Author Archives: Luanne Johnson

Focus on ECampus – Kirk Denti

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OSU online Chemistry’s student Kirk Denti is currently working as an RN in an ICU, but is working toward becoming a Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist (CRNA). Kirk tells us that our CH 140, General, Organic, and Biological Chemistry, will help him to meet the prerequisite requirements of CRNA school. Kirk shares his story below–

Please share your background so we can get to know you better—how did you end up where you are on this journey?

Long story, but I used to be a Respiratory Therapist up until 2 1/2 years ago.  I have worked in Vancouver, Canada for about 5 years and about 12 years in Texas.  I have always appreciated the role of the CRNA, as some of what they do, professionally, blends into what we did as RTs (airway and ventilator management).  I left the bedside in 2007 and went to work for a disease management company, and it was there that a coworker had applied to RN school and got in.  This inspired me to move forward and apply for RN school myself.  My thoughts were simply that time is going to pass, so why not study while it happens and accomplish something at the same time. I started RN school in 2009 and finished in 2011 and have been working as an RN in an ICU for 2 1/2 years.

What inspired you to choose the career path you are working towards?

In my Respiratory Therapy program in Canada, we had to take an anesthesia class.  Canada has an anesthesia profession, similar to CRNA, designed for RTs to go into, and this particular class gave me a taste of it.  I really enjoyed it and really enjoyed my O.R. rotations.  At the time, I wanted to be an RT, but that class held a spot in my mind.  When I came to the States and learned about the CRNA profession and how much more involved it was than what was offered in Canada, I knew I had to pursue it.  And besides, the pay is pretty good too!

How will your OSU online classes help you to accomplish your career goals?

Organic and Biochemistry are prerequisites for some CRNA programs (one or the other, not both) and this class, Chem 140, fits nicely into my plans.  Without it, I would have to have taken one year of General Chemistry and then Organic Chemistry.  With this class, I don’t have to do that, and I can do it from home…can’t beat that. (Be sure to check with any professional program you are targeting to be sure they will accept the class you plan to take).

Do you have any advice for other online students?

Be sure that you discipline yourself to stay focused and on target with study objectives and don’t fall behind.  If you can get a study partner, that would help, so that you can push and support one another.  It’s very easy to let a day here and there slide by without studying.

What is next for you? 

My next step is to apply at a few CRNA programs around the nation and hope for the best.  I don’t know where I will end up, but I don’t really mind as long as I get accepted somewhere.

What do you like to do in your spare time?

I like being with my wife and kids–just hanging out with them.  I also enjoy playing my acoustic guitar, which I find relaxing. I am married and have been for 25 years; we have 6 children, aged 15 to 23.

Undergraduate of the Quarter – Winter 2015 – Alec Kagele

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Kagele, AlecAlec Kagele was born in Roseburg, Oregon and had never taken a Chemistry class until coming to OSU. He bounced around various Engineering and Science degrees before landing in his first Chemistry class and fell in love. Alec took General Chemistry from Margie Haak; long before she developed the flip classroom environment. He was not as enamored with Organic Chemistry until he took the final term of the sequence from Dr. Chris Beaudry.

This course led him to doing Undergraduate Research, also in Dr. Beaudry’s lab. He has been working there for nearly a year. In addition to his coursework and an additional part time job at Woodstock’s Pizza, he works in the Mole Hole, a tutoring center for General Chemistry students and TA’s for Paula Weiss who teaches the 12X level General Chemistry. Alec is an incredibly busy student.

While he’s still not completely set on his plans for the future, he’s leaning towards a Master’s degree and a job in industry. We’re proud to have students like Alec Kagele in the Department of Chemistry.

Oregon Science Startup Forum 2016

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Hello!

My name is Jim Tung and I am the Chair-Elect of the Portland area’s section of the American Chemical Society, the professional society for chemists and chemistry.

I am working with Troy Wahl, the president of the Oregon City Applied Research Incubator, to bring the Oregon Science Startup Forum to Portland in the spring of 2016.

The forum will present what it takes to start a science company (even as a student!) and to apply your knowledge to create a new business.

Click to see the event’s flyer.

While both Troy and I are chemists, we are reaching out to other disciplines for their perspectives on how to start and run a science-oriented business.

Interested?

To help plan this event, we’d like your opinion on what you’d like to learn about, whom you’d like to hear from and how you’d like to participate. By taking this survey, you consent for us to use the information you provide.

Please forward to your faculty and students, and post the flyer.

Best wishes,
Jim Tung
2015 Chair-Elect, American Chemical Society, Portland local section

Who Am I? Wednesday – Claudia Maier

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Name: Claudia S. Maier

Area of Study / Position Title:  Chemistry,  Professor

Why chemistry? (What about it initially interested you?):  Chemistry is what makes life possible; every movement, every interaction and communication, every  thought, every cure, every biomolecules comes down ultimately to atoms and bonds, i.e. chemistry.

Research focus (in non-science terms) or basic job duties?  As a chemist I find it fascinating to reveal the molecular players – the critical biomolecules and the chemical signatures – that are associated with the response of a biological system to diverse stimuli, exposure, chronic diseases and aging. We use mass spectrometry, a very sensitive analytical technique, to detect and identify the players.  Knowing the players will in turn open avenues for designing therapies and promoting health.

One thing you truly love about your job?  Love the interaction with my students in the classroom and in the lab;  there is nothing more rewarding if a student shows you what she/he developed or discovered and then starts to create her/his own story.

One interesting/strange factoid about yourself.  Love the smell of horse poop

Celebrating Undergraduate Excellence (CUE) – Application Deadline Extended

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OSU’s annual Celebrating Undergraduate Excellent event recognizing the outstanding contributions of OSU’s undergraduate researchers will be held on May 14 beginning at 11:00 in the new MU Plaza between the MU and the Student Experience Center.  This event, which is open to students in all majors, provides students with an opportunity to present posters of their work to the OSU community and can be used to satisfy the public presentation requirement for Transcript Notation.

The deadline for applications for CUE has been extended to April 28 at 5:00 p.m.  For more information, please see http://communications.oregonstate.edu/events/cue or send email to Kevin Ahern at ahernk@onid.orst.edu

Please note that all students nominated for Undergraduate Researcher of the Year are required to participate in CUE to be eligible for the award.

Who Am I? Wednesday – Mike Lerner

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Name: Mike Lerner

Area of Study / Position Title: Inorganic/Materials Chemistry, Professor

Why chemistry? (What about it initially interested you?): It was some courses I took in my first year at college. Freshman majors didn’t take general chemistry, instead I had one term each of biochemistry and crystallography. I was fascinated and a bit mystified, and they got me hooked into chemistry.

Research focus (in non-science terms) or basic job duties? I’m looking into new intercalation chemistry reactions, and also at the preparation of new nanocomposites materials. These are interesting lately because they are the electrodes used in lithium-ion and related batteries.

One thing you truly love about your job? One thing I love is discussing results from ongoing research projects. Getting results from new experiments means finding out unknown things about nature, and it really feels like being an explorer.

One interesting/strange factoid about yourself. I worked for Stanley Kaplan (the man himself) for several years during college.

Celebrating Undergraduate Excellence

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Presenting academic and creative work in a formal setting is a mark of true accomplishment in undergraduate studies. Participants will receive a certificate of presentation, and can include the presentation on resumes, graduate school and scholarship applications.

May 14, 2015
11 a.m.
Memorial Union Plaza

See the list of 2014 participants and recognized projects

Questions you will be asked during registration

Information for presenters

Registration is now open!

Eligibility:

•  All OSU undergraduates in all disciplines and fields of study

•  Works in-progress and projects for which students served as a contributing member of a larger faculty-led project are strongly encouraged.

•  Groups of students may present a single, collaborative project (but submit only one application)

•  OSU student projects completed somewhere other than OSU are also eligible.

•  Presentation format: Posters, table-top displays and floor installations

Deadline for applications is April 24, 2015. 
Questions? Contact Joy Jorgensen (Joy.Jorgensen@oregonstate.edu)

 

Hear from last year’s CUE stars by watching their videos on Media Space:
Trevor Waldien
Stacy Sim
Justin Biel
Ana Brar
Chelsea Black
Alejandra Marquez Loza
Aimee Corliss
     Jade Montgomery

Focus on ECampus: CH 584 Students

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Instruments and Online Interactions in the Sciences (CH 584) is one of the newer online classes offered by the Oregon State University Chemistry Department. This month, we will get to know several of the students who have taken CH 584 in order to advance their education and career goals–

Daniel Sasse took CH 584 in order to complete his certificate of eligibility to teach high school chemistry. He says—

     I have a teaching certificate in biology and general science, and ended up working a temporary position as a high school chemistry teacher for 10 months.  After seeing how hard it is to find openings in the subjects which I am currently certified, I decided to finish my certification in chemistry to open myself to new opportunities. (Soon, I will be)…looking for teaching positions for the coming school year.

Our next Focus student is Brian Tanis, an OSU doctoral student in Integrative Biology. Brian decided to take this class because—

… more universities and students are looking for non-traditional methods for higher education. The course offered a great opportunity to learn about how to best implement science courses, which typically rely on physical laboratories, into a virtual setting without sacrificing any of the information for students. Not only did we cover techniques and tools used within a virtual classroom, but we also covered key concepts in designing courses and the rationale behind developing assignments and activities. This type of knowledge really makes me more marketable to future employers and improves my abilities in the courses I currently teach.

Joann McQuaid, a high school biology teacher with 26 years of experience, took CH 584 in order to qualify as a “highly qualified teacher” in chemistry in her home state of California. She continues—

I have been teaching/education since I graduated college in 1989. I wanted to have two subjects to teach due to the change in the new next gen science standards.

(Taking CH 584) helped me in several ways: I am a single working mom that is taking care of two elderly parents and a teenager in her home. I did not have time to go to classes at night or during the summer. OSU online classes gave me the opportunity to continue to work and take care of my family. My generation wasn’t raised with computers in the classroom however I feel fairly proficient using computer and it was a great fit for me. The learning curve was not challenging and there was always someone to help in less than 24 hours if you needed it. OSU chemistry classes and the CH 584 class were organized in their delivery, syllabus and schedules.

Thank you to these three students for sharing their stories. Watch for a future “Focus on Ecampus” with more information about Brian’s interesting graduate studies.