[036] MTSU Project SEED Research Gives Warren County Grad Rambo 'Insight' into College Expectations

Release date: Aug. 2, 2010


News & Public Affairs contact: Randy Weiler, 615-898-5616 or jweiler@mtsu.edu

MTSU Project SEED Research Gives Warren County
Grad Rambo ‘Insight’ into College Expectations


(MURFREESBORO) — En route to an undergraduate career studying biochemistry and criminology at East Tennessee State University in Johnson City, Ashley Rambo has had a summer stopover at MTSU, learning various forms of research through the Project SEED program.
"It has been an eye-opening experience," said Rambo, 18, who graduated in the top 10 percent of her senior class at Warren County High School in McMinnville. "It has given me insight in what to expect in college."
Project SEED, which stands for Summer Educational Experience for the Economically Disadvantaged, is sponsored by the American Chemical Society. It's a summer research program that gives high-school juniors and seniors a chance to work with scientist mentors on research projects in industrial, academic and federal laboratories. Participants receive a stipend and learn fundamental laboratory skills and analytical methods during the 10-week program.
While holding her daily lab journal containing hours of data and information related to her research with MTSU chemistry professor Dr. Beng G. “B.G.” Ooi, Rambo noted that she's "always loved science and math, my best two subjects."
She's had ties to MTSU through Expanding Your Horizons in Math and Science, GRITS — aka Girls Raised in Tennessee Science — and the MTSU Educational Talent Search program, which includes Warren County students.
"I came here not knowing anything," she said. "I learned a whole lot more than I ever dreamed. It's different here doing labs than in a high-school lab. The slightest mistake can mess up the whole experiment—and I've made a lot of mistakes."
Her first project, "Keeping Your Hands Clean," was research that led to a July 9 presentation at the Discovery Center at Murfree Spring in Murfreesboro. The study tried to verify the best method for cleaning hands, whether hand-washing with soap or using hand sanitizer or antibacterial wipes.
"It was to see which one killed the most germs," Rambo said. "They all kill germs; some work better than others."
Another simple Discovery Center project allowed her to show children visiting the center how to make salt crystals and rock candy at home "to get the little kids involved in science and how to use it in their daily life."
Her most recent research project was on Avicel, a pure form of cellulose, which she worked to make "loose so enzymes can digest it."
“Ashley has carried out research in developing chemistry-based experiments for demonstrating to young students and investigating the pretreatment of cellulose to make it more readily digestible by the cellulase enzyme to produce sugar,” Ooi, associate professor in chemistry, said.
“The science demonstrations at the Discovery Center helped develop her confidence in public speaking,” Ooi added. “The cellulose chemistry research provides a unique experience for her to learn the methodology of scientific research and to appreciate the societal impact of being able to improve the performance of gasoline fuels in cars producing ethanol from cellulose derived from grass and agricultural wastes like corn stover.”
Rambo, who is required to complete a minimum of 320 hours' work this summer, will receive a $2,800 stipend from the ACS committee on Project SEED. She said she also receives Pell Grant money and funds from the ASPIRE (Access to Student Assistance Programs in Reach of Everyone) program.
Incoming MTSU freshman Tara Greer is in the midst of Project Seed II. Working with chemistry professor Dr. Sing Chong, Greer has expanded on her 2009 Project SEED research, "Infrared Analysis of Sol-Gel Materials."
Greer was the recipient of a $5,000 Ullyot Scholarship, established by the late South Dakota chemist Dr. Glenn Ullyot to recognize American Indian high-school seniors who have demonstrated strong academic potential and a commitment to their communities.
Along with Ooi and Chong, MTSU chemistry professors Drs. Bill Illsley and Judith Iriarte-Gross have helped mentor both Rambo and Greer.
The MTSU Department of Chemistry, the Nashville Section of ACS and the Office of Research Services also are supporting MTSU Project SEED.

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Note: High-resolution jpeg photos of Ashley Rambo and Tara Greer are available to media. To Request, contact Randy Weiler in News & Public Affairs by calling 615-898-5616 or 898-2919.

With three Nobel Prize winners among its alumni and former faculty, Middle Tennessee State University confers master’s degrees in 10 areas, the Specialist in Education degree, the Doctor of Arts degree and the Doctor of Philosophy degree. MTSU is ranked among the top 100 public universities in the nation in the Forbes “America’s Best Colleges” 2009 survey.

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