On Friday, November 18, 2016, the UCLA Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry held its third annual Outreach and Diversity Day.
The purpose of Diversity Day is to invite area undergraduates to our department and get a first-hand experience of our facilities and faculty; hopefully yielding applications to our graduate programs. Twenty prospective graduate students from area Cal States and other institutions attended the event. Upon arrival, they were welcomed by Chair Professor Cathy Clarke and provided with admissions information from Tom Cahoon. Professors Bill Gelbart, Ric Kaner, Hosea Nelson, Al Courey, Jose Rodriguez, and Joe Loo met with the visitors throughout the morning, sharing their research and other information.
Event visitors with Tom Cahoon (third from left) and Department Chair Prof. Catherine Clarke (far right).
Department Chair Professor Cathy Clarke welcomed the visiting undergraduate students.
Members of our Organization for Cultural Diversity in Science, headed by co-presidents Emma Pelegri-O’Day and Alexandra Mendoza, attended lunch, and led campus and lab tours. Alexandra said she had a lot of fun showing the visiting students the CNSI facilities. She also stated they were very engaged and excited to see and learn about all the equipment housed in CNSI.
The visiting students met with Profs. Bill Gelbart (left) and Al Courey (right).
The department has established relationships with area CSU chapters of LSAMP (Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation), MARC (Minority Access to Research Careers), and MBRS-RISE (Minority Biomedical Research Support-Research Initiative for Scientific Enhancement). Positive feedback from our visitors included the ability to meet with research faculty and current students, as well as touring our laboratories.
Photos by Penny Jennings, UCLA Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry.
