Supporting undergraduate scholarships is more important than ever
As the University of Minnesota’s reputation as a top public research university continues to grow, an odd sort of paradox has developed. As more highly qualified students apply to the University, and to the College of Biological Sciences in particular, the college struggles to offer competitive packages. Increasingly, we face the real possibility that top students who would choose CBS are going to go elsewhere simply because other institutions are able to offer more attractive scholarships, an understandable move given the rising cost of tuition.
CBS offers a handful of scholarships specifically to freshmen. While these scholarships fill a critical need, they only cover a tiny portion of the 300+ incoming class. The college depends on donors like Kien Nguyen and Julie Warren, Venkateswarlu Pothapragada, Denny and Joan Dvergsten, Clare and Jerome Ritter, and others who have provided much needed funding for freshman scholarships to help us attract the best and brightest. Through their incredible generosity, we have been able to support students who, without it, may have gone elsewhere. It is just the tip of the iceberg, though.
This year, CBS has received a record number of applications from the most qualified students in the college’s history. But an application is only a first step. Part of getting those students to actually enroll is offering them help financing their education. We need your help to make that happen. Consider supporting an existing scholarship or starting one of your own. It’s easier than you think and more important than you’ll ever know. —Laurie Hennen, Director of Development
Biological Sciences Alumni Society (BSAS) president
Mike Thompson graduated from the College of Biological Sciences in 1993 with a Ph.D. in botany.
Steve Gantt (my Ph.D. adviser) and I presented at a NATO-sponsored conference on chloroplast molecular biology in Grenoble, France at a castle called the Chatauex de Sassenage. The science discussion, the food, the side trips and the people made this a spectacular experience.
I run the DNA technologies area of BioDiagnostics Inc., a private seed-testing company with customers worldwide. I got into seed testing at Monsanto where I was the lead on a project. I left Monsanto to be in closer proximity to family. I knew the owner of BioDiagnostics through my work at Monsanto, and he needed someone to run his DNA testing area. The rest is history.
My personal goal is to sustain and improve our world. I saw involvement with BSAS as one avenue to that end. I also wanted to reconnect with friends in the college, and BSAS was a good place to start.
1) Motivate our board and membership to make a meaningful difference. 2) Bring about greater visibility to the BSAS and engage our membership. 3) Build the future by supporting and engaging students.
Interested in participating in BSAS? Contact Rebecca Brzezinski, alumni relations coordinator, at rlb@umn.edu.
Shireen de Sam Lazaro
After graduating two years ago, Shireen de Sam Lazaro (B.S. Genetics, Cell Biology and Development and B.S. in Microbiology ’06) worked as a research scientist for R&D Systems. She left the company in June to travel to Bolivia and Peru where she visited Machu Picchu. Shireen started medical school at the University of Minnesota this fall.
Margaret Nordlie Gibson (M.S. Genetics ’87) teaches in the biology department at the University of Mary in Bismarck, North Dakota. She was promoted to full professor last year and married Allen Gibson, a physician assistant, in July.
Capping more than a decade in the pharmaceutical business, Priso Horace (B.S. Biology ’82 and M.S. Microbiology ’89) was recently promoted to associate director of worldwide regulatory affairs and quality assurance for Pfizer New York. Focus areas include drug registration issues, labeling, product development initiatives, product defense and commercial program support.
Christine Goetz (B.S. Biochemistry ’00) started post-doctoral cancer research at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill in 2005. Her research, currently funded through the Cancer Research Institute, focuses on the role of a specific signaling pathway in modulating p53 protein during germinal center reaction. Christine and her husband, Mark, recently welcomed a baby boy, Micah, born in June.
Todd Lemke (B.S. Genetics and Cell Biology ’92) is the director of pharmacy at Paynesville Area Health Care System, a rural hospital in central Minnesota. He, his wife, Ann, and his children, George, Gretta and Henry, live on a hobby farm in Forest Prairie Township.
Luke Robinson
Luke Robinson (B.S. Biochemistry ’06) is wrapping up his second year in MIT’s Ph.D. program in biological engineering. He is exploring how changes in sugar modifications of proteins and other cellular molecules can contribute to cancer progression. Luke hopes to engineer a drug delivery system to more effectively transport anti-cancer agents to tumors. In his free time, he enjoys running along the Charles River and hiking the White Mountains of New Hampshire with friends and lab mates.
Mabina Kiawu (B.S. Biochemistry ’06) works as a forensic scientist with the Wisconsin Department of Justice in the Madison Crime Laboratory. She is considering returning to school to pursue an advanced degree in pharmaceutics.
After graduating, Cole Greves (B.S. Genetics and Cell Biology ’98) attended medical school at the University of North Dakota and completed a four-year residency in obstetrics and gynecology in Orlando, Florida. He is currently working on a three-year fellowship in maternal-fetal medicine at the University of Rochester in New York. Cole’s research interests include management of diabetes in pregnancy and prenatal ultrasonographic diagnosis.
Michael Jensen (B.S. Biology ’06) recently completed the initial licensure program at the University of Minnesota, which allows him to teach high school life science and middle school general science. Michael is close to completing his M.Ed in science education and was recently hired at Waconia High School.
Troy Hansen (B.S. Biology ’91) completed medical school in 1996. He recently returned to the University of Minnesota to complete a Master’s of Public Health in maternal and child health. In addition, Troy is a member of the Minnesota State Advisory Council on Mental Health. He continues to work as an emergency physician in south central and south metro Minnesota. Troy is married with three children ages 15, 8 and 4.
Samuel Bircher
Samuel Bircher (B.S. Ecology, Evolution and Behavior ’07) teaches and conducts research at a university in Beijing, China. He plans to apply to graduate school and study phytoremediation, which looks at ways to use plants and trees to absorb or break down pollutants in soil and water.
Kristin Herman (B.S. Biology ’02) recently moved to New Zealand to pursue her doctorate at the University of Otago. She is studying the host life cycle of a parasitic worm species.
Last year, Gail Buhl (B.S. Biology ’87) joined the University of Minnesota Raptor Center as education program manager after stints at the Wolf Ridge Education and Learning Center and the MInnesota Zoo.
Keep us updated about what's going on in your life. Send an email to Rebecca Brzezinski, alumni relations coordinator, at rlb@umn.edu.
