COST Pathways Event

Exercise Science faculty, panelists and students. Photo credit: Andrea O'Neill

Two BU colleges organized career events during Homecoming weekend to help their majors get a handle on the transition from college to career. Pathways in Science and Technology, hosted by the College of Science and Technology, and the Liberal Arts Symposium, hosted by the College of Liberal Arts, both welcomed alumni back to campus to serve on professional panels, provided information sessions on internships, study abroad opportunities, financial literacy and graduate school, and invited inspirational keynote speakers, faculty and staff as a way to help students navigate their way from student to professional. More than 2600 BU students attended the programs collectively, and the two colleges welcomed over 170 alumni.



“We wanted to allow students to explore the liberal arts in a setting that expands their understanding of the value of such a degree” explained Joyce Bielen, Administrative Assistant to the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, and coordinator of the symposium “We’ve invited alumni to share how they have used their liberal arts degrees to find jobs and give students the opportunity to network with alumni who share their interests.”


Alumni played a major role in both events as they returned to share stories and advice on working in their field, how they obtained their current positions, and how the skills they learned within their major have translated into other professions.


“It’s like Thanksgiving or Christmas for a traditional family” said Dr. Scott Inch, Professor in the Department of Mathematical and Digital Sciences who said that the event is his yearly favorite, as it brings former students “home” to BU and provides invaluable industry insight to current students. “I appreciate how willing our graduates are to go out of their way to be helpful to the program and to our current students” said Inch “They all generously donate their time and are so happy to help.”


The alumni panels for both events were enhanced by presentations on various career topics such as the importance of study abroad experiences for cultural understanding and language, confidence in interviewing, preparing for the world of work through job shadowing and searches, internships and other career experiences, as well as how to apply one’s major in an unrelated career field, such as using a music degree to advance toward an MBA.


“This is a great way to help prepare for the job market, internships or graduate schools” said Angela Ciucci, Administrative Assistant to the Dean of the College of Science and Technology, and organizer of the Pathways event “It’s a great opportunity to interact with alumni, businesses, and professionals who work in the field of science and technology.”


The Pathways program involved a networking luncheon among returning alumni, current student and faculty/staff, as well as a Dean’s Reception later in the evening. A Communication Studies networking reception was also held in another part of campus where alums, students and faculty shared some food and drink, a few BU stories, and some business cards.


“The networking luncheon is a great opportunity for these upperclassmen to directly network with alumni working in prospective career fields” explained Dr. Ellen Kehres, Assistant Professor, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry “It is a great way to help prepare for the job market, internships or graduate school.”


Kehres added that while Pathways may have been seen as something for upperclassmen closing in on graduation, it was also an opportunity for students, especially freshman and sophomores, to gain insight on making the most of their college experience and thinking about career fields they may not have thought about before.


~ from Bloomsburg University Alumni and Professional Engagement

Dr. McLaurin presents at Dean's Lecture Series

On October 17, 2018, the Dean's Lecture Series "Science at Bloom" hosted Dr. Brett McLaurin, BU professor in EGGS.  Dr. McLaurin's talk entitled, "Medical Geology: Mineral Dust Origin, Exposure Processes and Potential Health Impact" focused on his work in Nevada.  Specifically, he looked at arsenic concentrations in the Nellis Dunes Recreation area north east of Las Vegas and asbestos concentrations near Boulder city, NV.  Dr. McLaurin mapped these areas and addressed how these minerals are redistributed specifically by wind, which increases the potential risk for exposure.

Picture of a fault in Nevada

Aerial picture of Nellis Dunes

BU Participates in Susquehanna Nuclear Power Station Emergency Drill

Four Bloomsburg University Health Physics students participated in the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) drill conducted at the Susquehanna Nuclear Power Station on October 18, 2018.  Pictured above from left to right are a FEMA evaluator, Jarrett Willis (BU Student), a Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) evaluator, Anna Guernsey (BU health physics major), Troy Prutzman ( BU radiation safety officer), Michael Karchner (BU health physics major) and Tanner Ambrose (BU health physics major).

“These drills are held every other year to evaluate government’s ability to protect public health and safety,” said MaryAnn Tierney, Regional Administrator for FEMA Region III. “We will assess state and local emergency response capabilities within the 10-mile Emergency Planning Zone as well as the adjacent support jurisdictions within the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”

Within 90 days post-exercise, FEMA will send a report of their evaluation to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) for use in licensing decisions. The final report will be available to the public approximately 120 days after the exercise.

FEMA created the Radiological Emergency Preparedness (REP) Program to (1) ensure the health and safety of citizens living around commercial nuclear power plants would be adequately protected in the event of a nuclear power plant accident and (2) inform and educate the public about radiological emergency preparedness.

~information from FEMA press release

Dr. Michelle Ficca Retires

Dr. Michelle Ficca, recipient of the first Breiner Family Endowed Professorship for Nursing, announced her retirement for August 2018. The professorship was established by a gift of $1.9 million from Edward and Julianne (Miller) Breiner, who graduated from BU in 1977. The Breiners established the university’s first endowed professorship in support of an exceptional teacher, mentor and leader. While the Breiner Family Endowed Professor, Ficca’s emphasis was the development and marketing of the Doctorate of Nursing (DNP) program, which saw its first cohort of students admitted summer 2017.

Ficca joined BU in 1999 and served as assistant chairperson and graduate coordinator before becoming chairperson and professor in 2011. Earlier in her career, she taught at Lycoming College and worked in nursing and research positions at Hershey Medical Center, Pleasant Valley School District, Geisinger Medical Center and Williamsport Hospital.

Dr. Kate Beishline Awarded Kozloff Faculty Fellowship




Dr. Kate Beishline

Dr. Kate Beishline has received a Kozloff Faculty Fellowship. The four-year annual renewal fellowship includes a stipend for research needs that Dr. Beishline will use as she mentors freshman biology/pre-medical sciences major, Tara Herzog, recipient of a Kozloff Reasearch scholarship.  Dr. Beishline became a faculty member in Biological and Allied Health Sciences in 2017. Her current research interests are focusing on the pathways which regulate the transcription and replication of eukaryotic telomeres. She is focused on the mechanism by which the genome binding factor CTCF, and its only paralog BORIS, are participating in the maintenance of telomere structures and how these functions may be important in cancer and normal cellular aging. She earned her B.S. in Biochemistry at the University of the Sciences and her Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Drexel University College of Medicine.





Tara Herzog



Columbia County Water Education Day

This video from WVIA’s Power to Save series is about Columbia County Water Education Day, an annual event that ran this year on September 12, 2018 at Briar Creek Lake Park.


  https://wnep.com/2018/10/11/power-to-save-water-education-day-for-all-of-columbia-county/


More than 500 8th graders from seven schools in Columbia County came together to learn why clean water is important, how their choices can impact water resources, and how they can be thoughtful stewards of the environment.


Along with volunteers from state agencies, conservation districts, and local watershed groups, several BU faculty, students, and grads have participated in this program every year. Here’s the list for 2018:


Featured in the video: Brittney Hartzell (EGGS Environmental Geoscience graduate and Columbia County Watershed Specialist) Chantell Shambach (EGGS Environmental Geoscience graduate and Northumberland County Watershed Specialist) Dr. Chris Whisner (EGGS - Associate Professor)


Pictured, but not named: Sean Hartzell (in the Fish Ecology section) (BAHS Biology B.S. & M.S., and Wildlife and Fisheries Biologist Aid with the PA Fish & Boat Commission)


Participated, but not in the video: Corey Bower (BAHS Biology graduate and Columbia County Watershed Specialist) Dr. Clay Corbin (BAHS - Professor) Kendra Craig (EGGS Geography and Planning graduate and Columbia County Resource Conservationist) Dr. Ben Franek (EGGS - Assistant Professor) Dr. John Hranitz (BAHS - Professor) Dr. Jen Whisner (EGGS - Associate Professor)

Recent Publications

Kyle Beyer, assistant professor in Exercise Science, recently published an article, “Maturity-Related Differences inSystemic Pulmonary and Localized Fatigue Threshold Among Your Male Athletes” in Pediatric Exercise Science.  This work included collaborators from the University of Central Florida and the University of Kentucky.

John Pohill, professor of MADS, recently published an article entitled, “A new family of partial difference sets in 3-groups” in Designs, Codes and Cryptography.

Brett McLaurin, professor in EGGS, recently published a paper, “Nevada desert dust with heavymetals suppresses IgM antibody production” in Toxicology Reports.  This work included collaborators from Montana State, University of Nevada Las Vegas, KU Leuven, Brooks Applied Labs and East Carolina University.

Candice Klingerman, assistant professor in BAHS, Jennifer Venditti, associate professor in BAHS, William Schwindinger, assistant professor in BAHS, Shanda Burroughs, BAHS graduate student, and Taylor Trautwein and Arjun Dalsania BAHS graduates recently had a paper, “Prokineticin-2and ghrelin robustly influence the sexual and ingestive behaviors of female Syrian hamsters” accepted for publication in the journal Hormones and Behavior.

Joe Andreacci, professor in Exercise Science, Jennifer Venditti, associate professor in BAHS, and Emily Cumberledge and Cassandra Myers, Exercise Science masters graduates recently published an article entitled,  “The Effect of the Menstrual Cycle onBody Composition Determined by Contact-Electrode Bioelectrical ImpedanceAnalyzers” in International Journal of Exercise Science. This work included a collaborator from Lock Haven University.

Kayla Sompel gains medical experience in Kenya

Kayla Sompel, a junior pre-medical sciences major and chemistry minor, traveled to Mombasa, Kenya with International Medical Aid, a program started by Johns Hopkins Medical School. This three-week program brings together pre-med students, pre-physician assistant students, nursing majors and residents to experience medical practices in a developing country.


 Kayla volunteered at the Coastal Providence General Hospital, the second largest government funded hospital in Kenya. She rotated through neonatal and inpatient pediatrics, meeting with children with abdominal cancer, sickle cell anemia, meningitis, and malaria. She found the ability of the doctors, students, and nurses to treat the patients with such limited resources to be miraculous. Kayla had the opportunity to do observe in the Emergency Department, which she describes as the learning experience of a life time. Kayla conducted community outreach at the Baby Life Rescue Center and at BeHoCa, an orphanage for young boys.


Kayla recommends a trip to a developing country for every pre-med student, noting that "it changed my life." Kayla is the President of the Pre-medical Sciences Club and Vice-President of Students Helping Honduras. She is a recipient of the Biology and Allied Health Scholarship.

-from BAHS Biosynthesis blog

Vertebrate Zoology Field Experience

Back Row, L to R: Dr. Clay Corbin, Tim Aikins, Cliff Jones, Taylor Stierle, Shannon Slesicki. Middle Row L to R: Morgan Murphy, Patricia Loughran, Jessica Paoletti. Front Row L to R: Kayla Davis, Brooke Kremer. Photo Credit: Morgan Murphy.

In late September, students from Vertebrate Zoology (BIOLOGY 212) class, led by Dr. Clay Corbin, went to the Virginia Shore to get some hands-on field experience. Included in the activities were trawling and seining for organisms in the creeks and bays of the Chincoteague Bay, bird and amphibian study at Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge, and longlining sharks in the Atlantic Ocean. It was an action packed two days; students witnessed behaviors and habitats of more than 100 different species of fish, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, birds, tunicates, and non-vertebrates. The class was headquartered at the Chincoteague Bay Field Station in Wallops Island, VA. Bloomsburg University is a member institution of the field station – a priceless resource for gaining hands-on field experiences. The field station has classrooms, laboratories, as well as creek and ocean-going vessels to support learning and research activities. It offers courses during the summer for college credit and several classes involve the field station and its resources in field trips during the regular semester. Contact Drs. John Hranitz, Thom Klinger, Lauri Green, or Clay Corbin for more information.

Brook Kremer, Jess Paoletti, Patricia Loughren, and Shannon Slesicki (L to R) seine for fish in the tidal zone of Wallops Island, VA.  Photo Credit: Kayla Davis.

After measurements, Patricia Loughran releases an Atlantic Sharpnose Shark into the Atlantic Ocean. Captain Tom Hart looks on. Photo Credit: Morgan Murphy.

Sunset on Assateague Island, VA. Photo Credit: Patricia Loughran.