“I got to practice incisions and suturing, and we had some frogs that needed postoperative care,” he said. “That was a really valuable experience, and I don’t think I would’ve gotten that at a lot of other schools.”

These days, Prock doesn’t operate on frogs. His patients are mostly dogs and cats. The vet is the co-founder of Furgent Care, a veterinary urgent care in Virginia Beach that offers evening and weekend services for pet owners when their primary care veterinarian is unavailable.

Identifying a need

In 2018, following four tough years at veterinary school (Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech), Prock earned his doctor of veterinary medicine degree. After working as a general practice vet at a clinic in South Florida for three years, he returned to his hometown of Virginia Beach with his wife, Katie (Landis) Prock ’12—they met at 91����Ƶ—and worked as a locum, filling in for understaffed hospitals that needed help.

“Think of it like substitute teaching, but for veterinarians,” Prock said.

That experience opened his eyes to the growing need for after-hours veterinary services.

“It shocked me the amount of clients who would call in with sick pets and say, ‘My dog is vomiting or has diarrhea or has an ear infection,’” said Prock. “And the answer was, ‘Our first available appointment is in two weeks.’ That’s just how the system works. But it felt wrong to say no to so many sick pets.”

That motivated him to reach out to his roommate from vet school, Jonah Williams, and together they opened Furgent Care in 2024. The clinic is staffed by 16 total employees, including four doctors. It has 164 reviews and a 4.9-out-of-5 rating.

“Our core values are compassion and collaboration, and that’s been echoed in our reviews,” Prock said. “People get what we’re doing and they appreciate it.”

Seeking a balance

From a young age, Prock had a love for animals. He said he’s always known he wanted to become a veterinarian.

“My parents let us keep weird pets,” he said. “I had all sorts of reptiles growing up, hedgehogs, guinea pigs, and bunnies. You name it, we took care of it.”

That taught him the responsibility of pet ownership and fostered in him a connection to animals. He added that he’s also always been fascinated with the subject of biology, the natural sciences, and the “huge, complex system that makes all living things, living things.” 

Those interests coincided with a passion for volleyball. A skilled player in high school, he started attracting attention from college recruiters across the country.

His older sister played volleyball at a Division I school, and he saw the commitment required to compete at that level. “I got to see firsthand what having, essentially, a full-time job on top of college looked like,” Prock said. “That helped steer me toward Division III and 91����Ƶ.”

“From my visit to 91����Ƶ, I felt like I could achieve a balance: smaller class sizes and professors who were involved and cared for their students more than they could in a thousand-student lecture hall,” he said. “As an athlete, I was given some flexibility with my assignments. They understood I had more than just school going on and helped me outside of class when I missed it.”

“I think that balance made a huge impact on my ability to eventually get into vet school,” he added.

At 91����Ƶ, Prock excelled as a student-athlete. He was named to the first-ever Continental Volleyball Conference All-East Division Team during the inaugural season of the conference. His name still ranks No. 2 on the all-time digs list for 91����Ƶ.

Although no amount of work can truly prepare someone for the rigors and stressors of vet school, he said, 91����Ƶ’s coursework and degree equipped him as best it could. “It was absolutely difficult and was a new level of challenging, but as far as fundamentals go, I had everything I needed,” he said.

It’s also incredibly difficult to get accepted into vet school, he added. After graduating from 91����Ƶ with a biology degree, he stayed in Harrisonburg for a couple years, working as an assistant at Heartland Veterinary Clinic and serving as an assistant coach for the men’s volleyball team at 91����Ƶ. At the same time, he applied to a flurry of veterinary schools across the country.

“I tell people I took one year off on purpose and one year off by accident, because I didn’t get into veterinary school,” said Prock. He was eventually accepted during a second round of applications. 

When he started vet school, he had three goals. One was to graduate. Another was to stay married. And a third goal was to get as much sleep as he could. “My priorities looked different than most people’s,” Prock said, noting the hypercompetitive nature of vet school students. “It was never my goal to become the world’s best veterinarian or the world’s best clinician. I always wanted to help people and I knew I could do that by helping pets and working with animals.”

Keeping his passion going

One of his most meaningful experiences from his time at 91����Ƶ occurred during a senior seminar class taught by Professor Emeritus Roman Miller. Prock recalled an assignment to shadow a large-animal veterinarian at cattle farms around Harrisonburg for several weeks. They performed everything from routine pregnancy checks to emergency calls and surgery.

“That was wonderful preparation,” Prock said. “I gained an immense amount of respect for farmers and for large-animal vets who work incredibly long and hard hours. To have that kind of foresight in making me do that was really wise and paid off in keeping my passion going.”

As Prock’s responsibilities at the clinic have shifted, he’s spent more time on the business side, building teams and systems, and less time on the floor seeing patients.

For those like him, seeking a career in veterinary medicine, he said the role requires a “specific type of brain.” 

“It’s common to find people who have a passion for animals,” he said. “It’s less common to find those who have a passion for helping people, solving problems, and working with teams.”

Learn more about the clinic at .

Nathan Derstine ’10, a chemical ecologist and physiologist whose research focuses on insect pheromones, was recently recognized for his groundbreaking work on how bees, wasps, and other insects communicate. He received the Early Career Award from the International Society of Chemical Ecology (ISCE) at its annual meeting held in New Zealand this past August. 

The award recognizes “cutting-edge research in any area of chemical ecology performed by the new generation of scientists” and is open to researchers within 10 years of earning their PhD, according to . It honors Derstine for “his outstanding achievements in advancing our understanding of the plasticity and regulation of chemical signals governing social behavior in insects.”

What is chemical ecology?
Chemical ecology is the study integrating chemistry and biology to examine the chemical interactions among organisms and their environment. It includes signaling processes and communication between individuals, for instance in pheromone responses. ()

“There are so many remarkable and excellent researchers who are equally, if not more, deserving of this award, so I didn’t expect to get it,” Derstine said. “I’ve had the opportunity to work on a wide array of projects with a lot of great mentors, and it feels very affirming to be recognized for all the work I’ve done and put in over the years.”

Along with receiving the award, Derstine was invited to present a plenary lecture on his research at the conference, with all travel, accommodation, and conference fees fully covered. “It was a great trip,” he said. “It was cool to see New Zealand and connect with a different group of chemical ecologists. It’s always rewarding to put a face to the names of the papers you’ve read.”

He arrived back in the U.S. two days before fall classes started at the , where he teaches as a visiting assistant professor of biology. Since moving to the city this summer, he’s been approached by more than one solicitor who’s knocked on his door and offered to spray for bugs. “I always have to tell them that they’re barking up the wrong tree,” he said.

Planting the seeds

Derstine said he’s always been interested in biology, but had never thought of himself as an entomologist or “insect person.” “In retrospect, I realize I may have had a unique background compared to others,” he said.

His parents were beekeepers for as long as he’s been alive—his father Kenton, professor emeritus at Eastern Mennonite Seminary, maintained a few bee hives on the 91����Ƶ Hill back in the day—“so I grew up doing it and never thought of it as anything other than normal,” he said.

While at 91����Ƶ, most of his student research was with Roman Miller, professor emeritus of biology, on how plant hormones affect the development of reproductive organs in mice. He got involved in Professor Matthew Siderhurst’s entomology research and spent two summers as a student at a U.S. Department of Agriculture lab in Hilo, Hawaii, where he worked to identify and develop strategies for managing invasive pests such as the little fire ant. 

“That was the seed of where it all began, through my involvement with Matt,” said Derstine, who remains in close communication with the professor.

He said that 91����Ƶ’s small class sizes, as well as the biology program’s exclusive focus on undergraduate students, helped him form close connections with faculty and allowed him to gain hands-on experience working alongside professors as they conducted research projects. “That’s a big benefit,” he said. “There’s no doubt that there’s a very direct link between my experiences and the network of people I now know, who have helped me not only get a job but also continue to provide mentorship and guidance.”

After graduating from 91����Ƶ with a biology degree in 2010, Derstine worked for two years as a research technician with Siderhurst at the lab in Hawaii before deciding to pursue graduate school. He earned a master of science from Simon Fraser University (Vancouver, Canada) in 2016. From 2017 to 2018, he conducted research on the spotted lanternfly at a USDA lab in Buzzards Bay, Massachusetts. He earned his PhD in entomology from Pennsylvania State University in 2023. 

He has also studied and contributed to research papers on yellowjackets and bumblebees, fruit-piercing moths, coffee berry borers, coconut rhinoceros beetles, and fruit flies.

Derstine fondly recalled spending long hours at Suter Science Center identifying specimens for an insect collection and late nights in the basement of Sadie Hartzler Library studying with friends. He returned to campus in March 2024 to lead a Suter Science Seminar talk on the “Sociality and Evolution of Reproductive Signals in Bees.”

“I loved my time at 91����Ƶ,” he said. “I couldn’t imagine it any other way.”

Over a 44-year career at Eastern Mennonite College and then 91����Ƶ, Horst gained a reputation as a “dedicated and valued colleague in the Science Center” with an excellent knowledge of his field, said Professor Emeritus Joseph Mast ’64.

Equally known for his deft expertise in wider subjects, Horst was a “Rennaissance man,” Mast said. 

“As a faculty member able to teach courses across a wide range of disciplines, John was an invaluable asset to 91����Ƶ,” said Professor Emeritus Millard Showalter ’62. “Without a doubt, John L. Horst will be remembered as a ‘Man for all Seasons.’”  

Horst’s wide-ranging intellectual interests — from physics and mathematics to music and history — challenged, amazed and entertained in many venues, from classrooms to faculty lounges and in later years, at Sabbath evening Bible studies and other events at Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community. 

In later years, he shared his love of music as the host of WEMC’s “Mostly Mennonite, Mostly A Capella” and in compiling and writing liner notes for nine CDs from the “Mennonite Hour” music archives.

Horst also contributed to the conceptualization of pictorial histories in prominent locations that have served to educate campus visitors, and regular denizens, too. (An athlete throughout his life, Horst appears in one photo, wearing No. 77 on the Smith Literary Society basketball team.) Take a tour with John in this article.

“I am forever grateful for his initiative and leadership in the creation of the athletic history display on the first floor of the Commons, which would not have happened if he had not brought the idea and did most of the research,” said Director of Athletics Dave King ’76, who also has vivid memories of sitting in an interdisciplinary studies course (better known as IDS) as an undergraduate and watching Horst’s visible delight as he taught about baroque music. 

In retirement, Horst and his wife, Joan Graybill ’66, lived adjacent to 91����Ƶ. He was an almost daily presence on campus, where he’d power walk and do wall push-ups in the University Commons (at certain times of the morning, one knew to take a wide turn around the corners), then stop by the Athletic Department (and other places, too) for a visit. King says he’ll miss those chats, as will many of us.

Park View Mennonite Church will host a live-streamed memorial service Saturday, Sept. 26, at 2  p.m. Visit for the link. His family will be present but the service will not be open to the public.

Horst is survived by his wife, Joan; his son, Michael Horst and wife, Stephanie, of Dover, Pa.; daughter Grete Horst Johnson and husband, Christopher, of Newport News; five grandchildren, Caleb, Luke and Daniel Horst, Emily and Sarah Johnson; and by a sister, Rachel Witmer and husband, James, of Alliance, Ohio.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Valley Brethren and Mennonite Heritage Center, PO Box 1653, Harrisonburg, VA 22803 or to WEMC FM radio station, 1200 Park Road, Harrisonburg, VA 22802.

Memories and condolences shared below in the comments will appear publicly. They will also be shared with the family. 

***

Born in Connellsville, Pa., to the late John L. Sr. and Emma Zimmerman Horst, John Horst Jr. grew up in Scottdale. His lifelong love of music began early: at Scottdale High School, he sang in a male quartet that reached state-level competition. Horst’s reputation as a vocalist preceded him: Wilmer Lehman ’57, who is four years older than John, remembers attending Music Week at Laurelville and hearing J. Mark Stauffer ’38, who led EMC’s choirs, “rave” about the teenager’s wonderful deep bass voice. The two would meet again at EMC in 1956, when Lehman was a senior and Horst a freshman — and then become colleagues. Lehman, professor emeritus of mathematics, retired in 2000.

At EMC, Horst earned a degree in mathematics and music. He then completed graduate work in physics education at the University of Virginia, as well as additional graduate work in music. He taught at Eastern Mennonite High School for three years and then moved to the college, where he spent 37 years as an associate professor of physics and mathematics. Among other responsibilities, he was the planetarium’s director. [Read more about the Astral Society and the planetarium.]

He was passionate about teaching. 91����Ƶ records capture a few examples of his professional development activities. In 1969, he was selected to participate in a National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded six-week summer institute for professors teaching nuclear physics at Vanderbilt University. The next summer, he represented EMC among 19 colleges and universities at a selective summer institute focused on making physics courses meaningful to non-physics majors. Three weekend conferences were also part of the commitment; in return, Horst secured a $1,000 NSF grant for laboratory equipment.

Showalter remembers that Horst developed and often taught a special course for biology and business majors who needed to take physics but were lacking in “the knowledge of the essential concepts of differential and integral calculus, concepts which are very helpful in the study of physics,” Showalter said. “His class, titled ‘Elements of Calculus,’ aimed to “dispel the phobia of calculus as an ‘impossible’ course.” 

Roman J. Miller’s first memory of Horst is one of gracious hospitality. The new faculty member arrived to teach at EMC in the summer of 1985 with plans to stay in an inexpensive hotel room as he located a more permanent residence. Horst offered him use of his family’s summer cabin out in the county.

“In our trans-departmental discussions and debates in the faculty lounge over the years, I was often stimulated by John Horst’s broad interests in life far beyond physics and math, which he very capably taught,” said Miller, who after retiring in 2016 as emeritus professor of biology, often saw Horst at VMRC events. “His love of music and reflections on a wide range of historic and religious happenings enlarged my world.  I appreciated so much his warm friendship and his openness to conversation about the state of the world.”

Horst’s love of learning, teaching and science was present in the classroom even after retirement.  “A few times, John was a substitute teacher in my physics classes and I keenly remember that he was fond of examples over lectures,” said Braydon Hoover ‘11, director of development and annual giving. “No matter how often he conducted a physics experiment, his face would light up like he was an undergrad experiencing it for the first time, himself.”

Hoover also remembers singing next to Horst and his clear joy in sharing music together at the doctoral defense of Ben Bergey ‘11 (now a music professor at 91����Ƶ).  

Throughout his life, Horst was a vocal performer and composer. He also composed works for piano, synthesizer and carillon. At Park View Mennnonite Church, where he was a member for nearly 55 years, Horst sang in the choir. He also sang in the Mennonite Hour Men’s Quartet for seven years; in the Men’s Chorus and Mixed Chorus in the 50’s and 60’s; and with several community choirs, most recently the Valley Collegium Musicum. 

Around 91����Ƶ’s Centennial year, Horst worked on a compilation  CD of EMC/91����Ƶ’s greatest choral and orchestral hits. Members of 91����Ƶ’s marketing and communication department fondly remember his visits to the Anderson House office during those months, when he would work his way around to each and every desk, greeting everyone, sharing ideas for articles about campus history, handing over type-written or hand-written remembrances or attending to various to-do items related to the CD. 

With thanks to Wilmer Lehman, Joe Mast, Roman Miller and Millard Showalter for sharing memories and stories. You are most welcome to do the same in the comment box below. We’ll make sure they are passed along to his family.

Sarah Jones ’08 starts her day with the sun, collecting eggs. And while she does live on a farm, the eggs she collects are actually human oocytes, for her work as an embryologist at the Markham Fertility Centre just north of Toronto, Canada.

Patients visit the center for a variety of services, including Jones’s specialty: in vitro fertilization. Her days progress through every step of the process, from the small surgical procedure to collect a patient’s oocytes first thing in the morning, to washing a sperm sample, to tending the incubating eggs, sperm, and embryos. 

One of her responsibilities that requires an incredible amount of finesse is direct insemination: by using a miniscule needle attached to a microscope, Jones can pick up one individual sperm cell and inject it into an egg, thus increasing the chance of fertilization. The equipment is operated by joysticks, which through hydraulic tubing, convert the movement of Jones’s hands into the micro-movement of the needle. 

“I kind of think of it a bit as like a video game,” Jones said. “It still kind of amazes me.” A big leg up to doing this work came from research projects Jones completed as a pre-med undergraduate at 91����Ƶ, which included working with micro-manipulators similar to those she uses now. She remembers Professors Greta Ann Herin and Roman Miller for being “wonderful supporters.” 

Jones went on to earn a master’s degree in biology with a focus in neuroscience at York University in Toronto. By then, she knew that she’d prefer working in a clinical lab setting rather than becoming a physician, so she could be directly involved with a patient’s care but still “behind the scenes.” She started working at the fertility clinic shortly after graduating eight years ago. 

“This field is just so fascinating. It feels like a really great fit,” Jones said. She says it’s miraculous how much we now know about embryo development “so that we can recreate it in the lab and support families,” including those outside the stereotypical model, like single parents and same-sex couples.

“That’s really important to me,” she said.

The gametes are cultured in the lab for seven days, with 15 to 20 patients’ potential embryos in the lab at a given time, Jones said. She checks on the embryos throughout her day as they sit in petri dishes, which are filled with a special liquid that contains proteins and sugars. Their incubators are kept precisely at body temperature, and a gas mixture is pumped in to maintain a pH environment similar to that of the Fallopian tubes.

Some patients choose to have their embryos genetically tested, “to ensure that we have a … genetically normal embryo for transfer, to increase the chance of a pregnancy in the future,” Jones said. The embryos are then frozen in liquid nitrogen and stored until the test results come back – then they can be thawed out one at a time to be transferred at the right moment during a patient’s menstrual cycle.

91����Ƶ 50% of the embryos in their lab turn out “normal” – the others, if they had developed naturally in the patient’s body, would likely have passed through the uterus without implanting, and the patient would have had a normal period without ever knowing fertilization had taken place.

“That happens a lot of the time in nature, and we just have no idea,” Jones said. By testing the embryos beforehand, “it increases their positive pregnancy rate by about 15% … in our lab, it’s a great tool to help us give them just a bit better chance of achieving that pregnancy.”

In addition to making parenthood more accessible for those who want it most, Jones also hopes her work helps to ease the stigma around infertility. 

“It’s a real thing that happens to so many couples,” Jones said.

Tell us about your current studies at Emory University and your future plans in the medical field.

I am studying global health at the Rollins School of Public Health. I am in the dual-degree track with the physician assistant (PA) program, which means I spend one year studying public health and the next two and a half years in the physician assistant program. When I was in Mennonite Central Committee’s (SALT) program in Papua, Indonesia (2014-15), I saw how public health was so important, but I also realized that I needed some concrete skills. I wanted to work with individuals and have impact on preventing disease at the population level. Bill Foege, a former director of the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), calls this “being able to see both the numerator and the denominator.” I think that this program fits me very well because I love learning about complex issues and prevention, but am also looking forward to having the clinical, personal skills of a PA.

Why Emory University?��

Emory is located just north of Atlanta, right next to the CDC and not far from other organizations like CARE [a global humanitarian organization] and the Carter Center. In a lot of ways Emory reminds me of 91����Ƶ—inspiring professors, care for environmental sustainability, and care for the underserved. However, Emory is a big, private, research university, which is very different than 91����Ƶ. It’s exciting as a student to have professors and guest lecturers who are involved in emerging research and activism, and who inspire you to keep asking big, engaging, and critical questions. There are endless opportunities, which is intimidating and exciting all at the same time. I think more 91����Ƶ students should come check out Emory! The campus is beautiful, and you can see the Atlanta skyline from parts of campus.

After graduating from high school, what did you think you wanted to do and how did your academic experience at 91����Ƶ help with that goal?

I went to 91����Ƶ for its quality pre-med program but realized in sophomore year that I wasn’t quite ready to make the necessary sacrifices needed to focus on getting into medical school. In my life sciences practicum class my junior year, I shadowed a PA and that planted the idea of becoming a PA.

91����Ƶ also helped me to explore my different interests—I took classes and became involved in peacebuilding, psychology and religion. I also took “Sociology of Health,” which is what initially drew me to be interested in public health.

What extracurriculars did you get involved in and how did that shape your 91����Ƶ experience?

I was involved in a lot—probably too much. I was president of Alpha Omega Dancers for Christ, which gave me a platform to combine my love of worship and movement. I played intramural soccer, was involved with the Third Culture Kids (TCK) club and did some volunteering. I was a community advisor in Elmwood and Hillside, a pastoral assistant, and a community assistant with the Summer Peacebuilding Institute. Many of these experiences taught me a lot about myself and others, how to lead, plan, budget, mentor and express myself. These experiences stretched me and strengthened me.

Tell us about the competitive application process for PA school. What do you think set you apart?

I spent a lot of time thinking about why I wanted to be a PA, and what kind of school I wanted to go to. I spent several months studying for the GRE (to improve my score the second time) and shadowed a PA. I also gained many hours of clinical experience working for 2.5 years as a certified nursing assistant at a low-income nursing home. I applied to three dual-degree (PA/MPH) programs and four regular PA programs and got accepted into all three dual-degree programs and one of the regular PA programs.

I think the fact that I was interested in public health set me apart. Coming from a Mennonite background, growing up in Cambodia and living in Papua (volunteering with an HIV/AIDS support group) made me a pretty unique candidate. I also did a whole lot of praying and asking people to pray with me.

What advice would you have for 91����Ƶ Pre-Professional Health Sciences students?

Keep at it. Studying all the time can feel overwhelming, but know that it is only for a time—just part of the journey that you will get through. Don’t feel that you have to be self-motivating; there are days that you will need someone else to tell you that you can do it. If you have doubts, talk to people who are in that field, or someone you trust to help encourage you.

I would also recommend getting experience after college, even if it is working a menial and hard job like a nursing assistant. Having real-life (and very difficult) experiences has made my graduate-level classes so much more interesting because I now have context and examples to apply to what I’m learning. Also, don’t be afraid of grad school—it’s not all that much harder than 91����Ƶ sciences.

Any particular shout-outs to 91����Ƶ profs who were influential?

First, the individuals who wrote my letters of recommendation must have said something good and I am so grateful for them. All of my biology and chemistry professors, including my advisor, Roman Miller [now emeritus professor], were influential by always challenging but encouraging us. Brian Martin Burkholder and other Campus Ministries staff helped me to develop and articulate my faith, which helps me to envision a better world. Professor Carolyn Stauffer inspired me to be passionate and speak truth. And so many others—this list could get very long—of profs and mentors along the way who made learning exciting, who showered an encouraging word over me, and were committed to the quality education of 91����Ƶ.

But that changed in the last decade, and this summer 91����Ƶ Professor Matthew Siderhurst and two students aimed to beat even “cuppers” – trained coffee tasters – at identifying the borers’ impact on Hawaiian coffee.

Hannah Walker – she graduated in May with majors in biology and environmental sustainability – and Leah Lapp – a biochemistry major who will graduate in two years – were among the five undergraduate students at 91����Ƶ who were awarded Glenn Kauffman and Roman Miller Research Awards of $2,500 each to support their research this summer.

The awards, named for professors emeriti Glenn Kauffman (chemistry) and Roman Miller (biology), are sponsored by donors to the Daniel B. Suter Endowment Fund and the CT Assist Grant Fund. The financial support can be used for student summer research wages, research supplies, and travel and fees to present ongoing or past work at a scientific meeting.

In Hawaii, Walker and Lapp each used a different device to detect the coffee borer damage.

“We’re very interested in the quality control side of this,” Siderhurst said.

The instruments

Walker’s tool was a gas chromatograph mass spectrometer, a six-feet long, $200,000 lab bench behemoth they referred to as “the GC mass spec.”

The instrument enabled them “to see what volatiles are coming off damaged roasted coffee beans,” to decipher the chemical fallout of coffee berry borers’ destructive presence, she said. The GC mass spec took a lot of adjustment – “a lot of trial and error,” Siderhurst said – but that “messing around” with equipment aspect of research was “very eye-opening, really cool,” said Walker.

“Thank goodness this man” – she points to Siderhurst – “knows instruments pretty well.”

Lapp helped to establish standard operating procedures for new techniques using an electronic nose, a much less costly device that’s small enough to carry. Once trained, the “e-nose” will be able – “theoretically,” said Lapp – to indicate the degree of damage in masses of beans, say to test bags of coffee on a production line.

But first it had some learning to do, through random “sniffing” of vials filled with coffee beans, each vial containing a different percentage of borer damage.

“We spent a lot of time sorting coffee beans,” said Lapp. “It’s really important that you sort them correctly, because that will change all your results.”

Lab blend

Walker and Leah weren’t only thinking coffee beans, though. The U.S. Department of Agriculture lab where the trio worked is also home to more than 50 other researchers and staff. For another project the duo helped maintain a fruit-piercing moth colony, harvesting leaves three times a week from Wiliwili trees for caterpillar feed and pupation locations.

And once a week they checked a trapline for the subject of another Siderhurst study about longhorn beetles.

It was, Walker said, “a nice variety of being in the lab using different instruments and being out in the field and having to ‘talk story’ [a Hawaiian term for ‘chat’] with people who let us use their property for trapping.”

They also got to know the area, Walker said, which was “cool,” except for the nauseating vog – volcanic fog – from the erupting Kīlauea. The mountain was downwind from the lab, but not always from everywhere else they needed to go.

‘No wrong answers’

Lapp called this summer “an amazing experience” because she learned what it’s like to work not just in a classroom laboratory where “the professor’s leading you towards a certain conclusion,” but in a setting where there are “no wrong answers,” she said.

“It allowed for creativity, and we brainstormed a lot,” she said. “We were always trying to figure out, ‘Okay, what’s next? This failed; why did it fail?’ Or, ‘This worked; how can we use what we learned from this to further our research?’”

Siderhurst said that for researchers like Walker and Lapp, the work is only partially finished at the end of the summer. Once back at 91����Ƶ, they’ll work together to write papers or create posters and presentations about their research.

“It’s fun,” he said.

It must be, because this was Walker’s second summer on the GC mass spec project, and she said she could see such lab research being part of her career or ongoing studies.

In the meantime, she said, “We were kept on our toes.”

The orchestra’s performance of composer ’s “Music of the Land: Portraits of Rural America” will be conducted by 91����Ƶ music director and professor Joan Griffing during the spring orchestra concert at 7:30 p.m. on March 22, 2018, in Lehman Auditorium, with Walker in attendance.

Walker composed the suite last year after visiting Virginia’s Blue Ridge Mountains. The New England Quaker’s earlier work “91����Ƶ Leaves,” inspired by the poems of Robert Frost, had been heartily received by the 91����Ƶ community, she said, and she wondered if “something based on Shenandoah-area poetry might not be even more relevant.”

Griffing responded enthusiastically to the idea – Walker’s music is accessible to and loved by listeners and performers alike – and 91����Ƶ writing professor suggested that Walker use as inspiration the poetry of Robert Morgan, a North Carolinian who writes about rural America.

“So, I followed through,” Walker said.

The performance will include four of Morgan’s poems – “Clogging,” “From the Distance,” “Singing to the Corn,” and “Time Passing” – as read by Roman Miller, a farmer and professor emeritus of biology.

“The poetry speaks of the music heard in everyday, rural life,” Walker writes: “A community clogging dance; the church bells ringing out over the fields in the evening; a farmer ‘singing’ to encourage his crop to grow; and an old family clock, filling the silence with the tempo of time passing. This is the music of the land.”

Griffing said she was “honored” by Walker’s “especially meaningful” dedication of the work to the 91����Ƶ orchestra. Performing a new work composed for and dedicated to them is an “exciting opportunity” for students, who will receive feedback from the professional composer at the dress rehearsal.

As part of her visit to 91����Ƶ, Walker will also speak to students in the senior seminar “Peacebuilding in the Arts: Our Stories, Our Selves.”

“She makes a living as a composer,” Griffing said of Walker. “There are not that many people who are able to do that, and so that’s something very unique that she will share about with our students.”

Trimble came to 91����Ƶ from Eagle River, Alaska. He earned degrees in mathematics and biochemistry before going to medical school at the University of Virginia, where he completed his internship and residency in internal medicine.

Professor Emeritus , who mentored many students into medical school, says Trimble was an exemplary student with a strong work ethic, creativity and an inquisitive mind.

“I remember Aaron asking insightful questions in physiology that forced this professor to say, ‘I don’t know the answer but I’ll look that up and get back to you,’” Miller said. “He was greatly appreciated and admired by his classmates for his empathy and willingness to help others with academic work.”

That “questioning mind” led Trimble in 2014 to University of North Carolina to continue research into cystic fibrosis. This genetic disease predominantly affects the lungs and is the leading inherited cause of death in the United States. The hallmark of the disease is thick, dehydrated mucus which cannot be properly cleared, leading to chronic airway infection, inflammation and ultimately destruction. This seminar will discuss measurement of mucus clearance, and experiments his lab has performed testing various interventions in cystic fibrosis using this outcome measure.

The Suter Science Seminar series continues Wednesday, Feb. 22, at 4 p.m. with Dr. Jennifer Bryant, associate professor of biopharmaceutical sciences at Shenandoah University. She will speak about cardiac remodeling and collagen VI.

Check out our , selected by photographer and videography manager Andrew Strack, and a list of related to the hard-working folks at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding.

Two small horn-tooting celebratory paragraphs before we begin

Allow your news editor two quick horn-tooting celebratory paragraphs, with key phrases in bold if you want to skim: We not only posted more articles in 2016 than ever before, but also gained more readers who, when they click on an article, read pretty much every word.

One reason for this surge in “hits” may be a popular new subscription feature to our weekly news digest, which zooms into inboxes on Tuesday morning and features the “greatest hits” of the week prior. It’s a convenient way to stay on top of 91����Ƶ news and happenings.

Thank you all for reading!

And now … Top Ten Reads

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

1.

By far the most viewed article of the year with more than 5,000 fresh reads and about half that again on Facebook was this profile on sophomore Mark Loving, who graciously shared about the legacy of his great-grandparents, Richard and Mildred Loving, dramatized in the fall 2016 release, “Loving.”

2-4. Presidential search

The 91����Ƶ community eagerly awaited the results of the long presidential search for Loren Swartzendruber’s replacement, as evidenced by a total of about 4,000 Facebook readers for the series of articles. Sitting second on the most-read list was the naming of Dr. Susan Schultz Huxman as for the university’s ninth president.

Articles about other stages of the process — the naming of Dr. Lee Snyder as and the —sat at No. 3 and No. 4.

5.

Our annual coverage of the winners of the Yoder Scholarships garnered more than 1,500 views. Three prospective first-years were awarded the full-tuition scholarship, and we can guess that Ariel Barbosa, Ben Stutzman and Kayla Leaman had a number of fans in their respective hometowns of Towson, Maryland; Lancaster, Pennsylvania; and Harrisonburg, Virginia. The trio joined a record crowd of incoming Honors scholars in the fall of 2016.

6. ‘‘

This article by intern Justine Nolt featured three popular local educators from nearby Turner Ashby High School in Bridgewater who have created a basketball league for students with and without disabilities. This special crew includes retired athletic director John Woodrum ’84, special education teacher Gina Troyer ‘93 and career and technical education teacher Jerry Arbogast ‘90, who coaches the TAHS squad.

7.

Photographer Jon Styer ’07 and I had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Chris Longenecker in person on our travels through the midwest in spring 2016. I think both of us will always remember sitting in Chris’s office, surrounded by African art, and listening to him talk about his grandfather, a pastor and farmer who had always wanted to be a missionary doctor. Chris, a former Chamber Singer, provided a Suter Science Seminar over Homecoming and Family Weekend, and then serenaded Professor Ken Nafziger, choir director, with other Chamber alumni at Sunday’s worship service.

8.

“Cold, windy and always light…” Eric King ‘14 said of his temporary home in Antarctica, “as well as beautiful, mysterious, humbling and inspiring.” King’s first-person account of his life on McMurdo Station, with accompanying photos of the austere but beautiful scenery, neared 1,000 views.

Memorable, too, from an editorial perspective was how many weeks passed, from initial email to final approval. Because his work day was so long and computer time was limited, Eric’s writings and photos arrived in a series of emails, each accompanied by gracious apologies, over several weeks. But, our readers agreed, the prose was lovely and the entire reading experience well-worth the wait.

9. The series on retiring community members, including

In the spring, retirement receptions are a semi-regular occurrence, during which we here on campus can share in some closure as beloved faculty and staff are recognized, however briefly, for their contributions to 91����Ƶ. But what about the rest of our community—former colleagues, students and friends no longer close by to attend in these events?

This was my goal for our first-ever series of profiles on retiring faculty and staff (participation voluntary, of course). Happy too was this editor when readers responded: sharing memories and good wishes, and in Betty Hertzler’s case, to wonder publicly what 91����Ƶ would ever be without her. Many well-wishers and fans also responded on Facebook to news of after 31 years at 91����Ƶ. Mentor to many alumni in the medical field, Miller founded the MA in Biomedicine program.

Besides a degree, 91����Ƶ graduates take away the memorable experiences of living together, whether in residence halls, with a cross-cultural group, or in intentional communities such as the renewed “theme housing program.” We think this article, about the current men’s and women’s houses on campus, garnered lots of views and likes because it also referenced the first communal living houses of the early ‘70s, thereby surfacing memories of past mystical worlds in Martin House, Suter House and Birchwood…

Until 2018, happy reading!

Harnish, who performed research under the supervision of Professor , studied the “Neuronal Basis for Aging in Drosophila melanogaster.”

Herman won for his presentation of research on the effect of a high salt and high fructose diet on rats (his research was titled “The Effect of a High Salt and High Fructose Diet on the Expression of the NFAT5 Gene in Kidney and Intestine Samples of Sprague-Dawley Rats”). Herman works with Professor in support of her .

Forty projects were presented. Some individuals worked specifically under . Others participated as part of required coursework. Professor ’s alternative energy class, for example, presented a range of research on the topic.

The poster show, which is held in both spring and , provides undergraduates and graduate students with the opportunity to practice presentation skills in an informal setting. Several students have presented research in the campus setting before moving on to .

Professors (biology, biomedicine) and (physics, engineering) headed the judging panel, which also included Professor (biology), Professor (mathematics) and Professor , a biology professor at James Madison University.

In the upperclass division, Kaylee Ferguson and Jared Fernandez, who also studied changes in gene expression related to dietary changes in rats with Halterman, finished in second place. Ferguson is a junior biology major and Fernandez a second-year MA in Biomedicine graduate student.

Third ​place went to Katherine Lehman for her research on Judas beetles. She is a research student with Siderhurst.

In the underclass division, Mason Stoltzfus and Maria Yoder won second place for their general chemistry project on the abilities of English ivy and forsythia to phytoremediate copper.

Phoebe Coffie and Maisie Kirkley won third place for their project on the variation of copper concentrations in contaminated soils between sunflowers and beans.

Both of these projects were for a general chemistry II class taught by Professor .

Quiz show elite win ‘The Romie’

The quiz show team of “Mind AJAR” were the first recipients of “The Romie,” a bobblehead trophy celebrating Professor , for which the annual games are named. Miller retires this spring after 31 years at 91����Ƶ (read about his long and dedicated career .)

Mind AJAR consisted of Robert Propst, Aubrey Shelly, Ayu Yifru and Jonathan Patterson. All teams must include a senior, junior, sophomore and first-year student.

Second place was Stephan Goertzen, Noah Haglund, Hannah Weaver and Hannah Daley.

Third place went to Hannah Chappel-Dick, Tyler Denlinger, Maria Yoder and Kat Lehman.

Honorable mention went to the team of David Nester, Grayson Mast, Derek Harnish and RJ Ocampo.

When he heard that 91����Ƶ was hiring a biology professor, Miller’s initial reaction was unenthusiastic.

“I was a little bit afraid about what would happen with my research if I came to a teaching institution,” recalls Miller, who will retire at the end of May after 31 years in the job he’d once regarded with ambivalence. “That’s not what I was preparing myself for back then.”

Nonetheless, he sent off his resume and forgot all about it. Of course, before long, he’d been offered the in the biology department (a position that, critically, allowed time to continue his own research) and was assured that it was not only permissible but desirable that his Christian faith accompany him into the classroom. All together, it was enough to coax him out of the fast lane and, in 1985, join the biology faculty at a tiny Mennonite college in Virginia.

Fostering student research

Though his primary responsibility at 91����Ƶ was teaching, Miller continued to pursue research projects with students. When he arrived, he was the only professor consistently that was published. Now, that’s a priority of every member of the 91����Ƶ science faculty – a change that Miller is proud to have played a part in over the years.

Another priority when he arrived on campus was maintaining the program’s emphasis on preparing students for medical school. During Miller’s years at 91����Ƶ, he set – and often met – the lofty goal of doubling the national average medical school . He also expanded students’ opportunities by creating the for students intending to pursue various careers in healthcare.

In 1989, 91����Ƶ hosted a entitled “Bioethics and the Beginning of Life.” Miller was the primary organizer and co-edited a book by the same title with , then a professor of nursing. He and Brubaker (who had since become university provost) later co-edited another book, Viewing New Creations with Anabaptist Eyes, which emerged from a larger, national conference on bioethics held at 91����Ƶ in 2003.

“Those two conferences were very significant, and he was the person behind both of them,” recalls Brubaker, who describes Miller as a “high-energy person who likes to get things done.”

His scholarly works and contributions continued on this topic from 1999-2007, when Miller edited the journal Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith.

In 2011, with professor and�� professor , Miller helped organize his third and biggest conference at 91����Ƶ “Conversations on Attachment.”

An influential scientist and educator

As part of his endowed role in the Suter Chair, Miller wrote numerous grant proposals and was awarded multiple small grants from National Science Foundation, Templeton Foundation, and United States Department of Agriculture, totaling $350,000 in extramural funds to support various program and research initiatives.

Speaking at his recent retirement party, , a chemistry professor and chair of the biology and chemistry departments, highlighted Miller’s “deep understanding of Anabaptist history” and influential role in exploring “the various ways that faith and science can intersect” as additional pieces of his legacy.

Among undergraduates he’s helped to prepare for medical school, Miller is a well-respected and well-remembered mentor.

“I remember his class on bioethics being one of the most influential during my time at 91����Ƶ,” said Trent Hummel ‘97, a pediatric oncologist at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. “He made me really think critically in a way I hadn’t ever done before.”

Toward the end of his career at 91����Ƶ, Miller’s biggest project involved the creation of the program. He’d begun floating the idea about a decade ago, though it took several years for the idea to gain wider support. The program – designed to prepare graduate students to enter medical or dental school, a teaching career or healthcare administration – admitted its first students in the fall of 2012. Though he’d once planned to retire after an even 30 years at 91����Ƶ, Miller postponed that by a year to make sure the biomedicine program developed a firm foundation.

Blueberries and sheep

Though science was his profession, Miller grew up in a farming family and never lost his affinity for agriculture. He and his wife, Elva, raise Barbados Blackbelly sheep, collie dogs and organic-certified blueberries west of Harrisonburg. Over the past several years, Miller has brought his research background to the cultivation of a blueberry patch, winning from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to research organic horticultural techniques. (In lieu of a card, his colleagues on the science faculty presented him with copy of Blueberries for Sal at his recent retirement party).

Blueberry science also eventually found its way into his laboratory. The last major research project Miller is finishing up with undergraduate assistants is investigating how blueberry antioxidants can protect unborn mice from .

At the end of May, Miller’s 31-year career at 91����Ƶ will officially come to an end. Later in the summer, he’ll have a blueberry patch to harvest and plans to keep his schedule unencumbered through the end of the year while he clears the backlog from the farm to-do list. After that, he’ll have time and energy to invest in something, though what that will be exactly, isn’t yet clear.

“If you have good suggestions, I’m open to them,” he says.

Other retiring faculty and staff

Also retiring are the following faculty and staff (position listed is most recent held): , administrative assistant for events, director of the Summer Institute for Spiritual Formation and of the Congregational Resource Center, Eastern Mennonite Seminary, 27 years; Professor , Department of Language and Literature, 17 years; Professor Spencer Cowles, Department of Business, 27 years; Jan Gerber, information officer, 23 years; Professor , co-founder of the MA in Counseling program (39 years); Professor Ted Grimsrud, Department of Bible and Religion, 20 years; , postal supervisor, 41 years; , director of the physical plant, 28 years; , special projects support, 17 years; and Pamela Rutt, assistant director of the education graduate program at 91����Ƶ Lancaster, 18 years.

Rosenberger, now a surgical breast oncology fellow at New York’s Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, returned to 91����Ƶ on Feb. 5 to give a lecture about her medical career. She covered gallbladders, goiters, gunshots, gastroschisis and more as she shared cases with students, faculty, staff and community members.

“I think the greatest thing about medicine is you get to meet people where they are, sometimes when they’re really scared,” Rosenberger said.

Using a Powerpoint presentation filled with photos that were sometimes not for the squeamish, Rosenberger walked through some of the interesting cases spanning the spectrum of her residency at the University of Virginia Medical Center. That included her eventual specialty of breast cancer. One in every eight women will get breast cancer during their lifetime, she said, which makes the specialty especially impactful.

As images of enlarged thyroids, trauma wounds, gallstones, parastomal hernias and more flashed by on the screen, Rosenberger narrated each case with detail and precision.

“In medicine, you learn an entire new language, which takes many years,” she said.

Earlier, as Rosenberger began the lecture in Suter’s Room 106 auditorium, she recalled being in that same space a decade and a half earlier as a biology student. That included classes in physiology and anatomy with 91����Ƶ professor that “kick-started” her interest in surgery.

“It feels very funny to be on the other side of the podium,” Rosenberger said. “It feels like not that many years ago I sat in this lecture hall. I feel blessed to be standing here.”

Miller and Kirk Shisler, vice president for advancement, welcomed Rosenberger back to 91����Ƶ at the start of the seminar. Shisler noted that the pole vault records Rosenberger set as a celebrated student-athlete still stood. Rosenberger was inducted into 91����Ƶ’s Athletics Hall of Honor in 2013.

“From the moment she set foot on 91����Ƶ’s campus in 1999, Dr. Laura Rosenberger has been soaring to great heights, both literally and figuratively,” Shisler said. He also congratulated her on the recent successful completion in Dallas, Texas, of her surgical boards and welcomed her parents in the audience, James L. Rosenberger ’68, 91����Ƶ’s Alumnus of the Year in 2015, and��Gloria Horst ’70 Rosenberger.

Rosenberger said she will know soon where she will be headed after her one-year fellowship at Memorial Sloan Kettering is complete. She plans practice at an academic facility.

It has taken a long time to reach that goal, but Rosenberger encouraged the students in the audience who were planning on medical careers to stick with it.

“It’s a long road to a medical career—12 years of post-college education for me,” Rosenberger said. “But it’s worth the time. It’s a fantastic path.”

Rosenberger will be back at 91����Ƶ on Friday, Feb. 5, to present “Goiters, Gunshots and Gastroschisis: Tales from a Surgical Residency” for a . The seminar will begin at 4 p.m. in Suter Science Center Room 106, but guests are invited to come 15 minutes earlier for refreshments and to greet Rosenberger.

Her presentation will cover a broad spectrum of general surgery experiences, from the basic to the complex, including some of her own most memorable cases. She will also examine her journey through the field, looking at the compassion and commitment required and the rewards she finds in her work.

, director of 91����Ƶ’s program, says he is looking forward to hearing Rosenberger “share her experiences and challenges.”

“From a faculty perspective, it is delightful to see a gifted student continuing to demonstrate excellence and proficiency in her work as a surgeon,” Miller says.

After graduating from 91����Ƶ with a biology degree in 2003, Rosenberger went on to medical school at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia and residency at the University of Virginia.

Originally from State College, Pa., Rosenberger has kept her Anabaptist values at the heart of her work. In January 2015 she provided a Grand Rounds lecture to colleagues at the UVA Medical Center titled “.” She highlighted Mennonite contributions to health care around the globe and noted the Mennonite conscientious objectors during World War II who served in mental hospitals through Civilian Public Service.

Rosenberger has made some sacrifices of her own to pursue her work in health care, too. After winning all six possible conference titles in indoor and outdoor pole vaulting and four national titles during her first three years at 91����Ƶ, she gave up sports during her senior year so that she could focus on academics and her preparation for medical school. She was inducted into the 91����Ƶ in 2013.

The seminar, co-sponsored by 91����Ƶ’s MA in Biomedicine program and the Office of Development, is open to the public.

This nudged the second-year graduate student to more investigation: Was vaping as healthy as manufacturers claimed?

For Fernandez, as well as four master’s in biomedicine candidates at 91����Ƶ who defended their theses on Dec. 5, the research process was much more than the sum of the parts.

“I appreciated applying scientific concepts to real world questions that were medically and socially relevant,” said Fernandez, who has received acceptance letters from two medical schools for next year.

Independent research guided by professors

Professor , Fernandez’s advisor, teaches the summer research methods and the fall data methods courses that guide students through the research project, which is the culmination of the five-semester course of study.

“In the summer, the students develop their topic, go through the Institutional Review Board process, create methods and gather data,” she explained. “In the fall class, we look at data analysis and the writing of the manuscript.”

A committee of three professors from different disciplines guides each student through the rigors of research. “We advise carefully, because this is a big investment of time and energy from the student, and an important learning experience,” Halterman said. “You really don’t know how to do research until you create a project of your own and go through the process. There’s troubleshooting, and navigation of politics of different institutions and organizations, and learning how to work with people.”

The process-oriented, hands-on approach is excellent preparation for careers in biomedicine or for medical school, Halterman says. “Most students don’t have any experience with original hypothesis-driven research and this really makes them stand out when they apply to medical or dental school.”

The research project is the final component of a four-part program that includes coursework, a cross-cultural experience and a practicum experience. Transdisciplinary approaches to problem-solving are used and encouraged as students and faculty engage in a curriculum that integrates the natural and medical sciences with faith and ethics, Halterman says, a unique training that also positions students to be collaborative and holistic investigators.

Fall 2015 Research Projects

Rachel Thomas: “A Data Analysis on Demographic Information of Patients with ADHD at [local medical practice]”

Thomas, who works in healthcare and has a goal of becoming a physician’s assistant, says her interest arose from her own awareness of the high rates of ADHD diagnosis. She analyzed demographical data from an area medical practice to identify correlations between adult ADHS and gender, race/ethnicity and socioeconomic status. In demographical analyses of childhood ADHD already done by other researchers, ADHD was more frequently observed in Caucasians and in males. The data set included more than 970 patients ranging in age from 18-65+ and confirmed that a diagnosis of adult ADHS was more likely to be seen in Caucasion men than in other populations. Her research will be used to help identify and treat adult patients with ADHD. Committee members: Drs. and

Hannah Bell: “Women’s Awareness of Risk Factors Linked to Breast Cancer in Harrisonburg, Virginia”

Bell conducted a survey in which 60 female respondents self-reported their knowledge about obesity and breast cancer. She found that women in Harrisonburg did not fully understand the risk factors of breast cancer, including the role of postmenopausal obesity. Though the survey only covered a small population, it affirmed the need to raise awareness among the local population about the risk factors. Committee members: Drs. and

Vipul Nayani: ��“The Effect of Collegiate Athletic Training Duration on Athlete Injury Incidence”

Nayani, a 2014 Virginia Tech graduate who plans to become a family physician, developed this project with an interest in “multifactorial” causes and individual proclivities toward injury. He observed a correlation between training time and injury, with evidence suggesting that more than 18 hours of weekly athletic training were 23% more likely to develop athletic injuries than athletes that trained for fewer than 18 hours per week. Committee Members: Drs. and Carolyn Stauffer.

Tareq Yousef: “Cost Analysis of Dental Services Before and After the Implementation of the Affordable Care Act in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area and the Shenandoah Valley Region of Virginia”

Yousef, who has an undergraduate degree from George Washington University in public health, wanted a research topic that integrated current political events with healthcare, and specifically dentistry, his future profession. He studied the effect of the Medical Device Excise Tax, which supports the Affordable Care Act and is levied on device manufacturers, on the cost of oral health services in dental offices and labs. Statistically significant changes in cost of services were reported for all of the lab services as well as some dental procedures. Committee members: Drs. and Roman Miller.

Jared Fernandez: “Carcinogenic Compounds Created by the Vaporization of Electronic Cigarette Liquid: Effects of Variable Voltage within the Modified Electronic Cigarette”

Fernandez’s research, outlined briefly above, hypothesized that there would be positive correlation between the voltage setting of the modified E-cig and the amount of carcinogens within the vapor produced from one modified E-cig design. While no detectable amounts of carcinogens were produced in his data set, Fernandez found that the content of the vapor is significantly different depending on the voltage. Furthermore, increased voltage may increase inflammatory responses in human lungs regardless of flavoring additives due to increased concentrations within inhaled vapors. These findings suggest additional research is required to further characterize E-cig effects on human health. Committee members: Drs. and .

Eight presentations were made by 14 biology, , and students that showcased the breadth and depth of research opportunities available at 91����Ƶ.

The symposium provided an opportunity for students to share their research with an audience of general science majors, said department chair and professor of chemistry . One of the skills of a scientist, she says, is “to be able to present technical terminology and processes in accessible language. It’s great if a scientist can study climate change, for example, but if we can’t explain the results of a climate change study to someone who doesn’t have the background, that doesn’t help us share and discuss our findings.”

The evaluation – led by , professor of chemistry at James Madison University – included three criteria: collection of data, thoroughness of research design and analysis, and clarity and accessibility of the oral presentation.

Second place was awarded to junior Hannah Daley for her presentation about her National Science Foundation-sponsored research, in partnership with two professors at James Madison University, on the effects of caffeine on athletes.

Sophomore Kat Lehman and junior Diego Barahona were awarded third place for their research on utilizing radio-tracking to locate coconut rhinoceros beetles’ breeding sites, which was conducted under the direction of chemistry professor in Guam. Siderhurst has worked for several years on research projects involving the development of attractants for invasive and agriculturally important pests.

Students find their niche in grant-funded studies

Research projects often pair students with professors engaged in long-term studies. The competition winners, Ferguson and Fernandez, were research assistants to Professor , who earned a $100,000 Jeffress Trust grant to study a multi-year investigation into the causes of hypertension. In Ferguson and Fernandez’s project, rats were fed a high fructose, high salt, low salt, and no salt diet and measured the activation of genes involved in disease.

The STEM symposium is also offers students like Hannah Daley and Janaya Sachs, who both earned grants to engage research opportunities off campus, to share what they’ve learned. Sachs explored a new ligand for synthesizing copper, a summer project she engaged in through the National Science Foundation Research Experience for Undergraduates. She worked at .

The bioorganic copper project is just one of several research opportunities she’s been involved in. Her freshman year, she joined , led by , director of the MA in biomedicine program, and supported by a grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. She and Hannah Daley are both currently involved in evaluating the effects of hydrofracking on stream and well water, a project under the direction of and Kishbaugh.

Among the research shared, a unique transdisciplinary project was conducted by biology major Samuel Miller and computer science major Alex Bender, advised by Siderhurst and computer science professor . Miller conducted a chemistry project that involved identification and quantification of volatiles released by the noni fruit during ripening that provided a complex data set that was difficult to analyze. Bender and Miller have both used a mathematical technique called Principal Component Analysis to analyze the results in a simpler manner.�� Bender is documenting their methodology for PCA usage, simultaneously evaluating software programs Cluster 3.0 and SPSS for their ability to simplify the data set.

Flavenoids, genetics, mold…

Professor , who teaches courses in genetics, cell biology, microbiology and immunology, advised several research projects. Biology major Chris Miller researched the effect of anthocyanins, richly concentrated plant colorants that may have protective effects, on mouse fetal development when the mice are exposed to a significant amount of alcohol.

Derek Harnish and Eli Wenger presented their research on the neuronal basis of aging in flies. Harnish, a biology major, and Wenger, a biology and biochemistry double major, worked with Copeland on his ongoing project to identify specific types of that have the potential to extend lifespan in flies when the mitochrondrial electron transport chain is disrupted.

Biology majors Viktor Kaltenstein and Seth Suttles teamed up to study mold growth in a vacated section of the Suter Science Center campus using the Environmental Relative Moldiness Index (ERMI).