This week …
1) ACTIVITIES
2) GTA AWARD NOMINATIONS
3) PRE-HEALTH NEWS from Paul Crosby …
4) INTERNSHIPS/OPPORTUNITIES
5) AWARDS AND SCHOLARSHIPS
1) ACTIVITIES Tuesday, November 27 – Pre-Med Club meeting, 7:00 pm, first floor conference room, Watkins (see information in #3 Pre-Health News below.
2) GTA AWARD NOMINATIONS
Is your BIOLOGY TA one of the best TA’s ever? Then give them a pat on the back with a
nomination for a TA award!! Nomination forms can be downloaded from: http://www.kuub.ku.edu/ “Awards and Scholarships”, or are available from the Biology Office, 2045 Haworth, or BTRC, 1004 Haworth. Return the form to Jan Elder (2045 Haworth).
3) PRE-HEALTH NEWS from Paul Crosby …
Premedical Club Meeting, Tuesday, November 27, and T-Shirt Announcement. We have two huge events coming up at the next Pre-Med Club meeting! First off, it will be November 27 (the Tuesday after Thanksgiving) at 7:00 pm. It will be in the same room as the last meeting, the first floor conference room in Watkins. We will have a panel of all sorts of Doctors. We will be able to ask them any and all questions about almost anything! It should be really fun and interesting. All of the Doctors that are coming are great people, and really know their stuff!
The second item is T-SHIRTS!! Kaplan is giving away free t-shirts this year! Thank Marianne, she has done a great job! We would like to get everyone's sizes, so if you could e-mail Marianne (marianne.hovgaard@kaplan.com) with your name and shirt size, that would be wonderful. We need to get a better count of how many shirts to get. Thank you all, and have a great week! -- The Pre-Med Club officers. 4) INTERNSHIPS/OPPORTUNITIES
Information on these and other internships can be found in the Internship/Opportunity book in the Biology Office, 2045 Haworth, and in BTRC, 1004 Haworth.
Villers Fellowship--Philippe Villers is the co-founder of Families USA. In 1981, he and his wife founded the organization (initially called The Villers Foundation). He has served as its President and as a member of the Board of Directors since the inception of Families USA. He is deeply committed to the organization’s mission of achieving guaranteed access to high-quality, affordable health care for all Americans. Description: The Villers Fellow works as a full-time policy analyst in Families USA’s Health Policy Department. Designed to provide the fellow with a national perspective on health care justice work, the fellowship will be based in the Families USA office in Washington, D.C. and will afford the fellow the opportunity to learn about a range of health care justice issues. The Villers Fellow’s primary responsibilities involve conducting primary and secondary research on a range of health care issues, including Medicaid, Medicare, the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), prescription drugs, and the private insurance market, as well as writing and contributing to publications that are relevant to current health policy debates. The fellowship will last one year, from August 2008 through July 2009, and fellows will receive a compensatory package that includes an annual stipend of approximately $35,000 and excellent health care benefits. One Villers Fellow is selected each year. Qualifications/Procedures: Candidates seeking consideration for the Villers Fellowship must demonstrate a commitment to social and health care justice work following their year of hands-on experience as a fellow. Additionally, in order to further the development of future leaders, Villers Fellows must commit to mentoring at least one person at some point over the course of their careers. While there is no bias in favor of any specific academic discipline, a college degree is preferred. There is no minimum GPA to qualify for consideration. Please follow the application directions carefully. To apply for the Villers Fellowship for Health Care Justice, candidates must submit the following: What you must submit: a completed application form; a response to one essay topic; and a resume. What others must submit on your behalf: an official copy of your most recent college or graduate school transcript (not required for applicants who have not been in school since January 2005) and three letters of recommendation from academic, professional, and/or other references who can attest to your community involvement. Please visit http://www.familiesusa.org/about/the-villers-fellowship-how-to-apply.html to download application forms. Desired Class Level(s): Senior, Education Teaching Certification, Graduate Student, Alumnus. Salary Level: approximately $35,000. Send your completed application form, attachments, and essay by mail to: Families USA, Villers Fellowship, 1201 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 1100, Washington, DC 20005 or e-mail them to villersfellowship@familiesusa.org. Applications accepted until: January 15, 2008. (From Paul Crosby’s Premedical News, November 12, 2007.) Wellstone Fellowship--Paul Wellstone was a professor of political science at Carleton College for 21 years before being elected in 1990 to the first of two terms in the United States Senate. Senator Wellstone strongly believed that the purpose of holding public office was to serve others, and he lived his convictions. His time in the Senate was distinguished by his devotion to liberal causes, including a strong commitment to the achievement of universal health care for all Americans. Senator Wellstone served on the Senate’s Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, where he authored successful legislation on health care issues. On October 25, 2002, his mission was cut short when he died in a plane crash. However, his death stimulated interest in his progressive political vision, and his life inspired others to act in the interest of the common good. Description: The Wellstone Fellow plays an integral role in the work of Families USA’s Minority Health Initiatives Department. The Wellstone Fellow’s primary responsibilities include assisting in the organization of training for community leaders and journalists; drafting policy briefs, fact sheets, and other publications; and developing content for the minority health web pages and monthly newsletter. During the year, the Wellstone Fellow will learn about Medicare, Medicaid, efforts to achieve universal coverage, minority health, and other important health policy issues. Specifically, the fellow will learn how these issues play a role in reducing racial and ethnic health disparities and improving the health of communities of color. At the same time, the Wellstone Fellow will learn about conducting health care campaigns through communication and collaboration with our network of state grassroots advocates and organizations. The fellowship will last one year, from August 2008 through July 2009, and fellows will receive a compensatory package that includes an annual stipend of approximately $35,000 and excellent health care benefits. One fellow is selected each year. Qualifications/Procedures: The Wellstone Fellowship is designed to increase the number of low-income, black/African American, Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, and Native American social justice leaders. Candidates seeking consideration for the Wellstone Fellowship must demonstrate an interest in health care policy as a tool for reducing racial and ethnic health disparities. Applicants should also demonstrate a commitment to contributing to social justice work following their year of hands-on experience as a fellow. While there is no bias in favor of any specific academic discipline, a college degree is preferred. There is no minimum GPA to qualify for consideration. Please follow the application directions carefully. To apply for the Wellstone Fellowship for Social Justice, candidates must submit the following. What you must submit: a completed application form, a response to one essay topic, and a resume. What others must submit on your behalf: an official copy of your most recent college or graduate school transcript (not required for applicants who have not been enrolled in a degree program since January 2005) and three letters of recommendation from academic, professional, and/or other references who can attest to your community involvement. Faxed, late, or incomplete applications will not be considered. All materials, with the exception of letters of recommendation and the official transcript, should be sent together. An official copy of your transcript should be mailed directly from the college/university. Letters of recommendation should be mailed by the references themselves. Please attach application materials with paper clips, not staples. Please do not submit any additional material, as it will not be reviewed. Application materials will not be returned to the applicant. The Wellstone Fellow will be chosen based upon the merits of the application, including relevant experience and written communication skills. Finalists for the fellowship will be contacted for an interview. The final decision will be made some time in April 2008. Please visit http://familiesusa.org/about/wellstone-fellowship-apply.html to download application forms. Desired Class Level(s): Senior, Education Teaching Certification, Graduate Student, Alumnus. Salary Level: approximately $35,000. Send your completed application form, attachments, and essay by mail to: Families USA, Wellstone Fellowship, 1201 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 1100, Washington, DC 20005 or e-mail them to wellstonefellowship@familiesusa.org. Applications accepted until: January 15, 2008. (From Paul Crosby’s Premedical News, November 12, 2007.)
Dialysis Clinic Inc. Collegiate Medical Summer Internship Program--Dialysis Clinic Inc. is sponsoring a summer internship for pre-medical students in the clinical area of organ transplantation. The internship will begin approximately June 1, 2008. Though the program officially ends August 8, 2008, depending on the transplant center and the intern’s schedule, the student may extend their stay. Last year, the participating transplant centers were located in Nashville, TN, Gainesville, FL, Houston, TX, Johnson City, TN, Austin, TX, Toledo, OH, San Antonio, TX, Knoxville, TN, Durham, NC, Omaha, NE, Memphis, TN as well as Sacramento, CA. Students attending colleges or universities in these cities will not be placed in the same city. The internship includes shadowing physicians on rounds in the hospital, observing and assisting in an outpatient/clinic facility, and observing transplant and transplant-related surgical operations. In addition, students will visit the local Organ Procurement Organization (OPO), HLA lab, as well as observe organ procurement processes. Participants may also do data collection for the transplant service and perhaps have a chance to work on a clinical research project. Selected students for the program will participate as a counselor in a weeklong camp for dialysis and post-transplant children. The week of camp is May 31st- June 7th and is located in Nashville, TN. The purpose of this internship is to expose the student to the hospital and outpatient environments, as well as specific areas of medicine such as surgery and clinical research. These experiences are designed to help students decide whether or not to pursue a career in medicine. There is a preference for students having completed his/her junior year and for those with a serious interest in medicine. Housing, if needed will be provided by the sponsoring program. A stipend will also be provided for each selected student. Financial aid is available for those with need. Students requesting financial aid must present a written explanation of their needs, as well as the specific designation of the requested funds. Students may also arrange to receive college credit for this program. To request an application* or for questions regarding the internship program, please contact: Mark Schwartz(615) 342-0445, mark.schwartz@dciinc.org. Deadline for received applications is February 29, 2008. Acceptance notification will be made after March 15, 2008. (Thanks to Paul Crosby for this announcement.) [*Send an e-mail to jelder@ku.edu and I will send you an electronic copy.]
5) AWARDS AND SCHOLARSHIPS
Applications for the 2008 K-INBRE Undergraduate Scholarship Program are now being accepted. The K-INBRE program is a federally funded program that provides financial support to enable undergraduate science majors to gain intensive experience in biomedical related research. Six scholarships are competitively awarded each year. Scholarships will provide up to $1,000 for the Spring 2008 semester and $3,700 for Summer 2008. Detailed information about the program and the application packet can be found online at http://www.kinbre.ku.edu/. Applications are now being accepted at 2040 Haworth Hall and will be accepted through 5:00 pm Monday, December 3, 2007. For more information, please contact either Dr. Jim Orr (jorr@ku.edu) or Emily Huckabay at emilych@ku.edu / 864-7316.
The Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology has received funding from the Student Senate to provide undergraduate students an opportunity to conduct hands-on research with faculty in the Department during the Spring 2008 semester. A stipend will be paid to each student in the program (past awards have ranged around $1,000) and no prior research experience is necessary. This program is designed to provide independent research experience guided by faculty mentors. Important facilities for research in the department include the Natural History Museum and Biodiversity Research Center, which houses world-class systematic collections, and the Kansas Field Station and Ecological Reserves, which include terrestrial and aquatic experimental areas just outside Lawrence. Depending upon the project, students may also have the opportunity to use specialized laboratory equipment and state-of-the-art computer software. Departmental Information: The Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology includes more than 40 regular faculty and numerous affiliate faculty, divided into four programs: Ecology & Population Biology, Entomology, Plant Biology, and Systematics, Biodiversity & Macroevolution. The research interests of the faculty are very diverse, so please see the departmental web page to find an area of research that interests you: http://www.ku.edu/-eeb. Eligibility: All currently enrolled KU undergraduate students are eligible, although preference will be given to biology majors and those in related fields. Applicants must be able to demonstrate financial need (see further information on the application form). Applications are attached to the department web page: http://www.ku.edu/-eeb/ and are also available in the EEB Departmental office (2041 Haworth) and in the Biology office (2045 Haworth). Review of applications will begin November 28, 2007!
Jan
Jan Elder
Administrative Assistant
Undergraduate Biology
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