National NSF GK-12
Program Page

Contact:
Anae Rosenberg
GK12 Program Director
541-346-4762

Special Thanks to the National Science Foundation for their support

Eric Abbey
Helix School District
Helix, Oregon

I am a 5th year graduate student working in the Liu Lab at the University of Oregon. My research focus is air-free organoboron chemistry, with the end goal being the creation of unnatural amino acids containing boron. These amino acids will have the same shape as the natural compounds they will mimic. If biological systems cannot tell the difference between the natural amino acids and their boron-containing mimics, they can potentially be used as imaging agents that can track the boron in living systems. Furthermore, they will be tested as anti-cancer drugs, with the boron essentially acting as a nuclear bomb that can destroy the tumor cells that uptake the boron-containing amino acid.

I grew up in the country outside of Junction City, OR, near Eugene. I spend much of my free time in the outdoors fishing, hiking, hunting and camping. I also enjoy listening to and playing music, cooking and gardening. I am pursuing a career as a teaching professor at a small college, similar to Whitman College, the undergraduate school I attended.

Kai Blaisdell
Desert View Elementary
Hermiston, Oregon

I grew up on the coast in rural Maine, and earned my Bachelor’s degree in Biology at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Before I started graduate school I worked for the USGS on a project near Ontario, Oregon, whose aim was to reduce cheat grass populations in the area and revitalize native plant populations.

I am a fifth year graduate student in the Biology department, in Dr. Bitty Roy’s lab. I study plant ecology, plant species that are introduced to the United States from Europe and Asia, and the reasons that these introduced species tend to be weedy and aggressive. Introduced plant species cost billions of dollars each year in agricultural losses, natural habitat loss, and other areas. As a graduate student I have been a teaching assistant at the University for several biology courses.

I have volunteered as a mentor in the Eugene community through Committed Partners for Youth. This is my first year in the GK-12 program, and I look forward to the opportunity to collaborate with teachers and work with elementary students. Outside of research, I enjoy jogging, hiking, yoga, salsa dancing, cooking, and a good book.  

Ginny Cangelosi
Highland Hills Elementary
Hermiston, Oregon

Hello! My name is Ginny Cangelosi and this is my third year as a GK12 fellow. I have really enjoyed my experience in the K-6 classroom and am looking forward to another great year at Highland Hills Elementary. Someday, I hope to apply what I’ve learned to an undergraduate classroom.

I am originally from Michigan and I earned my BA in chemistry at Albion College. Since moving to Eugene in 2005, I’ve been working in Darren Johnson’s research group. For my thesis project, I am studying how molecules that I’ve designed bind toxic metals, specifically arsenic. The interactions that I am studying will be incorporated into materials for water purification, one of the world’s up-and-coming sustainability challenges.

When I’m not in the lab I enjoy playing soccer, hiking, camping, and kayaking.

 

Eryn Cook
Rocky Heights Elementary
Hermiston, Oregon

Hi! My name is Eryn Cook; I'm starting my third year as a graduate student in the physics program at the University of Oregon, and this will be my first year in the GK-12 program. My work at the UO in Dan Steck's atom optics lab involves developing new equipment for precision measurements using laser cooled and trapped atoms. We assemble ultra-high vacuum chambers and develop most of our lasers and electronics in-house, so it's a great place to learn about a lot of different technologies. Our experiments use lasers and magnetic fields to cool atoms down to temperatures near absolute zero, where quantum effects are much easier to examine, so the science is pretty exciting as well.

When I'm not in the lab, I enjoy puttering in the garden and hiking and biking all around Eugene. I'm a Northwest native, born in Pullman, Washington and completing my undergraduate work at the University of Washington in Seattle. I love everything the Northwest has to offer, and I'm excited to get to know eastern Oregon better.

Nima Dinyari
Desert View Elementary
Hermiston, Oregon

After growing up in California, I received my BS in Physics at University of California Santa Barbara in 2004. I then entered the PhD. program at the University of Oregon in 2005. I have been working in Professor Hailin Wang's Lab doing research in Quantum Optics since the summer of 2006.

In the Wang Lab I work on Cavity Quantum Electrodynamics (CQEDs). The idea is to control the electromagnetic radiation emitted from an optical center by placing it within the field of an optical cavity. The aim of the research is to build a robust CQED system that can be used in Quantum Computation schemes.

Outside of the lab I enjoy working in my garden, running, and yoga. I love the bike paths, hiking trails, and local beauty that is Oregon. After graduate school I look forward to using my degree in Physics working on the earth's environmental challenges.

Brandy Fox
West Park Elementary
Hermiston, Oregon

 Hello! My name is Brandy Fox, and I am a fourth-year graduate student in chemistry. This is my second year as a GK-12 Fellow. I really enjoy elementary school classrooms, which makes me excited to get started this year! I have always had a strong interest in education, and my ultimate goal upon graduation is to teach at a smaller college or university.

I am a member of the Tyler lab, and my research involves novel processes for the removal of sulfur from fuel. Sulfur in fuel is a problem because burning sulfur-containing fuel contributes to acid rain as well as limiting the potential uses of the fuel. Thus, I seek to develop an efficient method that allows attainment of the near-zero levels of sulfur without the harsh and energy intensive conditions that are necessary for the current process. My non-chemistry interests include reading, gardening, camping, and spending time with my wonderful hubby.

Adam Glass
Rocky Heights Elementary
Hermiston, Oregon

Hi, my name is Adam Glass and I hail from the Liu Laboratory at the University of Oregon. I am a fourth year chemistry doctoral student. My research is focused in organic synthesis, more specifically in the area of naphthalene synthesis. We are aiming to provide novel and facile routes to a variety of naphthalene derivatives which are useful in pharmaceuticals, transition metal ligands, and a wide variety of other materials uses.

I am originally from Siletz, Oregon a small town close to Newport on the Central Oregon Coast. I am an avid fly fisherman and as such most of my free time is devoted to chasing fish around in the beautiful Oregon countryside. Once I finish with school I hope to join the industrial ranks as a Medicinal Chemist, although I am also interested in public science policy so there may be a career avenue along that path as well.

Rick Glover
West Park Elementary
Hermiston, Oregon

Hi, I am Rick Glover and am a third year chemistry graduate student in the Hutchison laboratory. The work I do pertains to understanding how gold nanoparticles (really small clusters of gold atoms) react with biological organisms.

Before coming to Eugene I received a BS in Environmental Science from Humboldt State University and a MS in Environmental Chemistry from the University of Nevada Reno.
Growing up in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in the town of Auburn gave me a love of the outdoors with activities like skiing, fishing, and camping. I also enjoy digging around in my garden and finding new and interesting ways to cook the food I love to grow.

Chris Harland
Sherwood Heights Elementary
Pendleton, Oregon

Hello all, my name is Chris Harland and I'm a fifth year graduate student in biophysics working in the Parthasarathy Lab. I'm a northwest native for the most part, hailing from Portland, OR and picking up B.S. degrees in physics and mathematics at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, WA before coming to the University of Oregon.

My lab work focuses on measuring the material properties of lipid bio-membranes. As a basic structural component of all cells, membranes and their constituent lipids, are important to cell function. Using optical microscopy, particle tracking, and synthetic lipids, I construct and probe membrane material properties like viscosity and mobility.

Throughout my physics education I've been involved with science outreach. This is my third year as a GK-12 fellow and my tenth year of science education at the K-12 level. I love talking about science as much as I love doing it.

Jason Matthews
McKay Creek Elementary
Pendleton, Oregon

Hi, my name is Jason Matthews. I am currently starting my fourth year as a physics graduate here at the University of Oregon, and my second year in the GK-12 program. I work in the Heiner Linke lab, where we study nanoscale electronics. I currently have two research projects: the first deals with understanding how heat flows through nanoscale devices, and in the second I’m studying nanoscale devices for use as low-power energy sources.

I am a native Oregonian, born and raised in Medford, Oregon. I obtained my Bachelors of Science in physics at Southern Oregon University in 2006. Since then I have been at UO.

Outside of my lab, I enjoy running, hiking, photography, astronomy, and energy policy/efficiency. I currently have two ideas for my future: teaching at a small college, and/or working in industry on developing energy efficient technologies.

Libby Schoene
Ferndale Elementary
Milton Freewater, Oregon

My name is Libby and I am a seventh year graduate student in the physics department at the UO. I work in Dan Steck's atom optics lab, which uses lasers and magnetic fields to cool and trap atoms. Once the atoms are cool and trapped, we control and study their behavior in great detail.

Before coming to graduate school, I served for 27 months as a United States Peace Corps Volunteer in Guyana, a small country on the Atlantic coast of South America. While there I taught math and science to high school students in the capital city, Georgetown. I really enjoyed teaching and working with the students, so I have been thankful to have an opportunity to work with students again through the GK-12 program.

In my spare time I serve as president of the Graduate Teaching Fellows Federation, and spend a lot of time walking my boisterous pooch, whom I brought back from Guyana with me. I also enjoy weight lifting, cross-country skiing, watching college and pro football and basketball, and spending time with friends and family.

Eric Shamay
Pilot Rock Elementary
Pilot Rock, Oregon

I grew up in southern California and have lived in 5 different coastal counties throughout the central coast. I graduated from Calpoly in San Luis Obispo, CA with B.S. degrees in general engineering and chemistry in 2004. My chemistry work began at the University of Oregon in Fall of 2005, joining the Richmond research group soon after. These days I program computers to simulate the surfaces created when water comes in contact with other chemicals or mixtures (i.e. air, oil, soaps, etc) to see how the water molecules behave in these different environments.

Often, I can be found fishing Oregon's rivers, and enjoying the vast selection of regional micro-brews. I'm an avid Ultimate Frisbee player, and I've recently gotten engaged to my future wife Lynne! When I grow up I hope to teach math, chemistry, physics, or computer science to young aspiring scientists.

As a GK-12 fellow I helped the teachers at West Park Elementary in Hermiston, OR get introduced to the FOSS science kits. We had a great time helping the students learn to ask good questions about the universe around us, and to run experiments to learn valuable lessons about science.

 

Tim Sweeney
Washington Elementary
Pendleton, Oregon

Hey! My name is Tim Sweeney. I hail from the great city of Ventura (it's an old surf/oil town in southern California). I went to Cal State Chico for undergrad, it's a primarily agricultural town in northern California where they locals pronounce "almonds" without the "l". I then moved down south to a city with many names often called the Birth Place of Jazz, the Big Easy, the Crescent City... New Orleans. While there I went to the University of New Orleans and earned a Masters degree in physics. Now I'm starting my fifth year as a graduate student at the University of Oregon and my third year as a GK-12 Fellow.

I'm a graduate student in Physics and as a physicist I study the interaction of light with matter (semiconductor optics). Many of the proposed technologies of tomorrow are being based on quantum mechanical phenomena and a requirement of these technologies is the ability to control things that behave quantum mechanically. In the Wang Lab I study quantum mechanical behavior of atom like things called excitons and trions in semiconductors.

As a GK-12 Fellow and "science expert" in elementary class rooms I bring energy, enthusiasm and a lot of questions. I have a real passion for science and science education and am really excited to head out to Eastern Oregon and do science with Elementary school teachers and students.

Charlie Swor
Ione Elementary
Ione, Oregon
Echo Elementary
Echo, Oregon

Hello, my name is Charlie Swor. I am a fifth-year graduate student studying inorganic chemistry at the University of Oregon. I am originally from Tennessee, and I got my bachelor's degree from Tennessee Tech University.

I work in the David Tyler lab, making nitrogen-binding iron complexes. These types of molecules might someday be used to purify natural gas. The main goal of my research is to make these molecules more stable, as the current ones degrade over a few weeks' time. To do this, I am trying to bond the atoms around the central iron atom into a macrocycle (Latin for "big ring").

I really enjoy being a scientist and working on problems that haven't yet been solved. I especially like it when I make a molecule that hasn't ever been made before. I am also interested in Green Chemistry, which involves making chemistry that is safer to ourselves and the environment. In my spare time I enjoy being outdoors; especially fishing, kayaking, and playing with my dog, Daisy.

Leslie VanOs
Lincoln Primary
West Hills Intermediate
Pendleton, Oregon

My name is Leslie VanOs, and I work in Andy Berglund's lab where we study a disease called Myotonic Dystrophy, one of the muscular dystrophies. Right now I'm working on crystallizing the protein involved in the disease so we
can observe how it binds to its RNA targets. The goal of our research is to better understand what's happening in the disease, and hopefully find a drug that can alleviate symptoms.

I grew up in Quincy, Illinois, right along the Mississippi River, and in my free time I love to sew! I used to work as a costume manager for my college's theatre program, and I've had to make some pretty crazy costumes over the years! I also enjoy reading and conducting science experiments in the kitchen (cooking!).

Doug Young
Highland Hills Elementary
Hermiston, Oregon

Hello, my name is Doug Young and I am a 3rd year chemistry graduate student in the Doxsee Lab. I was born and raised in California and received my bachelors in chemistry and biology from UC Davis. I came to Oregon to help implement and develop Green Chemistry education and research.

My research focuses on the use of organocatalysis as a way of forming polycyclic compounds with multiple stereocenters. Also, we develop undergraduate lab experiments that reinforce the principles of Green Chemistry.

Outside of the lab you will find me cooking and eating good food, working in my garden, backpacking, traveling, and simply sitting around enjoying some terere with friends.