Name: Paul Ha-Yeon Cheong

Area of study / position title: Computational Chemistry / Vicki and Patrick F. Stone Scholar Assistant Professor of Chemistry

Why chemistry? (What about it initially interested you, etc.): Because our discoveries change lives. Our materials send you to the moon and back, and one day they will send you to the stars. We conquer disease and master biology through chemistry. One day you will return to health again because of what we have labored so long and hard to achieve. From polio to cancer to all the diseases we acquire during our lifetime spent on this planet and this ecosystem, we are the ones who ultimately protect our loved ones. We are humanity’s answer and hope to the energy challenge, global warming, and preserving this green earth for posterity. And also because my mentors and teachers have shown me that we can achieve all that without losing our humanity but by cherishing it, nurturing it. One may very well ask why chemistry, but for me the question has always been why not chemistry?

Research focus (in non-science terms) or basic job duties?: I have two key aspects of my job. I see my primary job function as a friend, mentor and teacher to our research group and those around me. My goal is for their time in our research group and in my company to be transformative and wholesome: discovering who they really are, becoming professionally successful, and coming into one’s own. The second aspect is all my official responsibilities, which happens to magically complement the first aspect: publishing papers, teaching courses, mentoring students, writing grants, etc.

One thing that you truly love about your job?: I love that I get to make a positive impact in this world, one individual at a time. Plus, I get to work with (and occasionally mentor and train) some of the most amazing minds and wonderful individuals on the face of the planet today.

One interesting/strange factoid about yourself: I got my name “Paul” from a middle school foreign language teacher. He was handing back exams and when he got to mine, he couldn’t pronounce “Ha-Yeon”. After a couple of moments of what appeared like a gagging reflex trying to pronounce my name in his native tongue, he proclaimed that I was to be dubbed “Paul” from then on. True story. Love the name.

Attached you will find a booklet and poster announcing the Nuclear Nonproliferation International Safeguards Graduate Fellowship Program (NNIS) for the 2015-2016 Award cycle.

This program is designed to meet the needs of the Department of Energy’s (DOE) National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) for appropriately trained personnel in research and development in areas pertinent to Nuclear Nonproliferation and International Safeguards (NNIS).  Increasing costs for graduate education and a high demand for nuclear-related scientists and engineers with a bachelor’s degree have had a negative impact on the number of well-qualified students seeking advanced degrees in nuclear technologies and sciences.  This problem has been particularly acute in programs in nuclear materials, engineering, nuclear science and engineering, radiochemistry and health physics, which has resulted in the closure of several programs and declining graduate school enrollments over the past two decades. This fellowship seeks to build collaboration between the leading nuclear technology programs and the schools studying the policy aspects of nuclear nonproliferation. The primary emphasis of this fellowship is to produce doctoral graduates who are familiar with both the technical and policy aspects of nonproliferation and international safeguards.

We hope you will print and prominently display the attached poster. Please forward the attached booklet to anyone interested and encourage students to apply for this program.  This program description and all electronic application materials can be found on www.scuref.org.

NNIS Poster 2015

NNIS 2015 Booklet

The University Honors College is now accepting faculty applications to the DeLoach Work Scholarship program for winter and spring terms, 2015. The DeLoach program enables OSU faculty members to support undergraduates working at tasks that enhance students’ academic training by providing a significant learning experience. Strong preference will be given to pro-posals that involve cooperative student-faculty research and clearly relate to the instructional, outreach, or diversity goals of the university.

  • Previously funded projects have included:
  • Developing a physical replica of a bat sonar system and testing implementation as a distance sensor for robots
  • Design improvements in waste treatment methods
  • Assessing the place of exercise education in medical school curriculums
  • Research in the attachment styles, sociability, and problem-solving behavior of pet dogs
  • Reviewing the historical impact of political context on U.S. Supreme Court decisions
  • The development of new media techniques to assist in recruitment of women and minorities into engineering fields

Tenured/tenure-track and senior instructor rank faculty from all colleges are eligible to apply. Other faculty who would like to apply should contact the UHC. All Honors College students are eligible to participate. Awarded funds will be made available to faculty supervisors as payroll for nominated students at a rate of $10/hour. Maximum awards are $1,000 for one- or two-term projects. Nominated students must be eligible to receive payroll as student employees through the term of the award. Funds will be paid through a new or previously existing position in the faculty supervisor’s home unit. In past cycles, review has been high-ly competitive, with fewer than 50% of applications receiving funding.
To apply, faculty supervisors must submit a proposal including the following to honors.college@oregonstate.edu by Friday, November 7, 2014 at 5:00 pm:

A one-page statement from the faculty supervisor and endorsed by the unit head, describing the proposed project; how it will support both the student’s training and the faculty member’s research; and its relevance to the university’s instruc-tional, outreach, and/or diversity goals

A one-page statement from the student(s) describing the importance of the proposed project in their education and train-ing and any relevant previous experiences or preparation

The proposed budget and duration of the project and a contact to assist in establishment of student positions
Additional details are available at http://honors.oregonstate.edu/deloach-work-scholarship.
Some DeLoach proposals may be supported in whole or in part by the Chambers Environmental Research Fund. Established in 1977 in memory of Richard Chambers, a pioneer in Oregon environmental protection who developed some of the earliest anti-litter legislation, this fund is intended to foster projects or research in applied environmental enhancement and/or conser-vation involving the preservation or betterment of Oregon’s wilderness, natural resources, or quality of life.
The DeLoach Work Scholarship was created through the generosity of Dr. and Mrs. Daniel Barton DeLoach. Dr. DeLoach was an Oregon State faculty member from 1935 to 1949.

ECampus Coordinator Kim Thackray and Dr. Jeff Gautschi at the UC Davis Pre-Medical and Pre-Health Professions National Conference
ECampus Coordinator Kim Thackray and Dr. Jeff Gautschi at the UC Davis Pre-Medical and Pre-Health Professions National Conference

Since Chemistry is The Central Science, students in a variety of majors need to take at least one class in Chemistry. This is especially true in the health professions—everyone from lab technicians to nurses to physical therapists to doctors—all need to have an understanding of chemistry. That is why Dr. Jeff Gautschi (OSU Cascades and Ecampus instructor) and Kim Thackray (Chemistry Ecampus Coordinator) had a booth at the UC Davis Pre-Medical and Pre-Health Professions National Conference in early October.

At this conference, they had the opportunity to speak with many different types of students that could benefit from taking OSU Chemistry online—

-High school students who might want to begin their college coursework in Chemistry while still in high school.
-College students in California who may be having trouble getting in to the Chemistry classes they need in order to advance in their major.
-Post-bac students looking toward professional school—Physical Therapy, Physician Assistant, Medical school, etc.—who need chemistry as a prerequisite for their application.
-Pre-health advisors and advisors from community colleges.

The wide range of online Chemistry classes offered by Oregon State University can meet the needs of all these students and more; check out what we are offering this term!

The Research Office Incentive Programs is accepting applications for the GRF Fall 2014 solicitation. The intent of the GRF program is to enable faculty to carry out scholarly, creative work that should lead to the pursuit of other funding sources, or promote the development of scholarly activities. Program description and application: http://oregonstate.edu/research/incentive/grf. Information: Debbie Delmore at debbie.delmore@oregonstate.edu. Deadline for submission: Oct. 20.

The Research Office is accepting applications for the Undergraduate Research, Innovation, Scholarship and Creativity (URISC) program for Winter and/or Spring terms 2014-15. This program supports undergraduate research activities from all academic disciplines within the university. NOTE: the program description and application have been revised: http://oregonstate.edu/research/incentive/urisc. Information: Debbie Delmore at debbie.delmore@oregonstate.edu. Deadline: Nov. 3.

Name: Kim Thackray

Area of study / position title: Chemistry Ecampus Coordinator

Why chemistry? (What about it initially interested you, etc.) – Tell me a funny story

I have always loved Chemistry (I have a rusty undergraduate degree in Chemical Engineering), so was thrilled to be able to join the Chemistry department staff. I understand what it is like to have acid holes in the front of all your jeans.

Research focus (in non-science terms) or basic job duties?

My main duties are—

* supporting the Ecampus faculty

* collecting and analyzing data to show the effectiveness of our program

* reviewing transcripts and managing override requests for Ecampus students

* working to grow our online program through marketing and outreach

 

One thing that you truly love about your job?

Our online students come from all over the world, and take our classes for a million different reasons. One thing I really love is talking with a potential student who doesn’t really know what they want, and helping them to understand our program and find a class that meets their needs. Turning a “potential student” into an “OSU student” gives me a thrill!

One interesting/strange factoid about yourself.

I lived in Barcelona for 4 years when my children were small.

Do you know someone who’s a hero here at OSU because of the extra effort that they put forth or the extra moment they take to make your day pleasant?  Here’s a great way to celebrate them.  Professional Faculty Leadership Association is always seeking nominations for “Our Heroes” awards.  Neither you or the nominated individual need to be members.   Build up your karma bank by celebrating the heroes that help us every day.