Siena Heights University students attend conference in Washington DC

From September 14 through the 16th, six students from Siena Heights University were invited to attend the S-STEM Scholars Meeting conference in Washington DC. One thousand students from across the United States were in attendance at the conference, which is hosted by the American Association for the Advancement of Science, which is itself sponsored by the National Science Foundation. S-STEM is a program designed to address workforce needs in STEM fields.

Jun Tsuji, who is the Assistant Dean of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics at Siena Heights University, is a National Science Foundation (NSF) S-STEM grant awardee. As such, he was allowed to nominate students to take advantage of grant funding to attend the S-STEM conference in Washington DC. 

According to an article on Siena Heights Unviersity’s website, the students who were selected to attend the conference on behalf of the school were Ahmad Awad, Shilo Bernal, Nethanel Leupold, Mackenzie Pettey, Kiana Rumps, and E’Anna Won. The students had their airfare, accommodations, and meals covered to attend S-STEM. 

The Scholars Meeting is designed to help low-income students who are interested in or are pursuing STEM to be able to meet each other and other STEM professionals and have the opportunity to present research and gain valuable career advice and mentorship. 

The six students in attendance were able to present their findings from research they conducted in the Fall 2022 semester. Both presentations, and their corresponding research, were focused on ROVs, which are Remotely Operated Underwater Vehicles. Siena Heights University was the only group at the Scholars Meeting who presented research on this topic, as well as one of the only schools to have its students present in groups. One presentation was titled “Measuring Water Temperatures at Different Depths in Lake Adrian Using a Remotely Operated Underwater Vehicle (ROV)” and the other was called “Testing for Nitrate and Phosphate in Lake Adrian Using a Remotely Operated Underwater Vehicle (ROV).”

On his students being able to present their findings in groups, Dr. Tsuji said, “The group project gives a sense of what it means to work together with others in research. It allows for collaboration with others and experiences with what it means to uphold their individual research responsibilities.”

Dr. Tsuji and his students were not the only representatives of Siena Heights University at the S-STEM Scholars Meeting conference. Melissa Tsuji, MA, SHRM-CP, who serves as the university’s Director of Career Services and Experiential Learning, was a Meeting Mentor at the conference.

Her abstract was one of 25 selected, allowing her to become a mentor. She presented hands-on and interactive workshops that all conference attendees were welcome to check out, including “Boosting Your Brand Identity.”

Attendees also had the opportunity to have their resumes and portfolios looked over by STEM professionals and have their professional headshots taken.

Overall, the Siena Heights University participants found the conference to be very beneficial for them. 

Melissa Tsuji said, “As professionals, we are in the classroom every day. But to be able to participate at a conference of that size, at that level, was a significant accomplishment. I believe we represented Siena Heights in a really impactful way.”

Siena Heights University senior E’Anna Won added, “The conference was an amazing opportunity to present our research to hundreds of other people across the nation. “It was great to make new connections with other STEM scholars and learn from other people’s experiences.” 

While in Washington DC for the S-STEM Scholars Meeting, Siena Heights University students took the opportunity to explore the nation’s capital. They were able to visit landmarks like the National Botanical Garden, National Mall, National Zoo, WWII Memorial, Vietnam War Memorial, the Lincoln Memorial, and MLK Memorial. 

Siena Heights University plans to nominate students to attend next year’s conference.

For more information about the American Association for the Advancement of Science, visit its website. For more information about Siena Heights University, visit its website.