We’re proud to introduce, Trevor Storm, one of the Fall 2024 Undergraduates of the Quarter. Trevor grew up in Enumclaw Washington, a very small town just outside of Mount Rainer in the western side of the state. There, he attended Enumclaw High School. The reason he chose chemistry was because of his enjoyable experiences in Professor May Nyman’s lab which prompted him to add the Major.  

He chose OSU because he knew that it was a great research school, and he would have lots of opportunities to join a lab here. Also, because he loves the Oregon climate and nature. He is currently doing research in May Nyman’s research group working on niobium and tantalum peroxide materials for use as carbon dioxide capture materials. He knew he wanted to get into research from the very beginning, so when the URSA-Engage program gave him the opportunity to apply to work in the Nyman lab, he jumped on it. He’s very thankful that Professor Nyman selected him to work with her and her graduate students.

His post-graduation plans are to continue his education in graduate school although he has not decided exactly where yet. After that, he would like to work in a national laboratory. Outside of school he loves to bike, hike, and be outdoors. He plays piano and juggles to de-stress during finals season and he enjoy fixing things and working on his house. His Favorite book is Breakfast of Champions by Kurt Vonnegut, and his favorite Movies are Pulp Fiction and The Silence of the Lambs. His favorite food is mashed potatoes so he is excited for Thanksgiving. Something else that is interesting about him is that he lives in a tiny house outside of campus.

This professional development and leadership program prepares faculty from across Oregon State to successfully lead large transdisciplinary proposals and funded research programs. Applications for 2025-26 are due on June 6, 2025. Successful Fellows will have access to up to $50K in seed funding. Matching investments from colleges and units are required.

https://research.oregonstate.edu/ora/advancement-academy

I am writing to seek your assistance in identifying prospective students for the summer NSF-REU/Lando/CSP Program at the University of Minnesota. Undergraduate research has a long and proud history in our department and is strongly supported. We have run a successful summer undergraduate research program since 1959, and in 1974, with internal funding from the Lando endowment, the program became nationally advertised.  It has been run continuously ever since, often with additional funding from the NSF-REU program. Further details are provided in the attached flyer and on the program website at https://cse.umn.edu/chem/lando

Application deadline is February 3, 2025.

I also attach our department brochure, which is primarily written for prospective graduate students but will almost certainly tell you something new about our department. For example, did you know that we have more ACS journal editors on campus than any other university in the US and abroad?

Sincerely yours, 

Steve Kass   — 

Lando/NSF Summer Research Program
University of Minnesota
Department of Chemistry
207 Pleasant Street SE

115 Smith Hall
Minneapolis, MN 55455 

612-624-0026

To: Portland Section Members and Friends 
From: Martha Dibblee, email administrator

Subject: Instructor and Organic Lab Coordinator Position at University of Portland

Information
Instructor and Organic Lab Coordinator Position at University of Portland

For more information and to apply, please visit this direct link: https://uportland.peopleadmin.com/postings/3059.

For questions, please contact the search committee chair, Beth Morton, at morton@up.edu.

Sent on behalf of 
Beth Morton 
Search Committee Chair 
morton@up.edu
503-943-7231

The Materials Research Science and Engineering Centers (MRSECs) program provides sustained support of materials research and education of the highest quality while addressing fundamental problems in science and engineering. Each MRSEC addresses research of a scope and complexity requiring the scale, synergy, and multidisciplinarity provided by a campus-based research center. The MRSECs support materials research infrastructure in the United States, promote active collaboration between universities and other sectors, including industry and international organizations, and contribute to the development of a national network of university-based centers in materials research, education, and facilities. A MRSEC may be located at a single institution, or may involve multiple institutions in partnership, and is composed of two to three Interdisciplinary Research Groups (IRGs), each addressing a fundamental materials science topic aligned with the Division of Materials Research (DMR).

https://new.nsf.gov/funding/opportunities/mrsec-materials-research-science-engineering-centers/nsf25-532/solicitation

  • Advancing Materials for Semiconductors and Microelectronics
  • Materials for Biotechnology
  • Materials for Biomanufacturing
  • Architected Materials Across Scales
  • Materials Far-From-Equilibrium
  • Alternative Approaches to Development and Processing of Clean, Sustainable Materials 

In summary, all research topics for proposed IRGs are generally expected to be aligned with areas of research typically supported by DMR.

The College of Science is planning a workshop for faculty members who plan to apply for the NSF CAREER award in July 2025 and beyond. We’d like to share our preliminary plans for this workshop which will be held on March 11th, 2025, 8:30am-noon.   

There will be two main components of the workshop (draft agenda below). First, Dr. Elise Lockwood (Professor of Mathematics, CAREER Award Recipient, and former NSF Program Officer) will provide an overview of the NSF CAREER Award and the associated review process. This presentation will be followed by a panel discussion focused on strategies for developing a successful CAREER proposal. Panel members will be COS faculty who have received the CAREER Award and/or have served as reviewers for this award.  

The panel will be followed by a review of each applicant’s “Overview and Objective” portion of their project description (~1-2pgs) by past awardees. We aim to pair each applicant with an awardee from an aligned research field. We would like to encourage the applicant and the awardee to develop a mentor-mentee relationship, with the goal of the mentor providing a complete review of the mentees full 15-pang project description sometime before the July submission deadline.  

Please share this information with all your pre-tenure faculty and encourage them to RSVP for this workshop. Additionally, please share this information with any of your senior faculty who may be interested in serving as mentors. Ideal mentors would be past CAREER award recipients and individuals who have served as NSF program officers or have had substantial success receiving NSF awards. All inquiries and RSVPs should be sent to Chris Suffridge (suffridc@oregonstate.edu) who is coordinating this workshop.   

Thanks! 

 Draft Agenda: 

8:30                Catered breakfast provided by COS 

9:00                Welcome by the COS Dean and ADR 

9:10                Introductions 

9:20                Overview of NSF CAREER award, review criteria, and the importance of “grantsmanship”. (Elise Lockwood) 

10:00              Panel with past recipients: Developing Strategies for Success and leveraging OSU’s education outreach infrastructure  

11:00              Review of PI Overview and Objective Statements 

11:45              Share-out of Review, plan future review deadlines  

12:00              Adjourn 

Dear Colleagues – 

Thank you for your attention and care to campus operations during the COVID-19 response and beyond. As we continue to gear up for winter term, I wanted to share an update on the discontinuance of servicing trashcans in individual offices and cubicles on the Corvallis campus. On Aug. 26, 2020, we notified employees that trash cans will no longer serviced in private offices and cubicles to allow custodial staff to perform daily deep cleaning measures to help reduce the spread of COVID-19. Employees were directed to use larger trashcans in lunchrooms, breakrooms and other common spaces to dispose their trash. 

This change to trashcans operations will continue indefinitely. By choosing to not provide plastic trash can liners, the university has realized savings in multiple areas. These savings have been diverted to expanding custodial operations. In addition, the reduction in plastic waste due to not providing trashcan liners aligns with the university’s sustainability efforts. The time saved not emptying trash cans has allowed custodians to focus more of their efforts on disinfecting high touchpoint areas like elevator buttons and doorknobs.  It has also helped the university reduce its carbon footprint.

If desired, we will begin removing trashcans over the next few weeks. Please set your can outside the office door in the hallway if you would like for us to remove it.   Going forward, employees can choose to keep their existing can or provide a personal trash can in their office or cubicle. In keeping with our sustainability goals, no trashcan liners or trash emptying service will be provided by custodial staff.

Any employee with accessibility concerns regarding this change should contact the Office of Equal Opportunity & Access to inquire about an accommodation. Reasonable exceptions to the trashcan services are made on an as-needed basis; email facilities@oregonstate.edu to request an exception. 

Thanks for doing your part in:

  • Helping redirect labor to areas that can help reduce the spread of infectious diseases.
  • Reduce Carbon Footprint
  • Increasing efficiency of resources.
  • Improving sustainability efforts.
  • Reducing pests in campus buildings by eliminating food waste in offices.
  • Encouraging recycling.
  • Better utilizing university resources

Joseph Majeski | Director 

Facilities Services |

830 SW 35th Street | Corvallis, OR 97331 | Phone:  541-737-7646 |    

Joe.Majeski@oregonstate.edu |  http://oregonstate.edu/facilities/