Get to know the Student Council officers. Each year new students are elected to these positions to develop new programs and events for students at the yearly M&M meetings. Click on the office title to learn more about the responsibilities involved in holding leadership within the Student Council.

President

Cameron Varano Research Assistant Professor Center for Structural Oncology Penn State

I recently completed my doctorate at Virginia Tech. I work at the in the Center for Structural Oncology in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at Penn State. My research is aimed at examining the link between protein structure and function in human disease. My work is predominantly focuses on the effects of post-translational modifications to the BRCA1-BARD1 protein complex in metastatic breast cancer. I combine biochemical assays and cryo-EM to gain insights into the mechanisms of disease progression. The goal is to elucidate how BRCA1, an imperative tumor suppressor, is silenced. The knowledge gained could impact how metastatic disease is both screened and treated.

My interest in service on the MSA Student Council stems of a desire to have a wider interaction with individuals within the world of microscopy. In 2016 I attended and gave a talk at M&M in Columbus, OH. It was an incredible professional development opportunity. It was in Columbus that I had a serendipitous selfie and tweet which connected me to the MSA Student Council. I participated in the many events at the meeting and was extended a formal invitation to join the Student Council and serve as Secretary. Having benefited greatly from these experiences, I am enjoying the opportunity to help shape the Student Council.

At the 2017 Student Council meeting, I was elected to serve as president elect for the MSA Student Council. My goal as president is to provide a platform for professional and technical network, while enhancing engagement and involvement in the society throughout the year. I hope to see you in Portland, OR in August.

President-Elect

Erica Stevens PhD Student, NDSEG Fellow Materials Science & Engineering University of Pittsburgh

Nothing excites me more than microscopes and microscopy. The ability to see matter from a vastly different perspective, the unique opportunity to fuse art and science, and the possibilities for reaching non-technical audiences through visual appeal is absolutely the best of all worlds for me.

I am a fourth-year Materials Science and Engineering PhD student at the University of Pittsburgh with Dr. Markus Chmielus. My primary research focuses on additive manufacturing (3D printing) of functional materials, particularly magnetocaloric materials (which change temperature when a magnetic field is applied). I use scanning electron microscopy, electron backscatter diffraction, and micro-computed tomography as primary characterization tools.

When I first discovered my passion for microscopes, I made the decision to attend the Microscopy & Microanalysis conference in 2016 in Columbus, OH — the experience fully solidified my resolve to work towards a career in microscopy. Throughout the conference, with each new person I met, all I could think is, "these are my people, I belong here." It is a combination of this feeling of community and my overwhelming love for microscopy that led me to the StC; I want to meet more people, help other student/early-career microscopists connect with each other, and share my microscope-induced excitement. I served as the 2017-18 Regional Liaison Chair, and was elected to the President-Elect position at M&M 2018.

My hope is that everyone who finds their way to the StC will have an avenue for learning and networking and ultimately will think: "these are my people, I belong here."

Past-President

Janet Gbur Research Associate Materials Science and Engineering Case Western Reserve University

Upon graduation, I accepted a Research Associate position in Materials Science and Engineering at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. I work in the Nitinol Commercialization Accelerator Laboratory and Advanced Manufacturing and Mechanical Reliability Center under Professor John Lewandowski, and I am also a member of the DARPA HAPTIX iSens project team under Professor Dustin Tyler in the Functional Neural Interface Lab in Biomedical Engineering. My current research focuses on the fatigue and fracture of wire-based systems used biomedical applications as well as reliability of medical devices used in neuromodulation. Additionally, I am an Adjunct Faculty member in the Mechanical, Industrial, and Manufacturing Engineering Department at Youngstown State University teaching a course in Engineering Materials.

My first involvement with MSA was the M&M 2015 conference in Portland, Oregon as a member of the Student Bursary Program. I was encouraged by my PI and the surface analysis center director to learn more about the various microscopy techniques through participation in vendor tutorials and attending talks and short courses while at the conference. I enjoyed being a part of the planning for the Inaugural PMCx60 and development of Student Council and I am continually energized by the outstanding leaders focused on contributing to our success. I hope to improve the visibility of student-specific leadership opportunities and encourage participation and leadership from students through early-career professionals to provide a natural mentorship and transition into roles within MSA.

I am a member of the Microscopy Society of Northeastern Ohio, a MSA Local Affiliate Society. During 2016-2017, I served as the Inaugural Pre-meeting Congress (PMCx60) Co-Chair for Physical Sciences and President-Elect for Student Council, followed by Student Council President in 2017-2018, and I am the Student Council Past-President for 2018-2019. The value I gained as a member and leader in MSA Student Council far exceeded my expectations and the networking I developed with scientists and vendors absolutely had a positive impact on my research. Whether you are an undergraduate student just learning about microscopy or an emerging scientist, MSA Student Council is a place to share, grow, and learn – Why wait, get involved now!

Treasurer

Kartik Venkatraman Graduate Research Associate Arizona State University

I am a fourth-year Materials Science & Engineering PhD candidate at Arizona State University working with Prof. Peter A. Crozier. My current research focus is to develop the technique of high spatial resolution vibrational spectroscopy using monochromated electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) in an aberration-corrected scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM). Previously, I attended the Indian Institute of Technology at Varanasi, India where my undergraduate research project was focused on synthesizing differently sized CdS and CdSe quantum dots for optoelectronic applications.

My first interaction with the MSA community was during my first M&M in 2016 at Columbus, OH. Being a fresh graduate student, I was amazed by the extraordinary level at which the attendees performed scientific research. More so, I was blown away by the number of professionals who made themselves available for scientific discussion; this gave me a sense of inclusion in this community. I was also impressed by the amount of effort the society put in bringing students together to interact with the community – in the form of the Student Bursary Program that I was a part of, the Student Mixer and the ‘Meals with a Mentor’ event. It was at that M&M that the MSA Student Council (StC) was formed. After lots of interaction with the StC members over two M&M conferences, I served as the Regional Liaison for the MSA StC for the southwest region (AZ, CA, CO, NM, NV, HI, UT) for the 2017-18 academic year and promoted MSA activities across the student community affiliated with microscopy research at universities in this region. For the current academic year (2018-19), I was elected to serve as the Treasurer of the MSA StC. The support system provided by the community motivates me to be actively involved in the functioning of the StC.

As the Treasurer for the MSA StC, I oversee all financial transactions, develop a budget and maintain accurate records of income & expenses, develop sponsorship activities and solicit funding for the PMCx60 2019. I want to use this opportunity to inspire more students to become involved with the StC after showing them our accomplishments at M&M 2019! The goal is to foster fraternity in the student community and develop future leaders for the MSA. The PMCx60 has been a huge success the past two years and we intend to push ourselves to do better the next year.

Secretary

Jackson Spurling Sophomore Student Materials Science and Engineering University of Tennessee, Knoxville

I am a freshman at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. I have no research focus at present; as a freshman, I haven't had an opportunity to be involved in undergraduate research during the school year, however I have been and plan to continue as a student researcher at Oak Ridge National Laboratory working with both scanning and transmission electron microscopes. The primary project I helped with last summer involved running an experiment with a magnesium oxide indicator to verify the presence of water vapor within a gas cell as a precursor to running and in situ experiment.

Program Chair

Ethan Lawrence Graduate Research Associate Arizona State University

I am a fifth-year Materials Science & Engineering PhD candidate at Arizona State University working with Prof. Peter Crozier. My current research focus is to use atomic-level in situ imaging and spectroscopy to more completely elucidate the role of surfaces and interfaces on oxygen exchange reactions on CeO2-based catalysts which may enable the reaction pathways and active sites to be determined – a fundamental outstanding problem in heterogeneous catalysis. Previously, I attended Coe College in Cedar Rapids, IA where my research was focused on chemical and optical properties of various glass systems.

I began to feel a sense of belonging to MSA at M&M 2015 in Portland, OR, the first M&M meeting that I attended. The number of microscopy professionals that made themselves available for discussions with students was astounding. The level of inclusion that I felt within the society inspired me to become more involved. This started with the Student Bursary Program at M&M 2016 in Columbus, OH where I was also able to network with other students at the social mixer, the MSA Student Committee meeting, and various other events. Ultimately, this led me to become a member of the newly formed MSA Student Council and an organizing member of the MSA Student Council Inaugural Pre-Meeting Congress (PMCx60). I served as Treasurer of the MSA Student Council and Activities/Social Chair for PMCx60 for the past two years. The level of support that I have witnessed from many MSA members continues to reinforce my desire to be an actively engaged member of the Society.

As the Program Chair for PMCx60 2019, I want to encourage other students to become interested in leadership roles and to engage in as many student networking opportunities as possible. PMCx60 has been huge success the past two years and I hope to inspire other students to become involved with the MSA Student Council after seeing what we have been accomplishing at M&M! I am extremely excited to help create an even bigger and better PMCx60 at M&M 2019. Be on the lookout for updates on our Microscopy Society of America – Students Facebook page!

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Communications Chair

Bukola Obayomi Graduate Research Associate Arizona State University

I am currently a graduate student at Tuskegee University in the Material Science and Engineering program, and have trailed a unique path in the fields of material science and microscopy over the course of a few years. In 2014, I was accepted into the NSF funded Material Science Minor program at Fayetteville State University (UNC-FSU) under the esteemed Dr. Zhiping Luo. As a science major in Chemistry, I encouraged her fellow students from different departments to engage in microscopy analysis, even recruiting an instructor in Forensic Science to participate in the program. During my three-year undergraduate tenure at UNCFSU, I have maintained my grades, worked as an AGORA mentor assisting high school students with programing, and participated in executive boards of the FSU-ACS student chapter and Beta Kappa Chi National Scientific Honor Society. During the summers of 2015 and 2016, I participated in REU internships at University of Alabama at Birmingham and Tuskegee University respectively. My current research is centered on the morphological effects of low temperature plasma on hydrothermal carbonization of catalyzed waste coffee. I aspire to design and characterize environmentally conscious materials with defense applications. I am looking forward to bridging students across different disciplines with the Microscopy Society of America.

Regional Liaison Chair

Surya Narayanan Graduate student and researcher In situ nanomedicine lab University of Illinois at Chicago

I am a fourth year graduate student at UIC. I work with Dr Tolou Shokuhfar in the in situ nanomedicine lab. My PhD thesis is focused on understanding the iron regulation mechanism in ferritin using in situ liquid microscopy. To be able to study this, I combine liquid microscopy with biochemical experiments. I believe that the knowledge gained from my research will contribute in the area of diagnostics.

As a graduate student, I always believe that the skill-set I acquire from school is not limited to research and classes, but also a holistic development which builds the overall personality. With that said, I have always looked upon leadership and communication as a potential way to develop my skills. I have been attending M&M from 2016. As a first-time attendee, I found student council to be helpful to meet and interact with folks with similar level. I have been interested to be a part of Stc and wanted to give back to the community. Besides, through the years of my PhD, I believe that the concept of scientific thinking evolves from a community and group of people sharing their thoughts. I believe that MSA Stc provides such a platform to talk to students and mentors across the nation.

I am appointed as a Regional Liaison (RL) for the Midwest area. As a RL, my goal is to connect to microscopists in my community, walk them through the benefits and encourage them to join MSA. This would help me connect with people in the society as well as give me a sense of happiness to have helped someone.

Region X Liaison

Nhu Trieu MSc Student Biology University of New Brunswick

I am a first year M.Sc student in Biology at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada. I work with Dr. Bryan Crawford in his lab focused on matrix dynamics. My research is aimed at characterizing the ultrastructural differences in the extracellular matrix surrounding cancer cells. I use confocal microscopy and transmission electron microscopy to compare zebrafish xenografted with highly invasive cells to zebrafish xenografted with poorly invasive cells. This characterization will yield better understanding of the role of the tumour microenvironment and its connection with invasiveness.

I volunteered for the regional liaison position because I wanted to form better connections between the microscopy communities in Canada with the microscopy community in the United States. My major interest is in developing better tools for advocacy at the university and government levels and improving the current state of the gap between having the majority of our skilled, knowledgeable microscopists retiring in the next 10 – 20 years and not having easily accessible resources for training our next microscopists and the support necessary to ensure that this field is continuously being cultivated. Microscopy is important, not only for its role in research, but also for its role in exciting the general public because, for many, seeing is believing and better for understanding. I look forward to working with everyone to further build our community and to increase awareness and advocacy for microscopy.