Jason Olsen

I teach community college life science in Wyoming. BYU alumnus. Like evolution, local adaptation, monkeyflower. he/him/his 🏳️‍🌈 @jasondolsen.bsky.social

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

Personal thoughts.

Community colleges are underrated.

I took a FT, TT bio faculty position at a small rural CC (red city, red state) 1.5yr ago. Is it perfect? No. Yet, I like the chance to "live the dream" and explore a newfound passion for education and community involvement

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

Is it common for faculty to receive emails from textbook publishers seeking reviewers for textbook chapters? I received an email offering an honorarium for reviewing about four chapters in a non-major text. Has anyone done this? Is there anything I need to be aware of?

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

@TheStrugglingS4 Sleep disorder diagnosis, dad died then covid hit within a short stretch. (I basically lived in near solitary confinement for 8 months) I never fully recovered mentally and will probably not finish now. By the end, I felt like a parasite in my lab group.

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

After 6 years attempting to work on a PhD, taking a new full time job, and wrestling with mental health and covid fallout I'm starting to feel like the marathoner who collapses within sight of the finish line.

[Botanical Society of America @Botanical_]

*#AJB Accepted Article*

The 141-year period for Dr. Beal's seed viability experiment: A hybrid surprise

(By Margaret Fleming, Lauren Stanley, Robyn Zallen, Matthew Chansler, Lars Brudvig, David Lowry et al)
https://t.co/RoRemDrAhq #botany #seedbank #germination @wileyplantsci

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

Only in academia can HR lose your credentials file and then ask you to spend personal money to resend official transcripts to cover their paperwork mistake.

[Associate Deans @ass_deans]

We are hiding the DEI initiative from the board. And there’s no money for it. But we still expect you to hit your outcomes from The Plan.

[Byron Adams @frostyworms]

New paper out of our lab promoting a cool research program in ecological genomics:
https://t.co/rAj2bLmI3n
@byulifesciences @byubio

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

Looking to find a specific old paper. AGA society members or other institutions might have access. I do not. SciHub does not have it. Help me out?

https://t.co/6DT6T27VUr

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

Saw an instructor job posting today where the college described itself as "customer-focused" in the first sentence.

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

@emjosephs @Puffball_love I think this would align with the idea of Gradus ad Parnassum or steps to mastery in the philosophy of fields like music. That the journey itself is valuable and personal insights matter. DMA documents can take on a personal view. Maybe science can learn from the arts.

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

🏳️‍🌈

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

🏳️‍🌈

[Duke Institute for Brain Sciences @DukeBrain]

.@StarTrek is science fiction, but tying real science to the show helps people retain more information about biology, like prion disease, finds a #preprint led by @DukeBiology prof. @mafnoor. https://t.co/6qrys4csit

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

@BeesAndBaking @evodevoDina Thank you! Academia is a challenging field, but it is often the case for straight couples as well. My challenges do not feel exceptional, we are all in this together.

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

Currently, there are about 100 FT faculty positions in biology at 2 year and community colleges nationwide at HigherEdJobs. Some, especially in more rural areas, are going unfilled for months. The faculty dream is alive in these areas if you can adapt to the culture and climate.

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

@DrMikeWiser @vermivormax Nor am I. My depth chair says I'm technically qualified to teach anatomy but I disagree and argue in terms of student outcomes. Me teaching anatomy is a bad idea.

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

@evodevoDina Oh absolutely. I could not in good conscience recommend where I am too our Trans siblings. I'm gay and have extraordinary privilege.

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

@lstruckm @DavidBLowry I like where I am, at least for the time being. 90 minutes to the Big Horns, 90 minutes to the Black Hills. Living at a steep cline between high plains grassland and sagebrush steppe. Mimulus guttatus grows up in the Big Horns so potential opportunity for novel research.

[Jason Olsen @jasondolsen]

This one, for example, has gone unfilled for many months. Frankly, from a lack of qualified applicants. The faculty dream is alive at CCs and JR colleges. https://t.co/mPp2fLC75a