e-Mentorship Program / Sheldon High Biotechnology Academy
Welcome to the Collaborative Research Learning (CRL) Program!
Program Overview:
Established in 2018, CRL is a mentorship program devoted to helping high school seniors develop essential skills for undergraduate scientific research. With the help of graduate, post-doctorate, or industry mentors, students will develop a logical experimental design, troubleshoot unexpected errors, analyze data, and prepare a poster presentation. This mentorship program assists aspiring scientists in developing their professional communication, collaboration, and critical thinking skills.
Students work in groups on one of the six research topics: Microbes in Health, Sustainable Agriculture, Pollution and Bioremediation, Alternative Energy, Climate Science, or Sustainable Materials and Waste Reduction.
Students are encouraged to enter their CRL project in the Sacramento STEM Fair and further develop their science communication skills.
Mentor Expectations:
Mentors for this program are expected to “e-mentor” (i.e., mentor via email) the senior students for 1-2 hours a week. Each mentor will be assigned to one group and help teach the group how to communicate professionally and apply their scientific knowledge and critical thinking skills. Mentors will also complete bi-weekly surveys (<5 minutes) for feedback on their group’s progress.
If you want to volunteer as a mentor, please apply using the following survey link. If applicable, please use your academic email. We are only accepting mentor applications for the fall 2025 cohort (August to December) and will not have a spring 2026 cohort.
Mentor application: https://forms.gle/gnfNjPq5ZUtNZbAF9
Deadline: July 25, 2025, 8 PM PDT
Congratulations to our Sacramento STEM fair winners!
2022: Sukhman Kaur, Amanpreet Sandhu, Aishleen Sangha, and Parneet Kaur (1st place, Biology and Health Science, mentored by Sydney Wyatt). Their project also won the Regeneron Biomedical Science Award and NASA Earth Systems Science awards.
2019: Monserath Mendoza and Reiner Bautista (3rd place, Biology and Health Science, mentored by Trevor Weaver and Johnathan Sample).
PROGRAM DIRECTORS:
Glory Bui
Rachel Wagner
KEY CRL BLOG POSTS
It’s Who You Know but Also How You Show Up: Mentorship Programs
Discover the value of mentorship programs and internships, including their impact on your career journey.
Professional Email Etiquette Will Make or Break Your Relationship
A guide on email etiquette to foster strong professional relationships with mentors
Too Much Info, Too Little Time: Literature Reviews
You Got Data! Now What? A Beginner’s Guide to Data Analysis
A quick start guide for those new (or need a refresher) to conducting literature reviews
You Got Data! Now What? A Beginner’s Guide to Data Analysis
You Got Data! Now What? A Beginner’s Guide to Data Analysis
You Got Data! Now What? A Beginner’s Guide to Data Analysis
Learn the first steps needed for data analysis with an example from an actual high school science project
How to Prepare a Scientific Poster Presentation
You Got Data! Now What? A Beginner’s Guide to Data Analysis
Turn Your CRL Experience into Future Opportunities
Ready to share your science project with the world but not sure how? Learn more about science posters!
Turn Your CRL Experience into Future Opportunities
You Got Data! Now What? A Beginner’s Guide to Data Analysis
Turn Your CRL Experience into Future Opportunities
Land an undergraduate research position by showcasing your CRL experience