Page 5 - YLC Newsletter

2. Ambassador spotlight (US YA)

Kinjal Majumder (Missouri)

•Current position: Post Doctoral Fellow at University of Missouri
•Research field: Virology
•Number of years serving as ASM YA: 1 year
•Last ASM sponsored event: Graduate School Panel Discussion and Opening of Mizzou-ASM
chapter
•Next ASM sponsored event: Outbreak Exhibit (in collaboration with the Columbia Public
Library and Smithsonian Institution)
•Why should a young student join ASM? ASM provides ample opportunities and resources for
students in all stages of education to network with colleagues, explore different areas of
microbiology to find what excites them most and engage with their local community to show
that microbiology is meaningful for everyone. These benefits of ASM membership help to make
students professionally competent.
•What is the best experience so far as an ASM YA? My favorite experience as an ASM YA has
been organizing a month of Microbiology-related public engagement programming at the
Columbia Public Library. Centered around the ASM-Smithsonian Outreach exhibit, we have
arranged for a film night, public discussions, research presentations and foldscope
demonstrations.

Ashley Queen (California)

•Current position: Commissioner's Fellow at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
•Research field: A Microbiologist working in the U.S FDA Office of Regulatory affair's Pacific
Southwest Laboratory. Focused on the development of a prevention-focused food safety
system to facilitate rapid, high-throughput simultaneous identification of the foodborne
pathogens E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella spp., and Listeria monocytogenes from
environmental swab samples.
•Number of years serving as ASM YA: About 1 year (10 months)
•Last ASM sponsored event: Presentation at the University of California Irvine on post-
doctoral career goals and the opportunities available when getting involved with the ASM.
•Next ASM sponsored event: TBD; Meanwhile maintaining a blog website All the A's to your
Q's (www.drashleyqueen.com) and continuously blogging on various social media platforms
to engage the public about science, local activities, mentorship, and maintaining a healthy
work-life balance.
•Why should a young student join ASM? The ASM offers a wealth of information and tools
that are very useful to students through their website and workshops. For students who are
local to ASM headquarters, sessions like Microbes After Hours and local meetings are
excellent opportunities to be exposed to research in the field and to network with those in
academia, government, and industry. Regional chapters also host exciting and informative
local events. For those able to attend ASM Microbe, they will find themselves immersed in a
hub of innovation and cutting edge technology along with thousands of students and
professionals working in various sub-disciplines across the field.
•What is the best experience so far as an ASM YA? My best experience as an ASM YA is to
be regularly contacted by students and professionals both within and outside the field of
Microbiology. Becoming a resource and mentor to them on behalf of the ASM is incredibly
rewarding and validates the notion that I am making a continual impact.

Clay Steven Crippen (Georgia)
•Current position: Graduate Student
•Research field: Microbiology
•Number of years serving as ASM YA: 1 year
•Last ASM sponsored event: Installation of Outbreak DIY Exhibit at local schools.
•Next ASM sponsored event: Escorting the University of Georgia ASM Undergraduate Chapter to
the CDC in Atlanta.
•Why should a young student join ASM? Simply put: exposure. With the vastness of disciplines in
the microbial sciences, young students often lack exposure to them all. Joining ASM as a
student member gives young scientists the resources and opportunity to find the discipline of
the microbial sciences that they find exciting and from there they can excel!
•What is the best experience so far as an ASM YA? Meeting and getting to know all of the
Young Ambassadors from around the world at Microbe 2018.