Mori Williams

EWU McNair Scholar Mori Williams Awarded Opportunity to Attend Society of Toxicology Program

06/30/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Mori Williams Society of Toxicology Award 2021

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Mori Williams! Mori was given a Committee on Diversity (CDI) Undergraduate Diversity Program Student Award to attend the Virtual Undergraduate Diversity Program (UDP) at the SOT 2021 Virtual Annual Meeting. This included registration for the annual Society of Toxicology (SOT) annual meeting, a three-week special program, and a mentor assignment. Mori attended virtually in March.

This year Mori was accepted by the Toxicology PhD program at Oregon State University as well as by South Dakota Mines (SDM) in their Masters in Atmospheric & Environmental Science Program where he received a graduate student assistantship and will attend Fall 2022.

Mori's research interests focus on finding types of toxins in bodies of water such as lakes, ponds, and the ocean to find solutions for reducing those toxins. He is majoring in Environmental Science with an emphasis in Chemistry and a minor in Japanese. For his 2020 EWU McNair Research Internship, he worked with Dr. Camille McNeely in researching cyanobacteria in local areas such as the Spokane River and the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge. Mori has presented his research to the Biology department, the National Conference on Undergraduate Research, and the EWU Symposium.

The EWU McNair staff are so excited for Mori! Click here to read more about Mori or his research.

EWU McNair Scholar Mori Williams Awarded Graduate Student Assistantship

06/30/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Mori Williams! Mori has been awarded a graduate student assistantship from the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. Mori was accepted by South Dakota Mines (SDM) in their Masters in Atmospheric & Environmental Science Program. This is in addition to an acceptance by the Toxicology PhD program at Oregon State University. Mori's research interests focus on finding types of toxins in bodies of water such as lakes, ponds, and the ocean to find solutions for reducing those toxins. Mori plans to attend SDM starting the fall of 2022.

Currently Mori is majoring in Environmental Science with an emphasis in Chemistry and a minor in Japanese. He has worked in an Organic Chemistry lab at Eastern Washington University, which involves saponification, NMR readings, and reflux methods. For his 2020 EWU McNair Research Internship, he worked with Dr. Camille McNeely in researching cyanobacteria in local areas such as the Spokane River and the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge. Mori has presented his research to the Biology department, the National Conference on Undergraduate Research, and the EWU Symposium.

The EWU McNair staff are so excited for Mori! Click here to read more about Mori or his research.

EWU McNair Scholar Mori Williams Accepted to Masters Program at South Dakota School of Mines and Technology

05/11/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Mori Williams Graduate School Acceptances 2021 SDM

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Mori Williams! Mori has been accepted by the Masters in Atmospheric & Environmental Science Program at the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology. This is in addition to an acceptance by the Toxicology PhD program at Oregon State University. Currently Mori is majoring in Environmental Science with an emphasis in Chemistry and a minor in Japanese. He has worked in an Organic Chemistry lab at Eastern Washington University university, which involves saponification, NMR readings, and reflux methods. For his 2020 EWU McNair Research Internship, he worked with Dr. Camille McNeely in researching cyanobacteria in local areas such as the Spokane River and the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge. Mori has presented his research to the Biology department and will present at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research later this year. Mori's research interests focus on finding types of toxins in bodies of water such as lakes, ponds, and the ocean to find solutions for reducing those toxins.

The EWU McNair staff are so excited for Mori. We know he'll do amazing things at whichever program he decides to attend! Click here to read more about Mori or his research.

EWU McNair Scholars Lucia Roussa and Mori Williams Present at NCUR

04/27/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Green back drop (lime to jade), with title of article, names of scholars and an image of each

EWU McNair Scholar Mori Williams and Lucia Roussa presented last week at the virtual National Council on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) Conference. NCUR promotes undergraduate research, scholarship, and creative activity in all fields of study through their conference for students. It celebrates undergraduate student achievement and hopes to help improve the state of undergraduate education. Each conference hosts 3,500 to 4,000 students from across the globe, presenting their research through posters, oral presentations, visual arts, and performances. This year the conference took place completely online.

Mori and Lucia both worked with mentor Dr. Camille McNeely on research at the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge. Mori presented on cyanobacteria in the refuge by creating a video and then was available for questions during the conference. Lucia presented her project investigating the relationship between freshwater algal abundance and diversity through analyzing the eutrophication of these wetlands. Lucia's presentation was live during the conference. Here are some of Lucia's thoughts about presenting:

Presenting was much different than I had initially thought it was going to be. I really did not know what to expect, or how many people would be watching my presentation. Since the conference was online in a Zoom format it felt similar to a presentation you would give in class. There was only three students and one professor who watched me present live, so that made things a bit easier. I learned that presenting at a conference was not as scary as I had imagined! Maybe if it was in person I would feel differently, but all together it was a great experience."

I think my greatest take away from presenting at a conference is the importance of practicing your material out loud and being well prepared. I gave this presentation to my housemates more times than they probably wanted, but becoming completely comfortable with your slides and memorizing your information is key to a smooth and professional presentation."

I recommend that all students just go for it! I feel like there is such a stigma around the difficulty of these kinds of presentations/conferences. Personally, I have a huge fear of public speaking, especially in front of faculty and peers who are extremely knowledgeable! I was given great advice from one of my professors who said that you (the presenter) know the most about your topic, so be confident in what you are talking about! That really stuck with me and gave me so much confidence when it came my time to speak."

EWU McNair Encourages Scholar Presentations at Conferences

EWU McNair encourages all of its scholars to present at conferences such as NCUR to build confidence, experience, and to strengthen Curriculum Vitae's (CV) for applying to graduate school. This school year scholars presented at the Baylor McNair Research Conferenc,the Murdock College Science Research Conference, and last week at the Gabriel E. Gallardo Research, Student Leadership & Advocacy Symposium hosted by the University of Washington. Typically most EWU McNair Scholars also present at the EWU Symposium. Last year we may have set a record with 18 scholars presenting last spring! This year, to ensure our scholars have this opportunity, EWU McNair is partnering with CSTEM at EWU to host a symposium on June 2nd. The symposium will begin with a Social Justice in Research Panel with EWU McNair Alumni at 9 am. Check back on the McNair Website to find out how to register in advance to attend this secured Zoom event.

EWU McNair Scholars Present at Murdock College Science Research Conference 2020

By Jaeger, Corinne | 01/27/2021

Nine EWU McNair Scholars Present at Baylor McNair Research Conference

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18 EWU McNair Scholars Present at EWU Virtual Symposium

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Darlene Gilroy, EWU McNair Scholar and Environmental Geology major, attends prestigious Murdock College Science Research Conference in Vancouver, WA

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Abdu Mohammed Visiting Congressional Reps

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More about the 2021 NCUR Presenters

Lucia is finishing a dual Environmental Science and Biology major at Eastern Washington University. Lucia's research interests include phycology, marine microbiology, and conservation science in coastal marine ecosystems. Recently Lucia was selected as summer research intern by Cooperative Institute for Climate, Ocean, and Ecosystem Sciences (CICOES) at UW. She will research whether jellyfish populations can be used as markers of health in the Puget Sound with mentor Dr. Julie Keister.

Mori is majoring in Environmental Science with an emphasis in Chemistry and a minor in Japanese. He has worked in an Organic Chemistry lab at Eastern Washington University, which involves saponification, NMR readings, and reflux methods. He is interested in finding types of toxins in bodies of water such as lakes, ponds, and the ocean to find solutions for reducing those toxins. This spring he was accepted by the Toxicology PhD program at Oregon State University.

The EWU McNair staff are proud of Mori and Lucia and we're excited to see what they'll do next!

EWU McNair Scholar Mori Williams Accepted to Toxicology PhD Program at Oregon State University

03/02/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Mori Williams Graduate School Acceptances 2021 OSU

Congratulations to EWU McNair Scholar Mori Williams! Mori has been accepted by the Toxicology PhD program at Oregon State University. Currently Mori is majoring in Environmental Science with an emphasis in Chemistry and a minor in Japanese. He has worked in an Organic Chemistry lab at Eastern Washington University university, which involves saponification, NMR readings, and reflux methods. For his 2020 EWU McNair Research Internship, he worked with Dr. Camille McNeely in researching cyanobacteria in local areas such as the Spokane River and the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge. Mori has presented his research to the Biology department and will present at the National Conference on Undergraduate Research later this year. Mori's research interests focus on finding types of toxins in bodies of water such as lakes, ponds, and the ocean to find solutions for reducing those toxins.

The EWU McNair staff are so excited for Mori. We know he'll do amazing things at whichever program he decides to attend! Click here to read more about Mori or his research.

EWU McNair Scholars Present their STEM Research and Experiences

02/02/2021 by Jaeger, Corinne Leave a Comment

Despite COVID-19, EWU McNair Scholars have persisted through their virtual research internships during the summer of 2020 and now are presenting their research throughout the year. In addition to Ashley Destin and Rachael Pentico presenting at the Murdock College Science Research Conference in the Fall of 2020, three McNair Scholars have presented within their departments at EWU so far in 2021.

Darlene Gilroy, a second year EWU McNair Scholar, presented her research on, “Chemical Weathering of Deposits from the 1980 Mount St. Helens Eruption and its Effect on Stream Water Chemistry," to the Geology Department in early January. Darlene has been mentored by EWU McNair Faculty Mentor Dr. Carmen Nezat for two summers of research. Darlene is currently finishing her senior year at EWU as well as applying to multiple graduate schools across the country.

EWU McNair Scholar Mori Williams was recently featured in a video on the EWU Biology Department's website where he discusses his EWU McNair Summer research in detail. With the support of his EWU McNair Faculty Mentor, Dr. Camille McNeely, Mori took samples at the Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge to determine concentrations of microcystins from cyanobacteria in wetlands. He is still compiling data and will present his findings this spring at the EWU Symposium. In the video, Mori also discusses his long term goals to become an environmental scientist with an emphasis in toxicology so he can focus on ways to reduce and remove toxins from our waters. Mori has applied to 7 PhD programs and 3 Masters programs and is currently applying for a fellowship.

Rachael was also featured in a video on the EWU Biology Department's website and shares great research opportunities where she shares examples of research within the department, including her EWU McNair research project under the mentorship of Dr. Rebecca Brown: Differences in Plant Soil Feedbacks with Respect to Slope Aspect. Rachael's findings in this project suggest that slope aspect influences plant-soil feedback. This insight can help with invasive species management in endangered ecosystems such as the Palouse Prairie Ecoregion. Rachael is now hard at work completing her graduate school applications to schools across the country!

We're so proud of all of our EWU McNair Scholars. It's been amazing to see how hard they've worked given all the challenges of the last year. We're excited to see where each of them goes next. Keep your eyes on the EWU McNair website and facebook page in the coming months to see as these fantastic scholars get accepted into graduate programs!