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October 12, 1998
By Tim Stephens
More than a dozen undergraduate students displayed the results of their summer research projects at a poster symposium October 2 in the Earth and Marine Sciences Building. The posters, with topics ranging from infrared communicators to environmental toxicology, demonstrated the high level of scientific research conducted by UCSC undergraduates.
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The second annual CAMP Summer Research Symposium (more photos)
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Most of the students had completed summer internships sponsored by the CAMP program--the California Alliance for Minority Participation in Science, Engineering and Mathematics. CAMP is a statewide program that supports and encourages undergraduates from underrepresented minority groups through cooperative learning, internships, faculty-mentored research, and travel to professional conferences.
In addition, two students from Monterey Peninsula College presented their findings from summer research conducted at UCSC through the ACCESS program. ACCESS is an academic bridge program for community college students interested in pursuing careers in biomedical science.
David Kliger, dean of the Division of Natural Sciences, noted that CAMP and ACCESS are just two examples of the broad range of educational outreach programs at UCSC.
Russell Flegal, professor of earth sciences and CAMP regional director, added that these programs have had remarkable success.
"The Natural Sciences Division has taken truly exceptional measures to make sure the excellent students on this campus reflect the diversity of the state," Flegal said.
In the seven years that UCSC has participated in CAMP, the program has enabled over 130 students to pursue summer research projects, Kliger said.
"The opportunity to do research in the summer is important because it is not enough for students to be successful in their courses--we want to be sure they succeed after graduation, in graduate school and in their careers," Kliger said.
This was the second annual CAMP summer research symposium. Kliger noted that the success of the first CAMP symposium inspired the more comprehensive Natural Sciences Undergraduate Research Symposium held last spring.
The students represented a wide range of departments, including biology, biochemistry, chemistry, computer engineering, computer science, and earth sciences. (Go to a complete list of the 1998 CAMP summer research projects)