Valerie Sloan

Director of GEO REU Network and Sr. Higher Education Specialist

Education, Engagement & Early Career Development

Information

Bio

I currently work in NCAR Education, Engagement, and Early Career Development, where I direct the GEO REU PI Network for internship managers across the country and support NCAR | UCAR postdoctoral fellows with professional development. As a part of the work with the REU Network, I have edited and published the GEO REU Handbook: A Guide for Running Inclusive and Engaging Geoscience Research Internship Programs. Our GEO REU Resource Center also hosts materials and news of events for any internship leader.

I work in the space of diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice towards creating welcoming and inclusive cultures in the workplace, and raising awareness about biases and privilege in science and society. For example, we have a chapter in the GEO REU Handbook focuses on how to develop anti-racist REU. programs.

My science background is in Quaternary glacial geology in the Pakistan Himalaya, the Canadian High Arctic, and the Yukon Territory in Canada, where I reconstructed glacier extents using traditional field and mapping methods, and isotope analysis of bedrock and boulders.

Prior to moving to Colorado, I was a researcher at the Geological Survey of Canada. Since then I have taught several courses at the University of Colorado at Boulder, the University of Denver, and the University of Nebraska at Omaha, worked in GIS environmental consulting firms, and directing the RESESS Internship Program at UNAVCO. I have been at NCAR since 2014.

Publications

Education Abstracts & Publications

Sloan, V. and R. Haacker. 2018. Research Experiences and Other Opportunities for Undergraduate Students: Pathways for Careers in Science. Abstract of a poster presented at the Ninth Biennial NOAA EPP/MSI Education and Science Forum at Howard University, Washington, D.C.

Sloan, V. 2018. Tips on Preparing Students for Careers Outside of Academia. Abstract at the 2018 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting in Austin, TX.

Sloan, V., R. Haacker, T. Barnes, and C. Brinkworth. 2017. Long-Term Impacts of a Career Development Workshop for Undergraduates. Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-15-00214.1. Sept. p. 1961-1968.

Sloan, V., L.M. Barge, and M. Smith. 2017. Engaging diverse community college students in the geosciences through a year-round career mentoring and research workforce program. Abstract at the 2017 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in New Orleans, LA.

Sloan, V., C. Wiedenmyer. 2017. Creating a support network. Presentation at the American Geophysical Union Student & Early Career Scientist Conference in New Orleans, LA.

Sloan, V. and J. Nocerino. 2017. Undergraduate Student Networking Workshop. Presentation at the American Geophysical Union Student & Early Career Scientist Conference in New Orleans, LA.

Sloan, V. 2017. Finding the right match: tips on the job search and application process. Abstract at the 2017 American Meteorological Society Annual Meeting, Seattle, WA.

Sloan, V. and R. Haacker. 2016. Strategies for exposing students to potential careers in the geosciences and preparing them with skillsets valued by today’s workforce: a case study. Abstract at the 2016 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco.

Sloan, V., R. Haacker, and T. Barnes. 2016. Long term impacts of a one-week professional development program for undergraduate students. Asbtract at the 2016 American Meteorological Society in New Orleans. Poster.

Sloan, V. and R. Haacker. 2015. How to run an effective and inclusive REU program. Workshop at the Amercian Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco.

Sloan, V. and R. Haacker. 2015. Online Resources and Community Support for REU Leaders. Abstract at the 2015 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco, CA.

Haacker, R. and V. Sloan. 2015. Professional Development for Graduate Students in the Atmospheric Sciences. Abstract at the 2015 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco, CA.

Sloan, V., R. Haacker, and B. Batchelor. 2015. Developing a resource network for REU leaders in the geosciences. Abstract at the Earth Educators Rendez-Vous, Boulder, CO. July.

Haacker, R., B. Batchelor, V. Sloan, and S. Landolt. 2015. Engaging students from diverse backgrounds through summer research experiences in the atmospheric sciences. Abstract at the Earth Educator Rendez-Vous, Boulder, CO. July.

Sloan, V. and R. Haacker-Santos. 2015. Enhancing Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REUs) in the Atmospheric Sciences. Paper presented at the 2015 Annual AMS Meeting, Phoenix, AZ.

Sloan, V.F. and R. Haacker-Santos, 2015. Online Resources and Community Support for REU Leaders. Abstract at the 2015 American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco, CA.

Sloan, V. and R. Haacker-Santos. 2014. How to run an effective and inclusive REU program. Workshop at the Amercian Geophysical Union Fall Meeting in San Francisco.

Sloan, V. and R. Haacker-Santos. 2014. Supporting REU Leaders and Effective Workforce Development in the Geosciences. Abstract, the American Geophysical Union Fall Meeting.

Sloan, V. 2014. The gap between graduates’ skills and employers’ expectations. At 19th Biennial AMS/AGU Heads and Chairs Meeting 16-17 October 2014. Boulder CO. See pages 33-37 of slide show.

Haacker-Santos, R. and V. Sloan. 2014. The GEO REU Network: Supporting REU leaders in running, enhancing, and evaluating their programs. Abstract presented at the 2nd GEO REU PI Workshop, UCAR, Boulder, CO, 19-21 Mar.

Sloan, V., A. Gold, S. Buhr Sullivan, D. Oonk, S. Lynds, T. Shapiro Ledley, C. Manduca. 2013. Reaching middle and high school teachers through email lists, Facebook, and web postings: the results of sharing CLEAN climate and energy online teaching resources. Presented at the Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs. 45 (70), p. 502.

Sloan, V. and R. Haacker-Santos. 2012. Finding the Right Match: Pairing Undergraduate Research Interns and Scientists as a way of Engaging Students in their Topic of Interest. Geological Society of America Abstracts with Programs, Vol. 44, No. 7, p. 181.

Sloan, V. and R. Haacker-Santos. 2012. Selecting their Own Research Topic: An Effective Means of Engaging Undergraduates in Geoscience Careers. Paper presented at 2012 American Geophysical Fall Meeting, San Francisco, Calif., 3-7 Dec.

Sloan, V. and D. Carlson. 2011. Successful recruitment strategies for a summer internship program, presented at 2011 Annual Meeting of the GSA, Minneapolis, MN, 9-12 Oct. Vol. 43, No. 5, p. 192.

Sloan, V. 2010. Every Student Counts: Broadening Participation in the Geosciences through a Multiyear Internship Program. American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting, abstract #ED31B-0628.

Science Publications and Abstracts

Sloan, V., P.W. Birkeland, and A.P. Lester. 2007. Introduction to Physical Geology: Lab Manual and Field Trip Guidebook, University of Colorado at Boulder. N.J.: Prentice-Hall. 4th Edition, 136 p.

Jacobson, A.D., J.D Blum, C.P. Chamberlain, M.Poage, and V. Sloan. 2002. The Ca/S and Sr isotope systematics of a Himalayan glacial chronosequence. Geochimica et Cosmochimicaacta. 66: 13-27.

Phillips, W.M., V.Sloan, J.F. Shroder, P. Sharma, M.L. Clarke, and H.M. Rendell. 2000. Asynchronous glaciation at Nanga Parbat, northwestern Himalaya Mountains, Pakistan. Geology, 28(5): 431-434.

Shroder, J.F., Jr., M.P. Bishop, L. Copland, V. Sloan. 2000. Debris-covered glaciers and rock glaciers in the Nanga Parbat Himalaya, Pakistan. Geografiska Annaler. 82A: 17-31.

Sloan, V.F. and L.D. Dyke. 1998. Decadal and millennial velocities of rock glaciers in the Selwyn Mountains, Canada. Geografiska Annaler, 80(3-4): 237-249.

Bishop, M.P., J.F. Shroder, Jr., V. Sloan, L. Copland, and J.D. Colby. 1998. Remote sensing and GIS science and technology for studying lithospheric processes in a mountain environment. Geocarto International, December.

Sloan V.F. 1996. Using GIS as a method of identifying controls on the distribution of sediment in the Selwyn Mountains, Yukon Territory. In: LeBarge, W.P. (ed.), 1996. Yukon Quaternary Geology, Volume 1. Exploration and Geological Services Division, Northern Affairs Program, Yukon Region, pp.73-84.

Publications and Presentations (4)
Title	Source	Date
Improving postdoctoral training programs through alumni perspectives and experiences: A study of NCAR’s Advanced Study Program	Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society	2024-01-01
NSF GEO REU program coordinators show adaptability and resiliency during the pandemic	Scholarship and Practice of Undergraduate Research	2023-10-01
The ethics of diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice in the earth system sciences	Frontiers in Physics	2022-12-14
Long-term impacts of a career development workshop for undergraduates	Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society	2017-09-01