Faculty Spotlight

Dr. Satyendra Biswas has joined our Biochemistry, Chemistry, Engineering & Physics Department as an Assistant Professor of Electronics Engineering Technology at the Bloomsburg Campus. He is originally from Bangladesh. He received his Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical & Electronic Engineering at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology. He then achieved his Master’s in Electrical & Electronic Engineering at the Yamaguchi University in Japan. He continued his doctoral studies at Yamaguchi University, where he earned his Ph.D. in Electrical & Electronic Engineering.  

Dr. Biswas has over 20 years of teaching experience at the collegiate level. He began as a teaching/research assistant at the University of Ottawa in Canada. He was an assistant professor at Georgia Southern University (Statesboro, GA), an associate professor at Norfolk State University (Norfolk, VA) and Independent University (Dhaka, Bangladesh), a visiting professor at Kaziranga University (Jorhat, Assam, India), and before coming to Commonwealth University, he was a Professor and Chairman of the Electrical & Electronic Engineering Department at Ahsanullah University of Engineering and Technology. He says he enjoys teaching because “it is fun to educate students and help them design new things, showing them a new career path, and trying to invent a new technology.” 

Dr. Biswas has been drawn to the engineering field since childhood. He wanted to know how things worked and would take apart toys for that purpose. With this desire and his interest in math and physics, he started on his path of studying Electrical & Electronic Engineering. Today, his research interests are very large-scale integration (VLSI) and IC Design. 

He decided to apply for the position at Commonwealth University because the Electronic Engineering Technology program is “very hands-on and closely related to the industry demands.” 

Faculty Spotlight

This academic year, we welcomed four new COST faculty members: Jennifer Peteya, Ph.D., Satyendra Biswas, Ph.D., Abdulrahman Abumurad, Ph.D., and Matthew Rodrigues Ph.D. Though many students will have met these talented individuals throughout the fall semester, we wanted to take the opportunity to introduce them to the wider population of the College of Science and Technology now.

Dr. Jennifer Peteya has joined our Biology Department as an Assistant Professor at the Bloomsburg Campus.

She began her higher education journey at Mount Union College in Ohio, where she obtained her Bachelor of Science in Geology. While pursuing her bachelor’s degree, she also had a second major in Art and a minor in Biology. At Ohio State, she gained her Master of Science in Earth Science. She then earned her Ph.D. in Integrated Bioscience at the University of Akron.

When asked what led her to her research interest in ancient fossils, paleontology, and exceptional preservation, she tells a story from her childhood where her mother would take her out fossil hunting in Ohio, where she was born. During these excursions, she would find small invertebrate fossils and mammal bones from the last ice age. In her words, “these experiences led to a massive obsession with extinct organisms that blossomed into three degrees and now a career.”

As an educational professional, Dr. Peteya has been an adjunct professor in Biology at John Carroll University, Oberlin College, Ursuline College, and Stark State Community College. She has done many educational outreach programs for students as young as 4 years old through high school age. She says what she loves most about teaching is watching a student have their “ah ha” moment. According to her students, “she loves the material she is teaching and cares about her students.” While a grad student, she was quoted saying, “The number one goal that I would like to accomplish in my life is sparking interest in the sciences in young women.”

When asked what led her to pursue a position at Commonwealth University, she stated “that finding an academic job is difficult no matter your field and when she saw that the Bloomsburg campus was offering an opportunity in their Biology Department that would allow her to pursue her interests; she jumped on it.” Though Dr. Peteya has spent the majority of her life in Ohio she says, “that when she interviewed for the position and saw the campus and met her future colleagues, she knew it was the place she wanted to be. She considers herself very lucky to be here doing what she loves.” 

College of Science and Technology Career Pathways in Science and Technology 2023

 Last week, the 2023 College of Science and Technology Career Pathways in Science and Technology (CoST Pathways) Event was held at the Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, and Mansfield campuses. For those who could attend the event, we hope you enjoyed your time and made meaningful connections with alums, guests, faculty/staff, and other students. For those whose schedules did not work out to make it this year, we hope you can join us in future events.

This year’s CoST Pathways Event included participation from 125 registered students, 32 alumni panelists, 1 alumni keynote speaker, and 11 additional guests attending the networking lunch, 8 of whom were alums. The eight panel sessions included interdisciplinary and discipline-focused sessions moderated by 21 faculty members across each campus location. Some highlights and photos from the event can be found here: Commonwealth U - COST Pathways | Flickr

CoST Pathways aims to provide opportunities for you to network with alumni and help as you prepare for your career. We look forward to seeing you at various events as we build upon this success and bring forth more student-professional engagement opportunities.

Lauren Griffith of Commonwealth University-Mansfield recipient of the NASA Pennsylvania Space Grant

MANSFIELD, PA (09/07/2022) When Lauren Griffith transferred to Commonwealth University-Mansfield midway through her first year, she had no idea what opportunities would await her at her new university. Now a senior, Griffith, a cell and molecular biology major, is one of the 2022 recipients of the NASA Pennsylvania Space Grant, and plans to use the funds to continue her research on pancreatic cancer.

Being mentored by Mansfield faculty member Dr. Kristen Long, associate professor of biology, Griffith's research focuses on exploring how curcumin, an experimental treatment for solid tumors, impacts the inflammatory bacteria that are present in the gut.

"Last semester, using mice as a model, we collected feces, cultured bacteria from the feces, and then treated the bacteria with different concentrations of the curcumin treatment," explained Griffith. "This semester we plan to use a different systems-level approach, where we feed the mice curcumin over a specific time span. We will analyze the sequences of the different bacteria to determine shifts in bacterial populations."

Griffith explained what the grant means in terms of her own research project. "The grant allows me to expand upon my research. For example, I could receive more mice for my experiments and an anaerobic chamber to allow for complete analysis of all bacteria we isolate and grow, since we can only culture aerobic bacteria right now."

Beyond her own research on how curcumin treatment impacts gut bacteria and tumor growth, Griffith spent the summer at the University of Maryland in the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) STEP-UP program helping with research concerning how various technologies and software can be used to explore disease therapies. Griffith studied how they affect triple negative breast cancer metastasis therapies. "I was able to conduct independent research firsthand, which outside of my research at Mansfield, was the first time I have done so," said Griffith.

"I learned so much during my internship," said Griffith. "I learned about the graduate school experience and the different avenues of research that I could take with my major in cell and molecular biology, what independent research looks like at the graduate school level, how to prepare for a scientific presentation, and the importance of networking in the scientific field. For my own research, I learned more about the bioengineering field and how similar it is to my own field."

"Lauren is a wonderful example of a student who has taken advantage of the opportunities presented to her here at Mansfield," said Bashar W. Hanna, president of Commonwealth University. "Her passion for learning makes her a role model for all young women in STEM."

After graduation, Griffith plans to pursue her Ph.D. in microbiology and immunology. She wants to build a brand to create awareness for young women unaware of the different pathways within the scientific field. "Using my graphic design minor, I want to use social media as a way of helping other young women who want to pursue a career in STEM or the medical field. I want to give advice, share my journey, and create a brand to provide an outlet for those unaware of the pathways in the scientific field."

Griffith has already started work on her brand, and shares advice about college and her experience in the STEM field on her YouTube channel: Lauren Kennedi.

The integration of Bloomsburg, Lock Haven, and Mansfield universities under the banner of Commonwealth University is a bold investment in the communities and people of Pennsylvania. Our mission is to expand high-quality, affordable academic opportunities to support the needs of all learners. We're building a powerful tomorrow by boldly changing the trajectory of public higher education to position ourselves for growth, increased access, and to meet economic and workforce development needs. Together we're honoring our history, investing in today, and building a powerful tomorrow. That's the power of three.

View Online: http://mansfield.meritpages.com/news/lauren-griffith-of-commonwealth-university-mansfield-recipient-of-the-nasa-pennsylvania-space-grant/29227 [email.readme.readmedia.com]

Lauren Griffith poses next to her poster detailing her research

Lauren Griffith working in a lab

Dr. Rebecca Bourgault Selected to Participate in this Year's PKAL SLI

Dr. Rebecca Bourgault, Assistant Professor in EGGS, was selected to participate in this year’s Project Kaleidoscope STEM Leadership Institute (PKAL SLI) from the American Association of Colleges & Universities. In addition to teaching courses in soil and environmental sciences, Dr. Bourgault serves as Stephen J. Jones Professional U Faculty Fellow for the College of Science and Technology. Taking on this new role during a time of transition for the University, she sees this challenge as an opportunity to strengthen the Professional U program for COST, and to develop her own leadership style.

The PKAL SLI was truly an eye-opening and transformative experience for Dr. Bourgault. The focus of the Institute was on reforming STEM education to better serve the needs of a diverse society, in order to create a more inclusive, equitable, and socially just system of higher education. The tools, experiences, and deep discussions offered by the program helped her identify her own strengths and weaknesses, and opportunities for growth and reflection in her professional career and life as a whole.

The most significant takeaways for Dr. Bourgault included the development of her personal “why” as Jones Fellow – that is, to help students of all backgrounds get hired to well-paying, rewarding STEM careers, and to help change society’s stereotypical view of what a scientist looks like. Another significant realization was learning to prioritize the most important things in life so as not to get overwhelmed by all the less important things. Finally, Dr. Bourgault was matched with a mentor and two colleagues, with whom she developed an instant connection and plans to meet with regularly.

Dr. Bourgault highly recommends any COST faculty member willing to embrace change, personal reflection, and DEIJ to participate in the PKAL SLI in the future. 

Bloomsburg University Student to Graduate College and High School Weeks Apart

As Bloomsburg University seniors anxiously await their chance to walk across the stage and receive their diplomas on Sunday, May 15, Max Norfolk, from Danville, a computer science major, is in a unique situation. This spring, Norfolk will graduate from Bloomsburg University and Danville High School, just weeks apart. 

Norfolk started college before he had finished middle school. He enrolled in the Advanced College Experience (ACE) program at BU while in 8th grade in 2017. "Starting college so early was a little weird at first," said Norfolk. "But it wasn't too hard to balance all my classes. During the day, I go to campus and attend classes like a normal college student. The only difference is that at night I still have my high school classes to finish online." 

The most challenging part of the program, according to Norfolk, was scheduling. "In the list of who gets to pick their classes, those of us in the ACE program are at the very bottom," said Norfolk, "It was easier to enroll in my upper-level classes than the lower-level ones." 

"I wasn't apprehensive about this when I first started at BU because I didn't even know that graduating from both college and high school at the same time was even an option. But, when I needed to eventually take English 101, I couldn't get into it," said Norfolk. "I had to speak to the computer science department chair, who spoke to the English department chair to get special permission to take the class over the summer." 

Norfolk's favorite class during his undergraduate career was compiler construction. "This class may officially be a class, but it is not typically offered. I was able to take it as an independent study with Dr. William Calhoun," said Norfolk. Compilers simply explained, take computer code, and tell the computer how to use it. 

Dr. Calhoun spoke highly of Norfolk's work they did together. "He created his own computer language during his individualized instruction called "Jazz," which is a variant of Java, and created a compiler for it," explained Calhoun. "He is a very intelligent young man and did excellent work." 

"I worked with Dr. Calhoun on research before taking this class," said Norfolk. "It was a lot of fun. Our class gave me a lot of freedom to go off on tangents from what we were originally learning to explore things that were interesting to me." 

During his previous semester's research with Dr. Calhoun, Norfolk was able to publish his work on the cost of a positive integer in the Rose-Hulman Undergraduate Mathematics Journal. He also spoke about the project at a Mathematical Association of America section meeting. 

"The most difficult class I had to take was probably the software engineering capstone," said Norfolk. For his capstone, Norfolk worked with a small group to develop a location-based texting app for Android devices. "It was simply a lot of work. It took about 15 hours a week to program the app with my group." 

"The application allows individuals to communicate via anonymous texts within a geographical boundary," explained Dr. Curt Jones, Max's professor for the software engineering capstone. "For example, parents at a sporting event or students at a Model UN event could communicate without providing personal data. Max ensured that his team completed an outstanding project by working together as a unit with everyone contributing." 

Norfolk is not the only member of his family to participate in the ACE program. His older brother, Zachary, participated in the program, graduating from BU just one year after graduating from high school. His younger sister, Alexis, has just started the program while dually enrolled in 7th grade. His other brother, Jack, is currently taking some of his general education requirements through the program while also enrolled as a high school freshman. 

After graduating, Norfolk plans to further his academic career in a Ph.D. program. He has been accepted into a program at Penn State to study compilers and continue his research as a research assistant. "I would love to do research in the technology industry to see the practical applications of what I work on." 

Norfolk doesn't think that he has missed out on having a normal college experience by completing his undergraduate career early. "I don't think that anyone has had a 'normal college experience' because of the COVID-19 pandemic," said Norfolk. "I knew that I wanted to get a higher degree, and getting a jump start on my education made sense." 

As he reflects on his time with the ACE program, Norfolk says it has been a rewarding experience. "All of my professors and classes have been great. All my professors have been very nice and genuine people who were helpful to me during my time here." 

Norfolk's hard work over the past five years has not gone unnoticed. Dr. Drue Coles, the professor for COMPSCI 386, Operating Systems, reflected on how Norfolk chose to complete an extra credit project with independent research on advanced elements of computer programming despite high grades in the course. "The overall result was an elaborate exercise in creativity that went far beyond the requirements of the maximum extra credit possible. Max could be forgiven for coasting through his final weeks as an undergraduate, but instead, he is keeping a heavy foot on the gas."