Jackson Maust Archives - 91短视频 News /now/news/tag/jackson-maust/ News from the 91短视频 community. Fri, 11 Jul 2025 18:04:39 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9 Top Ten most read news articles and editor’s picks of 2015 /now/news/2016/top-ten-editors-picks-and-most-read-news-articles-of-2015/ Fri, 08 Jan 2016 21:25:06 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=26495 As 91短视频 faculty, staff and students move into the first semester of 2016, we look back at some of the top news items from 2015.聽 There was plenty to cover in the news this year, from the arrival of 91短视频 Lancaster’s first Mary Jensen to the graduation of Eastern Mennonite Seminary’s . The university launched a , and broke records in enrollment and number of to the annual Old Dominion Athletic Conference All-Academic Team.

These 10 headlines drew readers鈥 attention in the past 12 months:

1.

By far the most viewed story of the year, with 15,000 reads and nearly 600 Facebook likes, was President Swartzendruber鈥檚 December reflections on attacks in San Bernardino, Paris, South Carolina, and elsewhere. 鈥淥ur campus community continues to prayerfully discern what the peace position means to us in a world beset by violence,鈥 Swartzendruber said. He called everyone to practice Jesus鈥 command to love one鈥檚 enemies and to engage in dialogue with those who come from different backgrounds, while pledging that 91短视频 would work locally and regionally at Muslim-Christian dialogue and continue to train students and others with world-changing tools and principles.

2. Amish teacher, 98, returns to alma mater

Amos Yoder 鈥54 waited a long time for this trip. Yoder, who is Amish and lives in Minnesota, spent his career teaching and farming in the Midwest and Great Plains and never returned to Virginia鈥攗ntil daughter Rebecca Barbo brought him to campus last year. A group of former classmates and 91短视频 alumni relations representatives greeted Yoder on his visit. Yoder said the campus looked very different, but he treasured the opportunity to return to a place so important to him, calling his years at then-Eastern Mennonite College 鈥渙ne of the high points of my life.鈥

3. Jackson and Katie Maust with the Harrisonburg Rescue Squad

Titled “Married alumni couple spends spare time saving lives,” the story of Jackson and Katie (Lehman) Maust was one of the top five most-read of the year. They work as a physical therapist and emergency room nurse, respectively, but spend much time away from work among the ranks of the 160 HRS volunteers (including many other 91短视频 alumni). Katie says it鈥檚 a calling. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a way that we serve God,鈥 she says.

4.

Loren Swartzendruber began the end of an era in April when he announced he would retire at the end of the 2015-2016 academic year. 91短视频鈥檚 eighth president, Swartzendruber will have served for 13 years in the role and 33 years total in Mennonite higher education. A national search for 91短视频鈥檚 next president began in June.

5. The Yutzy family and their dairy’s new solar installation

Sustainability on campus and off are always popular reads. The Yutzy family, which includes several 91短视频 alumni, was featured by the Harrisonburg Daily News-Record for innovations at their Windcrest Holsteins farm in Timberville, Va. This past year the farm鈥檚 barn and milking parlor were covered with nearly 1,800 solar panels. The $1.3 million system, made possible via a grant, tax credits, and depreciation allowances, is expected to pay for itself within five years and eliminate the farm鈥檚 power bill. It is Virginia鈥檚 largest privately owned solar installation.

6. Articles honoring faculty of note and moments of historic importance

As we approach the Centennial celebration of 2017, 91短视频 readers enjoyed and shared articles about former faculty members Abraham Davis, who started what is today Multicultural Student Services, and 鈥59, who spent a quarter-century teaching at 91短视频 before retiring in 2001.聽 Articles on Park Woods Cabin and the Bard’s Nest, as well as the radio station garnered a good number of hits. The celebrated 25 years in March.

7.听

Good news abounded in 91短视频鈥檚 student numbers in 2015. The incoming traditional undergraduate class included 257 students鈥攗p from an average of 205 in the previous decade and increasing in diversity, as well. Graduate enrollment jumped, with the master鈥檚 in education program showed the most growth. A total of 1,908 students were registered across all 91短视频 programs, including 91短视频 Lancaster, at the beginning of the fall semester.

8.

If you missed Konrad Wert ’01, this photo alone will make you wish you’d caught the show. Wert, performing as the one-man band Possessed by Paul James, returned to 91短视频. His album There Will Be Nights When I鈥檓 Lonely hit No. 12 on the November 2013 Americana/Bluegrass Billboard charts. Wert graduated with a degree in liberal arts and now teaches special education in Texas when he’s not on the road.

9. Harrisonburg’s new restorative justice initiative

Restorative justice articles always draw excellent reader numbers, but this article about the new Harrisonburg initiative garnered a record number of hits and Facebook shares. The new program, the first of its kind in Virginia and more than two years in the creation, involved restorative justice practitioners from 91短视频 and James Madison University, Harrisonburg Police Deparetment, representatives of local law practices, the Commonwealth鈥檚 attorney and the Fairfield Center.

10. Any sports story!

91短视频 news blog readers love their sports! There’s always great coverage available at , but sometimes 91短视频 news and your former sports-writer editor can’t resist the urge (with permission from Sports Information Director James De Boer) to “break” a sports story.

Whether finding articles at 91短视频Royals.com or 91短视频 News, sports fans read, like and share them, from profiles of former athletes like pitcher-turned-Mets group sales director Kirk King ’07 to features on athletes in action, such as , Hannah Chappell-Dick and Kat Lehman at the indoor track NCAA championships, and a history-making baseball trio.

The editor’s favorite in this category was coverage of a charity basketball game that resulted in the photo above and the following headline: “Black Student Union fundraiser game pits the (victorious) Streetball Kingz against the hometown Wreckin’ Royals.”

Here’s wishing you happy reading in 2016. Send news tips to editor Lauren Jefferson at lauren.jefferson@emu.edu.

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Married alumni couple spends spare time saving lives /now/news/2015/married-alumni-couple-spends-spare-time-saving-lives/ Mon, 05 Jan 2015 21:16:50 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=22803 On any given Saturday night, when most married couples are relaxing in front of their TVs or maybe eating out, this couple is more likely to be found at an accident scene or a strange home 鈥 鈥渟eeing things no one else will see.鈥

Jackson and Katrina (Lehman) Maust have been rescue squad members since they were 91短视频 undergraduates six years ago.

The pagers connecting them to Harrisonburg-Rockingham County emergency dispatch are never far from their side 鈥 especially on Friday nights, and even more so when that Friday night happens to be both Halloween and the beginning of Homecoming Weekend at James Madison University.

Such a cosmic coincidence often makes pagers crackle with incoming calls and the all-volunteer crew at the Harrisonburg Rescue Squad (HRS) busy in response.

In times like that, the Mausts 鈥 Jackson is a physical therapist and Katie an emergency room nurse 鈥 come to lend their capable hands.

鈥淪ometimes I think about what normal people do on a Saturday night,鈥 Katie said. 鈥淲e sometimes end up helping the rescue squad. In situations like that, I think it鈥檚 easier that the two of us share that common commitment and that common interest.鈥

Helping people in need, and walking with them through those times, is a calling to the Mausts, and in their work, they are sustained by their faith, their family and friends, their colleagues, and each other.

Jackson and Katie Maust in one of Harrisonburg’s nine ambulances.

鈥淏oth of my jobs are high stress, intense places to work where sometimes horrible, awful things happen,鈥 says Katie. 鈥淵ou see very raw human emotion and the human experience right there in front of you. It鈥檚 a gift to experience those things, but it鈥檚 also a challenge, too. It鈥檚 a way that we serve God, being with people and walking through.鈥

Growing at 91短视频 and in the community

Both Jackson and Katie became involved at the rescue squad while undergraduates at 91短视频 (the two had met as freshmen, but started dating as seniors). Jackson, a major from Michigan, was interested in physical therapy. Katie, from Ohio, was also a biology major interested in healthcare.

Their majors and pre-professional interests required clinical exposure and contact hours, but both Jackson and Katie fulfilled that requirement before volunteering with the squad. They joined together to gain more experience, but not with an equal sense of certainty, Jackson recalled.

鈥淚 didn鈥檛 think of myself as someone who would have any interest in high stress, emergency situations,鈥 he said.

While he may not have had any interest, he certainly had plenty of experience in high stress situations: as a three-year starting goalkeeper on the Royals soccer team, Maust had more than 225 career saves to his name. Blocking a goal, though, is a minor and simplistic act compared to saving a life. Yet Jackson eventually found a calling, thanks to the rigorous training and the strong support network provided by HRS.

鈥淭his agency does a great job of preparing you and training you,鈥 Jackson said, adding that the squad鈥檚 trainers teach not only medical skills, but provide emotional support as well. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not a natural thing to be able to do some of the things we do and see some of the things we see and then move on. Coping is something you learn. It鈥檚 not something you naturally know how to do.鈥

After graduation, he and Katie stayed in Harrisonburg for a year. That time solidified their commitment 鈥 both to volunteering in medical services and to each other.

The couple married in 2011 in Columbus, Ohio, where Jackson was working on a doctorate in physical therapy at The Ohio State University, and Katie, who was accepted to medical school but decided not to pursue the profession, was completing a second bachelor鈥檚 degree in an accelerated nursing program at Capital University. They also volunteered with a small one-ambulance squad in Columbus. (For comparison, Harrisonburg has nine.)

Coming back to Harrisonburg

Fast-forward to Harrisonburg in 2014, and a similar life, carrying pagers and running calls for the rescue squad, but to this new era, add full-time careers, a warm and wide circle of friends, and a growing sense of rootedness to Harrisonburg.

Now Katie, 28, and Jackson, 27, are seasoned members among the 160 volunteers. From its headquarters on Reservoir Street, R40 responds to approximately 8,000 calls per year.

The couple has taken on mentoring, training and supervisorial responsibilities. Katie was recently voted to a one-year term on the board of directors and also sits on the training committee.

Jackson serves as one of three fleet maintenance officers and also one of four deputy chiefs (each chief is in charge of the squad鈥檚 operations on a rotating four-week schedule). He is one of a small group of volunteers certified to drive the squad truck and operate its heavy equipment at accident scenes requiring extrication equipment.

These responsibilities are in addition to the minimal 48 hours a month of shift work required of all members. Shifts vary from six hours on the weekdays to 12 hours on the weekends. When Katie and Jackson work a shift, they usually fill the role of duty officer, or shift supervisor 鈥撀燼ssessing calls and determining which crews will be sent.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of people who pour themselves into this place,鈥 Katie said, 鈥渇ar beyond the minimal requirements.鈥

鈥淥nce you get involved with the agency and care about it, you get involved,鈥 Jackson added. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 one way we stay volunteer. All the members put in their hours and a lot more.鈥

Spending so many hours at the rescue squad, and working together in traumatic situations, builds strong bonds, Katie said. 鈥淵ou go through a lot together, and you have fun, too. That鈥檚 a huge part of what brings us back.鈥

As college students, Katie and Jackson appreciated that volunteering with the rescue squad got them out of the Park View community and into greater Harrisonburg. Learning the city鈥檚 street names and meeting people who lived and worked on those streets connected them more deeply with their adopted home.

But with rootedness comes a different perception, Jackson says. 鈥淭his work does not discriminate. We end up in every type of house and business and out in the street. You appreciate different parts of the city. When we moved back indefinitely with no plans to leave, it feels a lot different 鈥his place is a lot more mine than it used to be.鈥

When driving through Harrisonburg, Katie says the city and its residents evoke 鈥渋ntimate鈥 memories. 鈥淚 think, 鈥業鈥檝e been there and I鈥檝e been there. I鈥檝e been in that office and in that school.鈥 I鈥檝e been in people鈥檚 homes. It feels like a privilege to be the person someone calls when they need help and they open the door and say come in. You see things no one else will see.鈥

The couple admits to sometimes feeling exhausted by their busy schedules and stressful jobs.

That鈥檚 when they head outside for some biking, running, or gardening. Jackson plays upright bass with , a close-knit group (some of whom are fellow 91短视频 grads). Their faith community at also sustains them.

Katie says that each shift always brings affirmation for both her and for their commitment as a couple to this special kind of service. 鈥淪eeing it as a calling and an opportunity to serve gives this a different meaning than something we鈥檙e signed up to do and we should keep doing because we鈥檝e been doing it a long time.鈥

鈥淚s this where we still feel like God鈥檚 calling us to be?鈥 she asks.

The answer is yes.

Many 91短视频 alumni volunteer with Harrisonburg Rescue Squad, including Steve Higgins `03, Jordan Good `09, Courtney French `10, Noel Johns `13, Christina Dickerson `14, John Bethune `14, Sara Rieman `14, and Andrew Kniss `14.聽 Current student volunteers include graduate students Matthew Tieszen `10 and Mavis Britwum (both in the ); undergraduates Evan Roth and Hannah Weaver, class of 2016; and Emily Foltz, accelerated second degree student.

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Thousands throng to new music festival made possible by many folks with ties to 91短视频 /now/news/2014/thousands-throng-to-new-music-festival-made-possible-by-many-folks-with-ties-to-emu/ Tue, 29 Jul 2014 16:13:13 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=21334 From a headlining act to the bike-powered recycling effort, from a group of staff and volunteers to the tent distributing Menno Tea to hundreds of friends and alumni, 91短视频 and its graduates helped make the second annual Red Wing Roots Music Festival a success.

Close to 3,000 people attended each day of the festival, July 11-13, 2014, at Natural Chimneys Park in Mt. Solon, Virginia. First held in the summer of 2013, the Red Wing festival is hosted by The Steel Wheels, a nationally known roots music band that features three alumni: Trent Wagler 鈥02, Eric Brubaker 鈥01 and Brian Dickel, class of 鈥98. (The fourth band member, Jay Lapp, attended 91短视频鈥檚 sister Mennonite school in Indiana, Goshen College, for a time.)

After enjoying performing at other festivals across the country since they started touring seriously around 2010, members of The Steel Wheels began thinking about ways to create a new festival in the Shenandoah Valley.

鈥淲e wanted it to be rooted in community and informed by our upbringing,鈥 said Brubaker after Red Wing ended this year.聽鈥淲e wanted a family-friendly event where we would be proud to bring our own children and expose them to many different kinds of authentic musical expression.鈥

The band partnered with Black Bear Productions, a local event production company, and began planning well over a year in advance for the first event. Their vision was realized in a multi-generational, community-focused festival that has brought dozens of performers and thousands of visitors for a long weekend of music on four stages at Natural Chimneys, about 20 miles south of 91短视频鈥檚 campus.

鈥淭he exciting thing is that all [our] dreams and more are already being fulfilled,鈥 Brubaker added. 鈥淚t鈥檚 amazing that so many people from our community are investing time, creativity and resources to make the festival a true success.鈥

Jeremiah Jenkins, a managing partner of Black Bear Productions, said the welcoming, friendly atmosphere at the festival is one of its special characteristics.

鈥淩ed Wing has fans of all ages. This sets a certain tone of respect and appreciation among the crowd, and that collective enjoyment really fuels us all weekend,鈥 he said. 鈥淩ed Wing brings out both the seasoned festivarian and the first-timers, and together we create our own festival culture. We鈥檙e proud of the Red Wing fans, volunteers and staff that treat the park and each other with such conscientiousness.鈥

After noticing how many 91短视频 alums attended the first festival, the university signed on as an official sponsor in 2014. Throughout the weekend, advancement staff passed out tea and connected with hundreds of alumni, prospective students and other festival-goers.

91短视频 and Red Wing organizers also collaborated to minimize the amount of trash generated at the festival. The festival banned the sale of plastic water bottles and required visitors to bring or purchase a reusable steel cup to use at the free water station and in the beer garden, Jenkins said. Food vendors were also required to use renewable, recycled or compostable materials for all service items.

Aware of 91短视频鈥檚 commitment to sustainability, Black Bear Productions hired 91短视频 sustainability coordinator Jonathan Lantz-Trissel 鈥00 to oversee trash and recycling collection during the weekend. He and his team of volunteers collected well over 1,000 pounds of recyclable materials and 500 pounds of food waste to add to 91短视频鈥檚 compost piles.

鈥淲hen people congratulate me on the festival, I always say that it takes a village,鈥 Jenkins said.聽鈥淲e鈥檙e so glad that 91短视频 is part of ours, from the alumni office and sustainability team to the many 91短视频 alumni that bring their families each year.鈥

In addition to The Steel Wheels, about 40 other bands performed this year at Red Wing, including The Walking Roots Band, first formed under another name at 91短视频. Six of the eight members are 91短视频 graduates: Lauren 鈥09 and Mitch Yoder 鈥09, Jackson Maust 鈥09, Kristina Yoder 鈥09, Adam Schmid 鈥09 and Seth Crissman 鈥09, MDiv 鈥15. Crissman also said the welcoming feel to the festival was important to the group.

鈥淪omething we care about a lot is being able to create and share music that is fun for everyone. There was a broad range of ages at Red Wing, and music brings all these people together,鈥 he said. 鈥淚n making music in this roots-folk tradition, we draw nourishment from those who have come before and, hopefully, pass it on to those who will come after us. It was a lot fun to be able to listen to and enjoy other musicians doing the same thing at Red Wing.聽It was exciting to see so many people excited about roots and folk music, especially local music.鈥

Another band performing at Red Wing, Ragged Mountain String Band, featured Reuben Miller 鈥00 on fiddle.

The third Red Wing Roots Music Festival will likely be held on the second weekend in July 2015, with exact dates to be announced soon on the festival鈥檚 website and Facebook page. In the meantime, Brubaker said, The Steel Wheels will be recording a new album that will be ready in time for next year鈥檚 event.

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91短视频, Goshen Alumni Go “Back鈥圱o The Roots” /now/news/2013/emu-goshen-alumni-go-back%e2%80%88to-the-roots/ Sun, 21 Jul 2013 18:15:05 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=17630 For local group The Walking Roots Band, playing music together is a natural extension of collective friendship.

The band formed when four friends started playing music under the name The Federation during their time at 91短视频 (91短视频). It’s been together in some form or fashion for more than five years, but the last few months have been big for the local band.

The group now includes Seth Crissman, Greg Yoder, his wife Kristina Yoder, Jackson Maust, Mitchell Yoder and his wife Lauren Yoder, Adam Schmid and Mike Yoder. Most of the band mates are 91短视频 graduates.

“We’re friends and we play music together,” Crissman said. “It’s sort of in that order.

“[It] just sort of naturally progressed and emerged from friendships,” he continued, adding “On a given night, we’ll get together and play bocce [ball] in someone’s backyard, we’ll get together and cook or we’ll get together and play a show.”

Sacred Space

The Walking Roots Band released its first album this month – a compilation of 11 “reclaimed hymns,” or spiritual songs that “had fallen out of the general circulation of being sung in churches,” Crissman explained.

The new album, “Shelter: A Hymn Reclamation Project,” is a patchwork of centuries-old, lesser-known sacred texts, more identifiable hymns and the band’s own unique touch.

For example, the song, “Come Down, O Love Divine” is based off text written in 1367 and arranged into a song in 1906, while the new album also includes a rendition of “It is Well With My Soul” with lyrics tweaked to reflect the Shenandoah Valley.

Crissman, 27, of Harrisonburg, wrote eight of the album’s songs, which is just the first of three albums the band hopes to produce in the upcoming months.

The next project will consist of folk songs, while other albums will be a collection of “farming songs.”

“A lot of the people in the group have connections to agriculture,” said Greg Yoder, a band member who has worked for a local farmer the past two summers.

“We think that connection to the land is really important; it’s sacred in some ways.”

Finding A Niche

Greg Yoder, 26, of Penn Laird, describes the band’s musical offerings as acoustic Americana that’s not exactly bluegrass, but rather “blue-ish grass.” It’s “folky” music with some rap intertwined, he explains.

“We’re hoping for a new category at the Grammy’s,” he said.

Bands such at The Avett Brothers, Mumford & Sons and The Steel Wheels influence the local group.

Group Effort

While the band’s style is hard to pinpoint, it’s also difficult to identify the lead singer or who plays which instrument.

The Walking Roots Band shows likely include six to eight instrument swaps, with all the members adept at some combination of the guitar, mandolin, banjo, harmonica, accordion, Cajon – and the list goes on.

For more information on the band, the new album and upcoming tour dates, visit thewalkingrootsband.com.

Article courtesy Daily News Record, July 20, 2013

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Band Gives Old Hymns New Life /now/news/2013/band-gives-old-hymns-new-life/ Wed, 19 Jun 2013 14:19:50 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=17425 , a Harrisonburg, Virginia-based band made up of primarily 91短视频 (91短视频) graduates, is taking centuries-old hymn texts and putting them to music that is accessible and appealing to younger Christians.

Their first album 鈥溾 was released in June 2013.

鈥淭here are many really meaningful texts in old hymns,鈥 said Seth Crissman, a 2009 91短视频 graduate, who is also a current student at . They have deep profound spiritual truths that are sometimes inaccessible because of the music.鈥

Greg Yoder, a 2009 graduate of Goshen College added, “Seth found these great hymn texts that he wanted to use at , where many people who come to worship didn’t grow up singing hymns.”

Eastside Church is a recent church plant in Harrisonburg where Crissman serves as a music pastor.

鈥淢usic is incredibly formative,鈥 Crissman said. 鈥淲e are being shaped in our theology and our understanding of who we are by music.

鈥淚n churches where 鈥榩raise music鈥 is the main music, we generally only sing things written in the last 10 to 15 years, when thoughtful writers have been writing music for churches for 1,500 years. There is rich theology that can be accessed by arranging these hymn texts so that they are appealing to a more modern ear.鈥

One example is a hymn called 鈥淐ome Down, O Love Divine.鈥 The text was written in 1367 by Bianco da Siena. Crissman encountered this song in the 鈥淗ymnal: A worship book.” The arrangement was written in 1906, but most members of the band had not sung it often despite many of them singing hymns in their congregations.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a good introduction to the richness of the text,鈥 said Mitchell Yoder, a 2009 91短视频 alum.聽 鈥淔or people who have grown up singing traditional church hymns we chose a lot of texts that people tend to not sing.鈥

Several of the band members started playing worship services at 91短视频 in 2007. In 2010, they added band members Greg Yoder and Michael Yoder. In 2012, they became The Walking Roots Band, which they describe as 鈥渁coustic Americana, faux-folk, blue-ish-grass, roots music.鈥

鈥淓ven though we are mostly a folk band, faith and church music is definitely where our roots are musically and personally, so it made sense to do this album first,鈥 said Jackson Maust, a 2009 91短视频 alum.

They will be touring Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana in early July. The group intends to release a folk album in the fall of 2013.

鈥淲e aren鈥檛 just a band that plays reclaimed hymns,鈥 said Greg Yoder. 鈥淚f you come to a concert you鈥檒l hear some of our folk music, some silly songs and some reclaimed hymns. We are Christians in the world, and we’re also complex people and we want our music to reflect that.鈥

To see The Walking Roots Band tour schedule, order a CD, or hear a sample of 鈥淪helter: A Hymn Reclamation Project鈥 visit their website at . The band will be playing in Harrisonburg on . Tickets are available at the door.

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91短视频鈥檚 Cadaver Dissection Gives Pre-Med Students Big Advantage /now/news/2012/emus-cadaver-dissection-gives-pre-med-students-big-advantage/ Mon, 12 Nov 2012 20:56:52 +0000 http://emu.edu/now/news/?p=14888 After some preliminary classroom lectures and PowerPoints, it was time for Jason Hostetter 鈥07 and a handful of other upper-level 91短视频 biology students to get down to business in a laboratory in the bottom floor of the science center.

Studying human anatomy with colorful charts is one thing. Using a scalpel and an actual, recently living person is an entirely different matter.

鈥淚t was nerve-wracking, honestly,鈥 said Hostetter, now a general medicine intern at Mercy Medical Center in Baltimore, Md., who plans to become a radiologist. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 really understand what that means until you walk into that room and you smell the formaldehyde and you see this human-sized lump in a bag on the table.鈥

Under the instruction of Dr. Greta Ann Herin, Hostetter and his classmates in 91短视频鈥檚 Mammalian Anatomy class made their first incision down the cadaver鈥檚 back and began working their way down through the muscles and into the spine. By semester鈥檚 end they had performed a detailed dissection of most of the body, giving each student an extremely uncommon opportunity for up-close, hands-on study of human anatomy.

Few U.S. Undergrads Do Human Dissection

Herin, an associate professor of biology, said that for various reasons, including class size, expense, tradition and handling of hazardous materials, very few undergraduate students in the United States have the opportunity to dissect human cadavers. That meant Hostetter was one of just a few first-year medical students who entered his University of Maryland School of Medicine class with prior experience dissecting a cadaver.

鈥淎 lot of my classmates were coming from very prestigious schools with far more resources that 91短视频 has, and they were surprised that I鈥檇 actually gotten to spend a whole semester dissecting a cadaver,鈥 Hostetter said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just not something that鈥檚 available most places.鈥

Faculty at several medical schools in Virginia said no more than 5 to 10 percent of incoming medical students have actually dissected a cadaver.

And a recent article published by Colorado State University noted that its own undergraduate anatomy course was one of the few in the nation in which students dissect cadavers. 91短视频 has offered its students the opportunity to dissect cadavers since at least the mid-鈥70s, according to biology professor Dr. Roman Miller.

Dr. Greta Ann Herin leads Mammalian Anatomy class at 91短视频
Dr. Greta Ann Herin leads Mammalian Anatomy class. By semester鈥檚 end students have performed a detailed dissection of most of the body, giving each student an extremely uncommon opportunity for up-close, hands-on study of human anatomy. Photo by Travis Duerksen

Put Ahead in Med School

Because dissection of human cadavers is so uncommon for an undergraduate pre-medical program, the opportunity gives 91短视频 students who go on to graduate study in medicine and related fields an advantage among their classmates.

鈥淎t 91短视频 we had as good, if not better, hands-on experience than in grad school,鈥 said Jackson Maust 鈥09, now in his final year of physical therapy school at Ohio State University. 鈥淐ompared to the rest of my classmates in PT school, I was really, really comfortable just stepping in.鈥

Debbie Boese 鈥07 Horst said her gross anatomy class in dental school at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) was very similar to the course she鈥檇 taken at 91短视频 and made it easier for her to earn an A in the VCU class.

鈥淚 was one of the few people in my class who had actually gone through the whole process, so it was basically like a review,鈥 said Horst, now a practicing dentist in Harrisonburg, Va.

Dr. Richard Krieg, director of the first-year gross and developmental anatomy course at VCU鈥檚 School of Medicine, said that undergraduate experience with dissection, like Horst鈥檚, almost always bodes well for a student鈥檚 performance in the course.

Krieg, who once visited 91短视频 as an anatomy guest instructor at the invitation of professor Melvin Ching (at 91短视频 1996-97), said only a few of his program鈥檚 200 incoming first-year medical students have dissected cadavers as undergrads.

鈥淜ids do very well if they鈥檝e had experience with cadavers, so it鈥檚 a really good thing,鈥 Krieg said.

Staff at the University of Virginia鈥檚 School of Medicine estimate that less than 10 percent of each year鈥檚 156-student incoming medical class have prior human dissection experience.

And at the Eastern Virginia Medical School, Dr. Craig Goodmurphy, director of the human anatomy program, guessed that about 20 percent of the 235 students entering the school鈥檚 medical and physician鈥檚 assistant programs have worked with cadavers. Most of them however, have been limited to cadaver 鈥減rosection鈥 鈥 either observing a dissection in process or studying an already-dissected cadaver.

Fewer than 5 percent of incoming students have actually participated in a dissection, he said.

鈥淚t鈥檚 the difference between reading a book and writing a book,鈥 Goodmurphy said. 鈥淎nybody can read a book, but to actually write a book takes a whole different thought process.鈥

Two or Three Cadavers Per Year

Herin offers the anatomy course to undergraduate biology majors in the fall, sometimes with the help of her laboratory co-instructor, John Spicher, 91短视频鈥檚 chemical hygiene officer. In the undergraduate course, students work in groups of four or five per cadaver. That group size is smaller, Herin said, than in classes at some medical schools.

She and Spicher typically work with two to three cadavers each year in the anatomy class, required for biology majors in the pre-physical therapy track, and taken by many in the pre-professional health sciences track. (Beginning this spring, 91短视频鈥檚 new MA in Biomedicine program will also offer a cadaver dissection course, taught by Dr. Julia Halterman.)

Most 91短视频 nursing and kinesiology students also benefit from Herrin鈥檚 course by observing the dissected specimens for part of their anatomy study. She said that several local high school anatomy classes also usually visit her lab to see the cadavers each year.

91短视频 receives the cadavers from the Virginia Department of Health鈥檚 State Anatomical Program. They cost about $1,500 each to cover the state鈥檚 cost of preserving and transporting the cadavers. That expense, and the fact that dissection is not well-suited to large classes, are two factors that make actual dissection very uncommon at the undergraduate level. The hazardous chemicals involved 鈥 phenol and formaldehyde in particular 鈥 are also a factor.

Maust said he benefitted greatly at Ohio State both from his experience with cadavers at 91短视频 and the instruction he received from Herin and her colleagues in the biology department.

鈥淭he quality of our professors is really unlike anything you get at a larger school,鈥 said Maust. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 get teaching assistants. We learn from really high-quality faculty.鈥

Calling his dissection experience as an undergraduate at 91短视频 鈥渋nvaluable,鈥 Hostetter said he hopes the course will continue, despite 鈥 and because of 鈥 the fact that it鈥檚 so uncommon.

I really hope that 91短视频 continues to offer that because I think that it鈥檚 invaluable, especially for people who want to go into medicine or other health sciences,鈥 he said.

More info

Learn more online about 91短视频’s undergraduate majors in biology, chemistry, nursing and pre-professional health sciences, and the new MA in biomedicine graduate degree.

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Senior Goalkeeper Maust Honored by ESPN The Magazine /now/news/2008/senior-goalkeeper-maust-honored-by-espn-the-magazine/ Thu, 30 Oct 2008 04:00:00 +0000 http://www.emu.edu/blog/news/?p=1784 Read more…

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Men’s Soccer Keeps Shutouts Going with Fourth Win /now/news/2008/mens-soccer-keeps-shutouts-going-with-fourth-win/ Mon, 08 Sep 2008 04:00:00 +0000 http://www.emu.edu/blog/news/?p=1736 Jackson Maust and Dillon Brunk held Washington College scoreless as 91短视频’s men’s soccer team won 3-0 decision at the Hampden-Sydney Soccer Classic. 91短视频 remains unscored upon after four games this season.

Read more…

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91短视频 Defeats Goshen College 1-0 in Men /now/news/2006/emu-defeats-goshen-college-1-0-in-mens-soccer/ Thu, 21 Sep 2006 04:00:00 +0000 http://www.emu.edu/blog/news/?p=1225 The 91短视频 men

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Local Talent May Ignite Royals /now/news/2006/local-talent-may-ignite-royals/ Tue, 29 Aug 2006 04:00:00 +0000 http://www.emu.edu/blog/news/?p=1198 EMU's Regulo Cardoso takes a shot during a drill at practice Monday. 91短视频’s Regulo Cardoso takes a shot during a drill at practice Monday.
Photo by Michael Reilly

The skies above 91短视频 had already begun to unleash their wrath on the college campus, but it did little to deter Royals coach Roger Mast as he drilled his through the late-afternoon monsoon.

After last season

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