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National GWIS on the Web To go to the National GWIS page click here _________________________ National GWIS Leadership 2011-2012 
To read the bios of National leadership and to contact them
click here
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Would you like to sport
a GWIS T-Shirt and support
our mission?
New GWIS tee proudly displayed by designer Alexis Rudd
(Alpha Lambda Chapter)
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To order your T-Shirt at GWIS online Market Place click here
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Greetings!
Each summer, the Sigma Delta Epsilon/Graduate Women in Science (GWIS) have their new beginnings with the installation of new officers and the awarding of fellowships to outstanding women scientists and scientists-in-training. I became President of GWIS and would like to welcome the new officers for 2011-2012:
Helen Haller (Omega), Chair of the Board of Directors
JoAnn Schrass (Omicron), member of the Board of Directors
Jennifer Ingram (Rho Tau), Past President
Madhu Lal (Omicron), President-Elect
Tina Hill (Beta), Vice President
Charity Krieder (Omega), Membership Secretary
Dee McManus (Rho Tau), Interim Treasurer
Allison Coffin (Omega), Omega Committee
Jason Young (Nu), Nominating Committee
We have had quite a number of women recently join GWIS and I would like to welcome all of you to our organization. Many of you have received personal welcome emails from me, and many others will receive them in the near future.
There have also been many members who have recently joined one of the several committees that are important to the running of GWIS. I encourage all of you to get involved with GWIS at the local and/or national levels by participating in meetings and joining and working with a committee. We welcome and encourage members who haven't participated before to join committees. Fresh faces can often bring new ideas. And new members are needed on committees as other members leave the committees.
I look forward to working with many of you over the next year.
We remain united in friendship through science,
 Anne Pumfery National GWIS President 
National Leadership in front of the Taughannock Falls: Renne Berry, Becky McCane, Paddy Weisenfeld, Helen Haller, Robin Yeaton Woo, Jennifer L. Ingram, Carol Hodes, Melanie McEwen, Dee McManus, Anne Pumfery Julie Gros-Louis, Regina Vidaver, Tina R Horwitz-Hill and Judy Artley . 
GWIS leadership at the National Meeting for our 90th Anniversary in Ithaca, NY visiting the beautiful Taughannock Falls pouring into its gorge! |
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| National GWIS News
National Activities: Nominations Committee
CALL FOR NOMINATIONS The Nominating Committee of Sigma Delta Epsilon/Graduate Women in Science (GWIS) invites all members to participate in nominating candidates for elective offices. This may be done individually or collectively through the chapter in which you hold membership. Do not overlook nominating yourself. The Nominating Committee is interested in receiving the names of everyone who is interested in serving in a national office. A Nomination form outline follows this Call for Nominations. Simply cut and paste the form into your own document and print out (or e-mail) to share with other members you know who may not be receiving this newsletter by forwarding this e-mail. The list of nominees, along with brief biographies, will be printed in the Bulletin and in the April GWIS E-news. To meet Bulletin deadlines the Nominating Committee requests receipt of completed nomination forms by February 1st. Nominees are needed for the following GWIS National Offices: |
President-Elect
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Serves one year and automatically advances to President
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Vice-President
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Serves one year and advances by election to President-Elect
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Member of the Board of Directors
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Serves a 5 year term and is usually a past Officer of National GWIS
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Treasurer
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Two year term
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Corresponding and Recording Secretary
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Two year term
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Omega Chapter Committee
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Three year term with third year as Chair
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Member of the Nominating Committee
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Three year term with third year as Chair
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Nominees must be in good standing (dues paid) and must subscribe to the mission of GWIS found online at http://www.gwis.org/about.html#mission Please return Nominations to the Nominating Committee: Chair, Melissa Wilson Sayres (mwilsonsayres@gmail.com), Alexis Rudd (abrudd@gmail.com), and Jason Young (jyoung@astro.psu.edu). Please contact Melissa Wilson Sayres (mwilsonsayres@gmail.com) if you have further questions about the position responsibilities of the GWIS National Leadership.
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Chapter News
Sigma Delta Chapter - Sioux Falls, SD and Surrounding Area
Chapter Events by Diane Maher
The Sigma Delta chapter kick-started the school year with a GWIS social and membership drive at the end of August. It was well attended and as a chapter we were able to sponsor the dues for 8 graduate student members. We are looking forward to their active participation in our chapter!
We recently hosted our second Girl Scout Day, where approximately 60 girl scouts and scout leaders rotated through workshops on DNA and disease, cancer cells, and diagnosing pediatric disease. Each girl scout received an advanced badge for participating. This event is becoming very popular and a great way to encourage young girls to be excited about science!
In October Dr. Patricia Crotwell presented for our Women in Science seminar. Patricia gave a very interesting talk regarding both her personal career journey and her experiences and thoughts about direct to consumer genetic testing.
Alpha Omega Chapter - Boston, MA
Chapter Events sites.google.com/site/gwisboston/
GWIS Alpha Omega Chapter is a Supporting Organization for the MA Conference for Women. More information on the conference can be found at:
It will be held at the Boston Convention and Exhibit Center, onDecember 8, 2011.
Members of supporting organizations receive a discount on registration, email the Alpha Omega Chapter at gwis@heimdall.org for the registration code.
We held our November event titled, "Everything you ever wanted to know about graduate school, but were afraid to ask" with a Graduate Student Panel on Tuesday, November 1th at the Northeastern University, Room 412 Mugar Building, 6:30 PM. The panelists visited topics such as, "Is graduate school right for you?". They provided inside information that help participants prepare for a successful graduate school career. The panel consisted of current grad students in a variety of fields of science and engineering from universities throughout the Boston area. The event also provided information about the "Application process and writing the personal statement".
Beta Chapter - Madison, WI (University of Wisconsin)
Chapter Events www.beta.gwis.org/
The Beta Chapter participated in the Expanding Your Horizons-teach and mentor junior high school girls in science event on the 12th of November. The objective of the event was to motivate young women to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
For more information on Expanding Your Horizons and get involved please go to their website at:
http://www.expandingyourhorizons.org/
Psi Chapter - Washington State University
Chapter Blog
To read more go to their blog at: http://gwispsi.blogspot.com/
Rho Tau Chapter - Research Triangle, NC
The Rho Tau Chapter held their career workshop on October 28th from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the NC State University Biomanufacturing and Education Center (BTEC) in Raleigh. The event was free for GWIS members and Non-members were required to pay $5 cash at the door. Registration was limited to the first 100 respondents. Registration was limited to the first 100 respondents. Welcoming Remarks were given by Dr. Elaina Howard, President of the Rho Tau Chapter for the Graduate Women in Science and Angela Barbry Stewart, District Manager at Kelly Scientific Resources gave a presentation titled, "Finding Jobs in Industry: Insights from a Recruiter". Woody Catoe, Assistant Director, University Career Center and Adjunct Assistant Professor of Counselor Education at NC State University spoke about "Interviewing for Success - Strategies for Grad Students", which included actual interviewing practice by the participants. The event also featured booth presentations by National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) and Kelly Scientific. The Career Workshop ended with sessions for one-on-one discussions and resume reviews with Human Resources experts from RTI International and Kelly Scientific Resources.
  Dr. Elaina Howard (left) president of the Rho Tau Chapter giving welcoming remarks and Dr. Woody Catoe, speaking about "Interviewing for Success"  Ms. Angela Barbry Stewart, District Manager at Kelly Scientific Resources presenting on "Finding Jobs in Industry: Insights from a Recruiter" Nu Chapter- University Park, PA (Penn State University)
Chapter Activities GWIS Nu Chapter has had a busy semester so far!
Girl Scout Workshop
The Fall 2011 Girl Scout Workshop, themed "Why in the World?", was held on Sunday, October 23rd. Girls from troops in the surrounding area came to the Penn State campus to learn about scientific inquiry and some of the materials that make life as we know it possible. The girls learned about nanotechnology, biomedical materials, microscopes, videography, and the chemistry of food. In addition, the girls got to tour one of four labs to see where scientists do their work and had the opportunity to hear from and ask questions from four career panelists. Thirty-one girls from nine area girl scout troops were guided through the activities by about thirty committed and knowledgeable volunteers. We are grateful to the Eberly College of Science Outreach Office, VWR, Giant, Weis, and WalMart for their sponsorship and support.
WPSU's Eventapalooza
 GWIS members made slime for children at WPSU's Eventapalooza this weekend! Over 450 were in attendance! We were a hit with our slime-making as almost every child was able to make their own colorful, mini-batch of slime. For most of the event, we had a huge line of children and even a few coming back for more slime fun.
Beth Essinger-Hileman (Nu Chapter) making slime with a youngster The Brown Bag Discussion Series  The Brown Bag Discussion Series started off with a bang this year with last year's successful discussion, "Stress Management and Relaxation on a Grad Student's Budget" brought back by popular demand. Dr. Kimberly Trainer, a chiropractor and owner of a spa, came to teach us about ways to relax at night, relieve tension during the day, and the benefits of chiropractic care. Attendees were able to receive full body massages, facials, foot de-tox, and all received a free hour of spa services. Photo from workshop on "Stress Management and Relaxation on a Grad Student's Budget".
Second Annual Tailgate GWIS members came together for our second annual tailgate at one of Penn State's football games this October. We were able to share good times while coming together to celebrate our school pride.
Brittney Nagle, Jessica Nichol, Kaycee Quarles, and Lauren Jackson at the Tailgate
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Past Fellowship Winners - Where are they now? By Melissa A. Wilson Sayers (Nu Chapter) Dr. Kristen Fay Gorman, Sigma Delta Epsilon Fellowship Winner, 2008 
Dr. Kristen Fay Gorman
CHU Sainte-Justine Children's Hospital, Montreal, QC, Canada
As an undergraduate, Dr. Kristen Fay Gorman initially majored in Nursing, but then switched degree programs and graduated with a B.S. in Zoology. Her undergraduate experience in nursing led her to recognize that the spinal curvature in guppies is similar to the human Idiopathic Scoliosis deformity, piquing her interest in scientific research. Further, Dr. Gorman's experience as an independent technician for a QTL mapping project at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle gave her an appreciation for complex phenotypes and the experience in the field of genetics to move forward with mapping genes for spinal curvature in the guppy and medaka teleost models. Her Ph.D. thesis involved the cultivation and characterization of the curveback mutant lineage of guppy to test its feasibility as a model for the study of human idiopathic-type spinal curvature syndromes such as Idiopathic Scoliosis and Scheuermann Kyphosis. Dr. Gorman will be moving from Simon Fraser University in British Columbia to CHU Saint-Justine in Montreal to work with experts in human musculoskeletal health and disease so that she can directly apply the teleost models she developed to research that can be translated and applied to humans. In addition to being awarded the Sigma Delta Epsilon Fellowship in 2008, Dr. Gorman continued to be recognized for her excellence by being awarded the Simon Fraser University Graduate Fellowship in 2009 and a Postdoctoral Scholarship for Excellence in the field of Musculoskeletal Diseases in Children in 2010.
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Book Review
By Laura Ramsey (Omega Chapter, Committee Chair)
Strengths Finder 2.0: Written by Tom Rath
Do you know what your strengths are? Do you gravitate toward them or try to improve your weaknesses? I recently was given the book StrengthsFinder 2.0 by Tom Rath. The beginning of the book is about working within your strengths, instead of trying to make up for your weaknesses. People who do that are much more satisfied with their career. The author suggested collaborating with people who have different strengths to let them do what they do best so you can concentrate on doing your best work within your strengths.
After reading the first portion of the book, I took the online assessment and was given my top five strengths. I felt that they were very accurate! It was no surprise that several of my top themes were about a continuous drive for knowledge and learning, which is concordant with my career choice at the cutting edge of science. The remainder of the book describes all the themes, and gives you an action plan for working within that strength.
As the new year approaches, I encourage each of you to do a self-assessment (it doesn't have to be StrengthsFinder 2.0) and think about how you can work within your strengths and complement your weaknesses with strengths of those around you. I have never been more satisfied or driven than I am in my current position, because it allows me to do what I do best.
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Resources for Faculty Jobs, Ph.D., Masters Placements and Research Assistantships ECOLOG-L LISTSERV
ECOLOG-L is a LISTSERV list maintained primarily for the benefit of members of the Ecological Society of America. This electronic discussion forum allows people who have a common interest in ecology and closely related fields to communicate with each other by electronic mail (E-mail). Subscription to the group is free and is not restricted to members of the ESA. It is increasingly used as a forum to announce available Ph.D. positions, Masters Positions, Research Assistantships, Faculty Job Announcements etc in the fields of Ecology, Environmental Science, and Natural Resource Management Science.
To sign up or visit past archives go to:
https://listserv.umd.edu/archives/ecolog-l.html
Job Announcements in Australia
Research: http://www.researchjobs.net.au/
Education: http://www.educationjobs.net.au/
Environment: http://www.envirojobs.com.au/newsletter/ Job Announcements in Europe
For an overview of existing job databases and search engines for European jobs Google the below website and use Google Translate to visit the English language site:
http://www.stellenboersen.de/stellenboersen/spezial/biologie
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Resources from former E-news Publications
Click here to visit former E-new Publications that include useful resources. |
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