At Clovis Community College we provide opportunities for our students to engage in undergraduate research. Some research experiences are embedded within credit courses while others are volunteer opportunities to analyze data collected in courses. Our First Annual Research Symposium on May 6th, 2022 was supported by our Title V PODER grant and an NSF-funded pilot that implements a course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) in genomics and embedding a research project within the first semester of our biology for majors course, Biol-11A.
Students that participate in the symposium receive several perks that are important for the development of their STEM identity and sense of belonging:
Any student at Clovis Community College can sign up for the Research Symposium.
Ask your faculty if they are participating as a mentor in the next symposium or contact Rosa Alcazar.
“Why you should do undergraduate research ASAP!”
| Name | Subject | Contact Email |
|---|---|---|
| Dr. Shawn Sano-Jones | Chemistry | Shawn.fleming@cloviscollege.edu |
| Dr. David Cao | Chemistry | David.cao@cloviscollege.edu |
| Dr. Stephanie Coffman | Biology | Stephanie.coffman@cloviscollege.edu |
| Dr. Rosa Alcazar | Biology | Rosa.alcazar@cloviscollege.edu |
| Dr. Malachi Whitford | Environmental Science | Malachi.whitford@cloviscollege.edu |
Our faculty participants gave a brief overview of their reasons for wanting to be involved in the STEM Research Symposium.
Allowing students an opportunity to work outside of the classroom in a research setting is an awarding experience for both the students and the mentors. I receive personal satisfaction in the knowledge that I helped at least one student a step closer to successfully completing their goals in STEM. Students gain confidence, knowledge, and experience in group projects that they might not have had before. Here at Clovis Community College, I am grateful for the support and encouragement to work with students, and look forward to future projects.
Fundamentally, I wanted to participate as a research mentor to show students how fascinating science is, and how fun it can be to design and run experiments to answer any scientific question one might have. Doing research shows students how science can be connected to the world around them and how it can be used to make the world a better place. I began doing undergraduate research as a freshman in college, and wanted to show others they can do it too.
As much fun as we might have learning science, the real fun is in doing the science. By having authentic research experiences in class we can bridge the two worlds and reach students that may not have thought about being a scientist before. Having events like this symposium builds community and celebrates the diverse population we have at Clovis Community College.
I wish I had had access to a research experience when I was a student at Pasadena City College. Authentic research experiences are fundamental for developing scientific critical thinking and I believe a key to STEM persistence.
Research tends to tie education and classroom experiences to real-life examples. My first research experience clarified for me what it means to be a scientist and provided me with the motivation needed to succeed in all my classes. By participating in the Clovis Community College symposium, I am hoping to provide CCC students with an opportunity to engage with the scientific process and to better understand how the classroom relates to real-world science.
On Friday, May 6th, 2022, a community of scientists, researchers, instructors, and proud parents came together at the 1st Annual Clovis Community College Research Symposium which was held inside the lobby of AC1.
