Undergraduate Research Opportunities Center
N e w s l e t t e r | N o v e m b e r 2 0 2 0
Thankful for our UROC Community
The month of November encourages us all to embrace the power of gratitude. Helping students achieve academic success and scholarship truly requires the support of CSUMB Faculty and Staff, and some of our Scholars and Researchers want to say thank you! Thank you UROC Mentors for everything you do!
Dr. Vivian Waldrup Patterson
Teaching Learning & Assessment

Thank you for your guidance. I am grateful to have you as my mentor because with your help, this research is fun and exciting!

Arlene Diazleal, Koret Scholar
Psychology
Dr. Corey Garza
Department of Marine Science

I would like to give thanks to my mentor for being patient with me and showing me how drones are starting to have an impact on the science field. I appreciate your Star Wars references and your guidance throughout my research experience. Thank you.

Maria Rocha, McNair Scholar
Marine Science
Dr. Christine Valdez
Psychology Department

I want to sincerely thank you for your willingness to embrace me, and allowing me to contribute to your lab. I look forward to working closely with you, and learning from you in Advanced Research Methods next semester.

Paul Dommert, Koret Scholar
Psychology
Melissa Palmisciano
Moss Landing Marine Labs

I would like to thank Melissa for always being understanding and helpful. She has been the best advisor I could have possibly asked for. She has helped me with everything from my own projects to the process of grad school and even life. She has not only given me confidence but an idea of how anyone in a mentorship role should treat someone. Thank you for everything.

Maxwell Rudelic, UROC Researcher
Marine Science
Thank you to all our UROC Mentors!!
  • Joshua Gross
  • Arlene Haffa
  • Parisa Nejad
  • Zurine De Miguel
  • Peri Shereen
  • Jennifer Duggan
  • Lipika Deka
  • JP Dundore-Arias
  • Christy Wyckoff
  • Sherry Palacios
  • Victoria Derr
  • Brian Corpening
  • Jennifer Lovell
  • Jenny Lin
  • Quentin Sedlacek
  • Heather Haeger
  • Dennis Kombe
  • Corin Slown
  • Sam Robinson
  • Aparna Sreenivasan
  • Steve Moore
  • David Minovitz
  • Cheryl Logan
  • Kelly Medina-Lopez
  • Drew Clickenbeard
  • Jill Yamashita
  • Angie Tran
  • Shannon Snapp
  • Glenn Burns
  • Elizabeth Gooch
  • Gerick Bergsma
  • Eric Martin
  • Dan Fernandez
  • Nathaniel Jue
  • Alison Lynch
  • Alana Unfried
  • Caroline Rodriguez
  • Chris Carpenter
  • Daramola Cabral
  • Shigeko Sekine
  • Vanessa Lopez-Littleton
  • Jennifer Dyer-Seymour
  • Jeffrey Wand
  • Lisa Leininger
  • Alison Haupt
  • Judith Canner
  • James Lindholm
  • Stephanie Spoto
  • John Olson
  • Timothy Thomas
  • John Silveus
  • Shantel Martinez
  • Angeline Nariswari
In addition to the critical support from the Department of Education, National Science Foundation, the Koret Foundation, and other private foundations, our students are also supported by private donors.

At this time, we want to thank Barbara Baldock and Phil Butler for their continued support to undergraduate research and scholarship. In addition, we want to thank Suzanne and Rod Dewar who award two UROC scholars eager to explore research questions through creative inquiry in the arts, humanities and social sciences. We also want to acknowledge all our other private donors who wish to remain anonymous. Thank you!
Phil Butler and Barbara Baldock with students at the 2019 UROC Year End Celebration

Left to right: Jennifer Hatch, Vicki Meraz, Barbara Baldock, Phil Butler, Alexandria Cervantes, Megan Salomonson, Marisa Thompson
2019
-Vicki Meraz, Biology
-Megan Salomonson, Marine Science
-Marisa Thompson, Marine Science

2018
-Jennifer Hatch, Psychology

2017
-Robert Castro, Molecular Biology, International Health
-Madison Heard, Marine Science
-Alexandria Cervantes, Honorable Mention, Mathematics, Computer Science
-Johnpaul De La O, Honorable Mention, Social & Behavioral Sciences

2016
-Alex Jensen, Human Communication

2015
-Elizabeth Hensley, Human Communication, Journalism
-Emile Dirck, Environmental Science

2014
-Lilyana Gross-Staight, Mathematics
-Breanna Orozco, Kinesiology

2013
-Emily Roncase, Biology
-Sara Banco, Psychology

2012
-Omar Davila Jr., Psychology
-Christina Hill, Environmental Science

2011
-Kevin Johnson, Biology
Sue and Rod Dewar
I was very happy and appreciative to learn that I was selected as the recipient of the Dewar Scholarship. My lifelong dream of attending graduate school is moving forward, thanks to generous educational scholarships provided by the Dewar Family. Since being named one of the recipients of the Suzanne Dewar Memorial Undergraduate Research Scholarship, my dream is becoming a reality at California State University, Monterey Bay. The award gives me an opportunity to learn research skills that will serve the film community following graduation. Without scholarship patrons
willing to support Cinematic Arts and Technology education, students such as myself would be unable to pursue advanced film degrees. -Stephany Barrera

I wanted to specifically take a moment to thank the Suzanne Dewar Memorial Scholarship for making this opportunity a possibility for me. I am so grateful and proud for the recognition of the importance of research in the arts, humanities, and social sciences. -Amelia Parker

I would like to sincerely thank the Dewar Family for making this scholarship opportunity available, especially to someone whose research interests are in the humanities. I have used the funding towards my tuition and membership to the American Philosophical Association. I have now accomplished two summers of fully funded research and am approaching the end of my undergraduate career. I am honored and privileged to have been a recipient of this scholarship and I am pleased that it exists. This allows for an often overlooked research area to be supported and be an influence on the world around us. -Sebastian Mireles
• • •
Congratulations to our Fall Research Competition Winners!
The College of Arts, Humanities and Social Science (CAHSS) swept the competition! Congratulations to our winners and to all the student presenters.
1st Place
Amelia Parker, Dewar Scholar Jesus Orozco, McNair Scholar

Higher Education is Not Immune to Messaging Mishaps: A Qualitative Rhetorical Analysis of COVID-19 Messaging on U.S. Campuses.

School of Humanities & Communication
Research Mentors: Dr. Sam Robinson, Dr. Shantel Martinez, & Dr. Kelly Medina-Lopez
2nd Place

Melissa-Ann Lagunas
Koret Scholar

Connectedness to Nature and Well-being among First-Generation College Students, Faculty, and Staff

Psychology Department
Research Mentor: Dr. Jennifer Lovell
3rd Place

Darchelle Burnett
Koret Scholar

Comparison of Afro Indigenous to African American and Native American Student Research Models in Higher Education

School of Social and Behavioral Science
Research Mentor: Dr. Brian Corpening
• • •
UROC Virtual Programming
December 2, 1pm - 2pm

December 11, 11am - 12pm
December 11, 1pm - 2pm
Scholarship Opportunity!

The American Geosciences Institute (AGI) is pleased to announce its new Scholarship for Advancing Diversity in the Geoscience Profession. The scholarship is a one-time $5,000 award supporting geoscience graduate studies by a U.S. citizen or permanent resident who self-identifies as a member of an underrepresented minority (Black, Indigenous, or Person of Color) and is within two semesters of completing a recognized geoscience program. Click here for more information.
Chat with us!
Want to get involved in research but don't know where to start? Set up a virtual consultation on the UROC website!