Stephanie Dingwall, Divisional Dean of Student Academic Affairs for the UC Riverside College of Natural & Agricultural Sciences (CNAS) and two CNAS students recently visited the Washington, D.C. offices of California Senate and Congressional Representatives on a two-day trip to advocate for more funding and recognition of undergraduate research.
The trip, which took place from March 2-3, was in connection with the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) Scholars Transforming through Research (STR) Program. Professor Dingwall was accompanied by Anthony Stevens, a third-year biochemistry major working in the organic chemistry research laboratory of Kevin Kou, Assistant Professor of Chemistry, and Vanessa Kwong, a fifth-year physics major working in the laboratory of Andrew Joe, Assistant Professor of Physics.
The mission of CUR is to support and promote high-quality mentored undergraduate research, scholarship, and creative inquiry. The STR program works to fulfill that goal by bringing CUR's message to legislative stakeholders in the nation’s capitol. The STR Program is a competitive, application-based professional development opportunity for teams consisting of a campus representative (Professor Dingwall for UCR) and one-to-three undergraduate students. The teams are made up of 65 campus representatives and 146 undergraduate researchers, and represent 57 institutions from 22 states.
Professor Dingwall, who acted as a mentor on the trip, says Anthony and Vanessa were selected from a pool of nominees who had participated in UC Riverside's Research in Science & Engineering (RISE) program last summer. “Majors in the STR Program were not specific to STEM, and ranged from chemistry and physics to anthropology to history,” she says.
According to Professor Dingwall, UCR might have been the only college in the UC system that advanced an application for the program this year. “Last year UCLA did it,” she says, “and this is the third year CUR is running the STR program. Essentially, it’s just to advocate for undergraduate research with our congressional representatives.”
In preparation for their trip, Professor Dingwall and her two students participated in four CUR workshops and met with the Bose Public Affairs Group, which provides logistical support, strategic planning and outreach for in-person and online meetings at the U.S. Capitol. “They prepared us on how to communicate with staffers and our congressional leaders,” she says.
On the second day of their stay in D.C., Professor Dingwall, Anthony, and Vanessa visited the Hart Senate Office Building and met with staffers of California Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff. “Ironically, we weren’t able to meet with the senators personally because they were at the confirmation hearing for Linda McMahon, who was being confirmed as the new Secretary of Education,” Professor Dingwall says. “Later that day, we went to the office of UCR alumnus Mark Takano, who represents California’s 39th District, which includes the city of Riverside. Each student was able to talk about their research, and their projects are relevant in advocating for undergraduate science research.”
Professor Dingwall says the trip provided an insightful and meaningful learning experience. “We are fortunate in California, because Senators Padilla and Schiff are already promoting undergraduate research and involvement—they are very aware of science policy. We also highlighted the fact that with potential cuts to NIH and NSF funding, many of our programs may stall; this message couldn’t be more timely.
"We felt like we were addressing an already supportive audience, whereas students from other states may have faced greater challenges in making their points resonate with their respective senators,” Professor Dingwall adds.
Professor Dingwall saw an opportunity to connect further, stating, "Just in case they want to reach out, I’ll follow up to extend an invitation to the senators for a campus visit."
Regarding Representative Takano, she noted that while he has visited campus multiple times, she felt it was time for another visit. "With Takano, there's a strong local connection, so I invited him to attend the UCR Undergraduate Research Symposium at the end of April, which coincides with him being back in Riverside that week.”
As the CNAS Divisional Dean of Student Academic Affairs, Professor Dingwall oversees several undergraduate research programs. “This gives me an even greater stake in ensuring that CNAS students receive adequate funding,” she explains. “This trip isn’t just about raising awareness—it’s a call to action to highlight the research our undergraduate students do. UCR is known for its outstanding research faculty and graduate students, but our undergraduates participate in cutting-edge research too, and it’s long overdue that they get the recognition they deserve!”
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