NatSci Fellows Program

Examples of qualifying activities:

Coursework Support (15 sessions required)

• Office Hours
• Tutoring
• Science of Effective Study Workshop
• Center for Student Success Workshop

Professional Development (7 sessions required)

• Meet with a career counselor in Alumni & Student Connections
• Attend a departmental seminar
• Attend professional development information sessions (e.g. Summer research info session)
• Volunteer with CCES or MESA Day

Social and Wellness (5 sessions required)

• Join a STEM club
• Attend Darwin, Mole, or Pi Day
• Visit Chapel or Interfaith event
• Participate in a Center for Diversity, Justice, and Sustainability Workshop

There are 2 ways to sign up for NatSci Fellows:

1. Pick up a booklet and stickers from Christine or Elizabeth in Rieke 158 or Morken 152
2. Sign up by completing this form
   • Your booklet and stickers will be mailed to you

If you’ve ever walked through the Rieke Science Center, it’s pretty likely you’ve seen our slug diorama. The Rieke slug was created by PLU Biology Professor Jens Knudsen. Dr. Knudsen was not only an excellent teacher and biologist, but also a talented artist in sculpting, wood carving, and painting. The slug and accompanying tidal scene were part of a much larger installment that Dr. Knudsen made for the Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium. Sadly, the other dioramas have been lost, but the slug and tide pool have been part of the Rieke Science Center’s legacy since the 1980s. In Fall 2018, we held a contest to name the Rieke slug, and Brianna Celix (Biology ’19) came up with the winning name: Enrieké! 

Here’s what Brianna had to say about the name Enrieké:

First, I wanted something to stand out from all of the other names of campus monuments and buildings named after, mostly, Caucasian men and women. Second, I wanted to submit something that was representative of myself and the many, MANY hours I have spent in Rieke. I chose the name Enrieké not only because it is a clever integration of names and the name of the Rieke Science Center, but because of my identity as a mixed-race, Mexican woman in STEM. While the name is given to the beloved Rieke slug, really my hope, with a nod to my own identity, is that the name may be a divergence from the monochromatic naming of campus monuments, and instead be representative of the diversity we hope to exhibit at PLU, and an encouragement for future, more profound representation of marginalized and minoritized identities within PLU, STEM, and society. 

In addition to winning a gift card, Brianna received a crocheted version of Enrieké from Biology Professor Neva Laurie-Berry. The crocheted Enrieké was so popular that Dr. Laurie-Berry made another to sit in the window of the Rieke admin office.

Since then, NatSci Fellows has adopted Enrieké as our program mascot. While the huge slug carving is contained behind glass, the mini crocheted Enrieké often escapes into the wider world of Rieke and Morken causing the NatSci Fellows to embark on a slug hunt. Finding and returning Enrieké  is a point of pride and earns the finder(s) a limited edition Enrieké  sticker and a photo op with Enrieké .