expertise include African-American writers, American women writers, multi-ethnic American literature, American literature and social change, nineteenth-century American literature, and American modernism.

Larson also taught at UCLA before coming to Portland, and his academic interests include twentieth-century American literature, nineteenth-century American literature, western American literature, literature and the visual arts, cultural geography, literature of the environment, and spatiality nonfiction. He received the University of Portland Faculty Outstanding Teaching Award in 2013.

Since 1996, there have been a total of 13 Faculty Fulbrights awarded to professors at the University of Portland, including business professor Arjun Chatrath in 2005; English professor John McDonald, education professor Blaine Ackley, and business professors Richard Gritta and Mark Meckler in 2007; and biology professor Katie O’Reilly in 2012.

The United States Fulbright program began in 1946 after World War II to “assist in the development of friendly, sympathetic and peaceful relations between the United States and other countries of the world” through the exchange of students, scholars and professionals. The program operates in more than 140 countries worldwide.

For more information contact Molly Hiro, English, at hiro@up.edu.

Sourced from UpBeat.

Social Work Student Applies Skills to Practicum at Randall Children’s Hospital

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Amanda Ewing hard at work at her practicum at Randall Children’s Hospital

It is often said that good things come out of negative situations. This was the case for senior Amanda Ewing when breaking her leg last year led to an internship that would fulfill the practicum requirement for her social work major and, ultimately, would become something that she exudes passion for.

Ewing works alongside the Social Worker in the emergency department at Randall Children’s Hospital doing mental health assessments for patients and providing support for patients’ families. This experience has both supplemented her undergraduate education and provided knowledge that will be useful on her future career path.

“When I was getting surgery (on my leg), the nurses asked what my major was and said, ‘our social workers are so awesome,’” Ewing said. “It really caused me to think more about that as an option for me.”

Ewing ended up connecting with a UP alumna who had recently gotten a job at Randall Children’s Hospital, who helped her secure the job and whom Ewing now works with. Ewing is the hospital’s first undergraduate student to hold this position.

“I’ve found that in each class, whether it was a policy class or human behavior or social psych, there are little things that I’ve learned in each class that prepared me well for working in the hospital and working with people of totally different backgrounds,” Ewing said.

 

In addition to being able to use skills she’s learned in class, Ewing feels that she is able to put some of the aspects of her personality to use in her practicum to help people, which is one of the most rewarding parts of the experience.

“I’ve always been naturally a compassionate person, so I am able to use my natural gifts and put them into practice,” Ewing said. “My favorite part is when families come in, getting to work with them and help them feel more confident in their abilities.”

Ewing has also learned some lessons that would be difficult to teach in a classroom, including the importance of self-care when working in a service-intensive job.

“I’ve learned that, especially in such a caring field, you have to be able to step back and advocate for yourself,” Ewing said. “I’ve also gotten a lot more confident in working with families so different from me and my situation.”

While she will not be working under the title of “Social Worker” following graduation, Ewing will be teaching elementary school with a service organization (she has yet to decide between several options). She feels that the skills she’s learned and practiced at Randall will definitely add to her success in her future endeavors.

Story by Clare Duffy

Retiring Faculty Ceremony & Reception, April 25th

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youllbemissedWe are sadden to see six of our beloved faculty members retire at the end of this academic year. Please join us in a ceremony to celebrate them and other UP retiring faculty members on Friday, April 25, at 3:30 p.m., in Buckley Center Auditorium, followed by a reception in the Bauccio Commons board room.  A list of our CAS retiring faculty is below:

  • Chris Kodadek, Biology
  • Herman Asarnow, English
  • Thompson Faller, Philosophy
  • Susan Baillet, Psychology
  • Robert Duff, Sociology
  • Rev. Claude Pomerleau, C.S.C., Political Science

Joe Gallegos Lecture on Social Justice and Leadership, March 6th

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gallegos-copyThe Social Justice Program invites all faculty and staff to “Perspectives on Social Justice and Leadership: Transforming Theory to Practice,” a presentation offered by Joe Gallegos, UP professor emeritus and now Oregon state representative. His presentation on transforming theory to practice will take place on Thursday, March 6, 4 to 5:30 p.m., in Buckley Center room 163. For more information contact Lauretta Frederking at frederki@up.edu.

Sourced from UpBeat.