Re:Search - Salisbury University · Re:Search is published annually for friends of Salisbury University by the Office of Graduate Studies and Research in conjunction with the Office

10 Years of Re:Search ...Bridging the Gap BetweenResearch and Real World

Re:SearchGraduate Studies & Research at Salisbury University2020 Edition

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Faculty Mini-Grants: A First Step on the Research Path......................................3

SU’s Fulbright Scholars Reach for Their Full Potential........................................7

Focus on Current Research .................................................................................11

EPA Fellowships: A Turning Point for Students – Even 10 Years Later .............13

Re:Search: 10 Years and Counting ........................................................................15

Students Beat the Heat by Engaging in Summer Research ................................17

SU Earns Honors for Community Engagement.................................................20

Research Day Returns in 2020............................................................................20

Posters on the Bay Puts Students in Front of Lawmakers...................................21

Conference Builds SU’s Reputation for Chesapeake Studies .............................23

We Are SU: The Campaign for Salisbury University - Research & Graduate Studies Opportunities..................................25

Faculty Mini-Grant Program ..............................................................................27

Graduate Research and Presentation (RAP) Grants Program............................28

Recent Faculty Books ..........................................................................................32

SU Student Research Conference.......................................................................33

1 • GS&R • 2020

TABLE OF CONTENTSVolume 10 • 2020

PRESIDENTDr. Charles A. Wight

PROVOST & SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF ACADEMIC AFFAIRSDr. Karen L. Olmstead

DEAN OF GRADUATE STUDIES & RESEARCHDr. Clifton Griffin

ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT OF MARKETING & COMMUNICATIONSSusan Maxwell Eagle

GRADUATE STUDIES & RESEARCH OFFICE STAFFVanessa Collins, Research Accounting & Compliance SpecialistTeri Herberger, Director of Sponsored ProgramsDonna Knopf, Executive Administrative Assistant IHaleigh LaChance, Contract & Grants SpecialistJessica Scott ’08, Graduate Program Manager Beth Walsh, Grants SpecialistElizabeth Walk, Graduate Enrollment Management Specialist

UNIVERSITY EDITORChristine B. Smith M’02

UNIVERSITY WRITERMikayla Wiseman

VISUAL IMAGES COORDINATOR/PHOTOGRAPHERMegan Raymond

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS

SU has a strong institutional commitment to diversity and nondiscrimination in all programs, events, and services. To that end, the University prohibits discriminationon the basis of sex, gender, marital status, pregnancy, race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, religion, sexual orientation, genderidentity or expression, veteran status or other legally protected characteristics. Direct all inquiries regarding the nondiscrimination policy to the Office of InstitutionalEquity/Title IX Coordinator, Holloway Hall 100, 410-543-6426.

SU’s Summer Scholars keep research going year-round. • page 17

Re:Search is published annually for friends of Salisbury University by the Office of Graduate Studies and Research in conjunction with the Office of Publications, with the generous support of Salisbury University. Please send comments, news and address changes to: Office of Graduate Studies & Research, Salisbury University, 1101 Camden Avenue, Salisbury, MD 21801-6860

Megan Baker ’13Tim BrennanKatie CurtinDr. Patti EricksonDr. Clifton Griffin

On the Cover: Find out what SU’s Fulbright Scholars have been up to – including Brittany Bursa’s ’17 experiences in Brazil • page 7

Dr. Stephen HabayTeri HerbergerHarrison LeonDr. Karen OlmsteadJason RhodesJessica Scott

Salisbury University is a proud member of the University System of Maryland.

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‘Seeing with new eyes’ captures the spirit of research and creative scholarship atSalisbury University. Not only do our students engage in authentic research acrossthe disciplines, they learn to view the world and themselves differently with the skillsand knowledge developed in these experiences. Similarly, research and creativescholarship are important points of focus for SU faculty, allowing them to not onlypursue the discovery of new knowledge but to also build an engaging learningenvironment for their students. This volume of Re:Search is the 10th edition of our annual publication and provides

an exciting overview of faculty and student research activities at SU. You can see theextent to which research permeates our daily work at SU and how the diversity ofprojects, support and national recognition has increased over the past decade. Research and externally funded projects range from more traditional laboratory

studies to community-based projects to international experiences across the globe.Within these pages, you can read how SU faculty and students are supportingeducational experiences for local youth; studying environmental concerns ranging frombeach erosion to green energy to human/wildlife conflict; and conducting discoveryresearch on novel medicines, human health and mechanisms of genetic expression.Support for faculty and student research has grown substantially in the past 10

years, whether through external grants and contracts (over $8.5 million in 2019),internal awards (nearly $250,000 in Faculty Mini-Grants since 2011), or fellowshipsfrom the Environmental Protection Agency, National Science Foundation, U.S.Department of State, Ford Foundation and Whiting Foundation. SU recently waspresented with the prestigious Carnegie Community Engagement Classification,recognizing the University’s commitment to community-engaged learning. Throughpartnerships with local institutions, our students and faculty have a long history ofcontributing to critical needs in the area. This classification confirms their goodworks do not go unnoticed.An important aspect of research and creative scholarship is sharing results or

created works. This can be achieved through publications in research journals,presentations at professional conferences or community meetings, performances andgallery exhibits. Over the last 10 years, SU’s Office of Graduate Studies andResearch has collaborated with faculty and staff across campus to establish aresearch celebration at Maryland’s General Assembly (Posters on the Bay), to supportSU’s long-running Student Research Conference (SUSRC, now in its 19th year), toestablish the Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (OURCA),and to provide funding for graduate students (Research and Presentation [RAP]Grants). Most recently, SU launched Laridae, a student-driven publication ofundergraduate research and creative work.The stories in this volume are just a sampling of the research and impact of

our faculty, staff and students. They underscore the important role of research and scholarly activity in student success at SU. I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I have.

Sincerely,

LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT

2020 • GS&R • 2

“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

Charles A. Wight, Ph.D.President • Salisbury University

– Marcel Proust

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3 • GS&R • 2020

Vinita Agarwal Associate Professor of Communication

The voice of community traditions can bepowerful. One Salisbury University professorused that voice for an expansive researchproject in India that now, 10 years later, bringsa unique perspective to approaches in healthand wellness.

Dr. Vinita Agarwal in the CommunicationDepartment received a Faculty Mini-Grant tohelp her understand the role of communityvoices in articulation of women’s local healthtraditions. The funds were used for travel toNew Delhi, India, where Agarwal visited urbanresettlement neighborhoods – or slums – tomeet with the women there.“My intent going into the field was to observewomen’s traditional health practices,” Agarwalsaid. “I wanted to understand how women’snegotiations of their practices could helpdesign community media programs and publicservice messages that positively impactwomen’s health.”

While establishing contact with the womenand identifying a site, Agarwal realized that thewomen’s local health traditions were influencedby the women’s own collective decision-makingas they made sense of messages in mainstreammedia. The study goals were modified toexamine how women negotiated their maternalhealth practices alongside sociocultural andbiomedical practices presented in mainstreammedia. Agarwal’s research was presented atseveral conferences and published in the

top-tier disciplinary journal, HealthCommunication. It won the EasternCommunication Association’s top two paperaward in the Health Communication Division.

Agarwal’s research has since evolved tofocus on patient-centered care, provider-patientcommunication in the therapeutic relationship,and complementary and alternative medicine(CAM) approaches in chronic illness and painmanagement. She has explored approaches tolong-term pain management that have thepotential to reduce provider burnout and

support self-management in chronic illness andlong-term cancer survivorship domains.

This body of research has resulted in manypresentations at communication, integrativemedicine and yoga conferences and publicationin peer-reviewed journals in medicine, nursingand communication. Her presentation onembodied provider care recently won the toppaper award at the National CommunicationAssociation’s Applied Communication Division.

Agarwal is currently engaged in examiningdata exploring CAM provider approaches tobreast cancer survivorship care. Her book, AnEcology of Wholeness: Medical Humanism, ChronicDisease, and the Fractured Body, stemming from priorresearch, observations of Ayurvedic physician’schronic pain management protocols in India,and meditation training experiences from herrecent travel to Nasik, Pune and New Delhi is inthe final stages of revisions for the publisher.

The research also has supportedcurriculum development at the Fulton Schoolof Liberal Arts. Agarwal created a new HealthCommunication course she offered for the firsttime during the fall 2019 semester. Sheparticipated as a member of the HealthHumanities Faculty Learning Community inestablishing the new interdisciplinary healthhumanities minor approved last fall.

“The research brings a unique point ofview to understanding healing and wholenessin the domain of chronic illness and painmanagement,” Agarwal said. “By examiningpatient and provider practices and experiences,this body of research goes beyond mainstreamapproaches to health outcomes to envisagehealing and wholeness in integrative ways.”

Faculty Mini-Grants: A First Step on the Research PathIn 2011, the University Research Council at Salisbury University awarded more than $23,000 duringits inaugural round of the Faculty Mini-Grant Program. The program encouraged SU faculty todevelop research, scholarly or creative programs that provide potential for sustained professionaldevelopment and extramural support. Faculty are awarded up to $2,500 to fund their research.Now, nearly 10 years later, those first Faculty Mini-Grant recipients are still dedicated to furthering

their work and providing an environment where students can learn from the research process todevelop their own career paths.

Community Media as a Voice for Change

$23,000OVER

AWARDED IN FIRST YEAR

$3,000AWARD UP TO

ANNUALLY$250,000

NEARLY

AWARDED TO DATE

Dr. Agrawal during her research at the basti in 2011.

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MINI-GRANTS REVISITED

2020 • GS&R • 4

By Patti EricksonAssociate Professor of Biological Sciences

Genomes contain the code for life, carrying allthe information necessary for living things tofunction and create offspring. Which geneticinformation codes for which traits? Thequestion has existed since the discovery ofDNA as the genetic material, but the tools foraddressing it improve constantly. Bringingmodern molecular genetic approaches into mylaboratory and classroom has been one of mypersistent goals. Although my research focushas changed over time – including plants,animals and microbes – what has remainedconsistent is using model organisms andcutting-edge technologies to answerfundamental questions about geneticrelationships.

The goal of my first Faculty Mini-Grantproject was to identify mutant plants withaltered sensitivity to an antioxidant withreported medicinal values. Finding a target inplants, which were quick and easy to grow,might provide insights into human therapeuticresponses. After screening thousands ofmutagenized seedlings, I found a potentialmutant – in the laboratory of my colleague Les Erickson.

Serendipitously, mutations in a gene he wasstudying in yeast caused cells to become moresensitive to this specific antioxidant. He evenhad some plants with mutations in this verysame gene. Although the genetic mutation inthese plants was known, the physiologicaleffects had not been characterized. My secondFaculty Mini-Grant focused on determiningthe physical consequences of this geneticmutation throughout plant development.

Meanwhile, my research students and I alsowere exploring the effects of antioxidants on amicroscopic nematode worm, renowned for itsuse in genetic studies. Excessive oxidative stressis linked to age-related disorders, such aschronic heart, lung, neurodegenerative andkidney diseases. We analyzed geneticallyengineered worm strains expressing greenfluorescent protein (GFP), which served as anindicator of oxidative stress levels. Needing aspecialized instrument to measure productionof GFP led to a successful National ScienceFoundation proposal and the acquisition of anextremely versatile instrument, which is oftenused at capacity.

Since altering expression levels of specificgenes in worms by feeding them sequences ofgenetic material was simple, I incorporated itinto both my research and teaching laboratoryprojects. Soon an even better technique wasdeveloped, but it required a more sophisticateddelivery system. Taking advantage of mysabbatical leave and a third Faculty Mini-Grant, I learned how to inject DNA directlyinto these worms, permanently altering theirgenetic composition.

During this sabbatical, I also spent timemastering genetic manipulation on an entirelydifferent scale by using yeast to capture andmodify huge stretches of DNA. This techniquefacilitates modification and characterization ofgenomes previously intractable to geneticstudies. The potential capacity for this methodto explore the relationship between genes andtraits, including bacterial pathogenicity, isimmense. My desire to share this technologywith SU students led to Building ResearchExcellence funding and a pending NationalInstitutes of Health proposal.

While my path has been anything butstraight-forward, multiple genetic approachesusing three different organisms has led tocollaborations at four different institutions andmore than a dozen independent studentresearch projects and presentations over thepast 10 years. As new technologies, like directDNA sequencing, become accessible, I willcontinue introducing them to students, hopingto share my excitement for further geneticdiscoveries.

Learning Is In Our DNA


By Stephen HabayProfessor of Chemistry

Ten years ago, as an assistant professor, I received an award from the SalisburyUniversity Faculty Mini-Grant Program in itsinaugural year. Admittedly, my research groupwas in desperate need of funding to finish ourproject at the time, and the grant proved vitalin keeping the project going. My previousexternal grant had just ended, and we werevery close to finishing critical experimentsneeded to publish our results.

Two years earlier, my students haddiscovered a previously unknown chemicalreaction that allowed access to importantalkaloid compounds known asoctahydroindoles (OHIs). Alkaloids arenaturally occurring molecules found in plantsand microorganisms that have valuablemedicinal properties important to humanhealth and disease treatment. Unfortunately,extracting sufficient quantities of OHIalkaloids from natural sources is very difficult, ifnot impossible. It was important to designaffordable and efficient methods ofsynthesizing them in the lab.

Our newly discovered reaction would allowus to produce OHIs on a larger scale in the labwith just a few days of work. Funds from thegrant allowed my undergraduate researchstudents and I to purchase the necessarymaterials to finish up our study and publish theresults in the Journal of Organic Chemistry, one ofthe premier journals in my field.

Publishing that research paper had manypositive and long-lasting effects. First andforemost, of the three student coauthors on thepaper, two were accepted into Ph.D. programsin chemistry and one was accepted intomedical school. It has been very rewarding tofollow their careers and witness their successover the last decade. The paper also had amajor impact on my own career, helping me toachieve tenure and promotion to associateprofessor at SU in 2013. Our paper also wascited multiple times by other researchers in the

field, an indication of the scientific merit andimpact of our work.

Perhaps the biggest effect this paper had onmy research program was to serve as thefoundation for expanding our work in alkaloidsynthesis into a successful grant proposal to theNational Institutes of Health. In 2015, I wasawarded an Academic Research EnhancementAward for more than $290,000. This was thefirst competitive NIH grant ever received by aresearcher at SU, and it completelytransformed my research program. We wereable to grow my lab through the training ofadditional students, acquire new equipmentand supplies, fund paid summer researchpositions for students, and purchase state-of-the-art scientific instruments to enhance theresearch capabilities for all students and facultyin the Chemistry Department. The award alsofunded travel so my students and I couldpresent our work at multiple national andinternational conferences.

It was always my goal to build a world-classundergraduate research lab at SU. Lookingback over the last decade, with the bolsteringeffect of the SU Faculty Mini-Grant programand funding from NIH, I believe I haveachieved my goal. I hope the programcontinues well into the future, because it wasessential to my success and the success of mystudents.

5 • GS&R • 2020

MINI-GRANTS REVISITED

MovingMedicineForward, One Moleculeat a Time


Scott MazzettiProfessor of Exercise Science

Anyone who has tried and struggled to loseweight often faces the question eventually:“What am I doing wrong?” Weight loss anddeveloping healthy exercise habits are often along journey. This was also the case for oneproject funded by the Faculty Mini GrantProgram.

Dr. Scott Mazzetti of the Exercise ScienceProgram received an award to fund his study toexamine exercise energy expenditure followingdifferent resistance training programs. Thestudy was designed to evaluate whether weighttraining using different contraction intensitieswas advantageous to the total calories a personcould expend.

The study involved testing subjects for sixweeks, training them for 12 weeks and testingthem again over five weeks. It required morethan half of the fall and spring semesters, andall of winter, with a short break for holidays.

“It was a very lengthy study,” Mazzettisaid. “We calculated we were putting in almost300 student contact hours per subject.”

The goal was to optimize exerciseprograms for weight management. They foundtraining explosively would make exercisesessions a little more effective, but thedifference was somewhat minimal.

Mazzetti had planned to apply for a grantto continue this study, but through thoughtfulmentoring from a dean at SU, he realized thatit was not a realistic study design forundergraduate research.

Recognizing his students neededexperience with all parts of the scientificmethod and would not get to see thepresentation and publication stages at the ratethe study was going, Mazzetti moved fromlong-term training studies to acute designs.However, he said they learned a lot aboutexercise and calories that has dramaticallyinfluenced the way they conduct studies now.

“We’re probably working on the beststudies we’ve ever done in my lab,” Mazzettisaid. “It’s all a function of the support thegrant gave to help us run well thought-outstudies.”

Mazzetti now has three students doingHonors theses related to his current research,which involves training subjects for two weeks,with testing before and after. Two of his formerstudents also are working with him onpublications involving studies completed at SU.

“We’ve come farther, and the studies are

more manageable,” Mazzetti said. “I can’t putinto words the effect it’s had on our lab. We’reextremely efficient. We learned so much fromthat initial experiment, because the Universitygave us the chance to work through it.”

In a society where obesity is a growingproblem and everyone is confused about howto exercise for weight loss, Mazzetti said theirwork is making gains.

“What I teach in my classes is eatinghealthier is a missile launcher for weight loss,while exercise is an air gun,” Mazzetti said. Heexplained changing dietary habits, while verydifficult, is a much more efficient weapon,whereas exercise is not nearly as effective asmany believe.

“Exercise is still valuable to improving yourhealth,” Mazzetti said. “But knowing that, wecan attack life and weight management in ameaningful way. It changes the disappointmentI might get when I exercise and don’t seeresults right away. I’m smart enough to keepexercising, but I emphasize dietary habitchanges, because I know that exercise isn’t thedriving factor. We can enjoy life, with a goal tobe healthier.” v

2020 • GS&R • 6

Making Gains in Weight Loss Studies


7 • GS&R • 2020

SU’s Fulbright Scholars Reach for Their Full Potential

Salisbury University has been named among thenation’s top producers of Fulbright Students by

the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau ofEducational and Cultural Affairs. When studentsearn the honor, they share their plans, but theyoften graduate soon after and the campuscommunity never hears about their Fulbright

experience. To illuminate this life-changing opportunity, some recent

recipients share their Fulbright stories here.

Martina Maya-Callen ’19

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FULBRIGHT HIGHLIGHTS

Brittany Bursa: Giving Back 110%After being awarded a Fulbright EnglishTeaching Assistantship (ETA) to Brazil,Brittany Bursa ’17 prepared for one of themost challenging chapters of her life. Leavingher home in the United States to pursue newopportunities abroad didn’t come without itsstruggles. Arriving in a foreign country whereshe didn’t speak the language well was ascary thought, and there were many dayswhere she felt isolated.

However, she said one of the mostimportant lessons she learned was beingable to face things without the fear of beingwrong and being willing to try somethingand fail, but still give it “110%.”

Bursa had heard stories of Brazil beforeshe set foot in the country herself. Hergrandfather was in the U.S. Army and lived inBrazil when Bursa’s mother was inelementary school. She originally applied fora Fulbright to Spain because her family hadexperience speaking Spanish, so having littleknowledge of Portuguese was intimidating.Even so, she said the Brazilian peoplewelcomed her with open arms – literally.

“The Brazilian people were sokindhearted,” Bursa said. “The communitythere is incredible. Some towns may nothave plenty of resources, but seeing them allcome together to accept someone like meanyway was a fantastic feeling.”

Bursa worked with students ranging fromage 17 to older than 55, who all wanted tobe English teachers. She helped manystudents with their thesis projects, fromcreating research questions to writingmethodology – something she was veryfamiliar with from her education at SU, whereshe won the John and Mary Claire RothThesis Prize for best senior thesis from theHonors College.

Her work went above and beyond theclassroom. She helped run an Instagramaccount where she would post Englishidioms, synonyms and slang. She hostedconversation clubs that featured pop culturetopics such as comparing Brazilian andAmerican dancing types, superheroes andholidays. Her students even got to take partin an “American Halloween” party wherethey bobbed for apples and carvedpumpkins. For many, it was the first timethey engaged in American culture and coulddo the things they had only seen on TV.

Bursa was nervous at first because manyof the students she taught were her age oreven older, but she soon learned that all

were so willing to learn that they weren’tafraid of making mistakes.

“It was a very cool exchange of cultures,”Bursa said. “People are always willing to helpone another out.”

Bursa was in Brazil when the BrazilianPresident Jair Bolsonaro enacted a 30% cutto the public education budget. She saidwatching universities shut down or not beable to maintain educational programs was ashock to her. She realized there were manythings about her education in the U.S. thatshe took for granted, so she participated inprotests with other professors.

“I saw how quickly students’ educationslipped through their fingers. It was scary,but it inspired me,” Bursa said. “I realizedone of my goals for my future was to fightfor education for all students, no matterwhat their level or where they’re from.”

After being granted a renewal for herFulbright in Brazil – a very rare opportunity –Bursa is now back in the United States. Sherecently was accepted into the University ofCambridge in England to pursue a master’sdegree to promote educational equality formigrants and refugees in communities. Shealso has applied to the University of Sussexfor its master’s International Education andDevelopment Program. She is still waiting tosee if she can get funded, but if all worksout, she will leave in fall.

Bursa said her Fulbright opportunity wasimportant in shaping the path her career ineducation is taking.

“I want to help people educationally andinspire them,” Bursa said. “Now, I’m not justtrying to volunteer but gauge who in thecommunity needs help and give back asmuch as I can.”

Brittany Bursa

2020 • GS&R • 8

SU’s Fulbright Scholars2019 n David Basom ’19 Basom received a Fulbright EnglishTeaching Assistantship (ETA) to India andis teaching at the Sri VidhyalakshmiMatriculation Higher Secondary School inChennangkuppam. He said the Fulbrightwill help him gain experience that notextbook or internship can provide and isexcited to work in a school systemdifferent from the U.S.

n Noah Cline ’19Cline received a Fulbright AcademicAward to study at National ChengchiUniversity in Taiwan. A conflict analysisand dispute resolution graduate andmember of ROTC, Cline hopes theopportunity will help him explore pathsfor his extended education and conductresearch that has “real national securityimplications.”

n Lauren Delong ’19See feature story on page 9.

n Danesha Owens-Harrell ’15 & M’18

Owens-Harrell, a two-time graduate of SUwho received her Master of Social Work,is the first Fulbright scholar of SU’sCollege of Health and Human Services.She received a Fulbright ETA to theNetherlands and hopes to learn aboutDutch social programs working with teensand young adults.

n Rachel Rolle ’18Rolle received a Fulbright ETA to SouthKorea. She was born in South Korea andlater studied on a Global KoreaScholarship during her junior year at SU.She said she is looking forward toimmersing herself in the culture andlanguage to further connect with herbiracial identity. She hopes her Fulbrightexperience will give her insight in herprofessional career.


With every experience comes opportunitiesthat can open up new paths in life. Fulbrightscholar Lauren DeLong ’19 knows to takeeach step in stride and look forward to thepossibilities for the future.

DeLong earned a Fulbright AcademicAward to Germany in 2019. The summerprior, she completed a research internship inGermany through the German AcademicExchange Service (DAAD) and also wasoffered a DAAD Graduate Study Award.

When she first arrived in Germany,DeLong found the country to be very opento its international community. She said manyimmigrants come to work there, and thecountry accepts many refugees as well aspeople like her, who just want to study andgrow there. She said she was surprised thatthe people are not only welcoming offoreigners but like to celebrate them, too.She even joined an international choir thatsings songs from around the world. She saidforeigners don’t need to be scared orashamed in the country, because Germanpeople are willing to share so much of theirculture and traditions.

Now, DeLong works at the University ofBonn in bioinformatics software engineering.

“It’s completely different from what I hadplanned to do,” DeLong said. “But I like it alot. I’ve always loved math and biology, sothis lets me put the two together.”

Instead of working in a lab, DeLongspends her time on the computer coding.Her knowledge as a biology major isnecessary, but now she adds her coding skills

to write software for the lab to use. She hasto think of her own algorithms for processingdata and develop her own processes in thecontext of biology data. She said she findscombining molecular genetic skills with mathskills to be really fun.

DeLong sometimes starts her day withclasses on machine learning and Pythonprogramming. After classes, she’ll head tothe Fraunhofer campus to work a full day.Recently, she worked on developingsoftware that contains data possibilities forsingle nucleotide mutations, making it easierfor users to search for specific mutations.Now that she’s into the computational sideof things, she said she may want to be atranslational developer in the future.

“I feel like with every experience I have,I’m always changing what I want to do,”DeLong said. “But that’s what experienceshelp you do. They help you develop whereyou want to go.”

DeLong will be working hard in Germanyuntil the end of July. She has applied forPh.D. positions in the United States, butshe’s also considering working intranslational medicine and is keeping heroptions open. More than anything, shehopes she can continue with her graduateeducation, no matter where in the world ittakes her.

“I think SU opened some of those doorsfor me,” DeLong said. “You may think youknow what you want, but experiences like aFulbright can open up so manyopportunities.”

Lauren DeLong: Opening New Doorswith Each Step

Lauren DeLong ’19

9 • GS&R • 2020

2018 n Martina Maya-Callen ’19See feature story on page 10.

n Danielle Walker ’18Walker received a Fulbright ETA toMoldova in 2018 to study how burgeoningdemocracy in Eastern Europe would buildpolitical involvement among students. Sheworked with U.S. Representative AnthonyG. Brown of Maryland and is now adevelopment associate for the U.S. CapitolHistorical Society.

n Caroline Deschak ’14Deschak earned a two-year FulbrightAcademic Graduate Degree ProgramAward in 2018 to pursue a master’s inpublic health nutrition at Instituto Nacionalde Salud Pública in Mexico. She remains inMexico, where in 2020, she will completeher degree with a capstone projectmeasuring food insecurity in migrants intransit for Mexico.

2017 n Hannah Ennerfelt ’17Ennerfelt earned a Fulbright AcademicAward to Sweden in 2017, where sheparticipated in a project investigating acytokine-dependent role in gliomamaintenance. She is a Swedish citizen, and her family still participates in Swedishtraditions. She is currently pursuing aPh.D. in neuroscience at the University of Virginia.

n Katherine Potvin ’17Potvin earned a Fulbright ETA to Mongoliain 2017. Last fall, she moved to theUkraine, where she is serving as a TeachingEnglish as a Foreign Language PeaceCorps volunteer. She recently wasinterviewed by local TV in Ukraine todiscuss the Peace Corps mission and howthey plan to help develop students’ andteachers’ language and technical skills.

n Matthew Jones ’17Jones earned a Fulbright ETA to Thailandin 2017. He hoped his experience wouldhelp him create a diverse learningenvironment for his future students. He isnow back home in Salisbury and teachesthe fourth and fifth grades at NorthSalisbury Elementary.

n Brittany Bursa ’17See feature story on page 8.


Martina Maya-Callen’s journey of self-lovehas taken her across the world to share hermessage.

In 2018-19, the conflict analysis anddispute resolution and fine arts double majorearned a Fulbright ETA to Argentina. Herinterest in the country was special: Argentinahas one of the highest documented rates ofeating disorders in the world. She wanted toexperience what was happening in thecountry’s society that made the number sohigh and ultimately promote bodyacceptance and self-love there.

That journey started at SU in March2017, during National Eating DisordersAwareness Week. Maya-Callen, a partnerwith the National Eating DisordersAssociation at the time, created aperformative art installation piece on campustitled “The Hidden Secret of EatingDisorders.” The piece went viral and gainednational and international attention, helpingher launch a worldwide movement forspreading eating disorder awareness overthe last three years. From there, Maya-Callencontinued her love for advocating and givingpeople the resources they need to seek help.

“I’ve been extremely passionate aboutspreading awareness of eating disordersand breaking the standards of beauty,”Maya-Callen said. “I feel really honored thatSU put the right tools in my tool belt toachieve this.”

Maya-Callen said she first fell in love withArgentina when she attended a music openmic event there. She plays guitar and sings,and she said she was inspired by the waypeople would play music and others wouldjump onto the stage to dance along.

“I saw how the people there are so opento collaborating and engaging with others,”Maya-Callen said. “It’s such an energizedculture of tango and music and deliciousfood – and very warm people.”

Every week, she taught at four or moredifferent schools through her Fulbrightexperience, working with more than 3,000different students during her time there.

“In the morning, I could be working witha 5-year-old playing patty cake, and at night,I would be talking about global economicequality with older students,” Maya-Callensaid. “Every moment was very dynamic anddifferent.”

In addition to teaching English, she wasconstantly thinking about ways to spread hermessage of body positivity. As part of her

Love Your Vessel social movement, shecoordinated an overnight retreat inArgentina called BeYOUtiful. During the day,attendees participated in workshops andmeditative experiences such as music andyoga. In the afternoon, they coordinated aphotoshoot to support body acceptance.Maya-Callen said her theory was that theripple effect caused by such efforts wouldultimately help fight eating disorders in thecountry and beyond.

Maya-Callen is back in the United Statesnow, but her drive for advocating for issuesimportant to her hasn’t stopped. Sherecently earned a Running StartCongressional Fellowship and is working onCapitol Hill, where she interns underRepresentative Pramila Jayapal ofWashington State’s 7th congressionaldistrict. She also is a crisis counselor andhelps Get Out the Vote in Maryland. She saidshe is thankful for how the opportunity tolive and work abroad helped propel hercareer and keep her on the path toencouraging self-love.

“Fulbright offered me a deep love forother cultures and people, and also ignitedmy desire to always be curious,” Maya-Callensaid. “Everything that has happened in thepast few years has been truly phenomenal.”v

FULBRIGHT HIGHLIGHTS

2020 • GS&R • 10

Martina Maya-Callen: Always On the Journey to Self-Love

2016 n Payge Jennings ’14Jennings earned a Fulbright ETA to SouthKorea in 2016. She is a 2018 graduate ofAmerican University and has maintainedher interests in international education.She is currently the national fellowshipscoordinator at the University of SouthCarolina, where she advises oncompetitive awards, including Fulbright.She is an active member of the NationalAssociation of Fellowships Advisors andpresented at its most recent conferenceon diversity and inclusion in the field.

2014 n Emily Lembo ’14Lembo earned a Fulbright ETA to SouthKorea in 2014. She was SU’s first FulbrightETA recipient and the first undergraduatestudent at SU to earn a Fulbright. Shereceived a job offer last summer to teachESL at Montgomery County Schools andalso taught at SU’s English LanguageInstitute last summer. She will graduatefrom University of Maryland BaltimoreCounty in May 2020 with a master’s inTESOL.

2012 n Charles Overholt ’11 & M’18Overholt, a two-time graduate of SU whoreceived his Master of Arts in history,earned a Fulbright Fellowship to Germanyin 2012. He was the first SU student toearn a Fulbright. He is now the assistantdirector of freshman admissions at SU andteaches German 101.

Alumni Fulbright Leader

n Stephen Reilly ‘95SU alumnus Stephen Reilly ’95 earned aFulbright three years after his graduationto study international relations in Sweden.He later founded Global Experiences, Inc.and is now executive director of theFulbright Association.

Martina Maya-Callen ’19


An agricultural probiotic developed atSalisbury University to enhance the growthof soybeans, peanuts, corn and other cropssoon will be tested on a new resource:hemp.

SU is believed to be the first institutionin Maryland to sign research agreementswith local farmers through a newDepartment of Agriculture pilot programallowing the growth and processing ofindustrial hemp in the state. Under theprogram’s guidelines, participating farmersmust partner with a higher educationinstitution for research as part of theapplication process for inclusion.

“These aren’t drug plants,” said Dr. MarkHolland, Biological Sciences Department,noting that though hemp is the same

species as marijuana, levels oftetrahydrocannabinol (THC) – the activeingredient in cannabis – are greatly reduced.Federal guidelines provide a maximum levelof THC that plants in the program legallymay contain.

Holland hopes to have student interns inplace for the summer to spend the seasontesting the effect of SU’s probiotic ongermination and crop yield, and its impacton the production of cannabidiol (CBD oil),used for applications including pain relief.

About a dozen potential growers havereached out to SU for information onpartnering, Holland said. He hopes to workwith about six farmers, mostly on theEastern Shore, if they are accepted for theprogram. The diversity of partners and theirgrowing methods should allow tests to beconducted under many different conditionsat once, including various soil types andoutdoor growing vs. greenhouse-raisedhemp.

For now, growth in the state is permittedfor research purposes only, though farmersmay sell their crop yields at the end of theseason. Holland said these restrictions maynot be permanent if the pilot program isfound to be beneficial. That makes theopportunity to partner for research noweven more valuable, he added.

11 • GS&R • 2020

With nearly 10 million acres of farmland inMaryland, Delaware and Virginia, the regionattracts thousands of seasonal migrant farmworkers each year. Thanks to SalisburyUniversity and the U.S. Department ofEducation, some may have an incentive tostay in the area – and teach.

SU received a five-year, $2.1 millionCollege Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP)award from the Department of Education.The Initializing Migrant/Minority/Marginalized Power through Opportunitiesand Widening Educational Representatives(I’M³ POWER) grant assists first-year, full-time students who are engaged, or whoseparents are engaged, in migrant and otherseasonal farm work.

Drs. Amber Meyer, Claudia Burgess andVincent Genareo of SU’s Early andElementary Education Department appliedfor the grant, designed to enhanceeducational opportunities for those whoqualify and aspire to be elementary or earlychildhood educators.

“With a national, state and local shortageof teachers, particularly those who areculturally and linguistically diverse, this grant

will provide communities with highlyqualified teachers who can impact all childrenin meaningful ways,” said Meyer.

Instruction for those receiving the CAMPscholarship will focus on high-impactpractices, STEM (science, technology,engineering and mathematics) learning andteaching, and connections between school,culture and family.

“This program not only assists first-timestudents, but it also helps SU and thesurrounding area,” said Burgess. “Thoseaccepted through this program will helpincrease the diversity of our campus and dothe same for our school systems, which areseeking teachers from underrepresentedgroups.”

The first program of its kind in theregion, CAMP is expecting its inauguralcohort to begin in spring 2020. Successfulapplicants receive tuition assistance andfinancial assistance for textbooks and othereducational supplies, as well as assistancewith childcare, nourishment subsidies andmore.

For more information, visitwww.salisbury.edu/CAMPGrant

FOCUS ON CURRENT RESEARCHSU Earns $2.1 Million Federal CollegeAssistance Migrant Program Award

SU Signs ResearchAgreements forMaryland HempGrowing Pilot Program

Initializing Migrant, Minority, & MarginalizedPower through Opportunities & Widening

Educational Representativeness

t

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COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS

2020 • GS&R • 12

SU’s Dr. Althea Pennerman says it’s in herDNA to help underrepresented children –and she has earned a grant to do just that,benefiting Horizons Salisbury and making adifference in the lives of Wicomico Countyelementary and high school students.

The Maryland State Department ofEducation (MSDE) grant secured byPennerman, associate professor in theTeacher Education Department, is valued at$248,321 per year over the next three years.The funds will help expand the enrollment ofHorizons Salisbury to approximately 165students this year and also allow theprogram to reconnect with formergraduates.

Horizons Salisbury benefits public schoolstudents from low-income families inWicomico County by offering an intensive

six-week summer educational program aswell as some year-round academicassistance. The program started at The Salisbury School in 2003 and in 2015expanded to SU, where rising students insixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth gradesparticipate in summer activities that aredesigned to meet both academic andaffective needs of the program participants.

Pennerman received the grant from theMSDE’s 21st Century Community LearningCenters program to further her work withthe organization which she has beenassociated with since 2015.

The financial support allowed for theaddition of more than 30 students into the2019 summer program. With the grantfunding, 13 Horizons graduates (those whohave moved on to high school) returned as

interns for the program, shadowing theteachers, assisting with the younger childrenand, perhaps most importantly, developingan interest in the teaching profession.

“There is an urgent need for locallytrained teachers in Maryland right now –especially teachers of color. High schoolersare beginning to think about a future career.As educators, we want to instill in them theidea of becoming a teacher,” Pennermansaid.

She recounted the response from one ofthe prospective interns who, when askedwhy she wanted to be a part of the newinitiative, said she felt like she needed togive back.

“That’s a message that we want to getacross to them,” Pennerman said. “You giveback when you get a chance to do that.” v

RESEARCH PROGRAMS

The mission of Horizons Salisbury is to providelow-income public school students in Wicomico

County, MD, with an intensive academicSummer Enrichment Program and year-round

support to transform the lives of studentscaught in the achievement gap.

Pennerman Earns Grant to Benefit Horizons Salisbury

Holland: Then and NowGroundbreaking research is nothing new toDr. Mark Holland; he was featured in theinaugural issue of Re:Search. In 2011, he wasin the beginning stages of his probioticresearch. His work with Methylobacterium, agenus of bacteria also called PPFM,garnered several patents and demonstratedthat these bacteria enhance seedgermination, stimulate root and plantgrowth, and can be used to boost yield insome crop plants – and soon we’ll know itseffect on hemp.

Holland in the first issue of Re:Search withthe bacteria that still informs his research. t


13 • GS&R • 2020

“With every challenge comes the greateropportunity to grow,” Jonne (Woodard) Hickssaid in the original story.Ten years later, she’s still right.Hicks spent her EPA internship at the

Mid-Continent Ecology Division Laboratoryin Duluth, MN, where she studied the effectsof pharmaceuticals in the environment. Shehoped her EPA experience would help herdecide which environmental path to choose inher career. Not knowing where her life wouldtake her after she graduated in 2012, she kepther options open.Her EPA fellowship opportunity led to a

varied career and numerous accomplishments.She was part of a team recognized by the EPAwith the Scientific and TechnologyAchievement Award in 2015, and one of thepublications she worked on for her EPAresearch earned the Environmental Toxicology andChemistry journal’s Best Paper Award.After graduating from SU, Hicks

continued the path she started, working for theEPA in cancer research at the National Healthand Environmental Effects Laboratory inResearch Triangle Park, NC.

She also worked in the Clinical ResearchBranch of EPA’s Environmental Public HealthDivision in Chapel Hill, NC, for a year. Shelater graduated with a master’s degree inbiomedical sciences from North CarolinaCentral University, then worked as a researchanalyst at Duke University Medical Center inthe Cardiology Division. When she gave birthto her son in 2018, she decided it was time toget out of the lab. She now writes andcoordinates grants and contracts in theClinical Research Department of ConeHealth.Hicks has gained a lot of experience to

add to her ever-growing resume over the pastdecade. She also credits Dr. Lewis with helpingher get the most out of her education andobtaining the fellowship that ultimately shapedher career path. She said while she started inenvironmental health, she has moved moretoward a career in biological and clinicalresearch and even switched her major tobiology after her fellowship project. She saidpracticing the hard sciences at her EPA

internship also encouraged herto pursue other opportunities.However, she believes the

one thing that stayed consistentwas exploring human naturethrough science.

Hicks isn’t sure exactly where her life pathwill go next, but she welcomes the challengelooking at the years ahead.“I’m starting a new path, but I can see

pursuing a doctorate in public health,” Hickssaid. “It’s an open door.”

EPA Fellowships: A Turning Point for Students –Even 10 Years LaterIn 2011, environmental studies major Emily Thorpe was featured on the cover of the very first Re:Search magazine. Both Thorpe andclassmate Jonne (Woodard) Hicks (who was pictured on the table of contents of the same issue) were the first SU recipients of theEnvironmental Protection Agency’s 2010 Greater Research Opportunity fellowships, allowing them to study among some of the most knowledgeable environmentalscientists in the nation through internships at EPA research facilities. The fellowships, worth $42,700 each, provided invaluable opportunities to both students at the time.Nearly 10 years later, both Thorpe and Hicks had a lot to say about their lives, but both agreed the EPA fellowship was an important turning point.

Jonne Woodard: Over Time, Growth Never Stops

(Woodard) Hicks in the lab fromthe first issue of Re:Search.


ALUMNI PROFILES

2020 • GS&R • 14

Emily Thorpe still remembers putting on hermaroon SU T-shirt and stepping into the riverfor the photo that would end up on themagazine’s first cover.Thorpe interned at the EPA’s Atlantic

Ecology Division in Narragansett, RI, workingwith a team of researchers to investigate theimpacts of climate change and sea-level riseon coastal wetland systems. After graduatingfrom SU in 2012, she thought about attendinggraduate school, where she wanted to pursueher interests in wetlands protection, sea-levelrise and the impact of development onwaterways. Ultimately, she wanted to earn herPh.D. and become a college professor.“I really believe education is essential to

preserving and protecting the environment,”Thorpe said in the 2011 story.This is a belief she still holds nearly a

decade later.Most recently, Thorpe had been working

as the student leadership coordinator at theChesapeake Bay Foundation in Pennsylvania.And, it looks like her goal of graduate studieswill be realized soon, as she has accepted amaster’s research position at Virginia Tech.She will travel to national parks and naturecenters across the nation to study whichpractices in environmental education are themost effective in engaging diverse audiences.Thorpe spent much of her time working

with high school students. She has knownsome of these students for the entire four yearsshe’s been there. She recalled how they wrotea bill to designate the Eastern hellbender asthe state amphibian. After three years ofadvocating for its passage, the bill died incommittee. The students reintroduced the billin the following session, and it was signed intolaw in 2019.Thorpe said when she told them she was

leaving, there were a lot of tears.“They’re an amazing group and it’s been

really inspiring to see their growth,” Thorpesaid. “That experience working with highschool students has informed me it’ssomething I really care about.”

In the original story, Thorpe said shewanted to get plenty of life experience beforebecoming a college professor, because shebelieved her best professors were those whoshared their real-world experience with her. Inthe years that followed, she had moved awayfrom the idea of being a professor. But afterworking with students at a nonprofit, the ideahas crossed her mind again.“I just think back to all the people who

helped me get to where I am,” Thorpe said,noting how Dr. Michael Lewis of theEnvironmental Studies Department was theone who convinced her that SU was the rightcollege for her. She even called him for advicebefore she applied to Virginia Tech.However, there are still a lot of unknowns

in Thorpe’s life, as she’s getting ready to quither job and go to graduate school. She saidshe doesn’t have all the real-world experienceshe wants yet, but her experiences over thepast decade will bring value to her research.“I think when I got the fellowship I was

still figuring out, as all college students shouldbe, who I was and what I wanted out of lifeand a career,” Thorpe said. “I gained a deeperunderstanding for scientific research andlearned I wanted to be a communicator ofenvironmental studies.”Looking ahead at the next 10 years,

Thorpe can see herself being the director ofan education program at a nonprofit orworking at a university, where she can not onlymake improvements to environmentaleducation programs but also be a mentor to others. v

Emily Thorpe: Education Comes Full Circle

Thorpe in the field from thefirst issue of Re:Search.

Emily Thorpe and her students at the Chesapeake BayFoundation formed the Hellbender Defenders to recognizethe Eastern hellbender as the Pennsylvania state amphibian.

Emily Thorpe and her students see the Eastern hellbenderup close at a “meet and greet.”

Emily Thorpe and her students at the Pennsylvania StateCapitol before the hellbender bill signing.


DEAN Q&A

Re:Search:10 Years and Counting

What is different about the activities of the Graduate Studies and ResearchOffice now, 10 years later?

First, it’s hard to believe that we have arrived at our 10th year of Re:Search. That’samazing! Generally, there has been a growth in the overall complexity of SU,including our research program. There’s a higher percentage of faculty who are

engaged in externally funded research, and we have more vehicles to help them. We nowhave internal grants programs like the Building Research Excellence program that allowsfaculty to get funding to do pilot research and be more competitive for larger federalfunding opportunities. Also, we have 10 years of the Faculty Mini Grants program, so there’sa lot more faculty who have years of experience doing research. We’re in our third year ofthe Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (OURCA), which has been acentral hub of activity for the promotion of undergraduate research and creative activities.There is lots of interaction with faculty mentors, so we’ve really branded that as a shininglight for the University. Last year, we had the largest amount of external money in facultysubmissions, with over $20 million worth of proposals. There’s just a much richer experiencefrom faculty and students who are more engaged in research and scholarship than everbefore on campus.

Q:A:

What is SU’s research agenda?

The abundance of research at SU is connected to students and community. For thepast couple of years, SU has been very involved in issues surrounding the opioidcrisis and grants associated with addressing that crisis through community-basedaction. That history of SU faculty being engaged with community-based issues is

very rich. We also have faculty facilitating curriculum development, with new courses andprograms, and a richer experience. In the case of nursing, faculty are very engaged insecuring grants that can help fund nursing students. I don’t see that changing. Goingforward, SU faculty are going to be engaged in helping our students, curriculumdevelopment and addressing community concerns or promoting opportunity. Moreover, inrecent years, we have conducted our first National Institutes of Health-funded research andseveral National Science Foundation-funded projects have been completed and new onesare ongoing. Our research is truly comprehensive, which is a great component of the overallSU mission.

Q:A:

When the first issue of Re:Search waspublished in 2011, Dean of Graduate Studiesand Research Clifton Griffin had justcompleted his first year at SalisburyUniversity. A decade later, he reflects onhow far the Graduate Studies and ResearchOffice has come in that time and the lastingimpact of this magazine.

15 • GS&R • 2020

You have to be able to fund people initially to help themgenerate ideas and pursue interests. Then they’re morecompetitive; then they get bigger grants; then we help others. ”

“

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In part, the magazine wasimportant to help bringawareness to graduate programsat SU when it started 10 yearsago. Why is the magazineimportant now?

The idea of being able to effectivelycommunicate research as a hallmarkof your campus is just cool. People

want to read about the good things thatfaculty, staff and students are doing.There’s not a better vehicle in my mind todemonstrate why it’s a good thing to cometo SU as a freshman, transfer student, gradstudent, staff member, faculty member –you name it – than having something likeRe:Search magazine, where you canshowcase a variety of experiences. I believeit’s important to demonstrate the widevariety of activity that happens on campusand give an opportunity for faculty andstudents to be proud of their research andaccomplishments. The idea of the magazineis still important for SU, and I don’t want tosee it go away. v

Q:

A:

You said 10 years ago that ourgreatest opportunity is ourpeople and that SU research andgraduate studies will only grow.Looking back now, do you thinkyou were right?

An overabundance of the facultywe’ve hired in last 10 years haveexperience working in a particular

area of scholarship and want to continue todo that. Great faculty researchers are usuallyalso great in the classroom. They inspirelearning in all forms. I think the idea offaculty and students engaged in research,and the critical and creative skills thatstudents can gain as part of this experience,is incredibly valuable. It’s not going to beless valuable 10 years from now. It’s going tobe more valuable. Hands-on experience andopportunities such as research are moreimportant than ever. We’re moreinterconnected than we’ve ever been. We’regoing to have to develop students thatunderstand how to operate in aninterconnected world.

Q:

A:

In this last decade, how far has SUcome with sponsored programs?

It’s now more complicated to getgrants than it’s ever been, so facultyhave to be more highly competitive.

Years ago, when faculty submitted grants, itwas about their ability as scientists andscholars in their fields. That’s still criticallyimportant, but equally important these daysis defining the broader impacts of theirresearch. You have to be able to clearlyarticulate not just what you want to do andhow you want to do it, but why it’simportant to the average citizen. What is theconnection, and why does this matter? Thisis a primary question to answer with eachproposal. Also, research pays for research.It’s critically important to have that cycle,especially in the world of sponsoredprograms. You have to be able to fundpeople initially to help them generate ideasand pursue interests. Then they’re morecompetitive; then they get bigger grants;then we help others.

Q:A:

What areas do you think providethe greatest potential for growthin graduate education at SU?

SU continues to grow in complexity.In the last 10 years, we’ve added aDoctorate of Nursing Practice

program, a Doctor of Education program,three online master’s degrees, several newmajors at the undergraduate level, and aCollege of Health and Human Services. Ifyou’re growing in complexity, you have tohave more dedicated people to helpaddress those complicated questions,answers and academic pursuits. The waygoing forward is going to be to continue toprovide people with the resources theyneed in order to be successful.

Q:A:

2020 • GS&R • 16

Have we achieved the goals set10 years ago?

Success is going to breed moresuccess. Especially in this world ofpursuing scholarship, research and

creative activities, the more you know, themore there is to know. So I think we’vebeen successful. The metrics will tell youthat we have more undergraduatesengaged in these activities than ever. Wehave more graduate students and facultysubmitting research proposals than we’veever had. We’ve gotten more researchdollars than we’ve ever had. Ten years fromnow, I hope I’m saying the same thing. Thatwould mean that we’ve continued to bevery highly successful.

Q:A:

In 2019, SU Faculty Earned:

n 167Grant Awards

n Over $8.7MIn Funds

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17 • GS&R • 2020

Beat the HeatSTUDENTS

BY ENGAGING INSummer Research

Salisbury University’s campus doesnot close and students don’t stoplearning once the summer months hit. SU students get some of their most immersiveexperiences during this time between semesters, when they have the opportunity to get up close andpersonal with their passions.

Last summer was a scorcher. With more than 70 projects, it also was the biggest summer forresearch activity in SU’s history. There were no limits,with projects exploring everything from the effect ofsocial media on dating culture to the construction of amathematical model to examine land values. Someprojects extended far beyond the Eastern Shore. One faculty-student research duo utilized GPS trackinginformation to study habitual routes of elephants inZimbabwe, hoping to develop a plan to help peopleand elephants better coexist.

At least 28 of these projects were highlighted onSU’s Facebook page as part of the Summer Scholarssocial media campaign. Several projects were featuredin videos that were shared online, reaching nearly10,000 views across social media platforms.

Accomplishments like this prove the campusresearch community is thriving, even during the dog days of summer. Congratulations to the studentswho traded in their swim suits for a lab coat over their break.

SUMMER SCHOLARS

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2020 • GS&R • 18

Elephant Travel Patterns in ZimbabweGeographic information systems (GIS) technology has beenapplied to many different areas in the Delmarva region,including sea level rise, infrastructure and economicdevelopment. One faculty-student pair showed that thereach of GIS is even broader.

As part of a sponsored undergraduate research project,Dr. Andrea Presotto, Geography and GeosciencesDepartment, and SU student Trey Wehlan took their GISskills all the way to Africa to study elephant travel patterns.Rather than just mapping, though, their ultimate goal iswildlife conservation.

“In Zimbabwe, the elephants invade crops,” Presottoexplained. “They harm humans and humans harm them.So, we are studying elephant movement, trying to figureout a way to share space and create a buffer betweenpeople and elephants.”

Every month, Presotto and Wehlan receive trackingdata from GPS collars on elephants in the Kavango ZambeziTrans Frontier Conservation Area near Victoria Falls inZimbabwe. Using GIS, they can see where the elephantsare, how close they are to humans and the habitual pathsthey use. Wehlan, an interdisciplinary studies major inbiology and geography/GIS, assists with data managementand organization, and statistical analysis.

“The food resources that are located within theelephants’ protected area may not be all they need, so theyhave to go out to other places, and that unfortunately leadsto human-animal conflict,” Wehlan said. “Using this GPSdata, we can identify areas the elephants are going that area little too close to human populated areas. The park thencan employ deterrents to try to avoid the elephants andpeople killing one another.”

Using maps helps bridge language barriers with peoplein Africa, he added.

The duo’s work focuses on understanding how animalsnavigate from a biological and ecological perspective, andwhy the elephants are getting close to humans when it’sharmful for them.

“We want to get people to understand that the reason

elephants do this is because they’re way out of theirelement,” Wehlan said. “Elephants are usually nomadic, so ifyou enclose them in a space like a reserve and expect themto stay in that enclosure, it’s not going to work. Their natureis to move from resource to resource, so we have to makepeople understand if elephants are going into their villagesand farmlands, there’s a reason why they are doing that.”

Presotto spent 13 days in Zimbabwe last summer, andWehlan plans to return with her for a month this summer tofurther study elephant diets and food hotspots.

“If we all want elephants alive, our contribution is to tryto figure out how to minimize conflict so people can live in apeaceful way with them,” Presotto said. “My dream is tohave conservation plans so people and wildlife can coexist.”

Presotto said SU’s summer research opportunities allowprofessors to involve students in official capacities in biggerprojects, giving them a chance to see how research worksand explore their own ideas. Wehlan, who hopes to pursuea master’s in wildlife ecology, said he appreciates thechance to get hands-on experience in his field.

“With this project, there’s a plethora of opportunitiesfor me to grow,” Wehlan said. “I’m learning things I neverthought I’d learn. I’m going places I never thought go. It isa humbling opportunity.”

Quantum Dot Solar TechnologyIn an effort to search for more “green” energy sources,solar power has been key, but current technology can onlyharness a third of the energy the sun offers. In a sponsoredresearch project, SU student Brandon Chang, with theguidance of Dr. Lena Woodis, Chemistry Department, iscreating quantum dots – tiny semiconductor particles – totest their efficiency in solar cell applications.

“The most efficient solar cell technology is silicon,which can only absorb up to 33.3% of the sun’s energy,”Chang said. “However, if we theoretically used quantumdots, we could achieve up to 100% efficiency.”

The difference is quantum dots are able to absorb allwavelengths and energy of the sun, whereas silicone is onlyable to absorb certain wavelengths. Woodis said the idea is

to engineer a device with a high level of precision that canmimic what nature can do.

“I really love to tell people that in one hour of sunlight,we can power the planet for a whole year,” Woodis said.“We just can’t harness that energy. But if you can haveshingles on your roof or paint on your house and drivewaymade out of solar material, and you didn’t have to behooked up to a grid, that would be ideal. That’s reallydriving force behind this quantum dot technology, to getaway from harmful materials but also the expense.”

The Song of the Eastern BluebirdIn most songbird species, it is the male that does themajority of the singing, but Eastern bluebirds don’t sing adifferent tune. In fact, the female sings as much as the male.

“The interesting thing with Eastern bluebirds is thatfemales sing an equivalent song to the male,” said Dr.Jeremy Corfield, Biological Sciences Department. “There isonly a handful of songbird species that the females sing,and then to sing as much as the male is a rare finding.”

As part of sponsored research, SU student ColinCassidy, with the mentorship of Corfield, is studying thedifferences in the song control region of the brain betweenmale and female bluebirds.

“We’re looking at the differences associated with songbehavior depending on gender,” Cassidy said. “We foundthat Eastern bluebirds, male or female, have equivalentsong, and now we’re looking at whether their brains matchthat equivalent. If they do, that would be incrediblyinteresting and unique.”

Their research aims to answer if the brain regions thatprocess this song in females are as big and complex asmales. Corfield said every bit of research so far suggests itwould be smaller.

“Colin’s project compares the brain regions that areassociated with song production and learning,” Corfield said.“If they are equivalent, that is going to be huge. It wouldbe the first study that shows the female has a similar sizesong control system compared to males.”

Eastern Bluebird by Benjamin M. Clock Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology


19 • GS&R • 2020

Breaking Down the ShoreBeachgoers are faced with more dangerous waves than inthe past as beach replenishment seems to have created aphenomenon known as “shorebreak,” where waves breakdirectly on the beach instead of out in the water.

Dr. Mark Muller, Physics Department, was driven to divedeeper into shorebreak after analyzing 10 years of data fromaccident reports on the beaches of Ocean City, MD.

“I looked at all water-related injuries, including lowerextremity, shoulder and spinal injuries,” Muller said. “Formore than 80% of all those injuries, shorebreak was acontributing factor. I found that staggering.”

Through his sponsored research project, SU studentBradley Cullen, with Muller’s mentorship, built a wave tankto study the conditions under which shorebreak happensand develop a scientific definition. They wanted to see ifthere is a connection between beach replenishment,creating conditions conducive to shorebreak and shorebreak-related injuries.

“Our project is about defining shorebreak along coastalbeaches,” Cullen said. “What we’re trying to do is study theslope of the beach profile that causes shorebreak to happen.”

Cullen said they plan to start by creating a model of areal beach and making waves at a certain height. They havea long list of variables to test in order to define what ishappening with beach replenishment projects.

“We’ll run simulations for one hour, two hours, maybeeven overnight, and that will give us a good starting pointfor what’s going on at certain slopes,” Cullen said. “Fromthere, we can hopefully design a new way to do beachreplenishment to make it safer and more cost effective.”

Arsenic and the Immune SystemArsenic, a natural element that behaves like a metal, isfound in the environment in small quantities in rock, soil,water and air. About one-third of the arsenic in theatmosphere comes from natural sources, such as volcanoes,but the rest comes from human activity.

As part of summer sponsored research, SU studentJeremie Barbosa explored how low doses of arsenic impactthe immune system, with guidance from her faculty mentor,Dr. Jennifer Nyland, Chemistry Department. Her researchcould help determine if maximum exposure levels set by theWorld Health Organization are too high or help make thepublic aware of how low levels of arsenic could affect them.

“If I introduce arsenic into the immune system,specifically macrophage cells, what will happen to the cellsin response?” Barbosa said. “Whether it’s by the proteinsthat cells are secreting, whether the DNA itself is beingchanged because of arsenic, and if the cells die immediatelywhen they are introduced to arsenic, we want to find outwhat happens afterward.”

The World Health Organization has set 10 microgramsper liter as a standard for acceptable arsenic exposure.Barbosa’s research aims to determine if that standard is toohigh and to raise awareness in communities that arsenic

may be causing harm to humans and the environment. Forexample, if agricultural practices are putting arsenic intogrowth hormones or pesticides, they want to determine ifthere are negative health impacts from even low levels ofnaturally occurring exposures.

“We want to show this because arsenic is correlatedwith rheumatoid arthritis, diabetes, obesity and cancer,”Barbosa said. “It’s important from human standpoint toknow what will happen if we are exposed to thesecompounds of arsenic. Will we get diseases because ofthem? That’s what we’re trying to find out.”

Since arsenic can be ingested in small amounts byanyone, Nyland said the goal is to mitigate the risks ofhealth impacts due to arsenic in the body.

“We’re more concerned with if you’re just a regularperson eating fish you buy at the supermarket or that youcatch out in the bay, if you’re drinking groundwater from awell, are you at risk?” Nyland said. She added that somepeople may be more susceptible than others – for example,those who have a history of autoimmune disease in theirfamily.

“My hope at the end of this project is to set guidelinesand inform the public about what arsenic does to our bodiesand specifically our immune system,” Barbosa said. v

SUMMER RESEARCH

Want To Know More? Check SU Out on YouTube! This summer, SU shared the stories of theresearch happening on campus andbeyond through social media. Check outthese and other stories in the “Research”playlist of SU’s YouTube channel:

www.youtube.com/salisburyuniversity


2020 • GS&R • 20

IN THE NEWS

Dr. Stephen AdamsManagement and MarketingDepartment“Before the Garage: TheBeginnings of Silicon Valley”

Dr. Aston GonzalezHistory Department“Clarity of Vision: Black Activistsin the Antislavery Movement”

Dr. Thomas PellingerApplied Health PhysiologyProgram“Going With the Flow: Regulationand Manipulation of Blood Flow inHealth and Disease”

Dr. Craig RamseyerGeography and GeosciencesDepartment“Future Rainfall Variability in theEl Yunque National Forest”

Dr. Louise AndersonMusic, Theatre and DanceDepartment &Dr. Diana WagnerEducation Leadership Department“Peter Dale Wimbrow: Delmarva’sSongster”

Research DayReturns in 2020

After a 2019 hiatus, Research Day returns on

Thursday, September 24, 2020.Look for details later this year.In the meantime, look back atthe featured faculty speakers

from the last event:

Dr. Stephen Adams Dr. Thomas Pellinger Dr. Louise Anderson & Dr. Diana Wagner Dr. Aston Gonzalez Dr. Craig Ramseyer

SU Earns Honors for CommunityEngagementSalisbury University haslong strived to be a pillarof civic engagement, notonly giving back to butbecoming a part of thecommunity.

The CarnegieFoundation for theAdvancement of Teachingrecently recognized SU’scommitment tocommunity-engagedlearning with theprestigious CarnegieCommunity Engagement Classification. SUis one of only 359 campuses nationwide toearn this distinction.

SU has documented “excellentalignment among campus mission, culture,leadership, resources and practices thatsupport dynamic and noteworthycommunity engagement,” the foundation’smanagement team said.

The University strengthens its ties withthe surrounding community in a number ofways, such as connecting students withlearning experiences at Peninsula RegionalMedical Center, local public schools andthe Eastern Correctional Institution, whichnot only benefit the students, but also

contribute to the public good. SU also ishome to two AmeriCorps programs:ShoreCorps, through which membersserve at nonprofit and governmentagencies to meet critical communityneeds, including environmental education,youth development, older adult care andfinancial literacy; and HOPECorps, whichhelps address the opiate crisis onMaryland’s Eastern Shore.

“When I beganmeeting with localleaders upon becomingSU’s president in 2018,one of the main themes Iheard over and over washow much this Universitygives back to thesurrounding community,”said SU President CharlesWight. “Throughpartnerships with localinstitutions, our studentsand faculty have a longhistory of contributing tothe critical needs in thearea, including educationand health care.”

SU will continue tohold its Carnegie

Community Engagement classification until2026, at which time it will be eligible forrenewal. To keep the distinction, SU willneed to show improvement upon itsengagement – finding areas that needdevelopment and those through which SUcan expand its connection with thecommunity. v

“About 85% of externally sponsored awards at Salisbury University are directlyrelated to community health, development or education. ” – Karen L. Olmstead, Ph.D.

Provost and Senior Vice President of Academic Affairs • Salisbury University


21 • GS&R • 2020

Salisbury University chemistry major Tasneem Elbashir presentedher research to a special audience this year – not to fellow studentsor university faculty, but to Maryland lawmakers with the power tomake policy decisions.

Every year, SU students share their undergraduate research withmembers of the Maryland General Assembly during Posters on theBay at the legislative offices in Annapolis. Sponsored by SU’sGraduate Studies and Research Office and the Office ofUndergraduate Research and Creative Activity (OURCA), the posterpresentation gives students an opportunity to meet legislators andshowcase their research.

“I am here presenting my research on molecules that have neverbeen discovered before,” Elbashir said, as she explained how theproject could create new MRI contrast agents that are less toxic tothe human body. “I’m thankful for the opportunity to show whatwe’re doing at SU. Sometimes we’re forgotten because we’re onthe other side of the bay, but this is our chance to prove that thestudents of SU are here and we are moving forward.”

Eli Modlin, SU chief of staff, said the event started as a proposalby OURCA to mimic the Posters on the Hill presentation inWashington, D.C. The idea was originally meant to replace theannual SU Day event in Annapolis.

“What happened was phenomenal,” Modlin said. “Attendanceskyrocketed. Some students have even been contacted bygovernment officials to use their research to help craft bills. It’s agreat networking experience, and they can advocate about issuesimportant to them.”

Students may present on projects or legislation they’re in favorof, such as student voting on college campuses. This year, topics

covered everything from the use of quantum dot technology forsolar energy to the effect of music and movies on dental anxiety.Even students whose projects aren’t directly related to politicsbenefit from attending.

“They get an opportunity to talk to a really different audience,”said Dr. Chrys Egan, co-director of OURCA alongside Dr. JessicaClark. “Policy decisions and really important questions are beingaddressed all the time, and we want to get the best information infront of the people who make those decisions. This is a greatopportunity for students to share their work with somebody whocan make a difference.”

The presentation allows students to showcase their work,especially at the undergraduate level, where research often goesunnoticed. With legislators, Annapolis General Assembly staff,elected officials, SU alumni and others who have connections to SUin attendance, Modlin shared it’s also a way for students to lobbyon behalf of SU. On the Eastern Shore, at least an hour and a halfaway from the state capital, Posters on the Bay offers anopportunity for engagement SU students may not otherwise have.

“It reminds them we’re here and shows them the great work wehave going on with our school and students,” Modlin said.“Legislators get to see some 20 student presentations in one shot.We’re very proud of it, and we plan to keep it going.”

Students presented at the third annual Posters on the Bay onJanuary 16 at the Maryland General Assembly Lowe House OfficeBuilding.

“There’s a reason for this research, and it’s not just becausethey’re interested in the topic,” Clark said. “It’s because thesestudents want to make the world a better place.” v

Posters on the BayPuts Students

in Front ofLawmakers

Posters on the BayPuts Students

in Front ofLawmakers

STATE RECOGNITION

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UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH

2020 • GS&R • 22

Laridae Student Research Magazine Takes Flight

Letter from the EditorSalisbury University is an emerging presence inthe arena of student-led research and creativeactivity. Much of the impetus behind thismovement comes from the generous support offaculty and staff at Salisbury University; withouttheir combined efforts, students would not haveaccess to the tremendous resources offered bythe Office of Undergraduate Research andCreative Activity (OURCA), the Writing Center,the Office of Graduate Studies and Research(GSR), the Nationally Competitive FellowshipsOffice, which enabled the creation of Laridae.

In this context, Laridae was assembled in aneffort to complement and highlight the great works produced by SalisburyUniversity’s brilliant undergraduate student body. The process began when [historyand political science double] Abiodun (Abey) Adeoye conceived the idea to bring anundergraduate academic journal to Salisbury University. Early in the ideadevelopment phase, Abey partnered with OURCA and GSR. These partners came toform the bedrock on which this student-led journal has constructed a foundation.

With the help of a supportive staff, Laridae began to take shape in the spring of2019. The Laridae team spoke to numerous classes and at several school-sponsoredevents to solicit submissions. By the end of the spring semester, we had receivednearly 25 submissions. Throughout the long editing period, which lasted from Mayto September 2019, the Laridae team whittled the submissions down to 12outstanding manuscripts you will read in this journal.

We are proud of our work thus far and delighted to share this diverse collectionof academic works from a range of disciplines. Moreover, this first Laridae team ishonored to serve as sculptors of history. We designed this journal to act as a vehiclefor the dissemination of new knowledge and perspectives across Salisbury’s campus.Now it is up to you to use it.

Under the principle of promoting diversity in thought, I darethe student body of Salisbury University to challengeconventions with probing questions and to share your findingswith your peers. v

In fall 2019, Salisbury Universitycelebrated the launch of the firstundergraduate student researchjournal in its history: Laridae. Laridae,the Latin name for the family of birdsthat includes seagulls, featuredpublished works from studentsacross campus. In this 10thanniversary issue of our UniversityRe:Search magazine, it is exciting tocelebrate the inaugural issue of thisstudent-led, sister publication. In his“Letter from the Editor” reprintedhere (right), Student Editor-in-ChiefHarrison Leon shared the efforts ofstudents, faculty andstaff to bring thispublication frominspiration toreality.

Laridae Undergraduate StudentEditorial Board Members

n Founder: Abiodun Adeoye

n Editor-in-Chief: Harrison Leon

n Arts and Humanities SectionEditor: Tara Ward

n Professional Works SectionEditors: Austin Dabbs &Harrison Leon

n Social Sciences Section Editors:Kateria Rodriquez & AbiodunAdeoye

n Sciences Section Editors:Maggie Giggey & Austin Dabbs

n Copy Editor: Melissa Marsh

Inaugural Issue – Volume 1 – Fall 2019Salisbury University

Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (OURCA)

SALISBURY UNIVERSITYUndergraduate Academic Journal

Abiodun Adeoye

Harrison LeonStudent Editor-in-Chief

Sapere Aude

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The inaugural Chesapeake StudiesConference took place last summer atSalisbury University with the theme“Casting a Wide Net.” Scholars, researchersand students came from all kinds of diversebackgrounds to promote the study of theregion. The response was so positive, asecond conference is already in the worksfor 2020.

Dr. Beatriz Hardy, SU dean of librariesand instructional resources and chair of theconference’s Steering Committee, saidChesapeake studies is something she haswanted to promote since she came to SUmore than seven years ago. With so manyunits on campus that study the region –from the Edward H. Nabb Research Centerfor Delmarva History and Culture togrowing departments in environmental

studies, history and the social sciences – shesees a lot of potential for SU to become acentral hub for the discipline.

“We want to build Chesapeake studiesup as a scholarly study, and we want SU tobe the place where that happens,” Hardysaid. “This conference was the first step.”

The model for Chesapeake studies at SUis the Center for Appalachian Studies atAppalachian State University in NorthCarolina. Since it started in the 1970s, theprogram has expanded to publish a journal,and that university now offersundergraduate and master’s degrees inAppalachian studies. Hardy hopes that in a few years, there could be potential for SU to start a scholarly journal focused onChesapeake studies or offer a minor in the area.

“The Chesapeake and Delmarva arespecial regions, and they deserve their ownseparate study,” Hardy said.

SU is in a unique position to host theconference, not only because of its locationjust miles from the Chesapeake Bay, butbecause of its specialized resources. SU ishome to the Nabb Research Center, WardMuseum of Wildfowl Art and Eastern ShoreRegional GIS Cooperative. SU also boastsnumerous professors, centers andorganizations that study the region.

Topics at the inaugural ChesapeakeStudies Conference included climatechange, servitude and race, maritimeculture, and transdisciplinary research.Events included documentary screenings, acrab feast, and opportunities to observeChesapeake and Delmarva culture firsthand.The conference sponsored visits to the

23 • GS&R • 2020

DOCTORAL PROGRAMS

Conference Builds SU’s Reputation for C h e s a p e a k e S t u d i e s

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RESEARCH HONORED

2020 • GS&R • 24

Harned Earns Dissertation Award for Rural EducationBy Judith Franzak, Ph.D.Professor & Chair, Doctoral Studies in Literacy Department

University of Maryland Center forEnvironmental Science’s Horn PointLaboratory and oyster hatchery inCambridge, MD; Harriet TubmanUnderground Railroad National Park andBlackwater Wildlife Refuge in Cambridge;and Smith Island, one of the bay’s only tworemaining populated islands.

Mike Lewis of the Environmental StudiesDepartment and Creston Long, director ofthe Nabb Research Center, are co-directorsof this year’s conference, which will takeplace June 10-12 with the theme

“Continuity and Change in America’sEstuary.” While last year’s conference hadtwo tracks – environmental andhistorical/cultural studies – the SteeringCommittee hopes to get social sciencesinvolved this year.

“The concept of Chesapeake studies asan area of academic interest is catching on,”said Michael Scott, dean of the HensonSchool of Science and Technology and amember of the Steering Committee. “We have people who are now conductingstudies and explorations with the idea of

presenting their work at this conference.That’s exciting because it was part of whatwe wanted to do from the beginning, andthat seems to be happening now.”

With more than 100 registeredattendees last year who praised theconference for the chance to network overdisciplines that often go underrepresented,Hardy said they want to keep themomentum going.

“SU is an ideal home to be known forChesapeake studies,” Hardy shared. “This isan opportunity to build SU’s reputation.” v

The Chesapeake and Delmarva are special regions, and they deserve their own separate study.

– Dr. Beatriz HardySU Dean of Libraries and Instructional Resources

and Chair of the Conference’s Steering Committee

“”

Join Us: June 10-12, 2020www.chesapeakestudies.org

REGIONAL ISSUES

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25 • GS&R • 2020

INVEST IN SUPERIOR FACULTY

Building Research Excellence Program (BRE)This program supports faculty research by providing critically important seed funds to enhance the competitiveness of faculty who submit proposals to external funding agencies. Within approximately 12 months of the end date of the BRE, an applicationmust be submitted to an external funding agency that allows full indirect cost returns to the University with a minimumsubmission equivalent to 10 times the amount of the internal grant received – an incredible return on your investment!

Summer Faculty Mentoring Fellowship Program This program provides funding for faculty conducting summer research and scholarly activities with undergraduates. Eligible faculty are those not receiving funding for summer stipends from other sources to support their mentorship ofundergraduates (i.e. grants, etc.).

Faculty Mini-Grant Program This program provides monetary awards to encourage faculty to develop research, scholarly or creative programs that provide the potential for sustained professional development and increased external support and scholarly output, especially in areas that traditionally have difficulty securing funding.

Last year, Salisbury University launched its We Are SU fundraising campaign. At that time, theOffice of Graduate Studies and Research (GSR) outlined the areas where support could enhance thealready amazing work being done by our campus community and open doors for new and excitingpossibilities. As this 10th anniversary edition of Re:Search (and the nine issues that preceded it)illuminates, GSR and our faculty and staff are doing amazing things – imagine how much furtherwe could go with your support! Here are the areas where your support can make a real difference:

Graduate Studies and Research:Invest in Excellence

RESEARCH & GRADUATE STUDIES OPPORTUNITIES campaign.salisbury.edu

Why Give to SU?

Transform Tomorrow Together, we can provide scholarships andresources to unlock students’ limitless potential.

Shape Success Together, we can help dedicated faculty andstaff open doors and inspire unequaledexperiences.

Create ConnectionsTogether, we can enrich collaborations wovenacross the region, strengthening ourcommunities.

The Campaign For Salisbury University

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CAMPAIGN SUPPORT

2020 • GS&R • 26

INVEST IN EXCEPTIONAL GRADUATE STUDENTS

Graduate Fellowship Program These funds are dedicated to directly supporting educational costs for SU graduate students. Specifically, funds support graduatestudent tuition, along with providing critical resources for graduate students to conduct research and travel for professionaldevelopment.

Graduate Research and Presentation (RAP) Grants Awarded twice per academic year, these competitive RAP grants help support graduate research endeavors related to developingand conducting research, with a faculty supervisor, and the presentation of research/scholarly pursuits at meetings.

Summer Student Research Scholars Program These funds provide financial support directly to students (graduate and undergraduate) that are conducting an active agenda ofsummer research and scholarly activities with a faculty mentor.

INVEST IN EXCEPTIONAL UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS

Office of Undergraduate Research and Creative Activity (OURCA)OURCA is the administrative home for all aspects of undergraduate research. It serves as a leading force to cultivate a vibrantenvironment of undergraduate scholarship through supporting faculty-student mentorship at all levels. This office helps leadseveral University-wide programs of excellence including coordinating SU student participation in the National Conference ofUndergraduate Research, the SU Student Research Conference, Posters on the Bay Conference, the Undergraduate ResearchFellows (URF) program, Mentor Match network and various summer research programs.

Undergraduate Research Fellows Program This program is dedicated to the “best and brightest” undergraduatestudent researchers. Based on a competitive selection process, theseoutstanding students are chosen annually to serve as ambassadors,recruiting new students and serving as role models and mentors forcurrent students. URF students are dedicated to all aspects of research,scholarship and service learning.

Summer Student Research Scholars Program These funds provide financial support directly to students (graduate andundergraduate) that are conducting an active agenda of summerresearch and scholarly activities with a faculty mentor.

University Student Academic Research Award These competitive funds support undergraduate research projects, directed by a faculty mentor, that may include researchdevelopment, supplies and conference presentation.

Laridae Student Research Journal This online and print academic journal features the top interdisciplinary research and creative activity of SU undergraduatestudents. Through a three-step review process, outstanding scholarship is selected for publication. All interested students areinvited to participate in the journal organization to discuss scholarly work. v

How to Give Please contact us to discuss how you cansupport graduate studies and research atSalisbury University:Amy [email protected]: 410-677-0084Cell: 410-829-6495

Learn more about We Are SU: The Campaign for Salisbury University:campaign.salisbury.edu

A copy of the current financial statement of the Salisbury University Foundation, Inc. is available by writing 1308 Camden Avenue, Salisbury MD 21801or on our website, www.salisbury.edu/foundation. Documents and information submitted under the Maryland Solicitations Act are also available, for thecost of postage and copies, from the Maryland Secretary of State, State House, Annapolis MD 21401, 410-974-5534.

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27 • GS&R • 2020

INTERNAL GRANT FUNDING

The SU Faculty Mini-Grant Program provides awards up to $2,500 to encourage faculty to develop research, scholarly or creative programs that provide the potential for sustained professional development and “seed funds” to secure additional extramural support. The following is an overview of this year’s awardees.

Faculty Mini-Grant Program

Measuring UndergraduateSocial Work Students’ Valuesand Understanding of Privilegeand OppressionRebecca AnthonySocial Work

Experimenting the Human:Experimental Music andTechnological PosthumanismDouglas BarrettCommunication

Effects of Saltwater Intrusionon Plant and InsectBiodiversity in Coastal ForestsXuan ChenBiology

Establishing and Sustaining aResearch Practice PartnershipBetween Salisbury Universityand Wicomico County Board ofEducationMaida FinchDoctoral Studies in Literacy

Caregiving Strain AmongParents of Children withDisabilities: The Protective Roleof Resilience Factors inParental Health OutcomesHeidi FritzPsychology

Korean Immigrant Father’sExperienceKyoung-Rae Jung Psychology

Sri Lanka: “SoleRepresentatives” in Peace TalksIgnaciyas SoosaipillaiConflict Analysis and Dispute Resolution

Understanding the Preferencesof Marylanders for Birds inTheir Backyard andNeighborhoodSonja Kolstoe Economics and Finance, Environmental Studies

Commission to Present NewWork at New York CityChoreographers’ ShowcaseHelen MyersMusic, Theatre and Dance

Research on CounterprotestDuring 2016-2017Impeachment of President ParkGuen-hye of South KoreaTaehyun NamPolitical Science

Research in Britain’s VariousArchives on Colonial andPrincely PowersShruti PatelHistory

Assessing Feminist CommunityPsychology PedagogyMichèle SchlehoferPsychology

An Exploratory Project on theInfluence of Dance andMovement on the Wellness of Women of ColorVictoria VenableSocial Work

Commission to PresentNew Work at New YorkCity Choreographers’Showcase

Effects of Saltwater Intrusion on Plant and InsectBiodiversity in Coastal Forests

Caregiving Strain Among Parents of Children with Disabilities:

The Protective Role of Resilience Factors in Parental Health Outcomes

Understanding thePreferences of

Marylanders forBirds in TheirBackyard andNeighborhood

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2020 • GS&R • 28

Graduate Research and Presentation (RAP) Grant Program(Spring and Fall 2019)The Office of Graduate Studies and Research provides research grants, up to $500, to help graduate students develop research and scholarly projects withfaculty supervisors and present their projects at various conferences and meetings. The program enables students to receive recognition for their work andprovides networking opportunities and professional development in their field of study.

Determining Potential ResourceCompetition Based on StableIsotope Analyses of Diet in theEndangered Spotted Turtle(Clemmys guttata) and OtherNative Turtle Species Found inthe Same HabitatEaqan Chaudhry, M.S. Applied BiologyHabitat selection in several species isdetermined by both environmental conditionsand interspecific interactions. My researchexplores the extent to which each of thesefactors influences habitat usage in theendangered spotted turtle (Clemmys guttata).Interspecific interactions were investigatedthrough two avenues. I compared the presenceand absence of spotted turtles in ponds withthat of more common native turtle species.However, the relative coexistence of multipleturtle species in one pond does not definitivelydelineate the type of interaction. To elucidatethe specific interactions among turtle species, Ianalyzed overlap in habitat and diet betweenspecies using mark-recapture trapping surveysand stable isotope analysis. Stable isotopeanalyses can be used to determine if similarcarbon and nitrogen isotopes profiles arepresent, which could imply similarity in diet.While several studies have looked at habitatselection in endangered turtles, none to myknowledge have used stable isotope analysisto elucidate the potential for speciesinteractions between endangered and morecommon pond turtle species.

How Multimodal Noise ImpactsSignal Recognition and MateChoice in the Túngara FrogDerek Coss, M.S. Applied BiologyAn environment’s soundscape often contains adiverse set of taxa that are signalingacoustically and overlap in vocal frequencies.This can potentially mask signals of interest forspecies trying to communicate in theenvironment. Dense aggregations of frogs arean example of this and pose a challenge forfemales listening for signals from potentialmates. In the túngara frog, male chorusesproduce a cacophony of calls against abackdrop of rainforest noise. This noise mayconsist of both vocal (acoustic advertisementcalls) and visual (inflations in their vocal sac)components. Females face the challenge ofdeciphering all these signals and choosing thepreferred call. In quiet conditions, femalesconsistently choose the most attractive call.However, when those calls are broadcast in anoisy environment, the preference begins toshift as complexity of the environmentincreases, suggesting that sensory processes inthe brain become overwhelmed. One methodevolved in animals to enhance detectability ofthe message is multimodal signaling. However,multiple sensory inputs may alter perception ofthe signal. My project focuses onunderstanding how noise generated fromconspecifics and heterospecifics affects theability of females to distinguish betweenattractive and unattractive male vocalizations.

The Novel Role of PerineurialGlia in Peripheral DebrisClearance and Regeneration in Danio rerioColin Dunnam, M.S. Applied BiologyNerves play an indispensable role infacilitating communication between the brainand the environment. When these nerves aredamaged, they undergo a well-definedschedule of Wallerian degeneration comprisedof a latent period followed by axonalfragmentation. In the peripheral nervoussystem (PNS), rapid debris clearance precedesregeneration of the nerve and its components.However, these clearance mechanisms do notappear to extend to the central nervoussystem (CNS), possibly explaining whyregeneration in the CNS is often prevented.Understanding the molecular mechanismsunderlying successful peripheral debrisclearance may offer clues in how to stimulatecentral debris clearance. Here, we plan toinvestigate the debris clearing capability of theperineurium, a population of glial cells in thePNS that has recently been implicated in theclearance of debris following laser transectionof peripheral nerves. This investigationinvolves the use of hyperglycemic zebrafish asa model of diabetic peripheral neuropathy, anestablished method of eliciting peripheralnerve damage. A morpholino oligonucleotidedesigned to hinder the action of a geneinvolved in perineurium formation will beimplemented to investigate haw debrisclearance following hyperglycemia-inducedneuropathy is impacted by the loss of thisglial population.

Comparing Total MercuryConcentration (THg) and TrophicPosition in Wild-Caught andCommercially Farmed Cobia(Rachycentron canadum) usingStable Isotope AnalysisGarrett Hansen, M.S. Applied BiologyCobia, or Rachycentron canadum, are pelagic,migratory fish found in tropical and subtropicalwaters across the world, except for the easternPacific. Cobia are a fast growing and rapidlymaturing species capable of batch spawningwith high fecundity. Due to their rapid growthrates and batch fecundity, cobia are seen aspotential aquaculture candidates in NorthAmerica and East Asia. However, as strongpelagic predators, cobia are susceptible to thebioaccumulation of mercury in a pelagic foodweb. This study aims to elucidate the potentialfor cobia aquaculture operations to harvest andmarket cobia with mercury levels below theconsumption advisories set by the EPA and theFDA of 0.3 ppm and 0.5- I .5 ppm,respectively. Cobia reared in aquacultureoperations are typically harvested after oneyear of growth, and therefore may not besubject to the same bioaccumulation processesas wild-caught cobia.

Continues on next page...


29 • GS&R • 2020

Emergent Bilinguals’Transactions with MultipleGenres of TextsNicole Harrison, Ed.D. ContemporaryCurriculum Theory and Instruction:LiteracyThis presentation explores using RetrospectiveMiscue Analysis data to explore how diversereaders transact with various texts and supportthe literacy needs of young readers. Findingsinclude the importance of readers’ awarenessof the reading process; implementing anauthentic, socio-culturally relevant pedagogy;and the effects assessments have on students’reading. This session explores authentic andsocio-culturally relevant literacy education(Ladson-Billings,1995). Miscue studies haveproven to be useful for understanding thereading processes of diverse readers(Tatlonghari, 1984; Francis, 2004; Ebe,2010; Kim & Goodman, 2001; Goodman,Watson & Burke, 2005; Mikulec, 2015;Kabuto, 2016). This presentation exploresmultiple ways in which Retrospective MiscueAnalysis can support and revalue diverselearners. My theoretical framework is groundedin a transactional and socio-psycholinguisticmodel of the reading process (Goodman,Watson & Burke, 2005). A comprehensivemodel of reading can help students, teachers,parents and administrators understand literacyas a constructive meaning-making process.

Using High-Resolution DigitalElevation Models in theBrazilian Amazon to DetermineWatershed CharacteristicsImpacting Dry Season WaterAvailability for Local FarmersKyle Kim, M.S. Geographic InformationSystems ManagementDeforestation has reduced annual averagerainfall and increased dry season length in thesouthwestern region of the Brazilian Amazon,directly affecting water availability for localfarmers. Livestock and aquaculture productionin the region are heavily reliant on surfacewater, which is impacted by precipitationchange as well watershed characteristics andneighboring water toe. Will farmers haveenough water to sustain their farms throughthe dry season? What watershed and landcover characteristics are necessary to enableyear round surface water for farms to remainproductive? Three regions in the state ofRondonia, Brazil, have been selected to answerthese questions by constructing watershedswith high-resolution Digital Elevation Models(DEMs). The DEMs will be obtained, mosaicedand processed to eliminate errors like gaps andsinks using Quantum Geographic InformationSystems (QGIS) and Grass GIS. The watershedtool will generate flow direction, flowaccumulation and designate boundaries for thewatersheds in the mosaiced DEM. Dry seasonsatellite imagery will be obtained and classifiedto determine land cover for the region. Imagepixels classified as water will be merged withgenerated watersheds to calculate the numberof impoundments within each watershed andthe minimum size of a watershed that cansustain a year-round impoundment.

Do Management PracticesAffect Soil Health of DifferentLandscapes within an UrbanForest? A Closer Look into theSalisbury University ArboretumAnthony L. LaBarck Jr., M.S. Applied BiologySince the turn of the 20th century,urbanization has increased dramatically,displacing natural landscapes and negativelyimpacting the ecological services provided (Lal& Lorenz, 2009). If urbanization is inevitable,it is important to create and manage urbanareas in a way that promotes ecologicalservice. The city of Salisbury currently supportsmany major highways and constructions, and itserves as a focal point for industry, import anddistribution on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.However, in the face of rapid urbanization,Salisbury University has created a flourishingarboretum with over 150 unique tree andwoody plant species (Briand personalcommunication). Previous studies on theSalisbury University Arboretum have elucidatedthe effects of different management practiceson various physicochemical properties of itssoils. It was shown that areas with minimaldisturbance and greater plant and treecoverage were host to healthier soils; withgreater ecosystem service capabilities such ascarbon sequestration (LaBarck, et al., 2018).This project further supports these findings byincluding the description of soil microbialcommunities in the overall analysis of soilhealth. To promote and improve thesustainability of managed urban forests, it isimportant to understand the impact of differentmanagerial practices on soil health.

Ants of Assateague Island andan Examination of FeedingPreferences and Trophic Levelfor Abundant SpeciesDenise Manole, M.S. Applied BiologyAnts in general play an important role in theecosystem, as some are ecosystem engineers,herbivores, detritovores, seed dispersers andprey to other organisms. Currently, there are73 species of ants (Hymenoptera) reportedfrom Maryland’s Eastern Shore, yet very littleis known about the feeding preferences ofthese ants and the relationships they sharewithin the food web. We propose to use pairedtransects of 100 m. on Assateague Island,Worcester County, MD, to examine the antbiodiversity and their feeding habits. We willuse pitfall traps for biodiversity studies in theforest and dunes habitats, and hand collectionmethods for stable isotype analyses. Stableisotype analysis will allow us to analyze thenutritional ecology of ants and determinefeeding preferences. Our research will providevaluable diversity information for AssateagueIsland, as well as baseline data of the feedingpreferences of ground feeding ants.


Do Management Practices Affect Soil Health of DifferentLandscapes within an Urban Forest? A Closer Look intothe Salisbury University Arboretum

Emergent Bilinguals’Transactions with Multiple Genres

of Texts

Ants of Assateague Island and anExamination of Feeding Preferences and

Trophic Level for Abundant Species


2020 • GS&R • 30

The Impact of Prescribed Burnson Bat Populations in CoastalPlain Forests of the EasternUnited StatesChandini Narang, M.S. Applied BiologyBats have been faced with devastating threatsthat endanger their survival rates, the largestof these being White-nose Syndrome. It hasbeen suggested that there are ways tomitigate the impacts of White-nose Syndromeby creating high-quality habitats throughprescribed burns. Prescribed burns wereimplemented by Native Americans, but anextended history of fire suppression haschanged forests from their pre-colonial state.Prescribed burns, in recent studies, have beenshown to create beneficial habitat changes, butmay also be detrimental in some instances.Since much is still unknown about the effectsof prescribed burns, we aim to contribute tothe knowledge about the effects of prescribedburns on the Coastal Plain. This study will alsoinclude a survey of local bat species in centralDelmarva, especially of the northern long-earedbat in the genus Myotis, which is heavilyaffected by White-nose Syndrome. This studyincludes acoustic monitoring and bat capturethrough mist-nets to analyze if there is astatistical difference between post-burn forestsand their unburned counterparts and todocument the presence of the genus Myotis.Ultimately, the study aims to aid futureconservation efforts to protect populations andto identify local roosting sites and hibernacula.

Investigating Predation of theEndangered Spotted Turtle(Clemmys guttata) in TheirNortheastern RangeAmanda Rocker, M.S. Applied BiologyReptiles are experiencing declines in terms ofthe numbers of populations and also decreasesin population size. Yet, there remains deficientdata to understand population trends in manyreptile species, let alone understanding thespecific causes of declines. One decliningspecies that has not been comprehensivelyassessed is the spotted turtle (Clemmysguttata), a freshwater species found inwetlands in eastern North America. The spottedturtle is classified as endangered under theIUCN Red List and is currently under review forfederal listing in the Endangered Species Act.Populations have continued to decline withpotential threats including predation, collectionfor the pet trade and habitat loss. One of theprimary aims for my research is to understandthe level of potential predation for spottedturtles in Maryland and Delaware. This includesanalyzing the predator-caused injuries seen oncaptured turtles along with the abundance ofpredators in their habitat. This will give me anidea of what preys upon spotted turtles in theirnortheast region and the degree of predation.My findings could indicate a need forprotection from over-predation to allow thepopulation a chance to recover.

Creating a Smooth Transition:Supporting First GenerationCollege StudentsJacquelyn Rogers, M.A. ConflictAnalysis and Dispute ResolutionThe culture of higher education is changing.Throughout the past century, higher educationhas become more diverse and the needs ofstudents have changed. Higher education is nolonger composed of upper class, white males.Because of this, more students who are thefirst in their family to attend higher educationare pursuing post-secondary degrees. Thesefirst generation college students are facingunique challenges as they attempt to navigatethis new educational environment. In thispaper, research will be conducted using HolyFamily University in Philadelphia, PA, as a casestudy to create best practices to support firstgeneration college students throughout theinstitutional orientation program.

Understanding Pre-ServiceTeachers’ Tutoring Experienceswith ChildrenDiana Schultz, Ed.D. ContemporaryCurriculum Theory and Instruction:LiteracyUtilizing a university literacy center, professorsand doctoral students/classroom teachersmentored pre-service teachers as they tutoredchildren from the community in reading andwriting. These pre-service teachers wererequired to assess, hold family conferences andcreate lessons to focus on their tutees’ funds ofknowledge. The purpose of this presentation isto share insights into the learning experiencesof pre-service teachers and to examine howthey reflected on their own learningexperiences when they were assigned to tutora K-eighth grade reader in the literacy center.This inquiry hopes to reveal critical issuesregarding pre-service teachers.

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Photo: Ryan von LindenNew York Department of

Environmental Conservation

The Impact of Prescribed Burns on Bat Populations inCoastal Plain Forests of the Eastern United States

Investigating Predation of the Endangered Spotted Turtle(Clemmys guttata) in Their Northeastern Range

Creating a Smooth Transition: SupportingFirst Generation College Students

Understanding Pre-Service Teachers’Tutoring Experiences with Children


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How Local and LandscapeHabitat Factors AffectBreeding-Pond Use andOccupancy of the Eastern TigerSalamander (Ambystomatigrinum) in Maryland andDelawareHannah Small, M.S. Applied BiologyDetermining which abiotic and biotic factorsinfluence habitat preference for a species ofconcern can optimize conservation efforts forboth land managers and financial decisionmakers. I intend to determine how thesefactors at local and landscape levels affectbreeding-pond preference and occupancy forthe state-endangered Eastern tiger salamander(Ambystoma tigrinum) in Maryland andDelaware. The variables measured includewater quality, pond area, canopy and land-usetypes surrounding a pond, such as contiguousforest, agriculture, roads and proximity to otherwetlands. These variables will then becompared to population (deme) size estimatesand pond occupancy from mark-recapture andegg mass surveys to determine, if any,relationships between habitat type and use.Understanding the relationships betweenpopulation measures and habitat characteristicsthat affect A. tigrinum breeding is important tomaking management decisions for this speciesof conservation concern. This research can thenbe expanded on to study A. tigrinumthroughout its range and other endangeredpond-breeding amphibians.

Using Drone Technology toDetect Warm-bloodedMammals Under HeavyForested Canopy on Maryland’sEastern ShoreKathleen Stafford, M.S. GeographicInformation Systems ManagementIn Maryland, there are over 90 mammalianspecies documented. On the Eastern Shore ofMaryland, common large mammals include thewhite-tailed deer, the Virginia opossum, redfox, groundhogs, beavers, muskrats, thestriped skunk and raccoons. Determining thepopulation size of these species is animportant task for wildlife organizations. Inmany studies, traditional line transects havebeen used to estimate mammalian populationsizes. However, these transects are expensive,can prove very cumbersome and affect thelocal vegetation. A more innovative way toconduct similar types of data collection is byutilizing unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) andthermal infrared camera techniques. Mammalsgive off high heat signatures that can easily bedetected using thermal infrared imageprocessing at high-spatial resolutions. However,when collecting data over forest, the heavyforest canopy introduces challenges. Whileflying a UAV over a heavy forest canopy, thethick layer of canopy vegetation can partiallyblock or limit thermal signatures from beingdetected, resulting in incorrect or limited datacollection. Using LIDAR processing techniquesand UAV technology, multiple UAV flights willbe documented over heavy forest canopy todetermine if mammals can be detectedthrough the canopy and under whichconditions are the best results recorded.

Understandings Pre-ServiceTeachers’ Tutoring Experienceswith ChildrenWilliam Tignor, Ed.D. ContemporaryCurriculum Theory and Instruction:LiteracyUtilizing a university literacy center, professorsand doctoral students/classroom teachersmentored pre-service teachers as they tutoredchildren from the community in reading andwriting. These pre-service teachers wererequired to assess, hold family conferences andcreate lessons to focus on their tutees’ fundsof knowledge. The purpose of this presentationis to share insights into the learningexperiences of pre-service teachers and toexamine how they reflected on their ownlearning experiences when they were assignedto tutor a K-eighth grade reader in the literacycenter. This inquiry hopes to reveal criticalissues regarding pre-service teachers.

Mediation and ConflictResolution ProfessionalDevelopmentMarissa Walker, M.A. Conflict Analysisand Dispute ResolutionThe grant allows me to attend the 16th AnnualMediation Training Institute (MTI) at EckerdCollege in St. Petersburg, FL. The conference isa full two days and offers several differentspeakers, topics and several networkingopportunities that are important in the conflictresolution community. Topics covered include“The Neurological Impacts of Stress,”“Everyday Peacemaking” and “The Impact ofMoney on Conflict Management Mediation.”By attending, I am able to expand myknowledge of alternative dispute resolutionand access to networking opportunities.

How Literacy Is ConstructedDuring Team MeetingsApril Winterson, Ed.D. ContemporaryCurriculum Theory and Instruction:LiteracyThe purpose of this case study is to understandhow educators (administrators, teachers,specialists) at one early elementary schoolconstruct literacy in their professional dialogue.The specific goal of this study is to gain insightinto the oral and written discourse aroundliteracy during grade level literacy meetings.Data will be collected through direct andparticipant observations, interviews, anddocuments. Data will be analyzed using criticaldiscourse analysis methods (Gee, 2011) inorder to gain insight into the oral and writtendiscourse around literacy that occurs duringgrade level meetings, social relations, identity,knowledge and how power is negotiated(Siegel, 2018). This study is being conductedas a pilot project for my dissertation under theguidance of co-PI and faculty advisor Dr. JudithFranzak.v

How Local and Landscape Habitat Factors Affect Breeding-PondUse and Occupancy of the Eastern Tiger Salamander(Ambystoma tigrinum) in Maryland and Delaware

Mediation and Conflict ResolutionProfessional Development

How Literacy Is Constructed During Team Meetings


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Korean Diaspora across the World: Homeland in History,Memory, Imagination, Media, and RealityEdited by Eun-Jeong Han, Assistant Professor, CommunicationThis edited volume analyzes the Korean diaspora across the world and traces the meaning and theperformance of homeland. The contributors explore different types of discourses among Koreandiaspora across the world, such as personal/familial narratives, oral/life histories, public discoursesand media discourses. They also examine the notion of “space” to diasporic experiences, arguingmeanings of space/place for Korean diaspora are increasingly multifaceted. Lexington Books, 2019

Eloquence Embodied: Nonverbal Communication among Frenchand Indigenous Peoples in the Americasby Céline Carayon, Associate Professor, HistoryTaking a fresh look at the first two centuries of French colonialism in the Americas, this bookanswers the long-standing question of how and how well Indigenous Americans and the Europeanswho arrived on their shores communicated with each other. French explorers and colonists in the16th century noticed that Indigenous peoples from Brazil to Canada used signs to communicate. TheFrench, in response, quickly embraced the nonverbal as a means to overcome cultural and languagebarriers. Carayon's close examination of their accounts enables her to recover these sophisticatedNative practices of embodied expressions.

In a colonial world where communication and trust were essential but complicated by amultitude of languages, intimate and sensory expressions ensured that French colonists andIndigenous peoples understood each other well. Understanding, in turn, bred both genuine personalbonds and violent antagonisms. As Carayon demonstrates, nonverbal communication shapedIndigenous responses and resistance to colonial pressures across the Americas just as it fueled theimperial French imagination. Challenging the notion of colonial America as a site ofmisunderstandings and insurmountable cultural clashes, Carayon shows that Natives andnewcomers used nonverbal means to build relationships before the rise of linguistic fluency – and, crucially, well afterward. University of North Carolina Press, 2019

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During the annual SU Student ResearchConference in April, nearly 200 studentsshared their research on topics rangingfrom health care, to the sciences, to theliberal arts, to business, to education. Atthe conference, Dr. Jessica Clark,Biological Sciences Department, wasawarded the 2019 Outstanding ResearchMentor Award. Clark is known for herzebrafish research – and the number ofstudents she enthusiastically engages inher lab. She also is co-director of theOffice of Undergraduate Research andCreative Activity (OURCA) and co-chair ofthe SU Student Research Conference(SUSRC).SUSRC

2019

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SAVE THE DATE!

SU Student Research

Conference 2020

Friday, April 24

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Office of Graduate Studies and Research

1101 Camden AvenueSalisbury, MD 21801-6860

Address Service Requested

MASTER’S PROGRAMSn Applied Biology (M.S.)n Applied Health Physiology (M.S.)n Athletic Training (M.S.A.T.)n Business Administration (M.B.A.)*n Conflict Analysis and Dispute Resolution (M.A.)n Curriculum and Instruction (M.Ed.)*n Educational Leadership (M.Ed.)*n English (M.A.)n Geographic Information Systems

Management (M.S.)*n History (M.A.)n Mathematics Education (M.S.M.E.)n Nursing (M.S.N.)*n Reading Specialist (M.Ed.)n Social Work (M.S.W.)*n Teaching (M.A.T.)

POST-BACCALAUREATE CERTIFICATESn Health Care Management*n Higher Educationn Teaching English to Speakers

of Other Languages (TESOL)

POST-MASTER CERTIFICATESn Advanced Study in Educational Leadershipn Educational Leadershipn Literacy Educator

DOCTORAL PROGRAMSn Education - Contemporary Curriculum

Theory and Instruction: Literacy (Ed.D.)n Nursing Practice (D.N.P.)*

POST-DOCTORATE CERTIFICATEn Family Nurse Practitioner (Post-D.N.P.)*

Advance Your Career With An Advanced Degree

Our graduate programs help you achieve greater mastery of yourspecialization and professional knowledge through coursework,hands-on experience and research. Some are even offered (either completely or partially) online*!Learn more: www.salisbury.edu/gradstudiesContact us: [email protected]

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