The weekly seminar is the cornerstone of the BilDS program, initiating a blend of professional development, community engagement, and multidisciplinary scientific research discussion. In these sessions, graduate students explore the use of improvisation as a tool to enhance communication across various scientific fields. They also participate in dialogues with faculty and peers about professional growth, and attend workshops focused on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), covering topics like social identities, microaggressions in the workplace, and mental health awareness.
Current Schedule
Fall 2024 Seminar Schedule
| Date | Speaker | Seminar Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 30 | Alison Hall, Andrew McCraken, Anna Schmidt, Ericka Griggs | Grad Fellowship Workshop Part 1 - Panel |
| Sep 6 | Miki Beach (UVM CAPS) | Mental Health in Grad School |
| Sep 13 | Melissa Pespeni | Cajita project-intro (AY24-25 REQUIRED, allows repeat participation from previous cohorts) |
| Sep 20 | Heather Ingram (University of Arizona) | Universal Design 1.5hr (10-11:30am) |
| Sep 27 | Jasmine Hart | Internship Presentation |
| Oct 4 | Yolanda Chen | Your Personal Development Plan - How to Use Creative Approaches to Develop Skills |
| Oct 11 | FALL RECESS | NO SEMINAR |
| Oct 18 | Kellie Carim (USDA) | Career Talk: Working with Different Groups |
| Oct 25 | Mark Henderson | Time Series Analysis and Applications |
| Nov 1 | Joaquin Nunez | Job Search and Networking Strategies |
| Nov 8 | Amber Anderson (UVM Career Center) | Career Development Workshop |
| Nov 15 | Steve Keller, Daniel Sadler | BilDS Research Discussion: Geonomics and Climate Change |
| Nov 22 | Kristen Florian | Data Visualization Workshop |
| Nov 29 | THANKSGIVING RECESS | NO SEMINAR |
| Dec 6 | N/A | Cajita Project Gallery (10:30-11:30am) | Fall Celebration (2-5pm) - at Joaquin's house |
BilDS Seminar Schedule Archive
Spring 2024
| Date | Speaker | Seminar Topic |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 19 | Reed Scott | Internship Presentation: Using occupancy models to assess disease threats to wildlife populations |
| Jan 26 | Joe Gunn | Scientific Reproducibility Workshop |
| Feb 2 | Erika Lala | DEI Workshop: Microagressions in workspace |
| Feb 9 | Andrew McCracken | Internship Presentation: Searching for a culprit: investigating sea star wasting in the pacific northwest |
| Feb 16 | Emily Longman | Scientific Film making |
| Feb 23 | Yolanda Chen | Time and Health Management |
| Mar 1 | Gabriel Meyer-Lee | Internship Presentation: Machine Learning For Cryo Electron Microscopy |
| Mar 8 | Ali Mahmood | DEI Workshop: Religion diversity/literacy and Science Communication |
| Mar 15 | Spring Recess | NO SEMINAR |
| Mar 22 | Ben Camber | Internship Presentation: Arthropod Survey of Fort Leonard Wood |
| Mar 29 | Seth Frietze, Brent Lockwood, Melissa Pespeni | BilDS Research Discussion - Epigentics & Environmental Responses |
| Apr 5 | Zeina Salame | Improv in Science Communication |
| Apr 12 | Ericka Griggs, Theresa Montgomery, Sandra Nnadi, Dan Peipert | BilDS Research Discussion - Microbiome & Health |
| Apr 19 | BilDS Leadership Team | BilDS Community Update |
| Apr 26 | Brittany Mosher, Andrew McCraken | BilDS Research Discussion - Disease Modeling |
| May 3 | N/A | "Spring Celebration at the Oakeldge Park 2-5pm *No morning seminar" |
Spring 2023
| Date | Speaker | Seminar Topic |
|---|---|---|
| 20-Jan | Melissa Pespeni | welcome and community building |
| 27-Jan | Chris Danforth, Yolanda Chen | Professional Development: Internet presence |
| 3-Feb | Eric J von Wettberg | Professional Development: Collaborations |
| 10-Feb | Aura Alonso-Rodriguez | Internship Presentation: Changes in phylogenetic diversity of rainforest moth communities following hurricane disturbance |
| 17-Feb | Natalia Aristizábal | Internship Presentation: Bee Pollination Affects Coffee Quality, Yield, and Trade-Offs Between Them |
| 24-Feb | Joe Gunn | Computational Workshop: Data management, organization, & reproducibility (Data Reproducibility) |
| 3-Mar | Joe Gunn | "Computational Workshop: Data management, organization, & reproducibility (Integrating RStudio & GitHub for effective data management)" |
| 10-Mar | Melissa Pespeni, Lola Chen, Mariah Boudreau | Wellness Break |
| 17-Mar | Spring Recess | No Seminar |
| 24-Mar | Nick Cheney | Identifying and building mentor-mentee relationships |
| 31-Mar | Gillian Galford, Jill Preston | Professional Devleopment: Finding a postdoc |
| 7-Apr | Peer Led | Finding a Postdoc- Peer Led Discussion |
| 14-Apr | Anoob Prakash | Internship Presentation: Genomic assisted restoration of red spruce as a mechanism against rapid climate change |
| 21-Apr | N/A | Evaluation Survey |
| 28-Apr | Cancelled | No Seminar |
| 5-May | N/A | Spring Celebration |
Fall 2023
| Date | Speaker | Seminar Topic |
|---|---|---|
| 1-Sep | Melissa Pespeni, Lori Stevens, Jill Preston | QuEST orientation for incoming trainees AY23-24 |
| 8-Sep | Erika Lala | DEI training: Social Identities + Socialization |
| 15-Sep | Csenge Petak | Internship presentation: The evolution of plant development in a variable environment |
| 22-Sep | Hillary Young; Doug Mccauley from UCSB | Professional Development Panel: From conservation to basic science |
| 29-Sep | Joe Gunn, Joaquinn Nunez, | QuEST Course Review |
| 6-Oct | Anna Schmidt | Internship presentation: Studying zooplankton migration behavior using experimental mesocosms |
| 13-Oct | Fall Recess | No Seminar |
| 20-Oct | Melissa Pespeni | Cajita project Intro |
| 27-Oct | Thomas O’Leary | Computational reproducibility |
| 3-Nov | Cancelled | No Seminar |
| 10-Nov | Michelle Boyd | Tongue Tied:How to get Unstuck and Love your writing again |
| 17-Nov | Dan Munteanu | Internship presentation:The city is a complex system |
| 24-Nov | Thanksgiving Recess | No Seminar |
| 1-Dec | N/A | Cajita project gallery |
| 8-Dec | N/A | End of semester Celebration at the Boardroom, Board Game Cafe |