Recent Biology Graduate Assists with Dental Procedures in Tanzania

Madison Aungst, a BAHS 2018 alumna (BS Biology, pre-medical Sciences), and her father, general dentist Dr. Bryan Aungst , volunteered with the Reaching Children's Potential Project in Ipalamwa, Tanzania in January 2019. Madison raised over $6,000 from her church and the community for the trip to purchase dental equipment and 915 tooth brushes and tubes of toothpaste. Madison was inspired to raise funds to purchase tooth brushes after learning that the children without access to toothbrushes use sticks to clean their teeth. With the aid of a translator, Madison taught 115 kindergarten students how to brush their teeth!
Madison assisted while her father and another dentist saw 148 patients and extracted 347 teeth over the course of 5 days. Madison reports that the rate of cavities, decayed teeth, and gum disease was astounding. She found the experience both eye-opening and heartbreaking. In Madison's own words, "I wanted to give the people of Ipalamwa the opportunity to improve their health and live happier lives." Madison's inspiring journey is detailed at https://riseagainsthungerphilippines.org/aspiring-dental-student-journeys-to-serve-in-tanzania/ She will attend the University of Colorado School of Dental Medicine in fall 2019.
~from http://bloomsburgbiosynthesis.blogspot.com/

Recent Publications, Poster Presentations and Talks by COST Faculty

Publications
Joseph Andreacci, professor of Exercise Science, and Patricia Sullivan, recent Master's in Exercise Science graduate, published a communication, “Evaluation of multi-frequency bioelectrical impedance analysis for the assessment of body composition in individuals with obesity” in Obesity Science & Practice. This work was a collaboration with scientists from Geisinger, Lock Haven and Louisiana State University.

Barry Minemyer, assistant professor of MADS, recently published a paper, "Real hyperbolic hyperplane complements in the complex hyperbolic plane" in Advances in Mathematics (AIM). AIM was ranked 15th out of all "general math" journals last year by impact factor. Dr. Minemeyer also gave a seminar talk on this paper at Temple University.

Sheila Hartung, professor of Nursing, recently published two papers with graduate students in NASN School Nurse. The first was with Amy Kowalski (graduated summer 2018), “Are Body Mass Index Screening Programs in Schools Enough? Body Mass Index Notification, Follow-up, and School Nurse Role” and the second was with Tanya Laudenslager, “The limping child: Could it be Lyme arthritis?” 

Hartzell, S.M., adjunct faculty member in BAHS published a paper entitled “A Bilaterally Partitioned Colour Variant of an Appalachian Brook Crayfish (Cambarus bartonii bartonii) from eastern Pennsylvania” in The Canadian Field-Naturalist. These studies were completed while Sean was a Biology graduate student at Bloomsburg University.

Eric Kahn, associate professor of MADS, recently published a paper entitled “Teaching History of Mathematics: A Dialogue” in the Journal of Humanistic Mathematics. This work was in collaboration a mathematician at the University of Kentucky.

Mehdi Razzaghi, professor of MADS, recently published a paper entitled, “Bayesian Model Averaging for Benchmark Dose Analysis in Developmental Toxicology”, in Applied Mathematics and Information Sciences. This work was done in collaboration with a mathematician at University of Bahrain. Dr. Razzaghi also gave a presentation in the Department of Environmental Health, Medical University of Silesia, Poland entitled, “Risk Assessment in Environmental Health Analysis."

Poster Presentations and Talks
Patricia Lawton, Assistant Professor in CSD and gave a poster presentation with Jennifer Alberti (Director of Speech, Hearing, and Language Clinic) presented a poster at the annual convention for the American Speech Language and Hearing Association (ASHA) in Boston, MA. The poster entitled "No, Please Stay! Parents' and Family Perceptions of Involvement in Speech Therapy at a University Clinic", presented findings from a qualitative study that explored the perceptions of family members' involvement in therapy sessions at the clinic. Speech-Language Pathology graduate assistants Ashley Bievenour, Alexandra DePalma, Ashley Flederbach, and Natalie Wardrop were also involved with the project.

Kevin Ferland, professor of MADS, recently gave a talk entitled, “Advancing Results in Maximum Toughness” at a joint meeting of the American Mathematical Society and the Mathematical Association of America in Baltimore, MD. Dr. Ferland spoke about his work on finding communication network designs that are maximally resistant to node failures that he conducted while on sabbatical (Fall 2017).

Cheryl Jackson, assistant professor in nursing, recently gave a presentation on implicit bias and its effect on delivery entitled, "Bias. Who Me?" at the annual Pennsylvania Coalition of Nurse Practitioners (PACNP) conference.

Barry Minemyer, Assistant Professor in MADS, recently have a presentation entitled, “Real hyperbolic hyperplane complements in the complex hyperbolic plane” at a joint meeting of the American Mathematical Society and the Mathematical Association of America in Baltimore, MD.

Andrea Fradkin, Associate Professor and Chair of Exercise Science, was quoted in an article published in BBC News online on February 5, 2019, that focused on how the biomechanics of the golf swing may be leading to back injury in golfers. Fradkin was also interviewed on this topic on February 5, 2019 by London radio station LOVE SPORT Radio, on the Brian Moore Show at Drive Time, and by BBC Radio Sport Today on February 6, 2019.

Grossology Lab: Rat Dissection at the Children's Museum

Dr. Venditti, Dr. Hess, Rachael Ryver, Liz Kester, Maria Morgante, Taylor Lightner, and Stephen Tapsak

Bloomsburg University Biology Club members were at the Children’s Museum in Bloomsburg on Saturday, February 9, 2019, for "Grossology Lab: Rat Dissection." The advertisement stated, "Get hands-on with Bloomsburg University's Biology Club for a one-hour grossology activity using real scientists' equipment."  Five BU students, Liz Kester, Taylor Lightner, Maria Morgante, Rachael Ryver, and Stephen Tapsak, volunteered their time to present two sessions of the lab.  Dr. Angela Hess and Dr. Jennifer Venditti, co-advisors of the club and BAHS faculty members, also participated. 

The lesson began with a worksheet that introduced the students to the different body cavities and systems in the body.  The students used the rat dissection guide to identify organs, such as the spleen, small intestine, liver, etc.  After reviewing the answers, it was the time that everyone was waiting for....real rat dissection!  The Biology Club members cut into the rats, and then helped the children identify the different organs.  This was a hands-on activity, in which the children themselves cut out the different organs and even used a ruler to measure the length of the small intestine. 

The Biology Club travels to the Bloomsburg Children's Museum 2-3 times a year to present these scientific investigations.  Their next event is "Grossology Lab: Fetal Pig Dissection" on April 13, 2019.  Contact the Children's Museum (www.the-childrens-museum.org) to register.

EGGS 351 Field Trip to Greene Kitchen Farm

During the fall semester, Dr. Hintz and the students in his Sustainable Food Systems Course (EGGS 351) took a field trip to Greene Kitchen Farm, which is a small meat and vegetable farm located just a couple of miles outside of Bloomsburg. Students learned about sustainable livestock grazing, movable poultry pens, and organic vegetable production for a community supported agriculture (CSA) subscription service. This was an enriching experience for the students because they had the opportunity to help out in each area of the farm that we visited. For the livestock pasture, students moved and set up portable electric fence and moved and filled a stock tank so that Joshua Greene (the farm’s proprietor) could move the herd of cattle from one pasture to another. (They learned that moving livestock from pasture to pasture on a near-daily schedule is key to sustainable maintenance of the pasture.) 

Students learned how to set up electric fences

Setting up electric Fence

Moving the a herd of cattle into a new pasture

Filling up a watering tank

Students also moved the portable, outdoor chicken and turkey pens and then fed the birds. These poultry pens are moved into livestock pasture after the livestock are rotated to a new pasture. The birds peck through the cow pies, receiving high protein feed in the form of grubs and larvae and removing potential disease pathogens from the pasture in the process. To top off the visit, students picked green beans in the organic vegetable rows for the farm’s CSA subscribers. Being actively involved in the afternoon’s farm work really made the day for the students.. All in all, a beautiful afternoon and an enlightening and enriching experience for everyone.

2018 COST Faculty Recognition Awards

Dr. Brunskill, Dr. Surmacz, Dr. Shaikh and Dr. Lister.  Dr. Polinski is absent from the photo.

The College of Science and Technology is proud to announce the 2018 Faculty Recognition Awards. The award winners are Dr. Jeffrey Brunskill and Dr. Cindy Surmacz for teaching, Dr. Mohsin Shaikh and Dr. Matthew Polinski for scholarly activity and Dr. Lisa Lister for service.

Dr. Brunskill joined the Department of Environmental, Geography, and Geological Sciences (EGGS) in 2006 and has risen to the rank of Associate Professor. At Bloomsburg, he has taught of variety of courses, including Map Use and Analysis, Meteorology, Principles of GIS 1, and Principles of GIS 2. Dr. Brunksill’s recommender highlighted that “the success of the GIS program and its popular minor are in large part due to Dr. Brunskill’s vision and skills as a teacher and mentor.” In an act of a truly committed educator, Dr. Brunskill even requested that his office be attached to the GIS computer lab to increase his availability to students. Exit interviews with graduating EGGS students revealed that many students count Dr. Brunskill among their favorite professors. Students have noted that he is the hardest, and yet best, professor who teaches students how to teach themselves. Dr. Brunskill’s recommender cannot think of a higher praise from students than to be categorized as hard and highly effective. “We are lucky to count him among our faculty.”

Dr. Surmacz is currently in her 36th year as a faculty member in the Biological and Allied Health Sciences Department (BAHS). As noted by her recommenders, “No one teaches more students year in and year out than Dr. Surmacz” and “she carries a very heavy teaching load with great skill, enthusiasm, and hard work.” Dr. Surmacz primarily teaches Concepts in Biology 1, Anatomy & Physiology (A&P) 1, and A&P 2. She has essentially taught every BAHS major, and many Nursing and/or Exercise Science majors, at least once. Her student evaluations continue to reflect an enthusiastic and effective instructor. Dr. Surmacz continues to be a major contributor to the Academic Biology Learning Environment (ABLE) Center that she founded. Her recommenders noted, “she does everything that she can to ensure student success in the classroom.” Dr. Surmacz also serves on the Pre-Professional Advisory Committee and dedicates untold time to student education and mentoring. Dr. Surmacz is characterized as a “model educator that should be commended for her dedication and commitment to students inside and outside the classroom.”

Dr. Shaikh is currently in his third year as Assistant Professor in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders. In the last two years, Dr. Shaikh has published four peer-reviewed articles in the journals Audiology Research (twice), Journal of Hearing Science, and Journal of Medicine and Public Health. He has also authored or co-authored five national presentations with four BU graduate students at recent American Speech & Hearing Association conventions. Dr. Shaikh has also been awarded two internal Research & Scholarship grants to fund his research. He has also applied for external funding to support the impactful research that he conducts at BU. Dr. Shaikh is also the Graduate Coordinator for the Audiology graduate program. Dr. Shaikh’s recommender lauded him as “a valuable addition to our department who has been become instrumental in the education of audiology students at both the undergraduate, and in particular, the graduate level.”

Dr. Polinski is currently in his fifth year as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry. In the last two years, Dr. Polinski has published six publications, in the journals Science and Nature Chemistry just to name a few, and one book chapter on Plutonium Halides. His recommender noted this is the most-ever publications by a faculty member in the department in a two-year period; the recommender also highlighted a recent publication in the prestigious American Chemical Society journal Inorganic Chemistry that featured a BU graduate as first author. Dr. Polinski continues a very active research lab featuring six undergraduates during this nomination period. Dr. Polinski has also been award two internal Research & Scholarship grants and has also sought out external funding. Most significantly, Dr. Polinski is one of an extremely small number of people on the planet to study Einsteinium (Es) chemistry, and he was chosen to travel to Florida State when a literal Act of Congress was used to make workable amounts of the rare element for scientific study.

Dr. Lister is an Associate Professor in the Mathematical and Digital Sciences (MADS) Department. Dr. Lister’s recommender highlighted how Lisa has spent her career improving student’s education experiences and being a dedicated and efficient contributor to the department and university. Dr. Lister has been leading recruitment and retention efforts for over twenty years through the university’s High School Math Contest, which attracts over three-hundred (300) yearly, and the creation of the Math Tutorial Center. This center has been a training ground for many students, including Secondary Education Math students, and provides aid to any student taking a mathematics course. This whole endeavor is under the watchful, dedicated, and enthusiastic eye of Dr. Lister. She does all this while continuing to be the College Algebra Course Coordinator, Chair of the Department Curriculum Committee, member of the COST Curriculum Committee, and other various service engagements at multiple levels of the university. As her recommender noted, “Dr. Lisa Lister has gone above and beyond the call of duty to serve BU.”