RET/REU for Native Americans

Unique Scientific Research Opportunity at the University of Washington

For Native American Faculty-Student Science Team

Who is the sponsor? The University of Washington’s (UW) Genetically Engineered Materials Science and Engineering Center (GEMSEC) offers a unique combined Research Experiences for Teachers (RET) and Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program. We seek as collaborators a small faculty-student teams from a Pacific Northwest Tribal Colleges, to participate during 2008-2009 and beyond.

Who can apply and What is involved? Over the next year, GEMSEC will provide extended, in-depth molecular biomimetics and bionanotechnology research experiences for one or two Tribal College faculty members and two or three undergraduate students.

- A key component is an extended (up to 10-week-long) summer immersion in cutting edge science for the faculty-student team in GEMSEC laboratories at UW, providing an exceptional learning opportunity in bionanotechnology, a critical area of science, technology, & engineering.

- During this period, Native American Students will:

• Carry out engineering, biology, medicine, or materials science research in a GEMSEC laboratory, working under the guidance of their Native American faculty member and GEMSEC researchers,
• Participate in GEMSEC research meetings,
• Prepare a research proposal on a GEMSEC-related topic of interest, and
• Present their research to other students and scientists.

- Participating Native American Faculty Members will:

• Carry out collaborative engineering, biology, medicine, or materials science research in a GEMSEC laboratory, working with other GEMSEC researchers,
• Participate in GEMSEC research meetings, o Prepare a research proposal on a GEMSEC-related topic of interest, and
• Present their research to other scientists.

What are long term benefits? Preparation and collaboration in advance of this summer session, and extensive follow up after it will help develop a strong, ongoing relationship between the UW and the Tribal College. The possibility of a second year of collaboration, involving the same or different Tribal College faculty and students, can also be explored.

What is GEMSEC? GEMSEC investigators are researching a wide range of topics, with an emphasis on learning how nature has built and refined common elements into sophisticated, specialized materials with distinctive properties, including spiders’ silks, mollusk shell structures, bacterial nanoparticles, and sponge spicules – please see http://depts.washington.edu/gemsec/ for more details. Equally, GEMSEC researchers use these strategies to create practical technological materials with desired engineering characteristics. This focus on molecular biomimetics provides an excellent platform for truly cross disciplinary research among the broad areas of engineering, biology, medicine, and materials science. Tribal College faculty and students with interests in any field within these broad areas might enjoy and profit from this collaboration.

What funds do Students and Teachers Receive? GEMSEC will provide appropriate student and faculty stipends (level dependent on length and degree of involvement), as well at housing for faculty and students while at the UW, and transportation costs as needed to participate in the summer research program.

If you are interested and would like further information for this opportunity, please contact either:

Dr. Ethan Allen 
GEMSEC Education Administrator
206 - 616 - 9760
ethane@u.washington.edu

or

Professor Mehmet Sarikaya  
GEMSEC Director
206 - 543 - 0724 
sarikaya@u.washington.edu