Eberly Alumni

Newsletter

OFFICE OF DEVELOPMENT AND ALUMNI RELATIONS

On Belonging: A Statement from Dean of the Eberly College of Science

"In the midst of protests across the nation sparked by the senseless killing of George Floyd and fueled by the killing of many other African Americans including Breonna Taylor, Laquan McDonald, Eric Garner, Michael Brown, Sandra Bland, Tamir Rice, Walter Scott, Alton Sterling, Philando Castile, Botham Jean, Osaze Osagie, and others by law enforcement over the past several years we are reaching out to the Eberly College of Science to raise our voices for change."

Our Stance

COVID-19 pandemic message from the Eberly Alumni Board

"The evolving situation of the Coronavirus pandemic is unlike anything most, if not all of us, have ever seen. As events continue to play out, uncertainty for many of us continues to grow. Will internships or jobs still be available? Will there be a fall semester? What is the best way to manage my career if I am furloughed?
We are here to offer our help during these challenging times by expanding our 1:1 mentoring program to include recent Eberly Graduates and alumni in addition to current students. Whether you desire a long-term mentor or just someone to offer advice, we are here to help." Read more of the COVID-19 pandemic message from the Eberly Alumni Board here.

Dean Cavener’s Message to the Class of 2020

"I’ve heard inspiring stories about how you’ve been adapting and rising to meet the academic and personal challenges brought on by COVID-19. I have never been prouder of our students and the science we do together. I want to spend a moment reflecting on the future – the future of the class of 2020 and the future of our nation and world." View Dean Cavener's video message here.

Class of 2020 Virtual Graduation

Over 90k viewers from 121 countries viewed Penn State’s virtual graduation ceremonies on May 9. We are proud of each of our graduates! Highlights from the speeches include student marshals Sojung Kim and Cuyler Luck. View Eberly's commencement videos here.

Student receives help she needs

"The emergency funding has helped ease the burden on my family and me. My Dad became ill this past December and has been on disability since. We've had quite the amount of medical expenses and trips to different health care facilities. The unplanned switch to online learning and the trip required to move my stuff out of the dorm was another expense we hadn't planned for. This funding relieved the stress of finding how to financially support this trip and has allowed me to put more of my focus on helping my family and doing my best in my classes." - Hannah

Give to the Science Future Fund here.

Medical Students for Masks

Three Eberly alumni talk about how they're helping the fight against COVID-19. "The fight is not over and there is a long journey ahead as we navigate through the unchartered territories of this pandemic."

Read the Q&A here.
Visit the Medical Students for Masks site here.

New Minor in Entrepreneurship & Innovation

Any student with an interest in science and a passion for solving current human, animal and environmental challenges using biotechnology may be interested in the bio-tech option of the ENTI minor. More information on the new minor can be found here.

Research update

Cremer group developing sensors to detect coronavirus in enclosed spaces.
Cremer’s lab has developed sensors that allow them to look at changes in interfacial potential to detect the binding of ions, small molecules, peptides, and proteins at interfaces.

Lasers could speed up coronavirus diagnostics.
Researchers from Eberly are part of a collaborative effort in the fight against coronavirus. They are working on a diagnostic tool to rapidly trap and identify viruses using a laser beam and a detector.

A new process considers numerous models at once to reduce uncertainty and provide better tools for decision makers.
With so many COVID-19 models being developed, how do policymakers know which ones to use? A new process to harness multiple disease models for outbreak management has been developed by an international team of researchers.

Plants pass on 'memory' of stress to some progeny, making them more resilient.
By manipulating the expression of one gene, geneticists can induce a form of “stress memory” in plants that is inherited by some progeny, giving them the potential for more vigorous, hardy and productive growth.

Institute awards 32 computational and data sciences seed grants.
With supplemental funds from colleges, the 32 projects received $725,893.00 in support.

COVID-19 resources you can trust

·May town hall featuring Matt Ferrari
·Penn State coronavirus info
·Eberly coronavirus contingency resources
·ASK CIDD - The Penn State Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics answers submitted questions on the topic of COVID-19.
·U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
·World Health Organization (WHO)

Social Media Snapshots