Workshops

-All locations are at the Westin La Paloma (Tucson, Arizona) unless otherwise noted-
–Please note all times are listed in Arizona Time (local time / MST / PDT)-
-All workshops (except Workshop II) will be only available to in-person meeting participants-

WORKSHOP I – BRINGING UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH EXPERIENCES INTO YOUR CLASS

  • Date: Friday, June 17th
  • Time: 3:00 to 5:00 pm (AZ)
  • Location: Finger Rock
  • Instructor: Patrice Connors, Laurie Dizney, Jennifer Duggan, Liz Flaherty, Hayley Lanier, Johanna Varner, and Christopher Yahnke
  • Cost per person: $5 students (in-person); $10 non-students (in-person)
  • Minimum Attendance: TBD
  • Maximum Attendance: TBD

Course-based undergraduate research experiences (CUREs) are fast becoming a preferred method for instructors to provide authentic research experiences to their students in an equitable way, particularly in the biological sciences. CUREs can positively impact student impressions of themselves as scientists and their opinions of science in general. However, the time needed to create and implement a CURE often prevents instructors from integrating this pedagogical technique in their curriculum. In this workshop, we will present and practice a ready-made, field-based, modular CURE in mammalogy (Squirrel-Net) as an example, and then work with instructors to create a CURE specific to their class or course needs. Specifically, this workshop will complement the success and momentum from our virtual ASM 2021 workshop by:

  1. Describing the key components and benefits of CUREs.
  2. Practicing an example CURE by Squirrel-Net, whereby participants will walk through data collection, online data entry, and discuss analytical techniques to be used by students.
  3. Leading participants through a structured brainstorming exercise to develop a new CURE specific to their course, curriculum, or area of research interest.
  4. Creating time and space for conversation and community-building about education in mammalogy.

Organizers: Patrice Connors and Johanna Varner.

WORKSHOP II – NETWORKING FOR SUCCESS: 1-ON-1 MENTORING SESSION

  • Date: Sunday, June 19th
  • Time: 8:00 to 9:30 am (AZ)
  • Location: Finger Rock
  • Instructors: Kayce Bell and Karen Munroe
  • Cost per person: Included with in-person or virtual registration
  • Minimum Attendance: TBD
  • Maximum Attendance: TBD

This workshop provides a 1-on-1 individualized mentoring experience that brings undergraduate students, post-baccalaureates, and graduate students into direct contact with established mammalogists in their shared fields of study and similar career paths. Up to 100 students (depending on the number of mentors) will be matched by career interest with an ASM Mentor. At the conference, the student and their mentor will meet for 30 minutes and have the option to complete an Individual Development Plan (IDP) based on their discussion. Session goals are to: 1) deliver a hands-on, interactive progress assessment of students’ intended career goals and readiness, 2) a skills assessment to identify gaps in training, 3) strategic planning of short-term and long-term goals, and 4) have a broader understanding of the science career pathways, depending on the specific goals and needs of the student. Organizers: Kayce Bell and Karen Munroe.

WORKSHOP III – DESCRIBING A NEW GENUS OR SPECIES OF MAMMAL AND CONSTRUCTING A SYNONOMY

  • Date: Sunday, June 19th
  • Time: 8:00 – 9:30 am (AZ)
  • Location: Murphey
  • Instructors: Connor Burgin, Meredith Hamilton, Jonathan Nations, Ryan W. Norris, Luis A. Ruedas, and Robert M. Timm
  • Cost per person: Included with in-person registration
  • Minimum Attendance: TBD
  • Maximum Attendance: TBD

In spite of centuries of research, new mammal species continue to be discovered and described. Most issues of the Journal of Mammalogy contain multiple taxonomic papers that involve the description of new taxa or the elevation of junior synonyms to species status. The process is governed by The International Code of Zoological Nomenclature, a 300-page tome plus digital supplements that can be intimidating to even a seasoned taxonomist. In this workshop we plan to cover the following five topics: 1) Essential terminology, 2) The required and recommended components of a species-level description, 3) The required and recommended components of genus-level and family-level descriptions, 4) Creation of synonymies, and 5) An overview of how The Code defines publication (especially electronic publication) and explanation of how Journal of Mammalogy fulfills those requirements. Participants will be walked through the process using examples and will be encouraged to bring an example species synonymy (e.g. from a potential Mammalian Species account) on which to work. Organizers: Ryan W. Norris and Luis A. Ruedas.

WORKSHOP IV – DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE CURRICULUM VITAE

  • Date: Sunday, June 19th
  • Time: 10:00 am – 12:00 pm (AZ)
  • Location: Finger Rock
  • Instructors: Brad Blood, Elizabeth Flaherty, Hayley Lanier, Susan Loeb, Melissa Merrick, and Karen Munroe
  • Cost per person: Included with in-person registration
  • Minimum Attendance: TBD
  • Maximum Attendance: TBD

A Curriculum Vitae (CV) is a common document required by applications to graduate school, grants, post-docs, and faculty, federal, state, non-government organizations, and other academic and research positions. The purpose of a CV is to summarize your relevant professional experiences and accomplishments in such a way to stand out from the competition and garner an interview. While the CV is part of a larger application package, it is often one of the first documents that committees will review. Your CV establishes your identity as an academic and includes all pertinent academic experience and qualifications. A strong CV will be detailed, concise, accurate, specific to your discipline, and the position you are applying for and will present your best professional self. In this interactive workshop students will review job ads and CVs in a real-life context, and work to improve their own CVs based upon that experience. Prior to the workshop students will be polled about the types of positions they are interested in acquiring. A sample job ad and CVs will be emailed to participants before the workshop for them to review. At the workshop, participants will be placed in small groups for discussion about which applicant(s) to interview based on their CV and why. Discussions will also include a professional with hiring experience in that current area, and will conclude with an exercise where each student examines their own CV as well as their group’s peers with the aim at improving each student’s own CV. Organizers: Hailey Lanier and Karen Munroe.

WORKSHOP V – INCREASING THE ODDS OF SUCCESSFUL PUBLICATION IN THE JOURNAL OF MAMMALOGY

  • Date: Sunday, June 19th
  • Time: 10:00 am to 12:00 pm (AZ)
  • Location: Murphey
  • Instructor: Burton K. Lim, Brett R. Riddle, and Luis A. Ruedas
  • Cost per person: Included with in-person registration
  • Minimum Attendance: TBD
  • Maximum Attendance: TBD

During the recent COVID-19 pandemic, the Journal of Mammalogy (and indeed, just about every other journal) received a record number of manuscripts: scientists were shut out of their laboratories, and could do nothing related to work but write. While some journals opted to close their submission system, the JM continued accepting manuscripts. The choice to continue publication as normal under exceptional conditions uncovered a series of structural imperfections in the editorial structure. However, some of the issues that arose also were the result of authors’ failure to abide by the Journal guidelines. The combination of the two streams resulted in delays to the timely publication of manuscripts. While the editorial structure has been changed to better serve authors of the journal, the second aspect causing publication delays, that is, the contributions of potential authors, remains to be addressed. Here, we propose to present in a brief workshop format easy steps that authors can take that will lead to higher rates of acceptance of the author/s’ work, and increase speed of workflow through the editorial system, leading to shorter times from submission to publication. We hasten to add that our “tip sheet” is independent of conditions during the pandemic and should result in positive outcomes regardless of the circumstances. Organizers: Brett R. Riddle and Luis A. Ruedas.