Dear friends;
You may recall that Mary Ann Leung (Sustainable Horizons) and I served as SC14 Broader Engagement (SC-BE) program chair and deputy chair, respectively. Since we worked so well together, we plan to continue our efforts to promote a more diverse community at many more science, technology, engineering, and mathematics conferences in the future.
For starters, the National Science Foundation is supporting a Sustainable Horizons workshop for past SC-BE participants to help them prepare successful SC15 technical poster submissions. Anyone who has attended SC through the BE program is encouraged to apply by Jan.30.
2014 WeFold participants with Dr. Silvia Crivelli (front, center)
The National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory sponsored the first WeFold camp last summer under the direction of SC-BE program committee member Silvia Crivelli (LBNL). The immersive experience acquainted ten undergraduate scholars from diverse backgrounds with molecular modeling and protein folding skills so they could begin to explore ways to unlock the mysteries of a variety of diseases, like Alzheimer’s and Cancer. They submitted a proposal to present their research at the March 14-18, 2015 Society of Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) Computational Science and Engineering Conference in Salt Lake City, Utah—and it was accepted! We’ve decided to see if we can generate funds to support many more, in addition to the WeFold scholars. Applications will be accepted through Jan. 23, 2015.
There are a number of ways you can help! Your tax-deductible cash donation will help cover their travel expenses. You can also pledge a monthly contribution that will sustain WeFold in the future. Corporate sponsorships are also welcome.
If you’d like to donate a flight, write to info@stem-trek.org and let us know if your donation is anonymous, or if we can publicize your generosity. We will introduce you to the scholar and you will arrange the flight on their behalf—nothing is exchanged with STEM-Trek or Sustainable Horizons. You’ll find WeFold student biographies on the Sustainable Horizons site. If you plan to attend the SIAM conference, and if you act quickly, it’s possible to serve as a conference mentor for the scholar you support.
As always, thank you for your continued interest and enthusiasm.
Sincerely,
Elizabeth Leake
STEM-Trek Nonprofit
