Olympia Jarboe
Class of 2005 - Present
Frederick Douglass Academy
Topic: 2006 Tumor Biology and Cell Metastasis
Topic: Creating Alpha-Lactams
Research paper (pdf)
About:
Harlem Children Society has truly been a blessing for me this summer. It all began one afternoon when my chemistry teacher informed me of a summer internship program that was centered on the medical and science fields. Before I knew it, Dr. Sat Bhattacharya and I were sitting face to face in an interview. Dr. Sat asked me questions about my background, my interests, and future goals. I told him that I am the child of African immigrants from the country of Liberia, and that I am interested in the field of chemistry/pharmacy. I want to become a chemist/pharmacist so that I could help research and develop treatments and cures for the plethora of diseases that plague the human race.
Throughout the summer I have been fortunate enough to work at Saint John’s University in the Chemistry Department. At the laboratory, my research project was to create a compound called an Alpha-Lactam. My mentor Dr. Vic Cesare was very interested in Alpha-Lactams because he believes they can be used to make useful compounds, and may possess antibacterial qualities. I enjoyed my work in the lab. I experienced how scientists do their research and how they write up and confirm their findings. Working at Saint John’s has given me more confidence in my choice of major. I even plan on applying to Saint John’s University. In addition to my research at the university I attended, along with hundred other students, weekly seminars. These seminars were used for various presentations given by the student interns and professionals. The students presented their research and results. The professionals’ came from various fields, such as, medical, business and educational. They gave talks on college admissions, financial aid, web searches, AIDS/HIV, and even how to design your own websites. All of the talks were informative, enlightening, and useful.
All in all, I did not spend this summer sitting idly at home. I am grateful to Dr. Sat Bhattacharya, Harlem Children Society and Dr. Victor Cesare for giving me a worthwhile experience. I plan on continuing with the program and my pursuit in the science field.