FARM Welcome Letter

July 30, 2015

Greetings FARM participants!

Welcome to the Freshman Accelerated Research Methods (FARM) workshop provided in conjunction with the Natural Science and Honor’s program living learning community (LLC). The Natural Science LLC is funded by the National Science Foundation, and the official name for our LLC is the Community for Achievement in Science, Academics, and Research, or CASAR. Science majors also participate in the Honor’s program LLC and we welcome those of you joining us for the FARM workshops.   St. Edward’s University science faculty have prepared a series of interesting and challenging lectures and exercises that are intended to give you a head-start in your studies in your respective science disciplines and potentially the beginning of a career of research in science.

During FARM you will hear presentations from the various science disciplines, perform challenging laboratory tasks, and get an overview of the nature of research and problem solving in science. We will perform daily assessments to get your feedback on the activities of the day, and at the end, we will be distributing a survey to evaluate your overall experience.

There are a number of people from an array of offices across campus who have been working together to provide you with a challenging and exciting experience. They are listed in the information below, along with contact information. Feel free to contact them during the workshops and beyond as you begin your first year of study at the university.

The FARM program begins with a welcome dinner on Sunday, August 16 at 6 pm in the Maloney room (third floor of the Main Building – a campus map is attached). You will be able to move into your rooms in the residence halls prior to dinner, from 12-4 pm on the 16^th. See below the information from residence life regarding move in.

Information regarding the workshops is also attached; those of you participating in the Biology and Chemistry workshops need to wear close toed shoes and long pants as you will be working in the labs and need to follow proper safety protocol. If you are not wearing proper attire you may not be allowed to participate!

If you have any questions between now and Aug. 16 please don’t hesitate to contact me – email is probably best as I am not in my office full time just yet (it is still summer after all!). If you have questions regarding housing and move in, please contact Tony Farmer in Residence Life.

Welcome again and congratulations on being accepted into the Natural Science and Honor’s program LLC’s!

Sincerely

Lisa M. Goering, Ph.D.

Director, CASAR Project

CASAR LLC Participants:

Name                             Email                                                         Major

Honor’s LLC Participants:

Name                                         Email                                                          Major

Student Support Staff:

• Amanda Callejon acallej@stedwards.edu
• Cobby Caputo ccaputo2@stedwards.edu
• Gilbert Rivera grivera5@stedwards.edu
• Christina Lacamu clacamu@stedwards.edu
• Rose Wiederkehr rwiederk@stedwards.edu
• Andres Cuartas-Olarte acuartas@stedwards.edu
• Jacob Belmares jbelmare@stedwards.edu

Katie Gillis   Resident Assistant

• kgillis@stedwards.edu

Faculty FARM Workshop Presenters:

• Michael Saclolo Mathematics mikeps@stedwards.edu          233-1672
• Chuck Hauser Bioinformatics charlesh@stedwards.edu        233-1671
• Michael Kart Computer Science michaelkart@stedwards.edu   428-1329
• Mary Kopecki-Fjetland Chemistry maryk@stedwards.edu           464-8881
• Fidelma O’Leary Biological Science fidelmao@stedwards.edu        415-5893
• Raelynn Deaton Haynes   Biological Science paulad@stedwards.edu 416-5841

Other Administrative Staff:

• Tony Farmer Res Life/LLC Coordinator afarmer@stedwards.edu 462-7601
• Lisa Goering CASAR Director lisago@stedwards.edu            492-3156
• Steven Rodenborn Honor’s LLC Director stevero@stedwards.edu 637-5618
• Michael Lykaios-Guerrero
  • NSCI Science Advisor        mikelg@stedwards.edu           637-1953
• Edward Early Associate Dean edwarde@stedwards.edu        448-8676
• Richard Kopec NSCI Director of               kopec@stedwards.edu            448-8464
• Undergraduate Research
• Gary Morris Dean of Natural Sciences garymorris@stedwards.edu    448-8461
• Cynthia Sullivan Science Advisor cynths@stedwards.edu          233-1403

Note: all area codes are 512, and all 10 digits must be dialed from non-campus phones. When using campus phones, only the last four digits are needed.

Emergency Number      University Police              512-448-8444 (24 hours)

Move in information:

You can begin checking into your hall at 12 pm on Sunday, August 16th. If
you’re a Natural Science LLC student, you’ll head to Hunt/LeMans halls and if
you’re an Honor’s student you’ll head to Dujarie. If you have your ID card
already, we’ve programmed it to give you access that day. If you don’t have
an ID card, don’t worry, there will be a sign on the main entrance with a
phone # you can call to gain access to the building. Once inside, you’ll
obtain your room key by contacting an RA either at your halls’ front desk
(if staff is available) or by calling the phone # on the sign.

Check in hours are 12 – 4 PM on Sunday, August 16.

Dining Hall Access and Hours

All meals (except as noted in the schedule) will be served in the Ragsdale Student Center – South Congress Market. Please eat everything you take! You will use your ID card to pay for your meals.

Hours (M-F):              Breakfast         7:30-9:30 AM

Lunch              11 AM – 2 PM

Dinner             5 PM – 8 PM

Sunday (8/16) dinner will be in the Maloney Room (Main Building, 3^rd floor) at 6:00 PM.

On Monday morning, breakfast tacos will be served in the JBWS Lobby from 8-9 AM. Those of you who do not have ID cards will go to get ID cards at this time.

Please do not bring any food or drink into any classrooms or labs. The floors may be carpeted and food is NOT ALLOWED in the labs.

FARM WORKSHOP ASSIGNMENTS