On April 25, I had the opportunity to go to Washington, DC as part of the Council on Undergraduate Research's (CUR) annual event Posters on the Hill. Dr. S. Patricia Stock, Entomology, and I met with the staff people from three of Arizona's congressional delegations: Congresswoman Gabriel Giffords, Congressmen Rick Renzi, and Senator John McCain
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Our basic message was that funding for undergraduate research from sources such as the National Science Foundation should be increased and that the budget cuts at universities hurt regular working people and greatly increase the workload of faculty and staff.

I have had such a wonderful experience working for Dr. Stock and can attest to the fact that undergraduate research has been a very big part of my college career. It has reinforced my love of life sciences. In Dr. Stock's lab, I study entomopathogenic nematodes (small round worms that are pathogenic to some insects). In particular, I examine their bacteria-holding structure under a differential-interference contrast microscope. My future plans are to teach middle/high school life science and pursue a Master's degree. I am certain that my experiences in the lab will have a positive impact on my teaching. I also shared this with the congressional staff people.

I felt prepared for this event since I participated in both the UA Student Showcase and the UBRP Poster Conference. The ability to communicate the details and significance of one's research in terms lay people can understand is paramount to effect change. I encourage UBRPers to participate in these events next year to get our message out!

The Council on Undergraduate Research is a not-for-profit educational organization founded in 1978. The mission of CUR is "to support and promote high quality undergraduate student-faculty collaborative research and scholarship." CUR provides a list of the benefits of undergraduate research including:

* Enhances student learning through mentoring relationships with faculty

* Increases retention in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) pipeline

* Increases enrollment in graduate education and provides effective career preparation

* Develops critical thinking, creativity, problem solving and intellectual independence

* Develops and understanding of research methodology

* Promotes an innovation-oriented culture

Once again, I am reminded about how fortunate we are at the University of Arizona to have the Undergraduate Biology Research Program. I feel that UBRP exemplifies all of these qualities. I am also thankful for all the support and encouragement I have received from Dr. Stock, the Department of Soil, Water and Environmental Science, the College of Agriculture and Life Science, and UBRP.

This was an experience that I never thought I would have. I was proud to represent Arizona and glad to share my story with Congress in hopes that future undergraduates will have the opportunity to do scientific research. It would be wonderful if UBRP was represented again at this event, so start preparing your applications!

Kathryn Plichta, UBRPer in Dr. S. Patricia Stock's laboratory, Entomology...