Research Mentor News, January 2019

Deadline for Annual Research Symposium Abstracts Fast Approaching

The fourth and final CSULB BUILD Annual Research Symposium will be held on March 1, 2019. This is your last opportunity to participate in this event that provides a unique opportunity for individuals to collaborate, share research findings, and promote health equity and scientific leadership with an emphasis on diversity. The abstract submission deadline is January 25, 2019.

You are encouraged to present your research in the form of an oral presentation and/or a health-related research demonstration. In addition, encourage your BUILD mentees to submit abstracts for poster presentations about health disparities, behavioral and/or biomedical, or social, cultural, and environmental effects on health-related research, as well.

Learn more here.


Developing a Science Identity at ABRCMS

During the second week of November 2018, CSULB BUILD trainees had the opportunity to attend the 18th Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Scientists (ABRCMS) in Indianapolis, Ind. For many of them, this was their first professional conference, as well as their first opportunity to present their research at this level.

Before the SURGE program, which is the first phase of the Scholars program for new trainees, Hannah Rattu Mandias had limited experience with research. She said that ABRCMS was the perfect environment for undergraduate students who had never presented before. “The conference provided poster presentation practice rooms, which helped me a lot in terms of practicing effectively beforehand,” she said.

Continue reading…


BUILD Offices and Center Moving to New Building

The BUILD Center and staff offices will be moving into the new Student Success Center on January 14, 2019. We will be located on the second floor near the front of the building. After the dust settles, we’d love to have you stop by and see our new digs!

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BUILD Center in the new Student Success Center


Expanded BUILD Fellows Program is looking for Students

Do you have Juniors on your research team who are not in a CSULB research program? Please tell them about the BUILD Fellows program. We are looking for undergraduate students interested in pursuing a Ph.D. from the Colleges of Engineering, Health and Human Services, Liberal Arts or Natural Sciences and Math. They must have one full year left at CSULB starting in June 2019 and already be on a research team to join our larger cohort of BUILD Fellows this summer. Applications have opened and the deadline is March 1, 2019, so now is the time to apply. BUILD Fellows Application can be found here.


Health and Tech Event

Each spring, the Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (IIE) at California State University Long Beach engages the entire campus in a free technology event designed to prepare students to live and work in an increasingly technology-driven world. This year’s focus is Health and Tech—an interactive introduction to innovations in health and technology. IIE defines health broadly to include physical, mental, and relational health. Attendees will participate in hands-on exploration where they wear, touch, and fully immerse themselves in health and tech experiences including but not limited to biofeedback sensors, accelerometers, and virtual reality. Other engagements include panels, speed informational interviews with experts and employers in the field, food, and a competitive ideathon to practice creative problem solving within the realm of health and tech.

All students are welcome, however, BUILD students are encouraged to attend the event after the BUILD Research Symposium on March 1, 2019, as well as on Saturday, March 2, 2019. This is an excellent opportunity to network with health technology experts and lend their expertise to the ideathon competition. Health and Tech will be held in the Design building’s Duncan Anderson Gallery and nearby classrooms. For more information, visit the event’s webpage or email Dr. Ebony Utley.


GMs of the month – December

Graduate Mentors (GMs) are an important part of the CSULB BUILD program, providing near-peer support to our trainees. The GMs for December were Sagar Pande and Keyanay “Key” Colvin. You can learn more about them here. This month’s spotlighted GMs will be announced mid-month and included in next month’s newsletter.


Looking for New Mentees? Let Us Spotlight Your Work!

Increasing your visibility to the CSULB BUILD community can help you not only recruit new mentees but also fellow mentors for potential collaborations. Please take a moment to download the survey (Word File) and return it to the Digital Media and Communications Specialist. Your spotlight can be posted in the BUILD Center, in this newsletter and on social media. You can choose where your spotlight can be shared.

You are doing wonderful research and we’d like to highlight that to the BUILD community and beyond. So turn in your spotlight survey today!


Mentor Supply Funds for BUILD Year 5

Please contact Marie Reed for instructions on spending your “Mentor Supply Funds” for Year 5.

Please keep the following in mind:

  1. You will have until Feb. 28, 2019, to spend out 50% of your funds.  You will have until May 31, 2019, to spend out the remaining funds.  These funds cannot be carried over.
  2. You are required to complete the ATI/E&IT checklist and have it approved by the Purchasing Department PRIOR to the purchase of electronics and software. You can download a PDF of the form here. The completed form should be sent directly to Purchasing@csulb.edu for approval.
  3. Please refer to your mentor newsletters for announcements, updates, and purchasing guidelines.

CSULB BUILD in Pictures – Around the World Mingle Jingle

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Around the World Mingle Jingle

CSULB BUILD’s Facebook and Instagram accounts are filled with pictures of our Associates, Scholars, and Fellows. Each month we’ll highlight a collection here.

  • Around the World Mingle Jingle – For December’s Faculty Mentor Mixer, BUILD mentors, graduate mentors and staff gathered in the BUILD Center to celebrate the season with foods from around the world. The event was held Dec. 11, 2018, from noon to 2 pm, and featured Vietnamese, Greek, Mexican and Indian cuisine.

Acknowledging BUILD in Your Presentations/Publications

Please remember to acknowledge the funding from National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under Award Numbers UL1GM118979, TL4GM118980, and RL5GM118978 on work supported by BUILD, including support from BUILD student trainees, mentor appreciation fund, BUILD research and equipment grants. When you review your mentees’ posters, also check to make sure they have included the correct grand numbers. For a sample acknowledgment statement, NIH resources and policy, please visit the “Acknowledging BUILD in Your Publications” page on our website. It can be found under Mentors > Current Mentors.

Be Prepared

If you'd like to know what is coming up in the BUILD Learning Community for your mentee, download the current syllabus. This will give you a heads up on what events your mentee is required to attend and therefore will not be available to work in your lab at that time. This page will be updated each semester with the new syllabi.

Communicating with BUILD

We invite your news about your BUILD Trainee and any questions, comments, concerns, or suggestions about BUILD. If you have any of these, in relation to being a BUILD Research Mentor, please contact us at BUILD.mentors@csulb.edu. If you have any concerns about your BUILD Trainee, please contact the Student Training Core Director at Jesse.Dillon@csulb.edu.

Be sure to keep an eye out for the January newsletter.