Dear BUILD EXITO Community,
This is a message from Arjun Viray. I work with EXITO doing Communications - newsletters being one of my responsibilities. The Communication Team had planned for this newsletter to go out this past Wednesday. We had asked our staff, faculty, GRAs, peer mentors, and engagement facilitators to take a moment to share some thoughts about "A Year Into the Pandemic", but in lieu of the news in Atlanta I want to dedicate this newsletter to the lives of those who were killed: Xiaojie Tan, Daoyou Feng, Soon C. Park, Hyun J. Grant, Suncha Kim, Yong A. Yue, Delaina Ashley Yaun Gonzalez, and Paul Andre Michels. You can view the official BUILD EXITO Statement here.
When I saw the news Wednesday morning about the tragedy that took place in Atlanta, I had to take the day off to just be and to check in with my loved ones. As a queer Filipino I felt a myriad of emotions reading the news and watching the Pacific Islander, Asian, and Asian American (PIAAA) community share their grief and anger over the 8 lives killed - including six Asian women. This past year has been full of so much heaviness, and reading about it brought pain, anger, shock, and a sense of numbness. The uptick in reported discrimination against PIAAA was already on my mind but this event marked a tipping point for me.
As some of you may know, I was part of BUILD EXITO’s very first cohort, and I know that this program supports students from communities who’ve directly faced racism, sexism, homophobia, xenophobia, and all forms of discrimination. Scholars of EXITO are part of a program whose mission is to change the biomedical and health science workforce by providing research training and mentorship for undergraduate students with hopes that EXITO Scholars enter these spaces to bring change. The countless mentors, staff, and faculty who work behind the scenes all work with this mission in mind.
This past year we have faced so many challenges. And it’s been draining to be writing these statements whenever acts of violence and hate occurs. But I urge you to continue pushing forward. Rest and reflect when needed. And show up in the spaces you enter - however that may look and feel best for you.
As individuals it can feel so difficult at times to do so, but as a community I truly believe that through mutual support, care, understanding, and action - the EXITO community can accomplish so much. We have shown so much resiliency this past year. I can’t wait to highlight these accomplishments, but that will be for a future newsletter.
Next week is Spring Break for PSU and many other EXITO Partner Institutions. I hope you all take some much needed time off to do what’s best for you. The rest of this newsletter will share upcoming events and opportunities.
Sincerely,
Arjun
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Applications for the Trainee App is open!
If you are a current first-year scholar, check out the Trainee Application Google Site!
Applications are due Wednesday, March 31 at 11:59pm Pacific Standard Time.
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We are looking for a GRA to support us in PLUS Enrichment and Operation Support.
We are in the process of hiring a Graduate Assistant for a new Foundation grant we received from Genentech. The grant is to add an extra year of research for BIPOC PSU EXITO scholars that have been impacted by COVID. The GRA position has a tuition remission and the position starts this Spring Term, includes Summer and all of next academic year. If there are any graduate students that you think would be a good fit please share this opportunity with them!
Feel free to share this flyer! ⮕⮕⮕
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Virtual Lunch with Dr. Crespo!
Join us Monday, March 29 from noon-1p PST for an informal and virtual lunch hour with Dr. Crespo to celebrate the start of spring term! Grab some snacks and let's gather together while our principal investigator regales us with stories from his past and visions for the future.
What questions do you have for Dr. Crespo? Topics may include his dogs, favorite recipes, academic experience, research history, visions for Fall 2021, how COVID has impacted his work, etc. Please submit your questions by Monday, March 29, at 9am!
We hope you'll join us. See you then!
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Upcoming Research Opportunities:
Scholar must be a declared undergraduate PSU Biology major with at least a 3.0 GPA in Biology courses. Research can be done with an off-campus partner, e.g. OHSU, but preference will be given to students working directly with PSU Biology professors. Preference will also be given to juniors. It is expected that this support will allow the student to devote full time to their research for at least 8 weeks in the summer.
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Upcoming Events:
Come join us for our annual celebration of art, music, and, of course, brains! This is the largest student-run, accessible, public celebration of interdisciplinary neuroscience in the Pacific Northwest! EXITO Scholars will be there!!
Please join the Diversity Program Consortium for the 2021 DPC Virtual Research Symposium: Celebrating Researcher Resilience. From March 29 to April 2, BUILD students will present their research to the biomedical science community.
Registration opens Mon., 3/29 | Registration closes Fri., 4/30
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Just a friendly, feel check out our Opportunities and Events page. If you know of any upcoming events and/or opportunities you think the EXITO Community should know please send us an email, exito@pdx.edu. Thank You!
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Just a friendly reminder, Diversity Program Consortium (DPC) and National Research Mentoring Networking (NRMN) are part of the EXITO experience for Scholars and Alumni! These programs are full of resources and opportunities. |
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For Scholars at PSU, check out the various resources on campus below:
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For non-PSU campuses, review your college/university resource centers and mentors to learn what support is available.
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HAVE CONTENT TO SHARE?
If you have a story, event, or opportunity you are interested in sharing with the EXITO community, contact us! Email exito@pdx.edu.
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