Important update! We still have spaces for Lightning Round and Poster Presentations.

USM PROMISE AGEP: Maryland Transformation is pleased to invite you to attend and participate in the 2018 University System of Maryland PROMISE AGEP Research Symposium and Professional Development Conference on February 16, 2018. This conference replaces the former PROMISE Research Symposium and adds a professional development component that will prepare graduate students and postdoctoral fellows for faculty positions in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM, which includes social sciences) disciplines. This year, PROMISE also invites undergraduate students to come to hear graduate students’ presentations and to participate in workshops that will prepare them to be graduate students with an eye on becoming future faculty members.

This conference seeks to provide a venue that will allow students to present their work at any stage, receive feedback in preparation for presenting at larger venues, and provide training that will prepare participants for faculty careers.The event is free and meals are provided. Please apply to present at the conference using the rules in the “Call for Presentations” section below and save the date.

Event:  2018 USM PROMISE AGEP Research Symposium & Professional Development Conference

Location: University of Maryland College Park

Adele H. Stamp Student Union – Center for Campus Life

3972 Campus Dr

Colony Ballroom

College Park, MD 20742

8:00 AM – 4:00 PM

Attire: Business Casual

Transportation:

There will be free transportation from UMBC to UMD. Please send an email to promisestaff@gmail.com by Feb. 9, 2018, with the subject title, “2018 Research Symposium Bus,” with your name, school, and cell phone number. The bus departs from the UMBC Administration Circle at 7:20 AM. This location is in front of the administration building. The bus will depart from UMD at 4:15 PM and arrive at UMBC around 5:15 PM.

Parking:

If you choose to drive on your own, you may pay to park in the Union Lane Garage – located between the Adele H. Stamp Student Union Center for Campus Life and Cole Field House. Hours of operation are 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m. daily. In this garage, you park in a numbered spot, remember your number, and walk out toward the entrance to enter it into the machine, where you will pre-pay for a certain number of hours. Other parking lot information can be found here: http://cvs.umd.edu/visitors/parking.html.

• Presentation slots are limited to graduate students within the University System of Maryland.
• A custom webpage will be designed for each presenter. The presenter’s website will include a photo, bio, abstract, synopsis of research, and list of other relevant publications or presentations as applicable. Students who participated in 2015, 2016, and 2017 can update their current pages.
• Postdocs from universities and organizations outside of the University System of Maryland can participate as mentors and judges for poster sessions.
• All graduate students and postdocs are invited to participate as audience members and attend the professional development workshops.
• Undergraduate students are invited to attend to learn from the presentations and to participate in special workshops dedicated to preparing for graduate school, with a focus on thinking about becoming a professor in the future.
• Faculty from within the USM are invited to serve as judges to provide constructive feedback.

Join us! Registration is free. 

Register here:

Types of Presentations

This conference will feature STEM-based oral presentations, posters, and professional development seminars. Participants are invited to submit abstracts to participate in three oral categories and one poster category.

Oral Category 1: Traditional Research Presentations

[7 minutes presentation, 3 minutes critique, 2 minutes of questions, traditional PowerPoint presentation]

Oral Category 2: TED-Styled Talks

[5-minute talks + 5 minutes for critique/questions, PowerPoint presentation with images only – no text]

Oral Category 3: Lightning Round Talks

[2-minute talks with a timer on the screen, no PowerPoints, no critique.]

Posters:

Please print a 4 ft by 3 ft poster.

Call for Presentations

If you are interested in presenting, please follow the schedule below:

Deadline extended: December 15th. We still have spaces for Lightning Round and Poster Presentations.

December 1, 2017: “Letter of Intent” to present. This very short email should include name, school, department, choice of oral category (1, 2, 3) or poster, and potential title of your presentation. Email to promisestaff@gmail.com with the title, “2018 USM PROMISE AGEP Research Symposium – Intent to Present.”

“TED-Styled” and “Lightning Round” titles must be tailored to appeal to a general audience.

Everyone who expressed an “Intent to Present” as of Dec. 1, 2017, will be in line with the presentation style of their choice. Those who did not specify a category will be given a space for a poster.

December 31, 2017: Abstracts and the information below is required for all presentations types. Email all materials from all four categories below to promisestaff@gmail.com, with the subject: “2018 USM PROMISE AGEP Research Symposium Presenter Information.”

1. Formal Abstract (250 words or less). Biographical Sketch (250 words or less)
   • Font: 12 Point, Times New Roman
   • Heading, Left-justified:
     • Title (Bold)
     • Name (Italicized)
     • Department (No abbreviations)
     • University (No abbreviations)
2. General Summary of Graduate Research (250 words or less)
3. High-Quality Photograph
4. Numbered List of up to 5 publications and or/presentations. Please give precedence to publications and conference proceedings as applicable.

All presenters must register.

Agenda

Colony Ballroom, Adele Stamp Student Union, University of Maryland College Park

2018 PROMISE AGEP Research Symposium & Professional Development Conference

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM: Arrival, Breakfast Refreshments, Registration, Poster Set-Up

9:00 AM – 10:30 AM: Opening Remarks, Traditional Oral Research Presentations

Welcome:

1. Host’s Opening and Welcome: Jeffrey Franke, Assistant Dean and Chief of Staff, Graduate School, University of Maryland College Park.
2. Moderator: Erin Golembewski, Senior Associate Dean, Graduate School, University of Maryland Baltimore.

Oral Category 1: Traditional Research Presentations

1. Mary Yaa Sedegah Masterson, Molecular Microbiology and Immunology Program, University of Maryland Baltimore (UMB). “Role of Vaccine-Induced IgG in Protection against Bordetella Pertussis.”
2. Marilyn Allen, Chemical, Biochemical and Environmental Engineering Department, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). “Engineering immune cells via lipid-tailed biomolecules.”
3. Amanda Labuza, Physiology Department, University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB). “NOVA: Providing Graduate Students with Outreach Opportunities to Baltimore.”
4. BreAsia Deal, Applied Mathematics and Statistics Department, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). “Modeling The Effect of Glucose Intake on a System With Simple Oscillatory Conditions.”

10:30 AM – 10:45 AM: Networking Break

10:45 AM – 11:15 AM: “TED-Style” Talks

1. Maraki Negesse, Biological Sciences, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). “The development of the forebrain in vertebrate embryos.”
2. Ashley Wayne Thomas, Mechanical Engineering Department, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). “Development of an Improved Whole Body Heat Transfer Model for Determining Postmortem Interval in Forensic Science.”
3. Omolola Taiwo, Department of Behavioral and Community Health, School of Public Health, University of Maryland College Park (UMD). “Creating a world where we are all active bystanders: Reducing sexual violence on campus.”

11:15 AM – 12:00 PM: Lightning Round Talks

1. Mc Millan Ching, Department of Oncology, University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) School of Medicine. “Functional Analysis of PGE₂Pathway Members MRP4 and EP4 in Ovarian Cancer.”
2. Denise Williams, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). “Future Antibiotics? Interactions between Quantum Dots and Bacterial Cells.”
3. Adegboyega Akinsiku, Department of Human-Centered Computing, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC).
4. Kaia Amoah, STAR-PREP Research Fellow, University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) School of Medicine. “Kynurenic Acid Modulation of Excitatory and Inhibitory Synapses and the Implications in the Pathophysiology of Schizophrenia.”
5. Brianda Beverley, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). “Translation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.”
6. Joseph Hunter, Department of Bioengineering, University of Maryland, College Park (UMD). “Developing an in-situ sprayable antimicrobial polymer mesh as an emergency burn wound dressing.”

12:00 PM – Buffet Lunch

12:45 PM – 1:30 PM: Poster Session and Dessert Reception

1. Jackline Joy Martín Lasola, Department of Microbiology and Immunology (School of Medicine), University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB).
2. “Immunomodulation of the Tumor Microenvironment with Interleukin-1 Receptor-Associated Kinases (IRAKs).”
3. Valencia Watson, Department of Biochemical Engineering, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). “Device design: Real-time glucose monitoring of transdermal samples.”
4. Linda Moise, Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering (CSEE, Graduate Cybersecurity Program), College of Engineering and Information Technology, University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). “Ransomware Threats.”
5. Muhammad H. Khan, Department of Food Science and Technology, University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES). “Cybersecurity Approaches in Precision Agriculture and Food Industry – Assessing Challenges.”

1:30 PM – 3:30 PM: Professional Development Workshops (graduate students and undergraduates)

Undergraduate Students: Math Institute (Starts at 12:30 PM, co-sponsored by LSAMP)

Moderator: Sunji Jangha, Director of Upward Bound Math Science Center, Co-Director USM LSAMP, University of Maryland Baltimore County.

• Preparation for research and graduate school – Sarah Mburu, Ph.D., Kailyn Cage, Ph.D., and Bret A. Hassel, Ph.D.
• Review of how things transpired during the fall semester
• Steps for optimizing spring performance
• Math “Strategies for Success” – Calculus I/II and Differential Equations

Graduate Student Session (Starts at 1:30 PM)

“Behind the Scenes: How to Prepare for the Professoriate at any Stage in your Career” (Based on the PROMISE seminar: “Secrets of the Faculty Interview”)

• Expectations for the Professor of Today (Research Universities, Teaching Institutions, Community Colleges)
• Elements of the Faculty Application – The Complete Package
• Communication and Dissemination: Networking, Publishing, Presenting
• Teaching and Mentoring
• The “Aspirational CV”
• Understanding Search Committees
• The Faculty Interview
• Establishing Scholarly Independence

3:30 PM – 4:00 PM: Closing Reception and Awards Ceremony