By CLAIRE WINTER
This year’s Wisconsin Science Education and Research (WiSER) Consortium took place at the Medical College of Wisconsin from October 4-6. Open to both students and faculty, the WiSER Consortium emphasizes biomedical research, natural sciences, and progress across Wisconsin in advancing these careers. In addition, WiSER also allows students interested in these respective career fields to connect with higher-education faculty across the state, free of charge. WiSER features talks on entering the field aimed at undergrad and graduate students, as well as a career fair and breakout sessions.
One of Beloit’s own faculty attended this year’s WiSER: Associate Professor and Chair of Chemistry and Biochemistry Dr. Kristin J. Labby, for a talk featuring the Tiny Earth project. Tiny Earth, which came to Beloit in spring 2023, is an ongoing project within Beloit College focused on fighting antibiotic resistance. Beloit College’s page on the project says, “The Tiny Earth project aims at fighting a looming health crisis with the aid of student-sourced antibiotic discovery.” Labby’s talk, ‘The Tiny Earth Chemistry Course: Studentsourcing Antibiotic Discovery in the Chemistry Classroom’, discussed the incorporation of the Tiny Earth project into chemistry courses in Beloit.
Three Beloit students also attended: Satritha Protya, Parnian Alavi‘25, and Kidist Zewde‘25. Alavi presented research in bone density changes after death. Protya presented a poster and gave a talk, both on neuropeptidomics in lobsters, and was awarded the American Chemical Society student poster presentation award. WiSER is expected to convene again in November 2025, this time at UW La Crosse.
Featured Image by Claire Winter’28
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