The DOE Office of Science has funded a new program, called RENEW, through which undergraduate students from three Minority Serving Institutions (UC Merced, Florida A&M University, and Morehouse College) are receiving support to perform research at the LaserNetUS facility nodes throughout the summer. We are excited to welcome these students to the 2023 LaserNetUS Annual Users’ Meeting!

To facilitate their attendance, we are launching the LaserNetUS Conference Allies program. This program pairs conference mentors with undergraduate attendees, who are attending a conference for the first time.
 

As part of the program:

• All participants attend a Welcome Breakfast on the morning of the first day to meet the other RENEW students and mentors.
• RENEW students are assigned to a conference mentor with a one-to-one mentor to student ratio.
• All mentors are available throughout the conference to answer RENEW students’ questions about how to navigate a conference.
• RENEW students receive a daily email with conference activities happening that day.
• Young scientists gain a sense of belonging in the laser science community through the connections created and role models provided in this program.
   

We hope to expand the program in future years to include all first-time conference attendees.