The Oklahoma Water Resources Center hosts an NSF-REU in Stillwater, Oklahoma on stream restoration/rehabilitation. The REU pays for student housing, meals, research supplies, travel to a future conference, and also provides a stipend during the 10-week summer program.

During the summer of 2015, seven undergraduate students from across the United States conducted research focused on stream restoration/rehabilitation practices and approaches. 

Click on the website below to view a video about the program. Watch for the UMBC student at almost two minutes into the video.

A blog reflection written by Women’s Center intern, MJ Jalloh-Jamboria

This semester I’ve had the privilege of taking Dr. Tammy Henderson’s ‘Black Feminist Thought’ class. I recommend the class to anyone interested in learning the origins and history of black feminism, the claim of black feminist intellect and the way black feminist activism pertains to People of Color (POC) everywhere. Before the semester started, I was super confident that I would do amazing in the class. I didn’t think it would be an easy ‘A’ but I was naive enough to think that I knew enough about black feminist thought, that I could cruise by in the class. I’ve never been so happy to be wrong! We’re only halfway through the semester but a recent experience with a previous high school teacher reminded me of one of the discussions we had in class.

Before continuing, I’d like to examine the word, “militant.” It’s defined as “combative and aggressive in support of a political or social cause, and typically favoring extreme, violent, or confrontational methods.”

Earlier this month I took a trip to visit my favorite teacher at my alma mater, a small high school in Montgomery County, Maryland. Ms. J took one look at my t-shirt (a black shirt with “BLACK LIVES MATTER” written in large multi-colored letters), and immediately we launched into a conversation on the movement and the events which led to the birth of the slogan. I was excited to tell Ms.J about my involvement in local DC and Baltimore activist groups but instead, after about 20 minutes of arguing she ended the conversation with, “Well that is why I simply cannot fully support the black lives matter movement. Goodness MJ, I don’t remember you being this militant.”

At first, I was unsure if her use of the word ‘militant’ was used as a compliment or an insult. Today, I proudly claimed militant as an adjective that accurately describes me. I am more than honored to be equated with activists like Angela Davis and Malcolm X (who are seen as leaders of black militance movements of the 60s and 70s). However in that moment, I realized her use of the word was probably used to discourage me from continuing on with the conversation. I stayed quiet and let the topic go. I soon realized why Ms. J used ‘militant’ to describe my passion.

Whether she meant to or not, Ms. J’s use of the word suddenly made me self-conscious enough to change the topic of our discussion, move on and stay quiet and polite. For the remainder of the day, I was over-aware of the way I shared the specifics of my life with other teachers. I stayed quiet, for fear of sounding like the angry-black-person who was only concerned with oppression and feminism and screaming from a soap box. I stayed quiet because I didn’t want to be read as aggressive. I didn’t want my teachers to feel like I was blaming them in any way (because of their race or other factors) and I especially didn’t want to sound pedantic.

Ms.J’s dismissal of my passion as militance, felt parallel to the way the word ‘terrorist’ was thrown in face of activist movements. For example, think of how quickly we associate violence with Malcolm X. Never forget that the Black Panther’s Party was considered a terrorist group. We’ve been taught that his activist ideology was deep rooted in violence. People forget that his life, and the era in which he lived, was stained with violent acts towards him, his family (his father was killed by white supremacists) and communities of POC everywhere. We fail to examine the systems which pushed him, and fellow activists, to actions which were/are deemed militant and violent. More so, we fail to retell history correctly. X encouraged communities of color to defend themselves against white supremacy “by any means necessary.” I am less than surprised that his activism and ideology (and those of other activists of color) was equated with violence and militance.

From lessons learned in Dr. Henderson’s class and beyond, I understand that militant and violent have always been adjectives associated with POC. Activists (and others who spoke up about the oppressions they faced) have been met with hatred, violence and never ending streams of ignorance. In their strides for equality and equity, POC have been written off whenever they’ve decided to mobilize for change. Accounts of lived experiences from POC are ignored, taken for game and depoliticized. The irony lies in the response of those who then discourage their sense of urgency and/or passion and mistake it for aggression. While anger and other emotions are expected of those who have faced oppression, we instead censor our emotions and attitude towards certain topics so we don’t offend people.

While youthful passion for social justice is extremely warranted, some see it as unnecessary and childish. My excitement for activism shouldn’t be seen as militant or violent. Instead my need for justice should be celebrated and reciprocated! POC shouldn’t be afraid of or turned off to speaking about injustices for fear of seeming aggressive. We should be welcomed with platforms to speak of our experiences with injustice and work together to start revolutions and combat injustice. (Haha, pun intended!)

I’m about to get super cheesy on y’all, so bear with me. One of my favorite quotes is from Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr: 

Picture description: “Somebody told a lie one day. They couched it in language. They made everything black ugly and evil. Look in your dictionary and see the synonyms of the word “black.” It’s always something degrading, low, and sinister. Look at the word “white.” It’s always something pure, high, clean. Well, I wanna get the language right tonight.”

Similar to MLK, I suppose I also want to get the language right and change the rhetoric. As activists of color and a larger black community, why don’t we change the way words such as militant, anger, aggression and violent are used against us. Let’s reclaim the words so often used to describe us! When someone dismisses us because of our emotions, ask them why they aren’t emotional as well! When discouraged from acts of activism, persevere by any means necessary! When faced with systems of oppression, assemble an army to dismantle every one of those systems!

This post is the first of a series on Militance. Stay tuned for some examples of Militant Women to be celebrated over the next couple of weeks!

“You don’t have to leave your campus to become an activist.” – Marisela B. Gomez

Red Cross Blood Drive

The Center currently invites applicants for the 2016 Summer Undergraduate Research Program. This program provides undergraduate students the opportunity to conduct research in preclinical and clinical laboratories at the MPRC and other laboratories of the Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine in Baltimore.

In addition to a mentored hands-on research experience, students will participate in a didactic lecture series, research and ethics discussions with faculty, literature journal club, a career development seminar, and a Scholars’ Research Day at the end of the summer. Throughout the summer, students will work and interact with various faculty, graduate students, postdoctoral fellows and research assistants while gaining experience in preclinical and/or clinical research. Students will enhance their independent thinking and develop communication and presentation skills necessary to becoming a successful scientist.

Benefits

• Summer scholars will receive a stipend for a 10-week commitment (May 31 - August 5)
• On-campus housing is available at the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) dormitory

Eligibility

• Students with undergraduate student status during the program dates
• GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale
• Ideal candidates have a strong interest in pursuing a graduate degree
• The University of Maryland, Baltimore is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. Minorities, women, veterans and individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply

In the Canopy with Wheelchairs & Tardigrades

National Science Foundation Research Opportunity

3D Invertebrate Herbivory and Biodiversity in Deciduous North American Forest Canopies: Inspiring Students with Physical Disabilities to Pursue Field Biology

May 31 - August 9, 2015 | Baker University, Baldwin City, Kan.

We are looking for a few students who have the confidence to climb into the tops of trees and explore. Students who can ask questions that do not yet have answers. Students who want to learn from the unknown.

The Research Project

This is a three-dimensional research project to define the taxonomy and distribution of tardigrades (water bears) in the canopy and the herbivory of insects on a North American deciduous forest.The project is a fast-paced, tree-climbing, data-collecting, rapid-analysis and results-oriented internship. It is not for the timid. The plan is to climb and collect in the cooler mornings and spend the hotter afternoons and evenings processing specimens in the labs. Weekends include visits to local cultural sites and water bear hunts.

Students will be professionally trained to ascend into the canopy. There they will measure the impact of micro and macro invertebrates on the habitat and establish a baseline from which change can be measured. This is the cutting edge of ecological analysis in a world affected by climate change. Students will learn to use remote sensing, GIS, HPLC, GC-MS, and an EA scanning electron microscope to document the microenvironment.

Students will be employed for the summer. They will collaborate with the principle investigators to prepare their data for presentation and publication. They will also meet and network with the scientists and graduate students at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences, University of Kansas Microscopy and Analytical Imaging Lab, Kansas State University long-term environmental research site, and the Missouri Botanical Garden. Students may attend a regional, national, or international meeting and present their results.

Students will be part of a small team of young scientists who are defining and establishing a base line for the condition of the temperate forests before global warming completely exerts pressure for the forests and canopy to change.

The Hypothesis

Unlike in the tropics, there are no differences in the animals or plants that live at different levels of deciduous trees in temperate forests.

To test this hypothesis students will conduct vertical transects at multiple sites on various species of trees. Field collections will be moss, lichen and leaves.

Based at the new Boyd Center at Baker University in Baldwin City, Kan., the project will explore the canopy of the transition zone between the eastern deciduous forest and the tall grass prairie biomes.

In the lab, students will extract, identify and quantize the animals (water bears) found in each sample and learn to create scanning electron microscope images.

Students will analyze the chemistry of the habitat (moss/lichen) with GC, Mass, spec, and HPLC for its influence on the interstitial aquatic environment in which the animals live. The leaves of the trees will be analyzed for insect herbivory.

The data will be mapped with GIS to predict other places where similar populations might exist. The data will establish a baseline from which change caused by global warming can be measured in the future.

Students will use professional tools such as PowerPoint to present their findings at the North Carolina Museum of Natural Sciences and regional meetings. They will also have the opportunity to produce manuscripts for publication.