We are excited to announce the 4th annual Front Range Microbiome Symposium this spring on April 18th-19th, 2024!

The Front Range of the Rocky Mountains is a hotbed of scientific research and innovation in microbiome science. From Colorado to Wyoming, scientists are leading ground-breaking microbial ecology research across humans, animals, the environment, and agriculture. Can we amplify this world-class science with better cross-pollination across labs and institutions?

With the goal of cultivating new symbiosis between Front Range researchers, the CSU Microbiome Initiative and Graduate Researchers Across Microbiomes (GRAM) is hosting the 4th annual Front Range Microbiome Symposium. Please join us to kick off the event on Thursday, April 18th with an evening mixer at Gilded Goat Brewing Co, and stay through Friday, April 19th for excellent keynote & invited speakers as well as presentations and posters by faculty and early career scientists from universities, organizations, and industries across our region.

This year’s keynote speaker is Dr. Serita Frey – a Professor in the Department of Natural Resources and the Environment at the University of New Hampshire and an expert in soil microbiology. Additionally, FRMS will host Dr. Mohit Verma (Purdue University), Dr. Boahemaa Adu-Oppong (Director of Data Science at Pluton Biosciences), and Dr. Matthew Olm (incoming Assistant Professor at the University of Colorado-Boulder) as emerging leaders in microbiome science.

The symposium will be hosted by CSU at the CSU Alumni Center on the east side of Canvas Stadium. This generous venue and our uncongested schedule allows for abundant opportunities to meet and network with Front Range microbiome neighbors. We look forward to seeing you there!

Learn more about the CSU Microbiome Initiative and CSU Microbiome Network at https://www.research.colostate.edu/microbiome/, and follow us on twitter @CSUmicrobiome

Learn more about GRAM on Twitter: @GRAM_CSU

Stay in the loop by following us on Twitter: @FRMicrobiome


Organizing Committee

Tiffany Weir, Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director, Food Science and Human Nutrition, Colorado State University

Dr. Weir is an Associate Professor of Food Science and Human Nutrition. She studies the impact of diet on the human gut microbiota and the interaction between these microbes and the downstream development of cardiometabolic diseases. She also teaches Fermentation Microbiology and courses for the Nutrition and Food Science graduate program. Dr. Weir studied Microbiology at Penn State University before completing the Cell and Molecular Biology PhD program at Colorado State University. Prior to becoming a professor at CSU, she spent time study microbial ecology in the Peruvian rainforest as a visiting scientist at the Pontifical Catholic University of Peru.

Susan De Long, Associate Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Colorado State University

Dr. De Long is an Associate Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Colorado State University. She earned a M.S. and Ph.D. at University of Texas-Austin. Dr. De Long’s research is focused on developing environmentally sustainable biotechnologies. Her research group applies molecular biology tools to investigate microbial communities involved in successful treatment processes and leverages this knowledge to improve treatment process design. Additionally, Dr. De Long’s group is conducting research to discover genes and enzymes involved in degradation of recalcitrant pollutants; this knowledge will support development of molecular biology assays to track key microbes in natural or engineered systems to guide development of the next generation of treatment technologies.