Society of Self Fellows 2022 Summer Newsletter

Society of Self Fellows 2022 Summer Newsletter SSF Board of Governors

IN THIS ISSUE

Current Board of Governors for the Society of Self Fellows: (Elections for the Board of

Society Personal ........... Page 2 Updates

Governors takes place every spring.)

Mary Krause, Ph.D. Board: 2018-2022 President

Calendar of Events ...... Page 3

Angela Pierce, Ph.D. Board: 2020-2024

2022 Symposium ........ Page 5 Review

Nikki Johnson, Ph.D. Board: 2021-2025

2018-2022 Fellows ...... Page 6

Society Programs ......... Page 4

Support SGF ............... Page 7 Recruitment

Ted Harris, Ph.D. Board: 2022-2026

Self Graduate Programs Staff

Jennifer Roberts, Ph.D. Vice Provost of Academic Affairs and Graduate Studies, SGF Managing Trustee

Stefani Buchwitz, Ed.D. Director

Michelle Compton-Munoz Program Coordinator

Daniel Rivera

Recruitment Coordinator

Tirzah Branwen-Williams Administrative Associate

SOCIETY PERSONAL UPDATES If at any time you have personal or professional news you would like included in the newsletter, please submit your updates to SGF@ku.edu. News does not have to be about significant changes. The Society would enjoy hearing regular updates even if it’s hitting a five year milestone of employment, continuing research on an on going project, etc. Please also share email and mailing address updates to ensure our communication reaches you.

Jaime Gassmann, Ph.D. (2002-2006) and her family moved back to Lawrence. Jaime also recently started a role with 1848 Ventures as a Venture Builder developing concepts and digital B2B companies within Westfield Insurance's innovation portfolio.

Brittany Hartwell, Ph.D. (2011-2015) relocated back to the midwest from Boston last year, wrapped up postdoc at MIT last summer, and started as an Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Minnesota in Fall 2021. Shortly thereafter, in early September 2021, welcomed her second daughter, Claire, to the family. In her lab at UMN, she continues to do research in immunoengineering, working on developing immunotherapies and vaccines that can direct the immune response (like mucosal intranasal vaccines against COVID).

Kaylee Herzog, Ph.D. (2017-2021) defended her dissertation and graduated in Spring 2022, and will be starting a position as a postdoctoral research associate this summer at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha, NE, working with Dr. Joseph Fauver on the genomics of human hookworm. (Hookworms are intestinal roundworms that are considered neglected tropical diseases in many parts of the world.)

Alycia L. Stigall, Ph.D. (2001-2005), after 18 years in the Department of Geological Sciences at Ohio University, will be moving to the University of Tennessee, Knoxville as Head of the Earth and Planetary Sciences Department starting August 1, 2022. Though she will miss Athens, her family, including Dan Hembree (who also will be a Professor in the UTK EPS Department), and children Max (13) and Josie (11), are really looking forward to the new opportunities and different challenges coming up in Knoxville.

Personally, they are also looking forward to being so close to the Smoky Mountains. Let them know if you are in the area and would like to visit some mountains, waterfalls, or salamanders.

Charlie Svoboda, Ph.D. (1998-2002) is currently a chief engineer in Boeing PhantomWorks Advanced Autonomous Systems.

He leads a small design team and is looking to develop a path to design, build and fly vehicles in two years or less.

Brian Thomas, Ph.D. (1999-2003) with wife Julie welcomed twin babies Charles and Amelia into their family on May 12.

Introducing Tirzah Branwen-Williams Tirzah joined Self Graduate Programs in June 2022 as the Administrative Associate. She manages general office functions, is responsible for maintaining budget records and accounts payable, reconciling all financial data, maintaining records, facilitating fellow appointments, administering scholarships, and assisting with various functions within the program operations. Tirzah earned her bachelor's degree in religious studies from KU in 2018. For the last four years, she has worked at KU Endowment for the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences Development and Communications & Donor Relations teams.

SOCIETY OF SELF FELLOWS NEWSLETTER • SUMMER 2022

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2022-2023 SSF PROGRAMS SUMMER 2022 June: Book Club kick off - See page 4 July: SGF Society Mentor Program call for participation - See page 4

FALL 2022 Tuesday, August 9: SGF Annual Kick-Off Dinner and Reception Local members: You are invited to join us for a dinner and reception on Tuesday, August 9 at Arterra Event Gallery. RSVP at SGF@ku.edu by July 20.

September: SGF Mentor Pairings For those participating, watch your email for notification of your pairing with a current Fellow.

November: SSF Virtual Poster Session call for submissions Watch for information on how you can participate in the spring SSF Virtual Poster Session.

Tuesday, November 29: SGF Holiday Luncheon & Poster Session Local members: You are invited to attend the SGF Holiday Luncheon & Poster Session. RSVP at SGF@ku.edu by Friday, November 18.

SPRING 2023 January: Call for Board of Governors nominations Interested in serving as a SSF Board of Governor or know someone who would be a great addition to the alumni leadership team? Watch for information on how to submit a nomination.

February 9, 2023: SSF Virtual Poster Session Additional details about the program will be sent closer to the spring semester.

2023 SYMPOSIUM Friday, April 21 & Saturday, April 22 Lawrence, KS PAGE 3

SOCIETY PROGRAMS Join us on LinkedIn Groups The SSF Board of Governors has launched a LinkedIn Group to facilitate networking for the Society. Through this group you can stay up-to-date with the Self Graduate Fellowship, share your research and personal updates, explore the public policy topic, and network with other Society members. LinkedIn Groups will replace the Slack group to reduce barriers to participation.

Join now: https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14090154/

Participate in the SGF Society Mentor Program If you would like to be a part of the SGF Society Mentor Program for the 2022-2023 academic year, please email SGF@ku.edu.

If you have previously been paired with a Fellow, that pairing effectively expires at the end of each academic year. The communication to Fellows is that new pairings are assigned each academic year; however, the former pairing now holds as a known connection and lasting network.

Serving as a Society Mentor is a great way to support the current Fellows as they explore career opportunities.

This past year, with help from SSF Board of Governor’s President Mary Krause, the Fellows were also provided with a Mentee Guidelines handout to help them lead the partnership and maximize the opportunity. This handout outlined mentee expectations including setting and managing meetings, potential topics to discuss, and instructions for bringing goals to the conversation.

2022-2023 SSF Book Club The Society of Self Fellows Board of Governors is excited to kick off the 2022-2023 SSF Book Club. This program aims to provide the Society with engaging conversation and learning around the shared experience of one book and author. However, if you are not an active social reader, the book has been selected to include additional components such as a podcast.

The 2022-2023 Book Club book is The Voltage Effect by John A. List. If you would like to receive a free copy of the book, please email SGF@ku.edu by Wednesday, August 3 with a confirmation of your most current mailing address. Stay tuned for additional engagement.

SOCIETY OF SELF FELLOWS NEWSLETTER • SUMMER 2022

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2022 SYMPOSIUM

On April 8, as part of the annual SGF Symposium, the Society of Self Fellows Board of Governors held their annual meeting. The Governors meet regularly throughout the year, but this is the only in-person meeting. The agenda included reviewing the previous year and setting goals for the upcoming year. The Governors aim to focus on more structured engagement opportunities, planning a virtual poster session, organizing a book club, starting a LinkedIn group, and exploring conference connections for next year.

The 2022 SGF Symposium Lecture on April 8 featured Bina Venkataraman, journalist, science policy expert, author, and futurist. Thank you to all who attended her lecture, “Climate Change and Thinking Ahead.”

That evening the 2018-2022 Fellows were celebrated and welcomed into the Society of Self Fellows. These Fellows are featured on the following page.

Save the date for next year’s Symposium: April 21 & 22, 2023 PAGE 5

2018-2022 FELLOWS Meet the newest members of the Society of Self Fellows.

Nadia Alissa is pursuing a Ph.D. in cancer biology at the University of Kansas Medical Center. Alissa received a B.Sc. (2014) in medical laboratory sciences and a M.Sc. (2016) in clinical microbiology and immunology from Jordan University of Science and Technology (JUST).

Alissa is interested in studying the molecular mechanisms that control the skeletal muscle wasting that is often associated with breast cancer progression. Mentor: Nikki Cheng, Associate Professor, Pathology & Laboratory Medicine Christine Chan is pursuing a Ph.D. in geology, with an emphasis in geochronology and isotope geochemistry. She received a B.S. (2010) in geology from the University of Puget Sound and a M.S. (2013) in geology from Oregon State University. Chan’s Ph.D. research focuses on developing a new U‑230Th‑Pb zircon dating technique that will improve our understanding of magma storage timescales in active volcanoes.

Mentor: Noah McLean, Associate Professor, Geology Devon DeRaad is pursuing a Ph.D. in ecology and evolutionary biology. He graduated cum laude with a B.A. (2017) in biology from Occidental College in Los Angeles, CA. At Occidental, DeRaad was a first-team All-American baseball player, a residential assistant, and undergraduate researcher in the Moore Laboratory of Zoology. At KU, DeRaad has developed a dissertation that uses the iconic Scrub-Jays of Mexico and the western U.S. as a model system for investigating the genetic basis of adaptive divergence, with broad implications for understanding the evolutionary forces maintaining the abundant diversity of life on earth. Mentor: Robert Moyle, Professor, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Chris Tacca is pursuing a Ph.D. in bioengineering.

He received a B.S. (2018) in biomedical engineering from Bucknell University in Lewisburg, PA. Tacca is studying how virtual reality can be used to support therapy. Mentor: Elizabeth Friis, Professor, Mechanical Engineering Kristina Tirol-Carmody is pursuing a Ph.D. in organizational behavior and human resources. A proud Lawrence, KS native, she earned her B.S. (2015) in supply chain management and B.A. (2015) in Spanish from the University of Kansas, graduating summa cum laude in both areas. Tirol-Carmody conducts research on workplace fit and misfit, diversity, and employee cognition. Mentor: Niki den Nieuwenboer, Associate Professor, Business Alexander Wilson is pursuing a Ph.D. in mechanical engineering. Wilson received a B.S. (2018) in mechanical engineering from the University of Kansas. Mentor: Carl Luchies, Associate Professor, Mechanical Engineering Michael Wrigley is pursuing a Ph.D. in bioanalytical chemistry. He received a B.S. (2016) in chemistry, with a minor in economics, from the College of Charleston in South Carolina and served 11 years in the U.S. Navy. His current research focuses on defining a reference material system for use with hydrogen-deuterium exchange mass spectrometry.

Mentor: David Weis, Professor, Chemistry Grace Young is pursuing a Ph.D. in computer science. She received a BS (2018) in mathematics and statistics from Grand Valley State University in Allendale, MI, and an MA (2021) in mathematics from the University of Kansas. Her current research focuses on quantum algorithms. Specifically, she aims to solve the Hidden Subgroup Problem for a class of the dihedral groups. Mentor: Matthew Moore, Assistant Professor, Electrical Engineering and Computer Science

SOCIETY OF SELF FELLOWS NEWSLETTER • SUMMER 2022

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SUPPORT CURRENT FELLOWS Opportunities for Current Fellows As SGF looks for new opportunities to support the current Fellows, we look to the Society for input on opportunities to provide. If you have input on the following questions, please email SGF@ku.edu.

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What certifications and credentials are you looking for in new hires? What curriculum would make the Fellows even more marketable as they enter their careers?

What conferences are you planning to attend next year which might also benefit the Fellows?

2023-2027 SGF Cohort Recruitment and Selection

FALL

JANUARY

FEBRUARY

RECRUITMENT

NOMINATIONS

FACULTY/STAFF Recruiting for prospective Ph.D. students and SGF-eligible applicants

Continued application and acceptance to Ph.D. programs.

MID-FEBRUARY Board of Trustees make interview decisions

JANUARY 25 Nominations are due at noon to SGF

FEBRUARY 20-24 Interviews (Strong Hall)

STUDENT Application and acceptance into Ph.D. program

INTERVIEWS

APRIL

MARCH SELECTION MID-MARCH Board of Trustees make offer decisions

ACCEPTANCE DEADLINE APRIL 15 National deadline for graduate school acceptance

Recruitment for the next cohort of Self Graduate Fellows has begun. We recognize that Society of Self Fellows work in a variety of sectors (academia, industry, government, and more) throughout the country; as such, you may interact with prospective graduate students who are still searching for where to pursue their Ph.D. We invite you to actively share your knowledge of the Self Graduate Fellowship and the University of Kansas. In support of this invitation, we can send you Self Graduate Fellowship brochures and giveaway items (pens, magnets, t-shirts) to help distribute in these interactions. Let us know of your interest in distributing SGF materials by emailing SGF@ku.edu.

Email SGF@KU.edu to request a packet of handouts and recruitment materials.

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