2020 Announcements
Accepting Applications for the Relis Brown Outstanding Senior Award
If you would like to be considered for the Relis Brown Outstanding Senior Award, please submit an application by 5pm of March 29, 2021. See the attachment for more information! Outstanding Senior Award 2021
New Graduate Student Class, Fall 2020
The department is excited to welcome our new students to the Graduate Program. These students hail from many undergraduate schools including: Cheyney University, University of Delaware, Delaware Valley College, Lincoln University, University of Maryland (College Park), Millersville University, State University of New York (Environmental Science and Forestry), Penn State (State College), Penn State (York), University of Phoenix, and West Chester University. We wish each of them well on their start and continued success! Note that this cohort will the first to begin fully under the new WCU BIO MS program based on 30 credits, down from our former program based on 36 total credits.
A special message to the graduate student class of 2020
CONGRATULATIONS to the Graduating Graduate Student Class of 2020!
Four students received their M.S. in Biology degrees this spring. Octavia Allen, Patricia Butler, and Tran Nguyen, all worked with Dr. John Pisciotta, while Jason Miller worked with Dr. Jessica Schedlbauer. The department wishes them the best of luck as they move on to medical school, doctoral programs, and research based careers.
A special message to the class of 2020
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2020 News
Dr. Pagán interviewed on The Wild Life Podcast
"Tattoos, superheroes, opportunities, regeneration, Men in Black, phallic fencing, 1st brains, discoveries, cocaine, addiction, belly button mouths, and so much more. So, wherever you are, maybe a floaty in a pool gliding around like a flatworm in a petri dish, get ready for our conversation with Dr. Oné R. Pagán ! His enthusiasm will have you hooked. By the end, you'll never want to stop talking about flatworms in any and all social settings, no matter how appropriate or inappropriate."
To hear more, click the following link: https://thewildlife.captivate.fm/episode/the-man-with-the-planarian-with-dr-one-r-pagan-
Dr. Pagán featured in Ologies Podcast
"Planarian expert Dr. Oné Pagán shares his infectious enthusiasm for the teeny tiny ribbons of flesh that are helping scientists understand addiction, limb regeneration, stem cells, immortality and maybe aliens though probably not aliens."
To hear more, click the following link: https://www.alieward.com/ologies/planariology
Dr. Pagán interviewed by Main Line Today
Dr. Pagán was interviewed by Main Line Today on his use of science to entertain and educate. Below is an except from the article:
"Oné Pagán sees it as the ultimate challenge faced by any college professor: Holding the interests of students who in many cases don’t want to be there. It’s nothing personal. His students seem to like him. For most, however, his “Basic Biological Sciences for Non-Majors” course at West Chester University is a way to satisfy the school’s science requirement. “I’ve got to keep them entertained as well as educated,” says Pagán."
Dr. Frank Fish Awarded $300000 Grant
Dr. Frank Fish, biology, was awarded a grant for $300,000 from the Office of Naval Research for the project “Locomotor transitions of an amphibious system: Biological to robotic”. The grant is in collaboration with researchers from George Washington University and Drexel University.
New Faculty members
Dr. Benjamin Chambers
Dr. Benjamin Chambers will be joining the Department of Biology as an Assistant Professor in August 2020. His research interests focus on the interaction between influenza virus and the innate immune response. The Chambers Lab will use CRISPR knockout technology and manipulations to the viral genome to investigate the host cell factors required for non-lytic clearance of influenza virus. His teaching responsibilities will include Introductory Microbiology (BIO 204) and Immunology (BIO 465).
Dr. Chambers received his Ph.D. in Microbiology, Virology, and Parasitology from the University of Pennsylvania (2016) and his B.S. in Microbiology from Penn State University (2012). He trained under Dr. Nicholas Heaton at the Duke University School of Medicine during his postdoctoral research, focusing on cellular pathways required for cells to survive direct infection with influenza virus.
